John & Judy - Away at Last

[Dean Watson]

Post by punch on Mon Aug 01, 2016 4:22 pm

30/7/16
It’s been a long time planning and postponed once, but we have finally started our trip to Port Douglas and back.

Day 1 - Pakenham to Molong. – Distance 869K
Woke up at 4am and the first thing I did was look at the temperature in Lightning Ridge. 0.2 degrees, Do I really want to go there. Yes.
We set off at 4:55 rugged up to the hilt. Rode into the city, headed to the airport and then took the ring rode to the Hume Freeway. We had a great run, down the freeway to Coolac then left to Cootamundra, Young, Cowra, Canowindra and Molong. We arrives around 4:20pm

What I did notice was that I take a lot more interest in were I’m going when I’m by myself than when I’m in a group. Follow the leader is so much easier.

The meal at the local hotel was great. We had a Gluten free Chicken schnitzel and it was cooked in rice bran oil. Very different. Very nice.

Day 2 Molong to Lightning Ridge
Well our initial plans were to go the long way through Dunedoo to Gilgundara then on to Lightning ridge. But I got cold feet. We have not set up the camper for a real camp site before an I thought that getting to Lightning Ridge a little earlier would give us some time to look around, So we, yes we, decided to take the direct route to LR. Wellington, Dubbo (getting lost), Gilgandra, Coonamble, Walgett, Lightning Ridge.

In Gilgandra we met a rider from Bundaburg (Qld) who was heading home. He had flown to Perth with his wife to buy a second hand BMW GS 1200 and was riding it home. His wife had travelled most of the way with him but flown home from Melbourne 4 days earlier. His wife did not like riding in the local traffic at home but was prepared to join him on their ride from Perth to Melbourne. Apparently the ride out of Perth she just shut her eyes and held on.

So back to our story.

We arrived at Lightning Ridge about an hour earlier than we would have if we used our original route. We arrived 3:40.
I am so happy that we decided to take the shorter. Erecting the camper, working out were to put things, shopping for dinner had us sitting down for a pre dinner drink around 6:20 pm.

Its now 9:40, we have had dinner and I want to thank Des Easton for insisting we packed a fan heater. The tent is lovely at the moment and I’m sure we will appreciate it in the morning when it’s around zero.

[Dean Watson]

Day 3 – Leasure in Lightning Ridge
Well we survived our first night sleeping in the camper far better than I expected. It was a cold night but we were as worm as toast. This dooner is going to be too hot when we get back to the coast.
We got a courtesy bus to the Black Hand Opal Mine and saw the underground carvings and also did a tour on the opal mine below. All very good.
After lunch we walked around town, visited the John Murray Art Gallery which was excellent and then partook in the caravan parks happy hour (after a half hours frantic search looking for the bike keys).


Day 4 Lightning Ridge to Roma. This is why we call it an adventure.
1. Slow to leave. As we were rushed setting up when we arrived at Lighting Ridge I planned to get away early so we had plenty of time to set up in Roma. I set the alarm for 6am. The morning sky was beautiful. But it took us 3 hours to pack up with some frayed tempers to pack up.
2. The day was worm, about 25 degrees so we stopped to have a drink and take the linings out of our jackets. That’s when we noticed the trailed lead had been hitting the ground and now the only light that was working was the left indicator.
3. Petrol plans. I have found that I’m getting better mileage than I thought I would, which is good. I filled up at Lightning Ridge as we left, then off to Hebel, Dirranbandi and fill up at Thallon. Approximately 200K where I was allowing a maximum of 250 per tank. Can you imagine my surprise to find that Thallon only sells Diesel. The nearest petrol is over 80 K away at St George. The petrol light came on 5K outside St George.
4. We arrived at Roma and filled up before we went to the camping ground. That’s when I noticed that one of my headlights had blown.
5. So we got to the Caravan Park and started to set up and of course it rained. Heavy rain.

Day 5 Roma to Emerald
Nothing spectacular about the ride today. But I must say I’m very happy about the condition of the roads we have been traveling on. Emerald is surprisingly big.
We arrived at Emerald, I had a splitting head ach and was running a slight temperature. When we got to the caravan park I was riding no further. Took us a long tine to set up and we went to reception to see if there were any places that had a courtesy bus service. I was not well enough to ride to a supermarket so this was the next best option. Out to dinner then straight back to bed.

Day 6 Emerald to Clermont. 113K
Felt a lot better in the morning. We took out time packing and headed off for our long ride about 10:00. The Clermont caravan park in really nice with a good camp kitchen. We were set up around 12:30 and did some shopping and relaxed. This was the first day we actually relaxed so far. Judy was so relaxed she washed clothes and we both washed the bike.

[Dean Watson]

Day 7 Clermont to Townsville
Clermont, Balyando Crossing, Charters Towers would be 375k of the most uninteresting road so far on this trip. Judy and I played I Spy and after using bush, tree, dirt, road and truck we were stuck, Judy stumped me with G. Goldwing. It got to the stage where the road changing from black bitumen to red stone topping was a pleasant highlight.

The 134k from Charters Towers to Townsville was a breeze. However hitting Townsville we came across something we have not experienced in days. Traffic.

Anyway we arrived at our sons place around 3:30 and plan to stay there till Monday when were off to Atherton for 4 nights

[Dean Watson]

Day 8 – Townsville
What a great day. Started off taking Joshua (our youngest son) for ride to a number of bike shops to have a look, believe it or not, at bikes. Then off to his work to pick up some tools to do some repairs (described later) and then off for coffee. Rode to Super Cheep to pick up another couple of thing then back to Joshua’s place for lunch.

(Really nice riding the bike around without the trailer behind it.)

Now the repairs with our son’s help:
1. We fixed the trailer lights wiring so now the lights work.
2. Replaced the bikes head light globes as one had blown.
3. I have not been happy with the trailers breaking system. Breaking has been poor when I’ve had to react quickly so we decided to flush the break lines with new break fluid. The breaks work now. We had some air in the system.
All systems are now GO.

After that we went for a walk to the park where we helped to teach Connor (4) to steer a pushbike. Peddling will come next. Kicking a football with Chase (8).
And the playing kick to kick with Joshua. Something we have never done before.

Day 9 Townsville
Joshua, Judy and I went for a ride to Hervey Range and the Tea Rooms there. That was when the photo that Deano so kindly posted above for me was taken.
Then back to the house for lunch and pack the trailer for tomorrow’s departure. Fixed a puncher on Connor’s (4) bike then off for a 4 K walk.

Funny that our son, a Diesel Mechanic, didn’t mind working on my trailer but hates changing tires. That’s part of my payback for his help. That and lining part of his shed when were there next weekend.

Day 10 Townsville to Atherton
We left Townsville at about 7:45 and had the joy of joining in with their peek hour traffic. However, once we got past all the people going to work and the road works we started to make good time sitting on the speed limit +.
We stopped in Ingham for a coffee at the Majestic Cafe. WARNING – the worst coffee I have ever purchased.

So after coffee we mounted the bike and rode to Tully, our next fuel stop. As we arrived it started to rain so we filled up and donned our wet gear, or in this part of the world Steam Gear. As with most rides this meant that over the next 160 K we managed to miss most of the rain. (If we had not stopped to put on the wet gear we would have ridden in the rain most of the way.

Arrived at Atherton around 1:00 and had lunch before setting up camp.

P.S. It was in the hills that I noticed the trailer breaks now WORK. “Thank you Joshua.”

[Dean Watson]

Day 11 – Atherton
A day off the bike today. We had a lazy morning then walked into Atherton for coffee and cake and then some shopping. A round trip of about 6K.
We then watched a couple of movies on the PC using headphones giving excellent sound and not disturbing anyone. Very relaxing.

Day 12 – Port Douglas and back
Off for a ride. Atherton, Mareeba, Mount Molloy, Lyons Lookout and on to Port Douglas where we had coffee. Not overly impressed with Port Douglas. Lots of ‘Resorts’, shops (mainly eateries) and people. And that’s it…..

Then off to Cairns for a light lunch and a ride along the esplanade, then down to Gordonvale and back to Atherton.

On the Gordonvale / Atherton rode there is a 19k section which contains 269 bends and the whole lot has just been resurfaced. Used my GoPro on the ride today so if your interested………

[Dean Watson]

So thats a bend every 70 metres. Wing country indeed.......

[Dean Watson]

Day 13 – Sight Seeing around Atherton
Of to Herberton Historic Village where the most interesting think I found was a 1923 Harley Davidson V-Twin, an Indian Prince Motorcycle and Douglas Motorcycle. The first are run every day as part of the exhibition. The rest of the village was filled with old buildings, machinery and the usual clothing and furniture displays. One point I noted was that many of the buildings were clad on the inside leaving the frame exposed, usually painted, on the outside.

After lunch we went for a ride to Tolga Woodworks Craft Gallery. If your ever in the area it’s well worth a visit.

Then we rode to Tinaroo Lake for a walk. Looks like it’s about 1/3 full at the moment. Great spot for a President’s Ride Chris. Lot’ of BBQ’s.


Day 14 – Back to Townsville
We are getting better at packing up the camper. Only took 1.5 hours this time with no arguments.

There was no rush to get back to Townsville so we did a little sight seeing along the way. On Monday when we went to Atherton it was raining and not good conditions to look at the scenery. Unless you like looking at rain. The trip back was the opposite. Some of the views were fantastic.

Our first stop was Malanda Falls then Milla Milla Falls and Zilie Falls. Then off for a great ride through the hills (little traffic) to Innisfail.

Traffic was stopped for a while between Cardwell and Ingham for some time as a Cement Mixer had run off the road and berried itself in the bush. A massive Tow Truck was parked in the middle of the road getting ready to try to bull it out. Generally the run down the Bruce Highway was good as we were travelling between 100 and 110 most of the way.

In Ingham there are some wetlands just off the highway just before you hit the shops. We stopped there and had lunch.

Distance traveled in our first two weeks is 4268k

[Dean Watson]

Day 23 - Yeppoon - 23 degrees and mostly sunny.
So far we have travelled 5313 k. We plan to ride round and look at the sights today.

[Dean Watson]

Road from Yeppoon to Hervey Bay via the Bundaberg and found this interesting place to stop. They make a liquer rum that is only sold at the distillery. Fantastic.



Arrived at Hervey Bay in the rain and staying for 2 nights. Tomorrow's forecast, rain and possible thunder storms. Just so happens we were booked into a resort for the next two nights. No tent.

[Dean Watson]

Day 15 & 16 Townsville

Time to catch up with the washing and relax for a while. We had a great time with our son Joshua and his faience Mel and her to fantastic boys. On Saturday we went to lunch and met Mel’s Mum. The meal was so big that I had to have an afternoon cuesta.
Sunday we went for an 8k walk to Ross River Dam and back. Yes the bike was working but we needed to work off yesterday’s lunch.
Mel is looking at starting a cake business so we had the pleasure of sampling a Multesers Cake. Very rich, very yummy.

Day 17 Townsville to Airlie Beach
A blustery day. 43k head winds.
It was only a 285k ride but we were buffeted nearly all the way and the last 25k it started to drizzling.
We filled up at Bowen and thought we would stop at the golden archers for coffee. It took us 15 minutes to find the place and then I had to use the GPS. Bowen is NOT an easy place for a visitor to navigate.
Eventually arrived at the Caravan Park around 1pm and had the tent set up by 2:00. Were getting faster. Of course then we had to do some shopping for lunch and dinner.
We have been staying at Big 4 Caravan Parks when we can and I must say their Camp Kitchens are really good. No need to use our stove at all.

Day 18 – Airlie Beach
I rained most if the night but we remained warm and dry and a little sleep deprived.
After breakfast we went for a ride to have a look around so we rode up and down the main street of Airlie Beach and then rode out to Shute Harbour. The interesting site there was the building at the end of the yacht hire pier had collapsed over night. Don’t know if I would hire a yacht from them. It was VERY windy but the views were great.
Rode back to Airlie Beach for coffee and a walk up and down the street. There was one Night Club that is open from 10pm to 5am 7 days a week. I must be getting old.
Did some shopping then back to camp for lunch and a swim.
The park puts on nibbles’ for a happy hour 4pm on Tuesdays so off we went to that. Conversation was ok until we met a Ulysseian from NZ who rides a BMW LT. Then the conversation got interesting.
We cooked dinner and watched a movie.

Day 19 – Airlie Beach
After breakfast Judy decided it was time to catch up with the washing. So while the washing machine was doing our business we went and played 18 holes of mini golf. It’s one of the features if the caravan park. Once that was done and the washing was on the line we donned our gear and went for a ride to see Cedar Creek Falls. The weather was showery, the roads were wet and we got to within 1k of the falls only to find the last stretch of the road was unmade wet dirt and a slippery when wet sign prominently displayed at the start. So much for the falls.

We decided to continue down the main road to have a look at Conway Beach. It would be a pleasant spot on a nice day. The sandy beach is lined with Coconut Palms and there were fallen Coconuts all over the place. The sea was rough, the wind was blowing and the rain was saying hello. Hmm, lets try Proserpine. Proserpine is a small country town and it again decided to rain when we got there. Nothing much to see so we did a U-turn and went back to Airlie Beach for coffee.

So we had a relaxing afternoon back at Caravan Park. We were going to leave Friday but we have decided to stay another day and we booked a 3 Island Guided Tour for Friday. (Daydream Island, Hamilton Island and Whitsunday Island.)

The aim of a good holiday is to relax. Well I think we have succeeded. Here are 2 reasons why.
1. Tonight Judy took her medication and then started on mine.
2. We sat down to dinner and Judy realized that she had peeled the pumpkin and thrown it out with the peelings.
I LOVE my wife.

Day 20 – Airlie Beach (Thursday 18/80)
It’s an off the bike day.
Caught the bus into Airlie Beach, had coffee, and then did the Bicentennial Boardwalk. It’s about a 4k walk along the coast from Airlie Beach to Coral Beach. Very picturesque and saw hundreds of yachts ($$$$). We then caught the bus back to the camp sight.

After lunch we were sitting in the tent when the earthquake happened. Apparently it was 6.6 somewhere out to sea. For us the ground shook for 25 to 30 seconds with a descent jot in the middle.

Just a note: It’s amazing how many international tourists we have meet on this trip. We have spoken to people from England, China, Spain, Germany, Holland and France. All of them spending money in our country.

Day 21 – The Whitsunday’s
Up at 6am to be picked up at 7:00 for our 3 Island Cruse.

Island 1 – Daydream Island
A small island resort who’s main feature is its open air aquarium. We arrived there around 9:00 and to be consistent with the weather we hare having here, it was showering. We walked around the resort complex and looked at the 3 mermaid statues on the beach. Named Serenity, Aphrodesia and Infinity, representing respectively mind, body and spirit.

The beach was made up of broken coral, not something you could walk on without shoes. Then off to Lovers Cove where we feed the Diamond Mullet and a Seagull.

We went to the fish-feeding lecture and learnt lots about the Parrot Fish. It seem that they like to clean the algae off the coral and in doing so they digest little bits of coral. This goes through their digestive system and gets passed at the end of the process. This accounts for about 75% of the sand in the area. So just think what your sand castles are made of.

Island 2 – Hamilton Island
Another 30 minute cruise and we arrived at Hamilton Island. The first thing you notice is that the majority of vehicles on the island are Golf Carts. The next is that it has the feel of Disney Land (without the rides).

We were there for just under 2 hours during which time we had lunch and a short walk around the area we were in. Next week is ‘Race Week’, the annual yacht races. There were some very expensive boats in the harbor. Anyway, the island was being prepared for party time during the week to come.

Island 3 – Whitehaven Beach
On the way to the beach we saw a whale, not on the schedule but a pleasure to see.
Whitehaven Beach is 7km of pristine Parrot Fish *****, I mean pristine white sand. When we boarded the boat the captain gave a weather forecast saying possible heavy showers and letting us know that there was no shelter on the beach. After the announcement a few people decided not to go but rather stay and explore Hamilton Island. When we got to the beach the clouds broke up, the sun came out and we had a great time swimming and walking along the beach.

We left the beach at 4pm, got back to Port Airlie at 6:20 and back to the camping ground around 7:00.

Day 22 – Off to Yeppoon – 500k
Well what do you know; we ARE getting at breaking camp. No arguments and we were ready to go at around 8:20. It all took about an hour and a half, excluding breakfast.

We filled up at Proserpine, stopped for coffee at Mackay and then filled up again at Sarina. There is not much between Sarina and Rockhampton apart from a little town that is just off the highway named Marlborough where we fond a nice little park to have lunch and do the third refuel required for the days journey.

We got to Yeppoon around 4 and had to go the information centre to find out where the caravan park was. Not in Yeppoon but 8k down the road in Mulambin.

Once we found the place we did our best setup yet and then went out and bought fish and chips for dinner.

Tomorrow we will have a ride around and get a feel for the place.

Day 23
What a beautiful morning. The best we have had so far. After breakfast we went to church and then did some shopping for lunch and dinner. We also visited Bunnings (there everywhere although some shops are a lot smaller than others, and bought a led light for the tent. Fantastic.

Back at camp it was time to get domesticated. Yes clothes need to be washed so I accompanied Judy to the laundry and put a few articles (tea towels and sox) in the machine so I could say I helped. After lunch we hung the washing on the line. We did it together but Judy did like not the way I did it so she redid what I had done.

Then off for a ride around the place to see the sights. Unlike the club ride that took place today that endured rain and hail we were forced to contend with a sunny 23 degrees day. Such hardship.

We rode to Emu Park for a walk along the Memorial Walk. Views were stunning. A 19k ride back to Yeppoon and a look at the sights there. The beach goes for miles. We rode back to the camp to enjoy Happy Hour and cook our roast beef dinner. Camping was never this good when I was a kid.

Day 24 – Monday 22/8 – Yeppoon
It was a very lazy day today. After showers and breakfast we both sat back in our chairs and fell asleep. This prompted us to go foe a walk, a 5k walk along the beach and back via the road. It was a very humid morning and the walk took about 1hour and 20 minutes, after which we felt like we needed a shower again. Lunch included leftovers form last nights roast beef. Yummy.

A ride into Yeppoon to buy some groceries, fill up the bike and then back to camp. By this time it is 3:30. So wash the bike, have happy hour and it was time to cook dinner.

The bike and trailer has been of interest to so many people during the trip. As we were sitting outside the tent having a glass of wine, 3 different couples came up to discuss our setup. It’s very impressive when you don’t have to setup and pack up.

Day 25 – Yeppoon to Hervey Bay via Bundaberg – 500k
Getting away this morning was a bit slower as there was a heavy due and things had to be brushed off before they could be packed away. We wound up leaving Yeppoon about 9:05. There were a lot of vans on the road, more than I’ve seen any other day and more police cars.

We caught up to some slow moving traffic (80kph) to find it was being held up by a truck pulling a wide load. Some earth moving machinery. The trailer was a good 1 and a half lanes wide. It was the widest load I’ve ever seen. You could have ridden a Goldwing either side of the prime mover and it still would not have been as wide as the trailer.

We did a tour into Bundaberg as I had always wanted to visit the distillery. We got to town about 2:00 and stopped at the information center to find out where the distillery was. Had some lunch and off we went.

Bundaberg Rum makes a liqueur that is only sold at the distillery. It seems that they cannot make enough to supply it commercially around the country. It comes in 3 flavors (coffee & chocolate, salted cameral and banana and toffee), we tried the first 2 and they are really, really nice. If you come up this way it is well worth a visit.

It was a flying visit to Bundaberg (we were trying to beat the rain) but we both thought it would be nice to spend a few days here to look around.

We got into Hervey Bay about 4:30 just as the rain started and got to our accommodation around 4:45. Sanctuary Lakes Fauna Retreat, a place I found on Booking.com. It is surprisingly nice.

[Dean Watson]

25th August

Called RACV Roadside Assist but they would not send anyone to help for OH&S reasons. So with the help of Judy, Richard my 73 year old bother in law and Christine Fairbrother my 67 year old sister, we got it up.

Judy was off the bike and I was turning into the driveway slowly. It's a steep road camber and driveway and because of the angle the trailer pushes down on the back of the bike and lifts the front wheel. Bummer. All the wrong angles.

[punch]

Day 26 Sanctuary Lakes Fauna Retreat
One thing this trip has taught us is this is a BIG country with so much to see. Six weeks away and we will see 0.0001% of it. This trip is really a reconnoiter of some places to visit. But we have found some lovely spots, mainly by accident so how much have we missed?

We started the day off with a bacon, egg, tomato and mushroom breakfast. We then went for a ride up and down the esplanade to see what there was to see. We were thinking we would have a quick look before the forecast rain and thunderstorms set in. we got back to the cabin and the weather started to get better. So we went for a walk to the local Botanic Gardens. The weather got better, so we continued our walk down to the pier for coffee. 2.5 hours we later got back to the cabin and still no rain.

Walking around the resort we are staying at I must say there are more turtles than I gave ever seen in my life. This is not hard but there must be at lease 100 in the lake. The wild life here are so use to people that whenever you go to the waters edge they come up looking for food. (It’s all right; we bought the proper food to feed them.) It’s just a lovely spot.

We finally got rain, heavy rain, about 3:00 in the afternoon that lasted for about 30 minutes.

Just a relaxing day.

Day 27 - Of to D’Aguilar
I must have taken 15 minutes to get out of Hervey Bay as we managed to get caught by every set of traffic lights. Finally open road so off to Marybrough.
From there we decided to take the back way to Gympie rather than go down the Bruce Highway so we needed to look for the turnoff to Tin Can Bay. Well it took us through the back streets of Marybrough which seemed to be a bit of a maze and old. Finally got through and the road all the way to Gympie was excellent. There was a lot of pine plantation and signs warning that the road was unfenced and to lookout for wild horses and later on kangaroos and wild horses. Judy saw one horse on the way

So, we got to my sisters place at D’Aguilar and she suggested I bring the bike and trailer up the driveway. That’s when I dropped the bike.
Explanation/Excuses:
- For the record, Judy was off the bike and not touching it.
- The road had a steep camber and the driveway was steep in the other direction.
- I took the turn into the driveway too tight. I should have gone around the block and turned in from the other side of the road.
- I have found on the trip that when going into garages with similar conditions, that for a split second the steering goes. When the back wheel of the bike hits the rut between the driveway and the road, the weight of the trailer causes the front wheel to lift.
- Because I was going slowly, to be careful, I was suddenly left supporting the weight of the bike with no steering to correct the problem.


We tried to lift it but to no avail so I thought I’d call RACV Roadside Assist. However a bike on its side is not a mechanical problem and they were concerned about OH&S implications. So they would not send anyone to help.

We left the bike and went and had some lunch. It wasn’t going anywhere. After lunch I emptied the top box, told Judy the best way to lift with me and with my sister and her husband’s help we got the bike up.

Day 28 – Bush Camping at Kennilworth
Today we are going bush camping with Jody and Glen, my niece and her husband. They had researched places to find one that would be suitable for me to access with the bike. You can get anywhere on the property on a bike, they assured her. (On a dirt bike with no trailer maybe.)

According to the GPS, before we left, it was 49.9k to our destination. However, Glen did no want to take the windy road with their 4-wheel drive and off road camper so we went via the highway. 120k later we were there. (There may have some dirt road going the other way.)

We followed them and just near the campground we took a wrong turn up a dirt driveway and when Jody and Glen stopped half way up the hill we stopped behind them. BIG MISTAKE.

I put my feet down to steady the bike and the weight of the trailer started to drag us back down the hill. We slowly slid back about 3 or 4 meters until the trailer jackknifed and stopped us going any further. Judy is saying, with some concern in her voice (Panic), ”I can’t take this, I’m getting off”.

So as we weren’t going back any further I put the bike on the side stand and we unhitched the trailer. I turned the bike around and rode to the bottom of the hill. We then manhandled the trailer down the hill; reconnected it to the bike and headed down the right driveway.

Roads around the camping ground were not much better. The road in was dirt and led to the camp office at the top of a hill. The tracks down to the camping sites were steep and graveled. There was NO WAY I was going to ride down any of them let alone tow a trailer down. So I organized to leave the bike behind the office and Glen towed our camper to the site.

Great spot and baked potatoes cooked on the campfire for dinner.

Day 29
Boy it was a cold night last night. We had to sleep with beanies on to keep warm but the day turned out to be beautiful. The days activities included collecting firewood and sitting by the river. Hamburgers for dinner cooked over the fire. They were good.

Day 30 – Back to D’Aguilar - 28/9
Another cold night, actually colder than the night before but we were better prepared (borrowed a blanket) so we weren’t cold. In the morning there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.

We broke camp and Glen towed our trailer out of the campground while I rode the bike out. While he went back to get his trailer we hooked ours up to the bike and waited for him to return. With some discussion Jody and Glen decided to go home a different way. The way in was 130k while the way back was only 80k. But there was going to be some windy road.

That was an understatement. We got to one section of road there was a sign ‘No Caravans Allowed’ and a gradient sign saying 10%+ next 3k. It was a 2-way road with only 1 car width of sealed road and it just kept winding and going up. Discussions when we got back revealed that there were some great views on the way. I did not see any of them. I am just thankful that the only oncoming traffic was 3 cars that had pulled over together to let us pass. All up the 80k trip had a lot of steep roads with tight bends.

We got back to Jody and Glen’s about 1:00, had showers and then went out for lunch. After lunch we washed the bike.

[Dean Watson]

Sounds like an exciting couple of days. Excellent.

[Dean Watson]

Were finding our way around Coffs Harbor. It's a lot bigger than we thought. All good, about another 2000k and were home.

[Dean Watson]

We dropped the tent to protect it but the wind is so strong it blew the bike over.

Guess the moral is not to tie your tent to the bike