Australian West Coast Bike Ride
Newsletter No 11- John and Ted have 14 days to reach Bairnsdale
2nd November 2004

John and Ted have 14 Days
to reach Bairnsdale

Murray Bridge to Warrnambool

Back on the Road again! - with Mike following at the rear.

Wednesday October 20th – 82 kms to Meningie .Up at 5.30 am and away by 6.30 taking the back road via the ferry across the Murray at Wellington and Jervois. Arriving safely on undulating road which made for a hard ride for the team with some assistance from a tail wind!

Thursday October 21st - 62 kms to Salt Creek - Another early start for Salt Creek and an overnight camp in the Coorong National Park. Self catering, composting toilet and rainwater - camping out in style! Great amenities and beautiful scenery waking up with the birds and wildlife along the salt lakes.

Friday 22nd - 86.2 kms to Kingston - Kay and Val walked to Chinaman's Well after an early breakfast with the boys before following them along the highway. Another hard ride in fine weather over undulating road without much shoulder but great views of the Coorong coastline! The boys encountered feral cats, several road kills and two very startled emus which narrowly missed Ted on his bike! Quite a challenge - but a caravan park on the beach was a just reward at the end of the day.

Saturday 23rd - 86 kms to Beachport - Still a narrow road, some big trucks and a fierce headwind made it another challenging day's ride and the boys arrived at camp very tired! Dinner at the "local" with Ted's friends, Helen and Bob, was a great way to end the day!

Sunday 24th – 37km to Millicent - A short ride arriving for lunch after stopping for home made scones and jam for morning tea accompanied by a herd of very curious cows! – Less windy so a more pleasant day’s riding and a great night at the Lakeside Caravan Park and an interesting maritime and agricultural museum in the main street.

Monday 25th – 64kms to Mount Gambier - 6.20am start and the boys are on the road again. Another beautiful day! Narrow shoulders and log trucks heading to and from the wood chipping mill made the road hazardous early in the ride through vast acreages of State Forest planted with pine and later blue gums. Met up with Pam and her family on arriving at Mount Gambier. We all listened to John’s live interview on the ABC before having a picnic lunch in the park. The Mount Gambier Lakes invited us all to their meeting at the Commodore Motel that evening and presented John with a cheque for $500 towards the Fund. They were all interested to meet the crew and John gave them a very entertaining talk on their adventures so far. Our grateful thanks to Bruce and Trish Millar from John and Kay and to John and Julie Kirby from Mike and Val for hosting us with such comfortable accommodation!

Tuesday 26th – 91 kms to Heywood – Pam’s first day back with the boys since leaving them in Broome - a hard ride through very lush and green country with vineyards, more plantations and trucks along the way. They have had record rain here! Arrived to meet up with Gerard and Elisa and happy little Max who John hadn’t seen for five months! Happy reunion! That evening it started to rain – the first since leaving Adelaide.

Wednesday 27th – 26km to Portland – Mike not riding today after injuring his achilles tendon last night. Wet, cold and windy arriving at the Centenary Caravan Park where John generously donated free accommodation for the night. Finally sorted out the phone problems with a great deal of kind patience from Greg at Retravision. The Rotary Club of Portland Bay hosted a dinner at a restaurant dinner and surprised us all with a generous donation of $1000. We had a great evening of fellowship with them all.

Thursday 28th – 70 kms to Port Fairy – Usual early 6.30 start, stopping for morning tea after 33 kms. Pam called us shortly after taking off with seized back wheel bearings and had to finish the day’s riding on Mike’s bike. Passed a large wind farm along the highway. We were greeted by Rotarians President Gordon Haiman, his son Andrew and Alan Rasmussen from the Rotary Club of Port Fairy while having a late lunch on the side of the highway. They had arranged cabins and a campsite for us at the caravan park and we joined them and other members for a very enjoyable informal dinner in the evening.

Friday 29th – 25kms – A short ride into Warrnambool leaving early again so that Pam could get her bike in to be repaired ASAP. Fresh scones for morning tea in the caravan park located right on the foreshore was a good start to a few day’s well earned rest for everyone. Michelle and Janette joined our camp and we had stir fry for tea, freezing cold and huddled up in several layers of clothing before crowding into the caravan to keep warm.

Saturday 30th – Good news this morning – the sun is shining again, Pam’s bike is back on the road and Mike’s ankle is OK. A full complement back on the road again on Monday.

More news soon! John, Ted, and the crew