port macquarie to byron bay

After a fairly tardy start due to us staying up and watching the tour, me frigging around with the internet at another unnamed fast food outlet and then some poor navigation on my part, we were on our way to byron bay.

the marina thingy at port macquarie

A fairly uneventful journey except for the ongoing comms issues. we stopped at the big banana in coffs harbour for the obligatory tourist shot, it's big, it's a banana, so why wouldn't you. After that it was lunch in grafton the on to byron.

For those that care about that sort of thing, splendor in the grass is on in byron this weekend so the place is jumpin' so trying to get through the town is a nightmare. I don't know how the locals cope.

We arrived at the lighthouse late afternoon and the light was beautiful and the view was, as always, stunning. So we have achieved one of our goals and that is to get to the eastern most point of the mainland. On the way down from the cape we stopped a wategos beach for a look and a couple of photos. From there it was back into battle with the seemingly endless hordes of people, who all wanted to be in exactly the same place we wanted to be but they were in no real hurry to get there.

looking up to cape byron lighthouse

After what seemed like an eternity in traffic we arrived at my mate craig's house where he and his partner miffy and their kids have very kindly allowed us to stay and have shown us incredible hospitality and generosity for which we are both very, very grateful.

We will need to have an early start tomorrow as it's the last of the really long hauls for a little while and it would be great to get it done in daylight. I seem to say that a bit and so far it hasn't happened. I'm beginning to see a pattern emerging.

For our exact location click on this http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=-28.6392,153.6361&ll=-28.6392,153.6361&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

canberra to port macquarie

Well we're finally on the road. We met at the big fella's place at 8.45 and after a bit of a chat and a photo session we were off.

set and ready to get on the road

As Fi said to me this morning, It's a perfect day for a ride, cool, blue sky and no wind. and it was too, as we crested the hill out of canberra we were met with clear blue skys and a gently rising mist, really stunning.

First stop of the day was the green grocer in goulburn for the first coffe of the trip and a quick sqiz through the bike shop (yes it is a grocer and a cafe and a bike shop – heaven really) before hitting the road in earnest with the plan being to stop just shy of newcastle for lunch.

out the front of the greengrocer

The cruise through sydney was ok thanks mainly to the m7 bypass. However there is still quite a bit of traffic through the north western suburbs until you get back onto the freeway to newcastle and on to the pacific highway.

Lunch was at fast food chain that will remain unnamed and i was amazed by the number of people who came up to us to say that they had seen us earlier, or just to talk about the bikes. Jim, if you’re reading this, yes I would love the photo you took. From there we were aiming for port macquarie which was about 3.5 hours away. Due to an amazing amount of road works we arrived in port in the dark which wasn't a lot of fun it has to be said but we got here and are now settled in our accommodation.

After a quick feed of steak and veg and couple of beers at the local tavern, it was back to our digs to try to sort out some minor comms issues and to watch the tour.

Tomorrow is a relatively short 470kms to byron bay and the most eastern most point of the mainland.

less than 12 hours to go

I finally have everything organised, packed and all bar one pannier on the bike and ready to roll.

everything I plan to take. not sure how to carry the chair though.

The plan is for me to head to the big fella's house for a small send-off, then it's up the highway to our first overnight stop at port macquarie. All things going according to hoyle, it should take us about 7.5 hours. Let's hope. 

six short days to go

With just under a week to go we were due to have a shakedown ride to sort things out. However the big fella had to work, which irked him no end, and the whole thing got put off. But, never one to miss an opportunity, fi suggested I could load the bike anyway and we could shoot through to the coast as a family. So that’s what we did. I got to test out my fully laden bike and the family got a weekend at the beach. Everyone’s a winner really — except for wal who had to work.

early morning on tarthra beach

Other than not being able to test the gps through the comms unit (I’m short a cable) the ride was very beneficial and I found out some important things. When fully loaded and ridden on winding mountain roads the bike still has remarkably good manners. When fully loaded and riding through a stiff crosswind, it is akin to trying to ride with a sail up. And last but by no means least, a fully loaded 1200 is very, very heavy and getting it onto the centre stand is quite a feat and not without its risks.

I also discovered that in the small town of candelo, at the general store and café, you can get one of the best burgers I’ve ever had and some very excellent coffee. It’s a brilliant place to ride and well worth the effort.

candelo general store and café

t minus four weeks and counting

With just under four weeks left before we depart, things are starting to get pretty exciting and just a little scary. The whole thing is now very real and no longer a dream and for every item I cross off my to-do list, I put 2 more on and I'm struggling to see how I will get everything done in time.

We sorted out our comms units on the weekend so if nothing else, at least we can talk to each other and listen to music. I also fitted my spare fuel chassis, so after its service, my bike will be ready to go. Me, not so much.

The big fella, in his own inimitable stlye, seems to have his poo very much together. Bastard.