Maybe bday dawned bright and sunny. We’d planned to ride out and do a loop, coming back to the campsite at Longford.
Ultimately we went for a short wander around town and had a very nice lunch at JJ’s bakery.
There we also learned of the public roads race track that ran around Longford. It ran from 1953 until 1968 and hosted both cars and bikes. The Tasman Formula 1 series ran here a few times, including some of the gear drivers of the time. Jackie Stewart, Francois Cervert among them.
The post office and supermarket were also visited. We needed some stamps for post cards, they were on sale as it is Christmas. Go figure. 70 cents off. Don’t get to excited, you’re not all getting one!
On Tuesday we got up, had a quick breakfast and got ready for a ride. Although the day started and ended sunny the main part of the day saw us riding under grey clouds and in cooler temperatures than the last couple of days.
No vents open in our jackets and thicker gloves were the choice after an hour or so.
The roads were fantastic, the scenery beautifull. All be it not so good for photos due to the overcast skies. That’s my excuse for not taking many.
250 miles is a long way on twisty roads through hills nd mountains but well worth the effort. It was to be our last full day on Tasmania.
We packed up in a leisurely fashion on Wednesday morning, the warm sunshine drying the overnight dampness off of the tent nicely.
Having now notched up 51 nights in our tent, it could be its last. Unless we camp between Melbourne and Sydney we’ve decided to heed the advice from the internet that the New Zealand bio hazard teams will probably not let us enter the country with a secondhand tent. Bugger!
We grabbed a late breakfast at Banjos Cafe next to the supermarket and met a chap that had been working in the burger van at the race track on Sunday.
He recognised our bikes, as an F800GS rider himself I guess that we’re an easy spot, with our foreign ‘Rego’ plates and stickered boxes.
He gave us a cracking route suggestion for our ride back to Devonport for the ferry.
It took us through Launceston where we’d planned to visit Cataract Gorge. The satnav took us to a housing estate and the signs seemed to peter out. We saw it three times as we crossed the river twice by the old bridge, once in each direction, and once from the new bridge when we’d decided that towns weren’t our thing and ‘let’s just go!’.
We went.
The Frankford Highway took us most of the way to the port. Lovely sweeping bends through farmland and forest under blue skies, with a long interlude for tea and cake what wasn’t to like??
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
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OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
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OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
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OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
The closer to Devoport we got the cloudier the sky and stronger the wind.
At the docks we saw some of the Holden Monaro V8’s that we’d seen on our outward journey and a couple that we’d been speaking to back at the campsite.
The talk was of the weather. 8 meter waves were mentioned. Pictures or our bikes falling over came into my head.
Then the real wave talk took over, 1.5 meters. It’ll be fine!!
The 8 meter chap had had a beer or three so I guess that we can count his gloomy outlook as ‘pubtalk’.
Loading on to the ferry was an unhurried and calm affair as per the outward crossing.
Our bikes we lashed down for us. Our crashbars serving as excellent strapping points.
This morning the bikes were upright and the friendly deckhands had already unstrapped them.
Dinner on board was tasty and surprisingly good value. Being a buffet though we ended up eating to much. When am I going to learn???
The swell made the boat move a fair bit but by the time morning had arrived it was calm. A good nights sleep. Just what you need before a ride in the pouring rain.
And boy was it raining. From news reports we’ve read, Melbourne received it’s december quota of rain by 9 o’clock this morning!!
We decided to just take the motorway out of the city which turned out to be a toll road. All paid by electronic tags, which we don’t have. My satnav normally lets me know if there’s a toll on the route but obviously the maps that I bought for it earlier this year are out of date.
Never mind, we’ll see what happens.
We got off of the dual carriageway that the motorway had become as the weather had improved a fair bit. Plus that’s the way the satnav suggested. Nice though, despite some roadworks that was without tarmac so leaving the bikes filthy.
So, here we are in Sale. Only 500 ish miles to Sydney. We’re not at the end of the lap yet.....
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
At the docks we saw some of the Holden Monaro V8’s that we’d seen on our outward journey and a couple that we’d been speaking to back at the campsite.
The talk was of the weather. 8 meter waves were mentioned. Pictures or our bikes falling over came into my head.
Then the real wave talk took over, 1.5 meters. It’ll be fine!!
The 8 meter chap had had a beer or three so I guess that we can count his gloomy outlook as ‘pubtalk’.
Loading on to the ferry was an unhurried and calm affair as per the outward crossing.
Our bikes we lashed down for us. Our crashbars serving as excellent strapping points.
This morning the bikes were upright and the friendly deckhands had already unstrapped them.
Dinner on board was tasty and surprisingly good value. Being a buffet though we ended up eating to much. When am I going to learn???
The swell made the boat move a fair bit but by the time morning had arrived it was calm. A good nights sleep. Just what you need before a ride in the pouring rain.
And boy was it raining. From news reports we’ve read, Melbourne received it’s december quota of rain by 9 o’clock this morning!!
We decided to just take the motorway out of the city which turned out to be a toll road. All paid by electronic tags, which we don’t have. My satnav normally lets me know if there’s a toll on the route but obviously the maps that I bought for it earlier this year are out of date.
Never mind, we’ll see what happens.
We got off of the dual carriageway that the motorway had become as the weather had improved a fair bit. Plus that’s the way the satnav suggested. Nice though, despite some roadworks that was without tarmac so leaving the bikes filthy.
So, here we are in Sale. Only 500 ish miles to Sydney. We’re not at the end of the lap yet.....
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
-
OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
The weather in various parts of Australia is not very good at the moment. Those of you watching the Cricket from Perth, not is, will think that all is well as the players bask in 38degree, wall to wall sunshine.
Up the top there is a cyclone going through it’s paces.
Down the bottom here there has been loads of rain, thunderstorms, flooding etc.
Due to this we decided that it was better to stay put in Sale than to needlessly ride in nasty weather.
We spent a very pleasant day wandering around town in short sleeves mainly enjoying the warm day. Sunny spells were nice too. The much promised rain was absent. Nothing. Not a drop.
Today is Saturday, today we set off in the rain!! It didn’t last long though. Which was nice.
Our route to today’s destination of Cooma took us through Orbest to Cann River and then north through Bombala.
The ride was fantastic, rolling hills and sweeping bends. Nearly 250 miles of wonderful countryside to go through. It really was a great riding day. We both enjoyed all of it. There weren’t any very tight bends just a lovely gentle flow of 50-60 mph joy. Again, this is why I ride a bike. Not much traffic, minimal trucks being a Saturday.
We stopped in Bombala for a drink as we’d been going for about 100 miles since our last cup of tea and cake.
I found a bakery, Australia seems to be navigated by bakery, and pulled in. There was a bike already parked in one of the bays, a bike with lots of stickers, a bike with Italian plates, a bike we’d seen before at the start of the Nullabor crossing. A bike we saw on the 7th of November.
People have been telling us that Australia is a big place. Michele and Valentina don’t think it is anymore. We’re beginning to wonder too.
We sat and chatted for about an hour, discussing onward travel plans to New Zealand. They have their bike shipping sorted.
We are still faffing around with not quite broken promises but asuurances that the bikes will leave in December having turned into ‘how flexible are you with the dates?’
We’ve got another couple of options that we’re investigating. Hopefully Monday will bring some answers? We’ve now got a fourth potential contact thanks to our Italian mates.
Sorry for distinct lack of photos. It’s not that the ones I took are bad, I just didn’t take any. The ride was the ride.
All being well Sydney and the hotel we set off from back in June is two days away.....
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
Up the top there is a cyclone going through it’s paces.
Down the bottom here there has been loads of rain, thunderstorms, flooding etc.
Due to this we decided that it was better to stay put in Sale than to needlessly ride in nasty weather.
We spent a very pleasant day wandering around town in short sleeves mainly enjoying the warm day. Sunny spells were nice too. The much promised rain was absent. Nothing. Not a drop.
Today is Saturday, today we set off in the rain!! It didn’t last long though. Which was nice.
Our route to today’s destination of Cooma took us through Orbest to Cann River and then north through Bombala.
The ride was fantastic, rolling hills and sweeping bends. Nearly 250 miles of wonderful countryside to go through. It really was a great riding day. We both enjoyed all of it. There weren’t any very tight bends just a lovely gentle flow of 50-60 mph joy. Again, this is why I ride a bike. Not much traffic, minimal trucks being a Saturday.
We stopped in Bombala for a drink as we’d been going for about 100 miles since our last cup of tea and cake.
I found a bakery, Australia seems to be navigated by bakery, and pulled in. There was a bike already parked in one of the bays, a bike with lots of stickers, a bike with Italian plates, a bike we’d seen before at the start of the Nullabor crossing. A bike we saw on the 7th of November.
People have been telling us that Australia is a big place. Michele and Valentina don’t think it is anymore. We’re beginning to wonder too.
We sat and chatted for about an hour, discussing onward travel plans to New Zealand. They have their bike shipping sorted.
We are still faffing around with not quite broken promises but asuurances that the bikes will leave in December having turned into ‘how flexible are you with the dates?’
We’ve got another couple of options that we’re investigating. Hopefully Monday will bring some answers? We’ve now got a fourth potential contact thanks to our Italian mates.
Sorry for distinct lack of photos. It’s not that the ones I took are bad, I just didn’t take any. The ride was the ride.
All being well Sydney and the hotel we set off from back in June is two days away.....
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
-
OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
Back to our routine leisurely start time of just before 10am.
The road from Cooma to Canberra was signposted as a tourist drive. It was very pleasant, the rain held off but it didn’t deliver the feelings of yesterday’s ribbon of tarmac.
Plus there seemed to be a relatively high number of vehicles on the road. Maybe it’s because it’s sunday or maybe we have just got used to big empty roads?
The road took us to the last of the Australian States and Territories. ACT, Australian Capital Territory.
So we’ve ridden New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and ACT.
We went in to Canberra as we were told that the memorial to fallen service men and women from all conflicts was worth a visit.
I was. Very clean, very nicely presented with some very well done statues and displays.
Places like that always bring a slightly strange feeling but I do think that they’re important. Lest we forget.
The amount of people also visiting was one of the reasons that we got back on our bikes and left.
We then rode on a motorway for a bit. It was windy, gusty. Not that pleasant but we trundled along to our current home for the night. Sutton Forest.
So, tomorrow.....Sydney? We are planning to ride a nicer route than just follow the motorway. It’ll add about 50 miles to the day but it should be worth it. We do however, need to keep an eye on the weather. There has been heavy rain and thunderstorms in the Sydney area. Lots of trees down, flooding and power cuts.
I’ll let you know how we get on.
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
The road from Cooma to Canberra was signposted as a tourist drive. It was very pleasant, the rain held off but it didn’t deliver the feelings of yesterday’s ribbon of tarmac.
Plus there seemed to be a relatively high number of vehicles on the road. Maybe it’s because it’s sunday or maybe we have just got used to big empty roads?
The road took us to the last of the Australian States and Territories. ACT, Australian Capital Territory.
So we’ve ridden New South Wales, Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and ACT.
We went in to Canberra as we were told that the memorial to fallen service men and women from all conflicts was worth a visit.
I was. Very clean, very nicely presented with some very well done statues and displays.
Places like that always bring a slightly strange feeling but I do think that they’re important. Lest we forget.
The amount of people also visiting was one of the reasons that we got back on our bikes and left.
We then rode on a motorway for a bit. It was windy, gusty. Not that pleasant but we trundled along to our current home for the night. Sutton Forest.
So, tomorrow.....Sydney? We are planning to ride a nicer route than just follow the motorway. It’ll add about 50 miles to the day but it should be worth it. We do however, need to keep an eye on the weather. There has been heavy rain and thunderstorms in the Sydney area. Lots of trees down, flooding and power cuts.
I’ll let you know how we get on.
Two happy people, two happy bikes.
-
OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
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OnHellas
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OnHellas
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Re: An Australian lap attempt.....anti clockwise
Cheers Mike. Hopefully I don’t sound like a middle aged moaner all the time.
This has been another amazing trip...so far.
I am certainly very fortunate to be doing this. I know that for sure.
I hope all is well with you?
