rospaul

09:35 pm: Walwa Upper Murray River Resort July 07
A great five nights spent riding around the upper Murray River: Walwa, Tintaldra, Jingellic and surrounds in very cold weather. Some of the photos show snow on the distant range.

Despite a warm cup of tea and kitkat in the Tintaldra Pub at 4pm, we arrived with frozen hands after 6 pm and riding in the dark with lights.

A more sensible attempt at riding up the Nigeal Valley from Cudgewa to Spacey's Bridge picnic area ended up in being beaten by the rain. However, we did have our bar-b-que around a warm fire before driving through Corryong down memory lane for Rosemary. Alas a disappointment — not like the 70s at all!! However, a lookout on the way back to Tintaldra must be one of the best panoramas we've seen.

03:56 pm: 2 Chefs

Paul and a Wagga Wagga friend Rob, who loves dropping in especially when his partner, Andrea is holding the fort back in Berlin decided to do some special culinary thing on Tuesday evening. This was the first showing with Rosemary and Norm being the... guests. Menu: herb filled lamb shanks with a pear,roasted almond, blue cheese and rocket salad followed by date & orange mascapone tart with cream and/or ice-cream. The wine was a Katanook Founder's Block Coonawarra 2004 Cab Sav and a Casella Estate Yendah Hall Sangiovese 2003.

04:55 pm: Easter Visit to Launceston
To see how Katelyn and Rowan had grown since our visit last year, we visited Toni & Barrie where we visited local wineries when not taking Mum & Dad's old dog for a walk and generally catching up on everything else.

04:43 pm: Andrea's High Tea
To create some fond memories for Andrea, Rob's partner, before returning to Berlin last March to await Rob, we decided to have a high tea in the Botantical Gardens with Rob supplying the music:

06:47 pm: Memorable birthday 12.02.07
So! You want to do something different for your birthday?
What is that you said? — Get up at seven, make breakfast and take it to Mount Imlay for a walk to the summit?
There was a great picnic spot at the track-head for breakfast.
Trouble is... it started to rain. Nevermind. We'll just eat it in the car and wait for the rain to pass.
Which we did and set off up the mountain to its top at 800m.
The following tells the story:

09:48 pm: Lori, Gyan & Dave's Christmas 06 visit
Lori, Gyan and Dave stayed with us for a couple of nights on their way up to Sydney from Melbourne to celebrate Helen & Blair's Birthdays as well as Christmas with Lori's family

09:21 pm: DAY 7 — RETURN FROM BALLARAT: Rutherglen to Henty


The Tuilleries at Rutherglen has never disappointed us. Great place, great accommodation, great food and service. But we were due in Henty 105 kms away on the Saturday evening.

The road was quiet with an occasional farm vehicle. The magpies were still swooping from time to time. The ride was very pleasant. The stops beside the Murray: memorable. Was a puncture nearly into Henty late in the afternoon going to spoil it? It couln't. Though, without that full dam a short distance from the road Paul would have had difficulty cleaning the innertube of 'slime' to prepare the patch.

The Doodle Arms Hotel at Henty had hot welcome showers after quite a long ride. For our last night we would have preferred something more special than ordinary.

The next morning we were off to an early start heading to Uranquinty for a real breakfast. The Olympic Highway, though the main drag to Wagga Wagga, was surprisingly quiet for a Sunday morning.

We were ecstatic to arrive home safely and celebrate with champagne on the front verandah early Sunday afternoon.

07:01 pm: DAY 5 — RETURN BALLARAT BIKE TOUR: Bearii to Rutherglen


Mariea and Trinity's farm was really special and as has often happened on our short stays in wonderful places, we were sad to have to set off.

The Murray Valley Highway is reputably very busy and we knew we had 39km of it to ride along before our morning break at Cobram: so we couldn't tarry. However, it wasn't too bad. Victorian roads often have a metre shoulder which is great for cyclists. B doubles and the like are still a bit of a horror. There weren't many of these on this particular morning and we had a very enjoyable ride.

Setting off from Cobram, we were pleased to be back on relatively isolated roads as you can see from the image taken across the handlebars.
It was a great ride continuing across undulating channel country. Almost into Mulmula Paul noticed his tyre was losing pressure. Pumping more air into the innertube worked for a while but needed patching and good pressure from a garage. We diverted into Yarrawonga instead and Paul repaired the leak while Rosemary went off to buy some lunch. (see image of repair in progress.....)

It was a glorious day for cycling and we were feeling pretty good. The next 60kms would be no trouble. The ride up through Mulwula into NSW again and along the side of the lake with little traffic, a slight tail wind and Rutherglen at the Tuilleries to look forward made for a really enjoyable side trip ride through Corowa and back into Victoria to that famous wine district of Rutherglen.

We had the next day as a lay-day and went to All Saints for a long leisurely lunch (see image of Rosemary in the grounds). Another flat discovered after walking around the grounds before setting off seemed no drama. The late October evening was balmy and just lovely riding along the quietened road enjoying the long shadows stretching across the fields of vines.

07:08 pm: DAY 2 — Return from Ballarat Bike Tour: HARDING NORTH to ELMORE


Millduck is one place we will return to if not to ride then to walk the track to Ballarat 80kms away. Memories only have superlatives as far as this wondrous place goes.

The ride to Bendigo was an easy one being mostly down hill on a crisp and pleasant morning. We came across a great cafe overlooking the lagoon for our morning break and took one of the two photographs of this leg.

There was only a short ride we thought to Elmore but it seemed to take the day, however. Not that we rode on the main drag as the route on the above image shows.

The last ten kilometers along a sealed and quiet rode saw Elmore famous for its annual Field Day lit by the setting sun.

Our chosen accommodation was on the Campaspe River which we were to parallel to Echuca the next day. Our host had arvo tea ready for us with a warm chat. Very acceptable. The local pub a couple of ks walk into town was pleasant enough.

The days ride was uneventful, easy to ride with no head wind and level terrain. Good cropping country if there were rain!

07:20 pm: DAY 1 — Return from Ballarat: CASTLEMAINE—HARDCOURT NTH


We enjoyed ourselves so much on Heather's birthday and found it difficult to reconcile leaving Ballarat on our first day of the trip home at 9 am. The family helped out by agreeing to a b-b-que lunch at Castlemaine.

We set off for Harcourt North (see Barry's live journal) early after lunch along the main drag to Bendigo on Sunday afternoon and were glad to turn off to Hardcourt 15 kms later.

A great ride climbing up through apple orchard country. Paul had trouble keeping up with Rosemary after buying a few kilos of local fruit, nuts and dried fruit at a roadside stall.

Being late in the afternoon the shadows were falling across the valleys as we rode along/up tree lined narrow sealed roads to the turn off at Ford Road for our stop for the night. (www.millduck.com.au)

Rosemary had organised an evening meal to be prepared ready for us to cook: pasta salad with accompanying meats + dessert and chocolates.

The strawbale cottage was just magnificent: sited on the top of a ridge looking north over the valley where sat Bendigo (see top photo). The property raised Alpacas which Rosemary immediately fell in love with. It was as much as I could do to drag her past the front paddocks through which we had to ride to reach our accommodation and in which were the doey eyed curious herds of various ages.

You can see the stylish and comfortable place we were to stay that night. It was cold enough to light the pot-bellied stove and sit around in the warmth after a blissfully hot shower in a room so large no shower screens were necessary. Paul did the cooking as usual from the bar-b-que outside and nearly burnt the dinner from being distracted admiring the sun's light fading from the distant hills.

12:21 am: In Ballarat for Heather's 50th


Preparing to set off on the return leg of the bike tour: decorating the stick on eyes of the helmets that Glen's friend gave us at Waterfall Creek to scare off the swooping magpies that took bits out of our helmets on the way down.




With the Groenevelds and little did Heather know we were plotting a surprise birthday party

11:50 pm: DAY 8 — Bike tour to Ballarat: KILMORE — DAYLESFORD


We left Kilmore in high spirits. We expected the ride today to be through some of the best in Victoria and we were not going to be disappointed.
We took a gamble on Lansfield being a good place to stop for morning tea and Woodend for lunch and we self congratulatory at making such good choices.
The photographs above indeed indicate how beautiful the countryside was.
The photo of us beside a fence was supposed to show the paddock behind us circled with established conifers. Believe me it really was.
Daylesford as everyone knows is a mecca of indulgence. Our self contained accommodation was well chosen. Music greeted us as we let ourselves in.
The bath was luxurious. The whole apartment was well appointed and had everything except R would have enjoyed more the magazines if they were not so dated.
We rang Heather to organise a meeting place the next day.
Bas was looking forward to riding the last twenty odd kilometers with us into Ballarat.
Heather had organised a back route and was to act as our support vehicle and show us the way.
One of the local restaurants we chose on spec. had excellent good food and wine.
We walked down to a local cafe the next morning to stretch the indulgence as long as we could before setting off for the rendez vous.

10:12 pm: DAY 7 — Bike tour to Ballarat: ALEXANDRA TO KILMORE


The early morning thunderstorm had cleared the air. The morning was cool hence the windjackets. Once out onto the main drag and heading to a particular attraction in Yea which Robin had suggested we stop at (remind me Rosemary........) for morning coffee and our Alexandra hosts had recommended it too we had our motivations set.
The wind was strong.
As soon as we turned left heading SW to Yea the head wind hit us like a huge force pushing us backwards.
The road was pretty and the trees mitigated the head wind.
We were glad to arrive in Yea: 30km on. The coffee was as recommended.
Rosemary had a route from Yea to Kilmore recommended by a cyclist who worked in the tourist office in Kilmore. The route turned off the main road at Kerrisdale onto King Parrot Creek Road and it was sealed. By the time we turned off it was getting past lunch time so we took advantage of a good spot by the side of the road which had a magnificent view up the valley (see photo).
If we thought the climb out of Myrrhee was steep, the long climb up to the top of the range through Strath Creek was vertical!!
The General Store at Strath Creek is a viable business and had locals calling in while we had a break in a shelter beside the park opposite.
The ride along the ridge of the range was almost worth the climb.(photo through trees). However, the road was not downhill especially through Tyaak
The descent made up for a walking pace average speed on the ascent.
It was late afternoon by the time we got to Broadford. Workers were outside the pub we passed socialising after work. Still 27 km to go to Kilmore.
However, we rode into Kilmore with still plenty of light.
Our accommodation for the night was another highlight of the trip set in hedged gardens not part of the grand Victorian era house. There were some refreshing savories already made up to have with some wine after a good soaking spar. The dining table was set in a bay window overlooking the garden and blissfully private.
The local pub just down the hill supplied us with a good dinner. The publican was very friendly and interested in chatting to us about our trip while we enjoyed a complimentary wine.

11:39 pm: DAY 6 — Bike Tour to Ballarat: MYRRHEE TO ALEXANDRA
Our hosts of the previous evening had only driven not ridden the route we planned to Mansfield for lunch. We set off knowing we had a good morning of climbing the early part of which was on unsealed road.

It was hard work. The "Bike-Fit" we had from Kitsons: one of our local bike shops was much appreciated on climbs like this one as it made the work more efficient. Robin, my sister-in-law phoned on the way up. I'm sure she detected my hard breathing so I felt I needed to explain my situation so there was no misunderstanding about my reaction to her conversation!

The great advantage with a hill climb is the surrounding scenery as you make your way up. This more than compensates for the effort.

Our average speed before the descent into Mansfield was 8 kph... plenty of time to enjoy the vistas. Zoom in on Rosemary enjoying sustenance for a mid-morning break.



Mansfield is a great place for lunch. Good choices of cafes with local produce of healthy and sustaining food and beverages. We needed to reward ourselves for our achievement and at the same time to take time to reflect on a great morning's ride.

The day was quiite warm with a fair way still to go. We weren't all that looking forward to the early part of the afternoon which we knew was on a busy road to Merton. Yet it was much better than we expected. Rosemary must have felt similarly as seen by her pose with me at a stop for arvo tea.

The road to Merton has a good shoulder and this continued to Yarck. I noticed a memorial to Hume and Hovell on the side of the road so they must have taken this route from Yass to Melbourne over 150 years ago. We followed a disused rail line from Merton to Yarck. This must be the one proposed to be converted to a railtrail.

It was late afternoon when we reached Yarck. We had a forced stop to repair a puncture in Rosemary's rear wheel. Thanks to "slime" in the tubes, I didn't have to patch it. We both began to feel the effect of the long day on the last 17 km stretch to our farm stay accommodation on the outskirts of Alexandra.

It was dark when we arrived to have a whole farm house at our disposal. Rosemary had arranged for an evening meal to be available and with wine. After a lovely hot shower we enjoyed a great country roast with a surprise lemon tart for desert. We ended up taking the remainder of the tart with us the following day. The night temperature was cool and ominous rain was forecast for the ride tomorrow. You'll notice our clothing in the bottom photo is different from that in the others as this was taken the next morning as we were about to set off. There had been an early morning storm which had cleared by the time we left.

12:30 am: DAY 5 — Bike Tour to Ballarat: YACKANDANDAH TO MYRRHEE
DAY 5 — Bike Tour to Ballarat: YACKANDANDAH TO MYRRHEE



The climb out of Yackandandah first thing in the morning was as strenuous as the last time we had done it. Because of the condition of the unsealed road the day before, we decided to put up with the traffic coming from Wodonga to Beechworth. The shoulder on the side of the road meant that the traffic was not a threat. However, you needed your wits about you. So it was some relief to have mastered the hills into Beechworth and sniff out the good coffee shop. But a disaster fell on the town: there was a black out. No tills were working not to mention the coffee machines. The Bakehouse had plunger coffee in an urn — better than nothing!

One of the images above shows us sitting outside our preferred coffee haven. Little did we know while we waited that the proprietor was soon to come and inform us that the power was not expected to come back on until two o'clock that afternoon.

We had set out goals on the Millawa Cheese Factory for lunch. That at least was something to look forward to.

The Beechworth section of the Murray to the Mountains Railtrail is iconic as far as railtrails go. We had worked out the best route to take. This meant getting off at Diffney Road. So we followed the road sign posted on the side of the railtrail.

Disaster.

This direction took us on an unsealed road, down the mountain and along some valley or other eventually out onto the main drag to Bright—Mount Beauty and 20 kms from Millawa!!

An hour and a bit later, we arrived at the Cheese Factory for lunch and got stuck into some comfort food!!

The road to Myrrhee leads off from Moyhu on the way down the King Valley to Whitfield.

It was a warm afternoon. The General Store at Moyhu had some fresh fruit etc which was our afternoon tea. Not that we needed alot. We had expected to arrive at Myrrhee about the time we arrived at Moyhu. A phone call to our hosts confirmed our directions but the signature of: "Well, you've done the flat bit. Now it's all up hill" left us a little .... expectant?

Actually, it wasn't too bad a climb at all. It was late in the afternoon by this stage: long shadows and noises from the fauna taking their last meal for the day.

Joy of joy to arrive at Casa Luna to be greeted with a bottle of wine, yummy dips and magnificent views down the valley. The accommodation was superb. The evening meal with wines to match each course could easily rival the best of Tuscany. Our conversation over dinner focused on finding out all about the location and how to optimise a return visit.... with friends, perhaps.

11:36 pm: DAY 4 — BALLARAT BIKE TOUR: Tallangatta Valley to Yackandandah
DAY 4 — BALLARAT BIKE TOUR: Tallangatta Valley to Yackandandah

We had very mixed feelings leaving Glen on the Monday morning. Waterfall Creek is such a great place and Glen is a terrific bloke but we were looking forward to the continuing adventure: We had planned on an alternative route from Tangambalanga to Yackandandah to avoid the main road coming from Wodonga. We also knew the cafe would be open in Tallangatta for a morning coffee break and to buy some lunch. We were expecting an easy day.
The ride along the Tallangatta Rail Trail into Tallangatta and along the Hume Weir was as pleasant as we remembered. As was our luncheon spot.
There were riders from Wodonga stopped at the Tangambalanga Ice-Cream Factory outlet. We eyed them off from across the road in a very pleasant park and recreation centre with clean loos. The riders set off at a quick pace up the hill while we meandered after them preferring the local bikeway to the reasonably busy road.
The image background shows the climb up to the ridge leading to the turn off to Yackandandah. The minor unsealed road we took turned out to be the locals back way to Yackandandah: so pretty busy and corrugated.
Getting into Yackandandah seemed to take forever even though we arrived in late/mid afternoon.
The motel was chosen as it is in the middle of town and almost next door to the Star Hotel which has very good tucker and local wine list. We had taken the trouble to book to make sure of an evening meal.

10:45 pm: Day 2 — Ballarat Bike Tour: Jingellic to Tallangatta Valley
DAY 2: Ballarat Bike Tour: Jingellic to Tallangatta Valley

The Jingellic store opened at 8 am. We were able to have some sambos made up and ready to go. We had filled our thermoses ready for the day at the cabin beside the Bridge Hotel where we stayed overnight.
The ride along the Murray River on that early Saturday Morning was blissfully quiet and very pleasant. No wind and short gentle hills as the map shows. The Grand Final of the AFL was on and we could hear the radios and TV from time to time with yells of excitement from the BBQ's. We seemd to be the only ones on the road for about 4 hours as everybody else bunkered down to watch the great game.
The snap of us was taken looking to the range with our back to the river. Although the level of the Hume Weir was low, the surrounding pastures were green and well stocked.
We had ridden this route last year when the Weir was at its peak. We could easily detect the difference.
Also last year we had dreaded going over Granya Mountain and has been surprised by its gradual rather than steep climb. The ride down the other side saw us at speeds to 60 kph despite the bends!
It was late in the day when we were heading along the 32kms of the Tallangatta Valley to our haven of Waterfall Creek Guest House — a gentle rise from the turn off from the road to Wodonga to Waterfall Creek of 500m. The valley is relatively narrow. The Tallangatta Creek had a good flow of water. The dairy farms were finishing milking for the day. We passed relieved cows waiting for the remainder of the herd and eying off the lush pasture in the night paddock.
Glen, our host, greeted us in his usual warm and affectionate fashion, ushered us to our rooms for a good soak before a welcome beer, wine and nibbles and a catch up while he finished dinner preparations.
Day 3 was spent at Waterfall Creek being waited on hand and foot throughout the day which was spent reading from Glen's "alternative" library.

07:18 pm: Wagga Wagga to Ballarat 1 of 7


This is the first day of our bike tour from Wagga Wagga NSW through NE Victoria to Ballarat last October.
We started out about 9am and arrived at Jingellic on the Upper Murray River just in time to get some breakfast provisions from the local store before it closed at 6 pm.
Although we encountered a few steep hills along an unsealed road over Pulletop Mountain, it was well worth the effort for the reward of the high vistas of the surrounding landscape. Next time we'll avoid this climb and go to the Hume Highway via a turn off to Burandanna closer to Mangoplath. This route has little or no motor traffic and is sealed.
GET IT? The Reduce Speed sign and my walking the bike up the hill.

04:17 pm: Jingellic to Tintaldra bikeride

Jingellic to Tintaldra bikeride — sheltering from a shower but the rest of the day b-u-tiful.

Rosemary and Paul had a great bikeride along the Upper Murray to Tintaldra from Jingellic along the Victorian side of the river and back on the NSW side last Sunday. Beautiful vistas of green pastures with new born white lambs and black cattle grazing beside rich billabong wetlands below treed ranges stretching into the distance.