The Wine Region, Caves, Bear Phils and Goodbye.

March 16th to 30th.

After staying with Carl and Lucy for a few days I decided to take a week of riding down to the Margaret River wine region, the cave road and loop back to Bunbury.  I took the bus to Margaret river due to it being quite an industrial road most of the way and camped at a bush site for $15. The next morning I was woken by Kangaroos near the tent and crows in the trees. I cycled into Augusta along a nice backwoods bike track and found a great wild camp spot not far from the lighthouse at the point where two oceans met. I scored it well as I not only had a good camp spot but showers, toilets, benches and a BBQ. On my route back north along the coast I was helped by an awesome tailwind especially in the afternoon. In these parts the south easterly wind is called the doctor as it comes at 3pm and soothes the west coast all up to Perth.
I pulled into Hamlin Bay to see the dolphins and stingray that hug the waters edge. I wasn't disappointed as a 2 metre Ray came close enough to stroke followed by dolphins 50 yards out. Along the caves road I took a trip underground into Australia's largest cave, the Jewel. It was discovered in the 1930's and had remained untouched for millions of years until it was set up to allow tourists to walk through, down into the depths and along the walkways.
Over the next few days I wild camped along the coast before staying at a hosts in Bunbury. Once back in Perth I visited my friends Amy and Kevin and spent a long weekend eating, chilling and fishing. It was here that I managed to catch a fish that ended up on the bbq and onto my plate. The first time ever I have caught my own dinner. Not quite Bear Gryls but Bear Phils. I returned to Carl and Lucy for my last couple of days and went into Perth city to have a look at the beautiful Kings Park and meet my friend Ben for a beer. So 5 months has come to an end and my journey home has begun. What to do next? I'm working on it. Right now I'm looking out the window of a plane and can see Iran below. I'm not saying that's where I'll go but as the horizon is far and vast then it shows from this view that it's a big world out there.

January 23rd  - 25th

Geelong and Melbourne

So the bulk of my Australian trip is over. I have rode from Cairns to Port Douglas, The Tablelands down to Townsville, Magnetic Island, Brisbane up to Noosa and through the Hinterlands and back to Brisbane through to the Gold Coast. Newcastle to Sydney and down the Grand Pacific Drive to Jervis Bay. Two Murray River rail trails, The Great Ocean Road and The Great East Road of Tasmania. New Zealand is next for 6 weeks but first I got to spend 3 days with my daughter at her employer's house in Geelong just south of Melbourne.

The whole timing has been perfect as for the next few days the trains into Melbourne are free so we took advantage of this and went into the city. Our first port of call was the 88th floor of the Eureka Tower over looking the Melbourne skyline. It was a clear morning so the view was perfect. We could see back south  to Geelong over 80kms away and north towards Bendigo. As the Australian open is on in Melbourne we decided to go to the fan zone and soak up some of the atmosphere with the help of a couple beers and some BBQ chicken subs. It was a hard sweltering hot afternoon sitting drinking and eating so i can only imagine how tough it is for the competitors in the actual tennis matches. We later took a walk into the city to do a bit of shopping. I know I'm bike riding but I thought I could do with a new pair of jeans. The pair I have had all along are twice the weight of my new ones so it was worth buying them just to reduce the weight by so much. Also, they were only the equivalent of £15.
Our evening was spent watching Peaky Blinders which I have never seen  but really enjoyed. I feel a box set coming on when I return to normality.

The 2nd day together was spent driving down the great ocean road to Torquay then Anglesea before returning to Geelong and having the afternoon at the water front. The third day was a complete chiller. We just sat and watched the tennis, YouTube videos and ate.

I'm really pleased she has settled in well at her new job. I didn't meet the family but Eleanor really likes them And they are being really helpful. She's now driving and I got to be the passenger which I never mind as driving is not something I enjoy or think I'm any good at. She is good at driving so she must get that from her mother, then again Eleanor has got natural rhythm which I know for a fact she gets off me and I choose dancing to driving any day.

January 19th - 22nd

Triabunna - Hobart

I had a short ride from Swansea to the next town called Triabunna. It gave me chance to sort my camping out and relax by the harbour all afternoon. I camped behind a pub that had an agreement that camping is okay a long as you buy a beer. As I had covered some big miles I was arriving into Hobart a day early but this wasn't an issue for my hosts to have me for an extra night. Hobart is a great midsized city on the south coast and closed in by a mountain range to it's north.

For my first day I sorted out my phone by having a new screen fitted, did some shopping for a fleece, bicycle shorts and had a slap up breakfast.
Nothing wrong with a big calorie blast out. I met my hosts, a lovely family. Ingrid and Mendlet. They are just in the process of building their own home on the side of a hill over looking Hobart. They have the steepest drive I have ever seen. I managed to ride up it once but have pushed my bike up every time since. I have been here for three days and have been treated superbly. I have had a chicken curry, lasagne and bbq salmon.
On my first full day I took a ride to the Mona art gallery to see the Gilbert and George display. There were some good pop culture items but I struggle to agree that 4 bags of coal and a wall full of ceramic ladies private parts can be classed as real art.
In the early evening I was invited to join in a boat race around the River Derwent with Mendelt and three of his friends.I had a go at steering prior to race and when the race started my job was to move under the sail as we turned so as to keep the weight spread at the right time. Once again like so many times before the generosity of a warmshower host in enteraining me as a guest has been brilliant. All that's ever expected is the minimum of somewhere to sleep, wash and eat but every time has something more than just that.

My second day was all about riding the 1262 metre Mt Wellington. It took 80 minutes to reach the summit in a decent heat. I was passed by 3 other cyclists but they were on carbon fibre bikes with no bags so I didn't feel to bad. The views from the top were stunning from every angle. I may invest in a decent camera when I get to New Zealand as there will be a lot of similar and highet points to reach.
So my Tasmanian adventure concludes with me returning to Melbourne to spend two days relaxing with my daughter who is now working in Geelong for 6 months. After that New Zealand for 6 weeks, either best get planning a route or just see which way the wind is blowing.

January 17th - 18th

Bicheno - Swansea - Triabunna

I departed from Bicheno where I had camped at the side of a cricket oval after the mix up with the drunken fisherman and his wife and headed south towards Coles Bay. I was going to take a 25km side road off the Tasman Highway but this was the only road to take if I wanted to get to see Wineglass Bay.

I had an excellent tailwind and shot past four cyclists who had appeared on the horizon like they were standing still. I rolled wind assisted into Coles Bay and bought a day pass to the national park so I could leave my bike and take a hike up to the vista point and in to the walking range known as the hazards. The path up wasn't to bad but I do find continuous walking uphill really hard on my knees. This is perhaps a strange comment seeing that riding 60 miles is now considered quite normal. The view at the top was breathtaking. It put me in mind of a scene out of Peter Pan where you see the shape of the bay as Wendy and the boys fly with Peter.
If Tasmania is a possibility for anyone for a trip then I highly recommend this and many of the other walks from Coles Bay.

To get to Swansea would mean riding back the 25km to the junction where the road meets with the Tasman Highway. The tailwind that had been such a help of course was now a killer headwind, as strong as any I have come up against. Along the road back I knew there were a couple of free campsites that I could use if required but I knew if I could get to the junction that I could then use the wind to push me south and make Swansea. The wind was proving to difficult to continue in so for the last couple of miles before the free sites I decided to stick my thumb out and see if I could score a ride. I have hitched before but never on the continent that gave us Ivan Milat. Just to prove how different Australia is from the UK, I got a lift within 4 cars going past. Also just to prove you can not always take people on first glance this guy that pulled over, if stood in a line up of people to hitch with would have been the last one I would have chosen. Of course once he pulled over I couldn't very well say, sorry, I don't like the look of you! He turned out to be a really pleasant guy who took me about 5km further than he was actually going. I used the wind, made Swansea and pitched once again at the side of a cricket pitch with my own private bathroom, bench and Bbq.
The 3 B's, I'm easily pleased......

January 15th - 16th

Branxholm - St Helens - Bicheno

My first free camping site on Tasmania turned out to be a really good one. I think it may be the norm here as when I left Branxholm I cycled through a small villiage called Derby and there was a top notch site there too. There was time in Derby for me to get a nice coffee and a slice of strawberry cheese cake. I thought that the money I saved on camping would be okay to go on a slap up breakfast and with two 60 mile plus days behind me I certainly thought I had earned it.

Getting to St Helens was very hard, the best bit riding wise was the 8 minute decent that had followed a 40 minute climb. The worst bit was seing my phone fly out my pocket into the oncoming traffic and get run over by a utility vehicle. I won't dwell on misfortune as it spreads and infects so I take positive that I will ride more instead of "surf". I had a warmshower host for the night. A lovely lady called Pip. There wasn't a room for me this time but there was plenty of garden space for my tent. After dinner we were joined by another cyclist who was stopping for the night. This was Judi from the USA, Harlem to be precise. With me having been to Harlem and with Judi having also completed to Pacific Coast Highway we had plenty to talk about. In the morning we went for coffee and breakfast in St Helens town and continued the previous nights conversation. Judi is also going to New Zealand so our paths may cross again.

The ride to Bicheno was another big one. I get the feeling Tasmania is a perfect warmer for New Zealand. It's certainly more hilly here than the main land. I didn't have a campsite or a host for Bicheno so I expected to wild camp and my senses were finally tuned to be on the lookout. I noticed a grassy area by the harbour that looked perfect so I went to buy some chips and wait for darkness to fall. On the way to the fish shop a guy loading his car asked where I was going? "Off to find a camp" I replied. No bother he said. Come stay at mine with me and my wife. I wrote down the address and said I would meet him there. Part of the address he gave me was completely wrong which should have got me thinking. I turned up at 49 Gordon Street and knocked on the door. A different guy opened it so I quickly thought, I'm sure he said wife? I asked this guy and he said he knew nothing of the previous man and that I must have the wrong address. There was another part to the address he gave me that said  number 1 Shirley Court. I managed to find this and once again knocked on the door. This time a lady answered and I asked is thus where Richard lives? She replied yes but he's in bed. From the belly of the house I heard the words, it's ok love he's coming to spend the night! Myself and the women looked at each other with strange expressions. I don't think I am staying am I? I asked. No she replied......he's drunk.
So when I first spoke to him he was not only drunk but getting into his car and had just been fishing. Drunk driving and drunk fishing, some of them are strange folk on this island.

Melbourne - Devonport - Branxholm

Jan 12th - 14th

For the first time in my life I was able to say "I set sail for the night". I have been on a few barges, one or two hover crafts and a couple of booze ups on the river but never a proper boat and certainly not an allnighter. The sea wasn't particularly choppy but the car alarms on the garage decks were soon singing a merry song, good jod the sound didn't reach the sleeping deck. The sound of car alarms was superceded  by the worst snoring I have ever heard. The guy was lying on the floor between the recliner chairs and giving off a total foghorn. It's no lie to say that when he went to sleep there were about 10 around him in chairs and when he awoke all of us had moved to the other block. He will have risen with the thought "was it something I said". Yes mate it was.......

I arrived at Devonport at 6.30am and grabbed a coffee and sorted out my route to my hosts house in Launceston. It was a 60 mile day coming up and the terrain guide was showing quite a few spikes. Not one to worry I set off towards Latrobe hoping to see some of its famous Platypus. The only one I saw was it's Big Platypus in the town park which was competing with The Big Cherries to be the towns "official" big thing. About 30 miles in and with each town I reached bring nothing more than a cow shed I was starting to feel the heat so I pulled over at a farm to see if I could get some lunch in the shade of the barn. Good luck that I knocked on the right door as the farmer and his wife invited me in for coffee, biscuits and cake. They joined the growing list of superb people you meet when travelling by bike.

I made it to my hosts town around 5pm after a total of 62 miles a figure that seems to be becoming more regular. The hosts name was Mandy. She lived with her partner and their dog Gus. Her son, his wife and daughter were coming over to join us for a bbq of pork chops, vegetables and dressing. It was another great evening of food and conversation of which I'm truly grateful.
My next days ride was to Branxholm. A small village with a fully equipped free campground. The days ride was very similar to the last one as in it was 62 miles and very hilly. The real difference was it dropped very cold very quickly. It looks like a trip to a camping store for a few items of warm clothing. With me now going to New Zealand I was due to restock on a few essentials anyway. Loving Tasmania so far. Next stop, St Helens and the East coast.

Jan 10th - 11th

Melbourne

I've had 2 days of chilling and sorting out my future short term plans in Melbourne. As I was finishing the Great Ocean Road I was feeling under pressure to decide how to continue the trip. It was supposed to finish at the end of January but I decided to make some changes. With New Zealand being so close and from all the feedback people have given me I thought that I would give it one shot and get myself there while I'm this side of the world. The worst thing would be to go home and look back in anger at a missed opportunity. I would be telling lies if I said that New Zealand had been on my radar when I set off  but as with travel sometimes, well most times, you go with the flow and tend to not stay on a set route.
Before I go to New Zealand though I'm taking the night ferry over to Tasmania to spend 10 days cycling from Devonport to Hobart. One of my hosts was explaining how good Tasmania is for riding. Whether you are absolute beginners or experts Tasmania is perfect. Cheap camping, beautiful scenery and friendly people. It only costs $80 for a one way ticket straight into Devonport. The same host also said "wild is the wind" on the island and when the wind blows it makes you feel like your cycling up the hill backwards. Still while I'm my golden years a few hills and a bit of wind shouldn't give me to much trouble. My trusty legs have never let me down so far. Little wonder though I've heard tell of some strange animals to look out for on Tasmania. Devils are the most famous of them but you never know in this region whether there are some scary monsters hidden away.

I had a great day in the city again and spent most of it at the Andy Warhol and Ai Weiwei art exhibition. Some of the pieces are real classics   from the style of modern. Love the Elvis, Marylin Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor pictures. So many heroes from pop culture but i always thought Edie Sedgwick was his prettiest star. Warhol really liked to create a mixture of sound and vision pulling in faces that are instantly recognisable. He was able to take someone famous but present the picture so it was the star. Man I bet some of the big names he pictured were not quite sure what they let themselves in for, but the pictures live on and the gallery was packed. It was very impressive to see so many different nationalities all enjoying his subtle take on fame and fashion. There was more than one China girl and a lot of young Americans. The other artist is Ai Weiwei. Not someone I had heard of but I was very impressed with his art. He is Chinese and with most artists had suffered a bit in his homeland. From what I could see of his story, by the authorities he was classed as a bit of a rebel. Rebel may not be the word he would use, more, expressionist. So with everything booked for Tasmania and then New Zealand I'm able to ride, enjoy, experience and compose. Let's Dance..........