The Rail Trails
So, The Surf Cost and Tasmania are done and dusted. I was very impressed with the rail trail from Warrnambool to Port Fairy that I saw earlier, and searched for other similar trails.
Later on I was in a cafe eating lunch and reading the newspaper the Herald Sun, I came across this gem, which I wish I'd seen before:
The discerning among you will noticed the newspaper is dated 1 April! But it's not a joke. These trails really do exist!
I would love to ride all of them. But there are some practical issues. Is it easy to get to the end of each trail? Is there a camp site along or at the end of the trail? Is there a railway station somewhere nearby (ahem, a working one that is)?
These Rail Trails turned out to be good candidates:
- Goulburn River High Country Rail Trail: Tallarook to Mansfield (with a branch to Alexandra)
- Murray to Mountains Rail Trail: Wangaratta to Bright (with a branch to Beechworth). How could I miss out on that one?
- Lilydale to Warburton Rail Trail
I discounted Bairnsdale to Orbost as it would be very difficult to get to the start. I could have gone through the mountains from Bright but I was limited for time anyway.
That and the others I will have to save for another day.
The Ride
The previous day I had got a bus from Launceston to Devonport (dropping me off at the Ferry terminal) and stayed at the Tasman Caravan Park again like the first day of arrival.
So today was simply a short ride to the Ferry terminal taking about 5 minutes.
Because it was a daytime ferry, I enjoyed the trip a lot more. It was amazing to see the pinch point in Port Philip bay, with land close by on both sides, and then see the land totally disappear. That bay is so large it is incredible.
Ferry Terminal to Southern Cross Station
Then at Melbourne I had another short ride across part of the City to get to Southern Cross Station. There is a cycle path for most of this, which is a relief as I really didn't know what I was doing, with the phone battery dead and my Garmin GPS city map being useless.
See Full Ride Details
After that, a train journey back to Woodend, and time for a rest before the next adventure!
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| Before | |
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| After |
For comparison purposes, before and after photos of my trip to Tasmania.
The Characters
Getting off the Ferry, I saw a man who was obviously a cyclist, He was carrying Vaude cycle bags, was dressed like a cyclist but had no bike. I asked him where his bike was. He said that he had gone to Tasmania to cycle tour, and on the first night in Devonport, a thief had stolen his bike leaving him with just his tent and belongings. So he had to abandon and come straight back.
He had left his bike locked to a rack away from his tent. During the night the thief lifted the whole rack and took 3 bikes. This poor man, I felt his pain.
This reminded me that I had been a little fortunate only to have had a battery charger stolen. There really is no security at camp sites. Tents cannot be locked. Bikes often have to be left free standing as there is nothing to lock them to. I got away with locking the bike (wheel/frame) and also locking it to the side of the tent, hoping I'd be woken if someone tried to take it.
The Ride
It was on a bus. The driver was crazy, throwing the bus everywhere. My bike was in a trailer being towed by the bus. I expected carnage when he opened it up. There was some damage but not enough to file a complaint.
The Camp Site - Treasure Island Cabin & Caravan Park
Official Web Site
This is a large city and the caravan park is right by a very busy road. I eventually got some sleep but don't expect the peace and tranquillity of the rest of Tasmania! The park is expensive.
After enjoying the whole trip without any security mishaps, I got my vital phone battery charger stolen from the camp kitchen overnight. I didn't think anyone would steal a battery charger but I was wrong. Although I could get a replacement in Launceston, I arrived on a Saturday evening and it was closed Sunday. So I had to go back to the mainland with no phone battery.
The Camp Kitchen and Toilet are a bit close together.
My tent and the crash barrier for the Midland Highway behind it. It should be mentioned that I enjoyed 20 dry days in a row since the 6 days of rain ending at Queenstown. So the tent was no longer waterproof but I got away with it for 3 weeks.
The Town - Launceston
I think this was my fourth time here so I had established where to eat, and how to get around by now. It was feeling like a second home! It's quite a way from the camp site to the city centre so I used the bike. It was by now in a terrible way. I was afraid of permanently damaging the back wheel beyond repair. Spokes were falling off everywhere!
The Characters
To the thief who nicked my phone battery charger, don't cross my path as long as you live!
The Ride
The best ride of all, saved till last. All the way along the coast. No big hills, a long ride of 47 Miles but most enjoyable.
See Full Ride Details
The Camp Site - BIG4 St Helens Holiday Park
Official Web Site
I try to avoid BIG4 holiday parks wherever possible. They are great for families with children, but for a lone cycling tourist they are expensive and unnecessary. You are looking at $40 a night here. However there is no other choice within the town.
End of the Tour
My bike problem with the back wheel turned out to be loose spokes. I didn't carry a spoke tool to correct this, the whole back wheel was basically falling apart. The nearest bike shop was Launceston. Fortunately there was a bus from St. Helens to Launceston, and I could take the bike on it.
The spokes were coming loose because the wheels had been rebuilt at Castlemaine just before the tour of Tasmania. The mechanic warned this could happen but I didn't have any running in time before leaving for Tasmania.
So that was basically that, I had run out of time and after Launceston got the bus again back to Devonport and got a day ferry back which was much better than the outward night time ferry.
So by being forced to finish early, I avoided some murderous hills around Scottsdale ( I drove up this hill later!)
The Ride
Another pleasant day with just one hill of around 170m in the centre. Not along the coast like yesterday, but still pleasant enough.
See Full Ride Details
A view coming down the only hill of the day...
I noticed some noise on my back wheel as the ride ended. It didn't sound good.
The Camp Site - Bicheno East Coast Holiday Park
Official Web Site
Actually there's plenty of choice in Bicheno with a Big4 holiday park and backpackers place too. This park has a good camp kitchen.
The Town - Bicheno
Pronounced "Bish-eno" (Don't say "Bitch-eno" whatever you do), is a good size, with a few shops, restaurants and places to stay. It has a Tourist info place and there are some attractions such as the blowhole, that are well worth seeing.
The Characters
Unbelievably, the Garden Gnome was waiting for me as I rolled into Bicheno. He was the first person I saw as I arrived. Nicely he directed me to the camp site and gave me a few tips about what to do there. I was too tired to listen much, just needed food and a good shower!
In the camp kitchen I met a couple of children who were really well behaved and polite. I got to know that family who were so interested in what I was doing, cycling around Tasmania. The children really wanted to see what my bike was like fully laden and the boy wanted to see if he could lift it up.
At the time I was leaving, I went round to see them, and he couldn't even move the bike let alone lift it! Then waved me off, as I made my last leg to St. Helens.
The Ride
Today was a nice ride up the East coast to Swansea. Only one hill of around 100m, it is nice to be on the East coast which is relatively flat!
See Full Ride Details
There are nice beaches to stop at...
... and glorious views of Freycinet, the national park seen as mounds in the distance.
The Camp Site - Swansea Beach Chalets
Official Web Site
This is on Shaw St, so when you get into Swansea, follow the road left at the IGA, continue for a short while and turn up Shaw St. on the right. This is not to be confused with Swansea Holiday Park (Shouten Beach) which does not support tents.
There is only room for a few tents here so it is imperative to book ahead, or else you will be wild camping!
(Or, if you are super-fit like the British Garden Gnome cyclist, you can go on to Bicheno!)
The Town - Swansea
It is a small town with a good sized IGA, some places to eat and some very nice beaches. A nice place to stop.
The Characters
The "Garden Gnome" cyclist turned up here again. Only this time he could not get a place to camp as he arrived after me. So off he went to Bicheno, only another 27 miles!
The Ride
I had originally planned to head to Port Arthur and the Tasman National Park today, but that whole area was still closed off due to Bush Fires, so I proceeded towards Triabunna and the East coast.
See Full Ride Details
03:52:55 40.9 10.5 34.6
It all starts very nicely out of Richmond, then at the 10 mile mark there appears this almost vertical wall in front of you. That is a 222m climb initially then some further climbs after. The hills have frightening names. Black Charlie's Opening, Bust-Me-Gall Hill and Break-Me-Neck Hill.
The first hill was the worst. I stopped at Runnymede for refreshments at the cafe. There I finally caught up with a British touring cyclist I'd been following since Richmond. When he saw the size of me and the weight of the bike, his first question was "How the hell did you get up there? [Black Charlie's opening] He went on towards Triabunna as I sat down for a well deserved lunch.
Black Charlie's opening was a tortuous hill, I had to go in the lowest gear almost all the way up it at around 4 or 5 mph.
Buckland to Orford was frightening too. This is the section the Giro guide said was narrow and dangerous. It follows a river bank on the left, protected by a crash barrier, along a narrow road favoured by trucks. So basically there was nowhere to go if a truck got to you with someone coming the other way. I just rode flat out and hoped few would have to overtake me. In the event, none did.
The Camp Site - Triabunna Cabin & Caravan Park
Official Web Site
This site only has a small grass area for tents so it is a good idea to reserve ahead of arrival. Quite a few cycling tourists had arrived here the night I was there. I started to realise that some of the guys I spoke to had met some of the other cyclists I had seen in other places. It was like a big family.
The Town - Triabunna
This town is the gateway to Maria Island - Pronounced "Mariah", this island has no cars and a couple of camp sites. Had I not been so strapped for time, I really wanted to visit this island. The ferry leaves from Triabunna a few times daily. Oh well, next time!
The town is well equipped with an IGA, hardware store and Post Office.
The Characters
The Garden Gnome - The British cycling tourist, fit as a a fiddle, older than me, and described how he cycled south of Deloraine into mountains much bigger than I'd yet seen. He kept popping up in various places after this! After our first meeting in Runnymede, he was waiting for me at the camp site in Triabunna, telling me how he'd booked a nice cabin for the night.
