The Hot Way Round: March 2013

26^th of February, 2013:

Though I would have liked to stay and explore Perth further, it was time to head off. Today’s ride was to the Margaret River region via Bunbury, Cape Naturaliste and Dunsborough. This part of Australia really is stunning, especially after travelling along the flat and rather boring western coastline. There is plenty to see and do as well, with wineries, breweries, beaches, hikes and caves… not to mention the awesome roads to ride such as ‘Caves Road’.

Sugarloaf rock - Cape Naturaliste

A sample of the bushland/forest along the caves road.

27^th of February, 2013:

It wasn’t an overly large ride planned for today, so I decided to check out some of the caves located in the area. Unfortunately a number of them are tour only, or ‘self-guided’ with an mp3 player. Because of this it’s not cheap either, at $50 for three caves. Nevertheless I felt as though I needed a change and checked out Lake Cave, Mammoth Cave and Jewel Cave. Of the three Lake cave is probably the best, and the only one really worth paying for (despite being the smallest). It’s not often that you are able to walk through a cave that still has water within it which made for some cool pictures too.

After spending the majority of the day in the caves it was time to get a move on to the region around Pemberton. My indecisiveness meant that I rode out to Northcliff, windy harbour and then back to the Pemberton region where I finally ended up finding a campground within Warren National Park, not too far from Bicentennial Tree.

The entrance into Lake Cave

The view from inside

28^th of February, 2013:

Again I was up before sunset to avoid paying for camping :P After exiting Warren NP and heading back into Pemberton I decided to check out Gloucester Tree and climb up it before there were any other people attempting the same thing. The tree-climb is the 2^nd highest in the area, at 61m to the platform. It wasn't too bad on the way up despite being very windy, and it’s not until your heading back down on the near vertical bits that it becomes a little unnerving. Next on the list was the giant tingle trees of Walpole followed by Conspicuous Cliff beach, Valley of the Giants ride, Green’s Pool and finally into Denmark. Luckily for me, Tyson whom I had met in Kalbarri had organised for me to stay with his Uncle Rod, which meant I would be treated to a shower! Additionally, I was also spoilt with a fantastic dinner!

Gloucester Tree - Pemberton

The view from the top

The view on the way back down

The Giant Tingle tree

Conspicuous Cliff

Green's Pool

1^st of March, 2013:

Today I continued east to Point Anne which is located halfway between Bremer Bay and Hopetown, which also meant I could ride a bit of dirt road. Upon arrival I wasn't sure whether to camp here as the weather seemed to be deteriorating with a cool change, high winds and a bit of drizzle. I decided set the tent up anyways and used the spare time to walk the beaches and change the spark plugs on the bike (in the hope it may start to run a little better).

Fitzgerald River NP

Point Anne

2^{nd -} 3^rd of March, 2013:

Unlike the wet weather of the top end that generally comes in short intense bursts, down along the south eastern coast here it was just light rain and drizzle the entire night and continued for the rest of the day. Because of this I was forced to pack the tent up wet and get a move on towards Esperance. The relentless rain overnight had caused the road to turn a bit slippery and exposed some areas of soft clay. Again the tyres didn't make things easy, but seemed to work best at a higher speed. It wasn't long then before I was back on the main road where the rain began to become more intense and therefore irritating! After a quick stop in Ravensthorpe for a coffee and some hot food I pushed on through the crappy weather to Esperance.

After 400km’s of riding in the wet I decided to find some 'cheap' accommodation at the YHA backpackers and wait out the wet weather so that I could see the world famous beaches when it is nice and sunny! Unfortunately for me it would be a few days until ex-tropical cyclone Rusty dissipated and the sun returned.

4^th of March, 2013:

The first half of the day I spent in Cape Le Grande National Park at Lucky Bay, Thistle Cove, Hellfire Bay and Le Grande Beach. Finally I could understand all the hype, the place really is stunning and though there isn't any waves as such, at least down here the water is cool and refreshing.

I ended up leaving Esperance rather late and because of this I only made it 400km’s out, just past Balladonia. I would have liked to continue on a bit further but my low beam on my headlight is playing up (no doubt due to the wet weather) and rather than blind all oncoming traffic with my high beam I stopped at the closest rest stop and ended setting up the tent right at the beginning of Australia’s longest straight road (Yay...).

The crystal clear waters of 'Lucky Bay'

Hellfire Bay

Frenchman's Peak

5^th of march, 2013:

I really wanted to cover as much distance as possible today, as the Nullarbor doesn't contain the most exciting roads… well it is pretty much just the one long straight road isn’t it. However once you reach the WA/SA border you can begin to check out the spectacular cliffs of the Great Australian Bight. I stopped along at the three main lookouts where you are covered in flies as soon as you come to a stop. By the end of the day I had managed to make it almost to Nundroo before I began to run out of daylight.

The Great Aussie Bight... well some of it anyways.

6^th of March, 2013:

Another early start saw me head off towards streaky bay. Not really realising how much of an effect the winds on the Nullarbor had on my fuel consumption the bike came to a stop about 30km’s outside of Streaky bay, and this was after I had switched it over from reserve. Because of the design of the fuel tank, the fuel pick-up sits lower than the carby, and you therefore can’t use the full capacity. I therefore had to lean the bike over in order to transfer fuel from the right side of the tank into the left. The bike started again thankfully and I made it about another 25km’s before it once again sputtered and came to a stop. Before setting of for a walk to get some more fuel, I managed to drain at least 2 more litres from the right side fuel tap and tip it into the left which saw me to the closest petrol station.

After a re-fill I set off for the closest beach to relax and cool off for an hour or two, before remounting and entering the Gawler Ranges National Park for the night.

Surfers Beach - Streaky bay

7^th – 11^th of March, 2013:

I was up well before sunrise to avoid the park rangers, and because of the early hour there was many roo’s and emu’s up and about along the roads out of there. At least it keeps you on your toes and makes for an interesting ride! The plan today was to camp in either Mt Remarkable National Park or Telowie Gorge CP. However, after a bit of research I became aware that these two had been closed to the public because of a pest control program. I therefore headed towards Adelaide, cutting off another days ride. The early arrival would see me staying with my Uncle, Bruce, and his partner Jeff… but not until I had to negotiate some more city traffic. Unfortunately, after missing a couple of turns and trying to find my way back I got distracted and rear-ended a car. Thankfully though the bike suffered some slight cosmetic damage, and my knee was only a little bruised. The main damage was to the poor ladies car, my ego, and worst of all, my wallet. Being an under 24 driver I was punished with a large sum of additional excess fees which really hurt, which means I’ll most likely be in a little debt to the folks after the trip. At least I’ll be able to have a break from riding over the next few days to get my nerves back and enjoy the sites!

The time spent in Adelaide meant seeing a few of the sights, including a small township of Hahndorf, as well as a comedy show at one of the festivals, and just enjoying being off the bike for a while.

12^th – 18^th of March, 2013:

Well, it was finally time to get back on the bike after an extended rest in Adelaide. At least the ride to Melbourne wasn't long, or boring. The first days ride would see me through Mt Gambier, across the SA/VIC border and into the lower Glenelg National Park. The weather was beginning to warm up again and it was good to be able to cool off at the beaches of Robe and the rivers within the national park. It turned out that there are full fire ban down here, and that includes my small hexamine fuel stove. Fortunately for me, the other campers around me were a little better prepared after having the heads-up and offered me some sangas and a few beers for dinner! The kindness of strangers huh!

The following day it was finally time for the Great Ocean Road, which I had been looking forward to since the beginning of the trip. It was only around 550km’s to Melbourne, which I had originally planned to split in half and camp in the Great Otway National Park. However after another early start, I was making excellent time and decided that I would head all the way to the city. The ocean road really was spectacular, with more lookouts than you have time for. Unfortunately the number of RV’s and slow cars that don’t understand what “slow vehicle turnouts” are really spoils the ride. Especially when it causes you to shift all the way back to 3^rd or even 2^nd gear! Never the less I made it safely to Melbourne where I was able to stay with my second cousin Andrew, and his wife Corinne, and their kids.

The following day, Andrew managed to get work off and had scored some free passes to the first day of the Melbourne Grand Prix. Though the F1’s weren't out, we enjoyed the deafening roar of the can-am cars, some V8 practices, and some of the show cars. Being off the bike once again allowed me to plan for the final section of the ride home, and luckily Andrew is familiar with the Victorian high country and helped me plan a route through to Canberra. The rear tyre had also had it, and was up for replacement, only around 7,000km’s from new. As tempting as it was to get the DOT approved Dunlop D606 knobbies on the front and rear, I had to take into consideration the tarmac of the Great Alpine Way, which would be somewhat treacherous on normal rubber, let alone those. I decided on the Dunlop Trailmax, which is a good compromise between tar and dirt, and won’t send the balance out with the old front too much.

Whilst in Melbourne, I was also able to catch up with an old mate (Doug) whom I grew up with. He also had a mate (Barrie) down from Townsville who is a motorbike mechanic. Thankfully, this also meant I had some help changing the tyre! After the better part of the day messing with the bike we hit the piss and headed into town to the Crown Casino… well that is a classy place, and it was made more obvious when we were rejected from entering the higher level clubs for ‘being too casual’ haha. Anyways we headed to another bar somewhere else in the city before retreating back to doug’s place.

Anyways as you can tell I’m getting a little lazy and sparse with the day to day details of the trip. So long story short, I had a good rest…which seems to be the trend now that I am back in the Eastern half of Australia! Additionally, with the surprising cold change here in Melbourne and the sub-zero night temperatures and small amounts of snow they have had in the high country, I decided on some more thermal gear to aid me through the next week.

The next few days will see me through the Yarra ranges, Australian Alpine region, Snowy River and Mt Kosciuszko National Parks and into Canberra… which will be an incredible change from the flat bitumen roads that I have been riding for the past month, if not more!