Sugar-Trail
You and your bikes will mount a small vehicle which will transport you to the starting point of our tour being around 7,5 km out of the city of Ba on 30 meters of height. Leisurely the tour begins – you follow the main road and roll along. Like this your body can adjust to the tropical climate and you can get a feeling for “Cycle Fiji”.
You pass the small village of Nailaga, let behind turn-offs and always go straight ahead on a more or less flat and gentle stretch. On your right you will get a good view onto Rarawei Sugar Mill, one of Fiji’s biggest sugar mills. Shortly after that you cross the Ba River and turn right. After a total of 15 km you leave the sealed road – now we can start the real tour!
You follow the rails of the “Sugar Train”, for miles around nothing else than “Sugar Cane”. A small road takes you through plantations – a really pleasant drive. The only vehicles that will pass your way will be the fully laden train and a few packed vans.
We go on crossing a small creek, here we will
climb the first small ascent. But still it’s not that arduous – enjoy the view
onto the mountains in front of you! A little bit later we reach the first
steeper point which is sealed again because of the heavy vehicles – we
want to go easy on you, so that you can gradually get used to it ...
From a lookout-point on 180 meters you can enjoy wonderful views onto the farmland, the cane-plantations, the coast of Nadi, Lautoka, Ba, etc. and the black lava-rocks in the middle of the whole scenery. You won’t believe that all this is Fiji!
We follow the street upwards and pass through the tended plantation-
and farmland of western Fiji until we reach a small stream again. Here
we make a little lunch-break in the shadow of the trees. Maybe one of
the Fijians living in the houses around here will join us ...
Fully refreshed you will, for the first time, experience the hilly side
of Fiji. Deeper and deeper you make your way into the interior of
Viti Levu. For today, the highest spot will be on 256 meters. A few
minutes later you can glance onto the village of Navala where you
will stay for the night.
Today you covered a distance of 32 km, 651 meters of it being uphill, 598
meters being downhill.
According to the cycle-computer „CycloTour“ the distance was given the mark “3 stars”, judged by the total meters of height.
Navala
The village Navala lies in the middle of the highlands of Viti Levu
in 84 meters altitude. On the one side there are the mountains, on the
other side the Ba River meanders its way through the landscape. The houses
are build like a promenade along the riverside, the village houses a
total of approximately 800 Fijians.
This is the one and only village in Fiji, where all the houses are built
of straw – the traditional Bure-style – and where no other
types of houses are allowed to be built. The school building is the only
exception.
This picturesque village gives you the opportunity to experience the
real Fijian way of living. You can find out how to cook a superb meal
in the earth-oven, participate in a traditional Kava-ceremony, watch
Meke-dances and whatever else makes a real authentic evening in the village.
Don’t forget to hand your “Sevusevu” to the chief!