tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-511358163770777022024-02-06T20:56:32.911-08:00Cycling with Jimmy Bee Bicycles, Cycling, Recreational Cycling, Social Cycling, Cycle Paths and Trails,Cycling and PhotographyJimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.comBlogger157125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-83825545888769171352015-09-19T22:49:00.000-07:002015-09-19T22:49:19.043-07:00THE FOUR POINT RIDE, QLD.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8esEgcL5DI8/VfoxsIHGqpI/AAAAAAAAJTw/RmYg4X1J6lE/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B17092015%2B10319%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="464" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8esEgcL5DI8/VfoxsIHGqpI/AAAAAAAAJTw/RmYg4X1J6lE/s640/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B17092015%2B10319%2BPM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For an embedded <b>Ride with GPS map</b> please open <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/10409769" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/10409769</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This app. will not only allow you to get a greater resolution but a cue sheet as well. Unfortunately, it will not allow the printing of the map until you take out registration with Ride with GPS.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The first part of this ride starts at Cleveland Harbour adjacent to the railway station, riding both on and off road, skirting through the suburbs of Ormiston, Alexandra Hills, Birkdale and on to <b>Wellington Point our first Point</b>, which is surrounded on three sides by water and a great place in summer to take the family for a picnic, kayaking adventure, a swim on a hot day or wind surfing/ kiting on a windy day. When the tide is out, a walk out to King Island is enormous fun particularly for younger members of the family.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t4irIoa9xik/VfqrnXWOyHI/AAAAAAAAJUA/QxtyjGttiuQ/s1600/RIDING%2BWITH%2BTHE%2BPOINCIANA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t4irIoa9xik/VfqrnXWOyHI/AAAAAAAAJUA/QxtyjGttiuQ/s640/RIDING%2BWITH%2BTHE%2BPOINCIANA.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A collage of views on the first stage of the ride</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For the second part of the ride we follow the coastline west for awhile before turning south and heading to Thornlands where we skirt around Crystal Waters Park which is renowned for it's diverse bird life and then head for Lakeside where there are a number of cafes to choose from to stop for a coffee or cool drink. From here you will ride on a sealed path through bush land reserve, first heading west and then south before turning east. This is the sort of ride that if you are carrying a compass, the needle will be constantly swinging around. After a convoluted ride through a series of back streets, you will find yourself at the very tip of Victoria Point <b>(Point No. 2). </b>Having a map in this instance would be of great assistance.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sLgEEpm8qCs/Vf4MNNnK3kI/AAAAAAAAJUQ/gkXPecXu9rA/s1600/VICTORIA%2BPOINT1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-sLgEEpm8qCs/Vf4MNNnK3kI/AAAAAAAAJUQ/gkXPecXu9rA/s640/VICTORIA%2BPOINT1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A small collage of views on the second stage of the ride</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">On the way to <b>Cleveland Point (4th Point on this ride</b><b>)</b> you will mainly ride on well maintained paths through <b>Point Halloran, (3rd Point)</b>, Pinklands and the eastern side of Thornlands. Like most of my rides, I try to keep to paths and off road trails but inevitably there will be some on road riding but mainly on safe secondary or suburban roads or failing this, wide dedicated and marked bicycle lanes. This is the nicest part of the ride where you will be mainly riding beside the water, through bush land or parks and if you don't enjoy this section then you are definitely hard to please.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FD5AeJiKTwg/Vf4QXt47tXI/AAAAAAAAJUc/IQvUDsIdFE8/s1600/NORFOLK%2BPINES%2BCOMPLEX1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FD5AeJiKTwg/Vf4QXt47tXI/AAAAAAAAJUc/IQvUDsIdFE8/s640/NORFOLK%2BPINES%2BCOMPLEX1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The above photographs were taken on Cleveland Point.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Each one of these four Points is unique in it's own right and although you ride some 69 km I doubt whether you will become bored and not especially if you take a camera.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qvhRtaejE9c/Vf4UPgQhKVI/AAAAAAAAJUo/oMuIrAYAoGg/s1600/CLEVELAND5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qvhRtaejE9c/Vf4UPgQhKVI/AAAAAAAAJUo/oMuIrAYAoGg/s640/CLEVELAND5.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">From Cleveland Point, you make your way back along paths through a series of parks to Cleveland Harbour where it is always nice to stop off at the <b>Hog's Breath</b> for a nice refreshing ale and afterwards, if not a local and not driving you can board a train for a relaxing journey back to where you live.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /><br />
Jimmy Bee<br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></div>
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<br />Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-8232906895310616382015-09-05T21:45:00.000-07:002015-09-05T21:45:49.974-07:00CYCLING LAKESIDE, VICTORIA POINT to CLEVELAND HARBOUR via Cleveland Point, QLD.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rttIZkcLvjM/Ved_Jus2ieI/AAAAAAAAJQw/86nvbbX8Kjc/s1600/IMG_0406.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rttIZkcLvjM/Ved_Jus2ieI/AAAAAAAAJQw/86nvbbX8Kjc/s640/IMG_0406.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lakeside Restaurant & Cafe complex.</td></tr>
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If you are the type that has to have a coffee before venturing out, or a social rider or weekend warrior of the hybrid variety that loves cycling as a form of exercise as well as recreation, then maybe this is the ride for you and more so if you live in this part of the world.</div>
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Before I continue this post, I would like to apologise to my readers for the long absence. Unfortunately I succumbed to some mysterious illness which was labelled atypical pneumonia and has laid me low for some four months. I am happy to say that I am back on deck and it is my intention to bring you some interesting posts.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WrO6NqsppOo/Ved_L1M9_UI/AAAAAAAAJQ4/zw3RuivO9Vc/s1600/IMG_0403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="384" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WrO6NqsppOo/Ved_L1M9_UI/AAAAAAAAJQ4/zw3RuivO9Vc/s640/IMG_0403.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Lakeside is situated in Victoria Point and consists of an array of eclectic restaurants and cafes opening up onto a small lake with a family or two of tortoises which surface from time to time to check out the strange earthlings.</div>
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The ride is only 36 km but being on the bay it is very scenic in places. It also takes in a couple of forested areas which you should enjoy. I personally love riding through the bush areas because you seem to be so remote from suburbia. As you can see by the elevation chart there are no hills of any consequence that could make it hard for you and when you reach Cleveland, there are a number of food and drink outlets.</div>
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The views from the seafront at Victoria Point are extraordinary and more so on a beautiful sunny day. The photograph that you can see above shows Coochiemudlo Island in the background and is well worth the 10 minute ferry ride across to explore the island. There are numerous beaches fronting clear clean water for swimming. Depending on the number of passengers boarding the ferry, it is possible to take your bike with you, in fact why not make this trip on another day when you will have the time to explore the entire island and have a swim as well.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2WQKyqo37CA/VeghT-7_8lI/AAAAAAAAJR4/QmjL0NNYrcw/s1600/IMG_6614.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2WQKyqo37CA/VeghT-7_8lI/AAAAAAAAJR4/QmjL0NNYrcw/s400/IMG_6614.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Sometimes paths fill people with some trepidation as they really don't know how their bike will handle it. Well, I can safely say that any bike will be able to handle these paths with ease. And.....I hasten to add that you will immensely enjoy rising through these areas.<br />
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Here is my trusty steed Scotty posing for the camera adjacent to a beautiful tranquil lake in Thornlands on our ride to Cleveland Harbour.<br />
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Usually the waters around Cleveland Point are quite placid but on the odd occasion when the wind is in the right direction and blowing hard and the tide is high, these placid waters can change in a flash. I've paddled a kayak around this point in similar conditions and it is just like what I believe, paddling in a washing machine would be like.<br />
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Everyone has an icon in the city/town in which they live and the Grand View Hotel built in 1856 is one in which most 'Clevelandites' feel proud of. It is the epitome of the colonial style Australian hotel. This hotel has a great garden at the back where you can sip an ale at your leisure whilst looking over the bay.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UJZBz4Z4erM/VelukwG_yUI/AAAAAAAAJTE/iWxahr4aNhk/s1600/CLEVELAND4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UJZBz4Z4erM/VelukwG_yUI/AAAAAAAAJTE/iWxahr4aNhk/s640/CLEVELAND4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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You're so right, that is Johnny Depp's boat from the film Pirates of the Caribbean resting in Cleveland harbour while Johnny the lad high tailed it back to his pad on the Gold Coast by helicopter. Oh! to be rich and famous.<br />
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I hope you enjoy the ride.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /><br />
Jimmy Bee<br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-38397676383834623262015-06-30T22:13:00.001-07:002015-06-30T22:13:29.811-07:00CYCLING THE 3 CREEKS BIKE PATHS - Ithaca, Enoggera & Kedron Brook, QLD.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">This would have to go down as one of the best rides the </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">U3A Pedaling Pathfinders</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> have had this year. Combining three of the best off road cycling routes north of the Brisbane river into the one continuous route really made for one enjoyable ride as was expressed by all who were. The ride started at Roma Street Station, proceeded along Enoggera Creek Bikeway, onto Ithaca Creek Bikeway back to Enoggera Creek Bikeway before making our way via a few backstreets to Kedron Brook Bikeway. After crossing Schultz Canal we followed a series of bicycle friendly roads to and over the Gateway Bridge to Murrarie Station where we boarded a train to Cleveland. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although we have passed Banneton Bakery <a href="http://www.banneton.com.au/" target="_blank">www.banneton.com.au/</a> at St. John's Wood, Ashgrove, on a number of occasions, we have never stopped there for a coffee break and that has been our loss as it turned out to be an excellent stop for a small group of cyclists. They serve, not only good coffee but excellent pastries as well.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Brisbane City Council are doing an excellent job with supplying and maintaining these linking cycle ways, especially when you take into consideration the damage that was done due to major flooding.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Socializing</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brisbane's Gateway Bridge</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption">Riding the dirt<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can't emphasize the benefits of doing short tours for seniors whether they are within the city's boundaries or on coastal strips or in deed mixing it with cattle, crops and wild life in the country. By short tours, I mean up to 100 km. It is not the distance that matters but the location. By having a longer than normal pit stop or coffee break also makes it a nice social occasion and it also benefits your health and well being. If you are really interested in pumping pedals, there are many interstate and international cycling tours, either fully organised with guides or partially organised self guided trips.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's all fun, fun, fun. even if you have to work hard for it on occasions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For a blow by blow description of the ride please open the following link: </span><a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/8245599" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/8245599</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">If you would like to know more about the <b>University of the 3rd Age (U3A)</b> please open the following link <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_the_Third_Age" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wwork for it on occasionsiki/Universyou have to if ity_of_the_Third_Age</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Our Pedaling Pathfinders group is part of <b>U3A Redlands</b> <a href="http://www.u3aredlands.com.au/" target="_blank">www.u3aredlands.com.au/</a></span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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Jimmy Bee<br />
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-43004377909367801412015-06-07T21:44:00.000-07:002015-06-07T21:55:19.783-07:00BOGGO ROAD to ALBION via The Gap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qzbeYfqTTas/VVwksCy-LTI/AAAAAAAAJG8/572UUUu_dZ0/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B20052015%2B40328%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="512" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qzbeYfqTTas/VVwksCy-LTI/AAAAAAAAJG8/572UUUu_dZ0/s640/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B20052015%2B40328%2BPM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For an embedded <b>Ride with GPS map</b> please open <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7967316" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7967316</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This app. will not only allow you to get a greater resolution but a cue sheet as well.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An artistic approach to the old Boggo Road Gaol</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">On this particular ride, we caught the train from Cleveland Station to Park Road Station, Dutton Park where </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">the infamous old prison"Boggo Road"stands</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> .....</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggo_Road_Gaol" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggo_Road_Gaol</a>. A<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">t 30 km this is not a long ride but it does take in some nasty hills some long but mostly short and sharp so you need to have a reasonable amount of fitness unless you are willing to walk some of them.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entrance ramp to the Eleanor Schonell Bridge crossing the Brisbane River.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The first part of the ride is to The Gap </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gap,_Queensland" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gap,_Queensland</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, which is the half way point of the ride and at 15 km is an excellent stop for coffee and a snack. The route takes you past the Brisbane Botanic Gardens but you need a couple of hours to do these gardens justice and although it is possible to include a walk through, I have deliberately left it out of this ride in order to keep the ride within a reasonable time frame.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice collage of photos depicting the area the ride passes through and the quality of the paths.</td></tr>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-69Spig8Ifg8/VXLBbr0LF4I/AAAAAAAAJKs/7uCRh2F-iFg/s1600/IMG_3949.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="464" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-69Spig8Ifg8/VXLBbr0LF4I/AAAAAAAAJKs/7uCRh2F-iFg/s640/IMG_3949.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spaghetti Junction (not the official name) at Bowen Hills</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The second half of the ride follows the Enoggera Creek Bike path which is an absolute delight to ride passsing through a number of well maintained parks and sporting fields, eventually turning into Breakfast Creek at Bowen Hills. It is then a matter of following the paths and cycling directions to Albion Station. To be sure always carry a detailed map, just in case a cycling sign or two are not there.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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Jimmy Bee</div>
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<br />Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-87294089129848773382015-05-19T22:55:00.000-07:002015-05-20T15:49:31.255-07:00TRAVERSING 6 BRIDGES over the Brisbane River, Qld.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cXYwzvgrcSE/VVvix3s5oqI/AAAAAAAAJGE/ts1XGvNd0tk/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B20052015%2B112232%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="486" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cXYwzvgrcSE/VVvix3s5oqI/AAAAAAAAJGE/ts1XGvNd0tk/s640/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B20052015%2B112232%2BAM.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For an embedded <b>Ride with GPS map</b> please open <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7845911" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7845911</a> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This app. will not only allow you to get a greater resolution but a cue sheet as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Just to make life a little more interesting, I decided to take our group, U3A's Pedaling Pathfinders, on a meandering ride crossing the Brisbane river 6 times. When you have ridden a route a number of times, it helps to change it slightly. After all, variety is the spice of life.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A collage of some points of interest on this route</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; text-align: justify;">This ride started from the Norman Park Railway Station and ended at the Park Road Railway Station, a distance of 37 km. and travelling through some 15 suburbs, which means that you are able to enter or exit this route whenever you choose. It is a fun ride with varying scenery all of the way and plenty of areas to stop for coffee and snacks. A great way to gain some exercise at the same time.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-86524575240329236162015-05-13T18:22:00.001-07:002015-05-14T00:39:24.777-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLING TOUR - Day 7 - Huskisson to Berry, NSW<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Huskisson to Berry via Nowra, NSW</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> an embedded <b>"Ride with GPS" map </b>please o</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">pen <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7869518" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7869518</a></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of our group expressing her feelings on Hyam's Beach</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bye! bye! Huski, it has been a wonderful couple of days. I had really hit the peak of relaxation and could easily have stayed another couple of days. What with an excellent place to stay, a hotel with tremendous views, fine food and music, glorious beaches and good cycling.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Dolphin Wild cruise on Jervis Bay was excellent with a skipper who had superb local knowledge and knew just when to add a little zest with intermittent bursts on the throttle just to wake us out of our complacency. The scenery was a photographer's dream, the dolphins played on cue and the white sand and emerald green water almost unique....... I shall return.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Redlands U3A 'Pedal for Pleasure' group posing near Falls Creek, NSW</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Falls Creek, NSW</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today we ride the countryside again as we veer inland to Nowra. Part of the ride entailed riding off road and fording Falls Creek, a pretty area ideally suited to picknickers. As we hadn't been in the saddle for all that long, we didn't bother to stop and have a snack, just a couple of happy snaps were taken and we were on our way once more.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our next stop was the </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fleet Air Arm Museum</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.navy.gov.xn--au%20%20history%20%20navy%20museums-hy2vna/" target="_blank">www.navy.gov.au › History › Navy Museums</a> approximately 6 to 7 kms south west of Nowra where we managed to spend a couple of hours looking at these magnificent old relics from a bygone era. As the museum had a cafe attached to it, we were able to have a snack and coffee before heading on to Nowra.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">On reaching Nowra, several of us elected to end our cycling tour and take the train the rest of the way to Berry. The reason for making this decision was purely a safety issue as we were now required to ride on the Princess Highway to Berry. Our ride notes fairly informed us that although the Highway had a recently upgraded shoulder to cycle on, there were many little bridges where the shoulder disappeared and as I don't like mixing motor vehicles with cycling (personal choice) unless I have no other alternative, I made the decision to train it. As it so happened, the cycling group beat us into Berry but the ride on the two carriage diesel train was a complete novelty as I hadn't experienced this type of train travel since my early teens.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So there we were on our last night, in the town of Berry. We were met at the Berry Hotel by Emma our hostess who kindly bought us all a drink as a farewell gesture which ensured that we stayed on at the hotel for our farewell dinner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The coastal escape tour <a href="http://www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/" target="_blank">www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/</a> was overall extremely good with excellent accommodation, management and choice of routes. The only drawback being that a lot of the bikes could have been serviced better. The Hexagon bike which replaced the one I originally was given was a great bike to ride. It was smooth, responsive and a joy to ride and made the rest of my tour so much more enjoyable.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Would I recommend it? Yes, it is a pleasant way of experiencing up close, the beauty of the Illawarra coastline and further along the south coast of NSW, which cannot be fully appreciated by hurtling along a highway at 100 kph.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-88698250977755252422015-05-11T16:40:00.000-07:002015-05-11T16:40:35.915-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 6 - Huskisson, NSW<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Not only is Huskisson a pretty little coastal town situated on the shoreline of Jervis Bay, it fairly rocks on weekends which makes it a real fun town to be in and I am only happy that we were there on a weekend to witness and partake in the revelry of the people really enjoying themselves to the music streaming out of a number of venues in the main street. Being 186 km from Sydney and 207 km from Canberra, places it in the ideal situation for attracting people from both cities seeking extended weekend recreation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the quality of the tourist boats in the harbour, it obviously attracts tourists and why not as it is Australia's most northerly fur seal colony, has it's own pod of dolphins, a large sheltered creek to accommodate the recreational and fishing craft and a launching pad to watch Southern Right whales frolicking in the pristine waters of the bay whilst migrating. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Sandholme</b> <a href="http://www.sandholme.com.au/" target="_blank">www.sandholme.com.au/</a> was our accommodation for a number of our group </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">including myself</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> for the two nights that we were here and I have to say I felt both privileged and humbled at the same time at the way we were welcomed and treated. Nothing was too much trouble and the attention to the finest detail didn't escape my attention either. For example each morning we were treated to a bespoke breakfast for which we had to order the night before. It was beautifully cooked the exact way I wanted it from a large choice. There was nothing one could have wanted that wasn't catered for. I actually felt scruffy and out of place, turning up for breakfast in my cycling gear, not that it offended our hosts, far from it, they were totally relaxed and made us feel at home no matter what we wore.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another nice touch was when we arrived home from having dinner, there was a carafe of port accompanied by an array of chocolates for our pleasure whilst we played a game of pool.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I couldn't recommend Sandholme highly enough. it was superb.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Huskisson to Hyams Beach, NSW</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For an embedded "Ride with GPS" map please open <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7847324" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7847324</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As the next day was a non touring day, well, cycling anyway, I wasn't going to ride, however, as our accommodation was a reasonable distance from the centre of town I thought that if I have to ride to town perhaps I should look at doing a little more. It was a pleasant ride out through Vincentia and through Jervis Bay National Park which was all dirt riding including some challenging single track. At the other end of the park, our group split with the majority returning to Huskisson and a few electing to ride to Hyams Beach which is supposed to have the whitest sand in the world which is a big claim but I would suggest that there is scientific proof to back it up.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hyams Beach, NSW</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It has such a beautiful view to the east that it would make a brilliant location to shoot a movie.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After coffee we made our way back to Huskisson and I was very pleased I made the decision to ride.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Jimmy Bee </span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-73057696554162080542015-05-07T02:48:00.000-07:002015-05-07T23:09:40.146-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 5 - Nowra to Huskisson, NSW<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v3pBvKY04w0/VUBuEksKzSI/AAAAAAAAIzk/RFdIPo9QKKo/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B29042015%2B33409%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="458" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v3pBvKY04w0/VUBuEksKzSI/AAAAAAAAIzk/RFdIPo9QKKo/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B29042015%2B33409%2BPM.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Map courtesy of Ride with GPS<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was a huge day, not in the sense of riding but it also included a cruise around Jervis Bay with </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dolphin Wild Cruises</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.... </span><a href="http://www.dolphinwild.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://www.dolphinwild.com.au/</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> . Before I elaborate on the cruise, lets start at the beginning in Nowra.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nowra with a population of nearly 35,000, is situated on the banks of the Shoalhaven River some 160 km south of Sydney. The first winner of the Melbourne Cup, Australia's premier thoroughbred race meeting, was Archer, trained in the district and went on to win the 2nd Melbourne Cup as well. Arthur Boyd, a famous Australian artist, also lived in the district and the list of famous inhabitants goes on and on. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our accommodation at the Park Haven Motor Lodge was good, probably not up to Sebel Harbourside standards but comfortable none the less. After breakfast which was served in our rooms, we embarked on a ride from Nowra to Myola where we had to board a ferry by 12.45 pm to take us to Huskisson, otherwise we may have missed our cruise departure.</span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CD9UtFix7U4/VUrGWuRNDZI/AAAAAAAAIz8/Aa15Z3uiMz4/s1600/IMG_0623.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CD9UtFix7U4/VUrGWuRNDZI/AAAAAAAAIz8/Aa15Z3uiMz4/s1600/IMG_0623.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You would be forgiven, if you thought you were in Finland or dreaming as it looks pretty authenic</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not all travel is on a sealed road</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serene</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ride initially took us along the river for approximately 10 km before making a sharp right hand turn heading overland to Callala Bay and then on to Callala Beach, where we stopped to have some refreshments. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We stopped at a cafe adjacent to Callala Beach which had a great little deck, large enough to accommodate our group perfectly. Our ride notes recommended stopping here and buying some lunch before boarding the ferry a little further along at Myola. Of interest here was that management gave us a sample of their dry fried chips (fries) which were quite tasty and probably were more healthy eating than the usual fried chips. Having a group of 18 hungry cyclists descend upon</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> a lonely little cafe </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">unexpectedly probably helps their daily profit quite nicely.</span><br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_SYIuT-FPXE/VUrGrHl-y2I/AAAAAAAAI00/7xkSzBkjp-c/s1600/IMG_0645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_SYIuT-FPXE/VUrGrHl-y2I/AAAAAAAAI00/7xkSzBkjp-c/s400/IMG_0645.JPG" width="385" /></a></div>
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It was at the end of these steps that we boarded a small ferry which took us to Huskisson.</div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">I took the above photograph of the sea birds as we emerged from the creek to enter Jervis Bay.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our first glimpse of Huskisson, a small coastal town in which we were to spend the next two days and to me was one of the highlights of the tour.</span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3zM2Q5ALs-8/VUrJpE7SFpI/AAAAAAAAI1A/_9flIlQX008/s1600/IMG_0647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3zM2Q5ALs-8/VUrJpE7SFpI/AAAAAAAAI1A/_9flIlQX008/s1600/IMG_0647.JPG" width="246" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I couldn't help taking this sneaky photograph of one of our group relaxing on the wharf whilst awaiting to board the Dolphin Wild Cruise boat, <b style="background-color: white; color: #006621; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;">dolphinwildcruises.com.au</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #006621; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; white-space: nowrap;">/</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Similar to the boat we cruised on.....plenty of grunt!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jervis Bay, looking east.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The above photographs were taken as we cruised along the northern escarpment of Jervis Bay. There are some quite remarkable formations, colours and caves caused by the elements eroding sandstone.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hyams Beach. The dark change of colour in the water is sea grass.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We certainly got our money's worth, the tour of Jervis Bay was slick, professional and educational added to a heady mix of adrenaline and adventure as the four large outboard motors made mixing it with the large waves coming in through the heads look like child's play. One moment we were ploughing through the waves and the next, airborne. There was a gentle side to the boat as well as it nonchalantly glided through a pod of local dolphins playing and feeding. These beautiful wild mammals certainly love the lime light as they graciously performed for us as if in repertory.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The temperature out on the bay was quite cool as we cut through the spray and I was pleased that I put my hand up when offered a storm jacket at the beginning of the tour. The tour gave us some insight into the vast Jervis Bay ecological systems at play.The sandy beaches bordering the exquisite crystal clear water is said to have the whitest sand in the world. One wonders at the force of nature as the wind and wave motion, over time, sculptured patterns in beautiful colours on the cliffs and over time, burrowed and moulded the caves so easily seen from our boat. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To learn more about Jervis Bay, open the following link: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jervis_Bay" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jervis_Bay</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">AN EVER GROWING LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE CAN BE FOUND BY OPENING THE FOLLOWING LINK</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-85807594620301978932015-04-26T03:07:00.000-07:002015-04-26T03:09:10.840-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 4 - Gerringong to Nowra, NSW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before I take you along for the next part of the tour, I have to tell you about our culinary exercise last night. Four of our party fancied having steak for dinner and after some vigorous inquiries, we found ourselves at Cronin's Hotel. We were very pleasantly surprised as the quality of the steak was superb, cooked to our individual liking, the vegetables tasted as though they were freshly cooked and the bottle of red that accompanied the steak was very nice as well. When in a strange town, it always pays to make inquiries with the locals.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A nice panorama of Gerringong taken from the south head, uploaded by "Not Tarts" in 2011. (Wiki Media Commons)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's nothing quite like a heart starter first thing in the morning to get the blood flowing and that is exactly how the morning started, a 7% gradient climb up a hill. Everybody must have had a good night's sleep because I don't remember passing any cyclists walking.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Gerringong cemetery</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What drew my attention in the above shot, was the trees on the top of the hill. They reminded me of a line of nuns marching off to morning prayers. It's unusual to find a cemetery high on a hill, playing sentinel over a bay with a high escarpment. Another thing that caught my eye was the juxtaposition of the cemetery with all of it's starkness and severity in marked contrast to the smooth line of the beautiful emerald green hill which lay opposite.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first leg of the ride, taking us to Berry, didn't cause us any grief even though we were warned that some of the roads were narrow with very little shoulder and had a fairly constant stream of traffic.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It seemed to take no time at all to ride to Berry, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><a href="http://berry.org.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://berry.org.au/</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> a quaint rural town nestled in the hinterland behind Seven Mile Beach. Incidentally, it was here that Charles Kingsford-Smith in 1933, used this strip of beach to take off on the first commercial flight to New Zealand. On reaching Berry, the group split in order to search out a suitable cafe to relax in prior to riding the next leg to Nowra and as there are quite a few cafes and bakeries in town this didn't prove to be a difficult task.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Berry district</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The above photograph is typical of the lay of the land in these parts with it's undulating terrain. great for grazing cattle and the operation of dairies. I believe the area was known for it's red cedar but that era has long gone.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Due to it's location, only 145 odd kilometers south of Sydney, it makes the ideal place to set up a hobby farm, quiet, not far inland of the coast and as the town is of a reasonable size with it's hotel, restaurants, antique shops and galleries it amply caters for the city person wanting somewhere to retreat to on weekends and holidays</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the Shoalhaven River from the Two Figs Winery.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The entrance toTwo Figs Winery.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From Berry to the <b>Two Figs Winery</b> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TwoFigsWinery" target="_blank">https://www.facebook.com/TwoFigsWinery</a> is a quiet, relaxing rural ride with little traffic to contend with and as such, it was quite easy to slip into a rhythm, increase the speed a notch or two and just sit back and enjoy the ride. This cost me a stint in the sin bin from our leader for breaking ranks and doing my own thing......rightly so too because riders doing their own thing can cause chaos when riding in a group of 18.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nowra bridge- Photo courtesy of Wiki Media Commons -grahamec</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marriott Park, Nowra. Photo courtesy of Wiki Media Commons--grahamec</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On the last leg, the road became a lot busier as we made our way through Bomaderry on the outskirts of Nowra, to our accommodation, the Park Haven Motor Lodge, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #006621; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; text-align: left; white-space: nowrap;">www.</span><b style="background-color: white; color: #006621; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; text-align: left; white-space: nowrap;">parkhaven</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #006621; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; text-align: left; white-space: nowrap;">motorlodge.com.au </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was good planning on our tour operator's part to make a diversion and head into the hinterland because when riding along a painted seascape day in and day out as we were doing, everything tends to merge and it loses it's impact, where as, by throwing in a day of rural riding everything is brought back into perspective.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gerringong to Nowra, NSW (Map courtesy of Ride with GPS, <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/</a></td></tr>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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Cheers and safe riding,<br />
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-82274554763616926672015-04-25T18:54:00.000-07:002015-04-25T18:54:34.952-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 3 - Kiama to Gerringong, NSW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kiama is famous for it's Blowhole but seasons and weather play a large part and under the right conditions, the spray can reach heights of 25 meters. To gain a better understanding of what causes this phenomenon please open the following link, <a href="http://www.kiama.com.au/blowhole" target="_blank">http://www.kiama.com.au/blowhole</a> .</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today is a rest day from cycling and we were given two options on how we were to spend the day of which the first option was to potter around Kiama for the day and then take the train to Gerringong. The second option was to walk the 11 km kiama Coastal Path with our bikes being transported along with our suitcases to our next accommodation.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The start</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Goats were put on earth to do this sort of thing, not cyclists.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">9 hardy souls including myself decided on taking the walk. It was a lovely walk with perfect weather and on a personal basis I found it to be the biggest highlight of the tour. Being coastal, it followed the contours of the land and afforded some of the most spectacular views which helped enormously in distracting the mind from the task of walking up and down hills.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another distraction.... the yellows and oranges of the lichen on the rocks and the vibrant purple of wildflowers in the field.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A pod of dolphins chasing a shoal of bait fish. In the right season, this could just as easily have been Southern Right Whales </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_right_whale" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_right_whale</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The athletic - this lady was literally running up this hill.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and then there was the one rose amongst the thorns.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We're nearing the end, I can see Gerringong in the distance.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Finish.....Clockwise: "As beers go this ain't too bad", "Is he joking?", "One more and I'll slide right off this chair"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On reaching Gerringong, I knew I had just walked 11 km but didn't feel in any way stretched but I have to say that I really appreciated that first cold beer of the day, made even better by knowing that it was being paid for by </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Australian Cycling Holidays <a href="http://www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/" target="_blank">www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/</a></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. No! I didn't get that wrong, our touring company paid for the first drink at the end of each day's ride.....nice touch huh?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For more detailed information on this walk, please open the following link, </span><a href="http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/south-coast/kiama-area/kiama-coast-walk" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/south-coast/kiama-area/kiama-coast-walk</a><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Jimmy Bee </span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-47750303907396134842015-04-21T18:25:00.000-07:002015-04-21T18:25:52.208-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 2 - Wollongong to Kiama, NSW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">On leaving our hotel en-route to Flagstaff Hill, this was the first view that captured my attention. As you can see, it was slightly overcast and the light was just right to capture this seascape. Nice contrast of colours, surf rolling in with the two lighthouses in the background and a hill of beautiful, vibrant green grass.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Who would have thought that a city </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">like Wollongong</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> </span><a href="http://visitwollongong.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" target="_blank">visitwollongong.com.au/</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"> could be so picturesque. It would have been nice to have had more time to spend exploring the outer areas surrounding this great city but alas this has to take place at another time as Kiama beckons.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before we actually left Wollongong, our tour operator had recommended that we visit the largest Buddist Temple in the Southern Hemisphere Nan Tien <a href="http://www.nantien.org.au/en" target="_blank">www.nantien.org.au/en</a> which translates to Paradise of the South.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Disappointingly, on the way to the temple, I once again struck problems with my gears and I was not a happy chappy, however, I am not going to dwell on this matter as Emma, our tour operator organised for the bike to be replaced at the temple and from that time on, I experienced no problems at all and I was very happy with the performance of the new bike.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">I have spent a reasonable amount of time in various parts of Asia over the years and I would have to say this is one of the most impressive temples of it's kind that I have seen. Absolutely magnificent gardens and it is well worth climbing the many steps to view the interior of the temple.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As with the previous day, we passed through a myriad of coastal villages and beaches all displaying a uniqueness in their own right but we had to make a decision on a lunch stop and this was Shellharbour, a pretty, tidy town with an old fashioned feel about it. This was an ideal lunch stop as there were many premises that catered to the hungry tourist. Some of our group bought take away and consumed their lunch on the foreshore whilst others availed themselves of one of the many cafes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This whole coastline is just full of photo opportunities but every now and then, one outstanding opportunity pops up and you automatically stop and snap it. it is rare to be able to ride following the contours of a coastline so closely for so long but that is exactly what this Illawarra region offers you. One minute you are riding along a very ordinary cycle path and the next you are looking at a panoramic view straight off one of the better calendars you see for sale in bookshops, etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We hadn't ridden more than a few kilometers when the above panorama came into view and I made this the last snap of the day as I knew we were nearing the outskirts of Kiama and we had a few hills to take our attention prior to arriving at our destination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The hills didn't faze us too much, our accommodation at the Sebel Harbourside Hotel was easy enough to locate and now it was just a matter of having showers, finding the bar and settling in for a night of conviviality and relaxation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A lovely surprise was waiting for me when I booked in, a $50 voucher from Australian Cycling Holidays to compensate for the inconvenience experienced with the bike. Thanks Emma, it was appreciated and as it affected the whole group, it was used in buying some wine for all to enjoy.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Map of the ride from Wollongong to Kiama, NSW</td></tr>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"> </span><a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a><br />
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Cheers and safe riding,<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Jimmy Bee </span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-50402786578112829772015-04-15T04:33:00.002-07:002015-04-15T04:33:42.159-07:00COASTAL ESCAPE CYCLE TOUR - Day 1, Waterfall to Wollongong, NSW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the official start of our <b>Coastal Escape Cycling Tour</b> provided by <b>Australian Cycling Holidays. <a href="http://www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/" target="_blank">www.australiancyclingholidays.com.au/</a> </b>The tour itself was 7 days but not every day was taken up with pedaling and in fact it presented a nice break to do something totally different during the tour and this will be explained in due course as I take you along for the ride day by day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The sky was overcast and the temperature was slightly on the chilly side as we left our hotel and walked the short distance to Central Station to board an electric train to Waterfall. The journey took no time at all as we passed through suburbia to the southern outskirts of Sydney. Although I found the train relaxing as I travelled through areas I hadn't seen for many years, there was a certain amount of nervous energy building inside of me, almost like a child on Christmas morning, awaiting the fulfilment of riding a new route, something I hadn't done before, something different to see and photograph.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Waterfall, NSW</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On arrival at Waterfall, it took us no time at all to locate our cycling hosts and we went about the business of collecting our bikes. Everyone took their bikes for a short trial run, necessary adjustments were made, paperwork completed, a group photograph taken and we were on our way to Wollongong, the first leg of our trip.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Before we left we were handed maps and when I looked at Day 1, I immediately thought this has the makings of an excellent ride, unfortunately I had only ridden about 4 km when I struck trouble with my bike. The long glide down the first hill was good, although the bike wasn't rolling as freely as I would have liked and then as I started to climb and applying a little pressure on the pedals, the gears wouldn't hold. This was not good as I still had quite a climb in front of me. In hindsight, I should have rang for help then and there but I didn't, electing to carry on. Others in the group were having various problems as well but they appeared to be manageable.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Royal National Park, NSW</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This photograph was taken from Otford Lookout</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stanwell Park, NSW. Photograph courtesy of Wiki Commons - Author Klaus Dieter Liss.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was very pleasant riding through the Royal National Park and following the meandering Hacking River all of the way to Stanwell Park, approximately 20 km .</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We had set our sights on making Scarborough for lunch as we had been told that there was a very popular hotel overlooking the sea that had an excellent reputation of serving great lunches. But before we got there, we had to ride along the Sea-Cliff bridge, a couple of kilometers north of Scarborough. The structure is an engineering feat in itself , however, riding a bike in this situation is just so much better than travelling in a car as it affords you the time to actually enjoy the never ending panorama of cliffs disappearing into the azure colored ocean. I should imagine that in the right season the whale watching right along this coast would be absolutely awesome.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scarborough Hotel, NSW</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you happen to be a tourist driving or like ourselves, cycling along the Lawrence Hargreaves Drive, you would do yourself a favor by stopping and having a fish meal in this hotel. The fish fillets that I had were fresh and so delicious that my mouth still waters just thinking about it and the view didn't hurt either.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's no wonder that this stretch of coastline has the reputation of being one of the most spectacular drives in the world. It's certainly no exaggeration, the coastal views are simply breathtaking.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Austinmer, NSW - Courtesy of Wiki Media Commons - Author: Klaus-Dieter Liss</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After lunch, we continued on Lawrence Hargrave Drive until we reached the junction of Mountain Road, on the southern side of Austinmer. After making our way down to the beach, we rode south until we reached the Illawarra Coastal Cycle Path, which we stayed on until we reached our accommodation at North Wollongong.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Novotel Wollongong, North Beach, NSW</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">After booking into the Novotel, I rang Emma from Australian Cycling and informed her of the problems I had with the bike. She arranged for their mechanic to take a look at the bike that night at the hotel. I was later told that the bike was now OK to ride.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="text-align: justify;">At this point, I have to commend </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Australian Cycling Holidays</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> on the quality of their maps and Trip Notes. They are without doubt, the best I have had, easy to follow and full of useful information e.g. recommended restaurants, cafes, toilets etc.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Jimmy Bee</span></span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-4565633978590041512015-04-06T02:52:00.001-07:002015-04-15T04:34:41.857-07:002015 CYCLE TOUR - SYDNEY, NSW<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was travelling with two of our group, and our plan was to fly into Sydney and walk the picturesque coastal walk from Bondi to Coogee. We booked into the <b>Y Hotel</b> mid morning, which is situated in a central part of Sydney, close to transport. By chance we met up with another two of our group who had already had a day in Sydney and just returned from a harbour cruise. Our ranks swelled to 5.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A view from Watsons Bay with Sydney Harbour Bridge in background</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having purchased senior day passes from a local convenience store which enabled us to travel on all modes of public transport for a very moderate price, we headed for <b>Watsons Bay, </b>which affords spectacular ocean and harbour views. This was to be a relaxing, tourist day out, walking, taking in what the busy metropolis of Eastern Sydney suburbanites had to offer. We started by having fish and chips, sitting on the seawall and feeding the pelicans and seagulls the leftovers . Unfortunately, for the poor marine birds, our lunch was so fresh and nice that there were few scraps to offer. Wildlife lovers would probably say that was a good thing, personally, I think it would be far more palatable than discarded plastic bags and fishing line, however.......</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Photograph taken from The Gap looking south</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify;">Lunch over, we ascended the many steps to the top of the cliffs on South Head, historically referred to as </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium; text-align: justify;">The Gap.</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; text-align: justify;"> Unfortunately, this beautiful location has a dark and tragic history and for some, in a moment of madness, was the last view that they ever took in as they ended their own life on the rocks below, or as occurred on a number of occasions, their life was taken from them either by accident or foul play.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="text-align: justify;">This was a great start to our day in Sydney. We then boarded a bus to North Bondi, where we proceeded to walk the length of </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Bondi Beach</b><span style="text-align: justify;"> to the famous </span><b style="text-align: justify;">Icebergs Swimming Club </b><span style="text-align: justify;">, on the southern side of Bondi Beach. The water looked so enticing and as a result many photographs were taken.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's not all surf and seascapes at Bondi Beach - there is a wonderful display of street art along the promenade. if nothing else, it certainly is a conversation maker with both tourist and locals alike.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Icebergs Club on the southern end of Bondi Beach</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We left one of our group at Icebergs as she was starting to have problems with her knee and decided to use the time swimming and we continued the coastal cliff walk to <b>Coogee Beach</b>, electing to meet up with us for a drink on our return.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Inside a small sandstone cave</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The small but beautiful Tamarama Beach</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The walk from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach is probably in the realm of the great walks to be had in Sydney, of which there are many. Although the weather was threatening at the time, the rain held off and we really enjoyed the walk. Unfortunately, we were running out of time and decided to turn around at <b>Bronte Beach </b>and returned to The Icebergs.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ben Buckler as seen from The Icebergs Club</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having met up with our fifth member, we ensconced ourselves on the deck at Icebergs and indulged in some amber, liquid refreshment whilst watching the waves crash onto the shoreline. What a way to relax before starting on a week long bike adventure the following day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some interesting links for your enjoyment:</span><br />
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<b>Bondi to Coogee walk:</b> <a href="http://www.sydney.com/things-to-do/nature-and-parks/walks/bondi-to-coogee-coastal-walk?gclid" target="_blank">http://www.sydney.com/things-to-do/nature-and-parks/walks/bondi-to-coogee-coastal-walk?gclid</a><br />
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<b>Y Hotel:</b> <a href="http://yhotels.com.au/" target="_blank">yhotels.com.au/</a><br />
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<b>Watsons Bay:</b> <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watsons_Bay,_New_South_Wales" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watsons_Bay,_New_South_Wales</a></b><br />
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<b>The Gap:</b> <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gap_(Sydney)" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gap_(Sydney)</a></b><br />
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<b>Bondi Beach:</b> <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bondi_Beach,_New_South_Wales" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bondi_Beach,_New_South_Wales</a></b><br />
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<b>Tamarama Beach:<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamarama,_New_South_Wales" target="_blank"> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamarama,_New_South_Wales</a></b><br />
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<b>Bronte Beach:</b> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronte_Beach" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bronte_Beach</a><br />
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<b>Coogee Beach:</b> <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coogee,_New_South_Wales" target="_blank">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coogee,_New_South_Wales</a></b><br />
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<b>Icebergs Swimming Club:</b> <b> <a href="http://icebergs.com.au/" target="_blank">http://icebergs.com.au/</a></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-10619809964009810072015-03-13T23:17:00.000-07:002015-03-13T23:17:46.150-07:00ANTICIPATION BUILDING<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the past 5 years, our group U3A Redlands (University of the Third Age) '<b>Pedal For Pleasure' </b>has departed for greener pastures in a quest for locating the best recreational cycling tours within our reach and this year we decided to place our trust in Australian Cycling Holidays to organise a tour of the south coast of New South Wales. Although I have traveled through this area a couple of times in the past, this will be the first time I have done it whilst perched on a bicycle saddle. When I return, I will endeavor to give you a blow by blow description of the tour but in the meantime, here is a sample of our itinerary.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although Australian Cycling Holidays organise a number of bicycle tours, we chose the <i><b>Coastal Escape Cycl</b></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><b>ing Tour</b></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> </b> which promises to bring us 5 days of recreational cycling bliss with a number of highlights thrown in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 1: Waterfall to Wollongong - 47 kms.</b> The first day will take us through a national park, a slight climb of 170 m to start the blood flowing, road riding on a narrow strip of land between the mountains and the sea, </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">coastal paths affording views of the ocean, beaches, lagoons and waterways.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: Novotel Wollongong Northbeach.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 2: Wollongong to Kiama - 48 km.</b> Today is spent following bike paths from the boat harbour riding inland for awhile where we have the opportunity to visit the Nan Tien Temple. On the way back to the coast, we ride past Lake Illawarra, through Windang and on to Shellharbour where we will be stopping for a well earned lunch. In the afternoon, we can expect to do some serious huffing and puffing through the hilly sections on our way to Kiama but I'm sure it will be worth it for the panoramic views to be had on the way.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: Sebel Harbourside Kiama.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 3: Kiama to Gerrigong - A cycle free day.</b> Today we swap our bicycle wheels for walking boots and walk the </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11 km. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kiama Coast Walking track to Gerringong, over rough, uneven terrain with steep slopes, which purports to be absolutely spectacular.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: Mercure Resort Gerringong by the sea.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 4: Gerringong to Nowra - 43 kms.</b> Back on the bike today with more exquisite views promised as we pump the pedals along a bike path to Gerroa. Now comes the part that I am not looking forward to, and that is the 4 km ride on a highway with a 100 km speed limit and limited shoulder. I guess it's just a matter of taking an extra bit of care on this stretch. On a lighter note, we stop in Berry for lunch and</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> then head for an afternoon where we are given the opportunity of visiting a number of vineyards and perhaps the sampling of a fine wine or two on the way to Nowra.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: Park Haven Motor Lodge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 5: Nowra to Huskisson - 43 kms. </b>To-day is a mixed day of riding and boating, with the morning riding beside a river, through dairy country with a coffee stop at old convict ruins at the Jindyandy Mill complex. In the afternoon we join Wild Dolphin Cruises for our eco-cruise around Jervis Bay.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: The group will be split into 3 groups and will stay at different establishments in Huskisson.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 6 : Huskisson- No ride to-day.</b> There are a number of areas to explore either by foot or cycle, including the Boonderee National Park, lighthouse ruins and an aboriginal owned Botanic Garden, where you can get an insight into bush tucker and the medicinal uses of native Australian plants or if you want to get away from it all, you can plonk the body beautiful on the beach with the whitest sand in the world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Accommodation: Same as above</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Day 7: Huskisson to Berry - 57 kms. </b>The first part of this trip </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">entails cycling back to Nowra and then on to Berry by an alternate route. As this route will be in the hinterland, I should imagine that the scenery would be somewhat different from the coastal strip and will afford the photographers in the group something different to train their lenses on. One of the highlights will be a visit to the Fleet Air Arm museum which will be of interest to some of our riders including myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On either end of our cycling tour, we will have a day in Sydney. It is proposed at this stage, on the day before the cycling tour, a few of us intend to walk the cliff trail from Bondi Beach to Coogee and return, have a surf at the famous Bondi Beach and refresh the inner man at the Bondi Icebergs. On the other end of the tour, we intend to walk some of the northern suburb paths around the foreshore of Sydney harbour and then it's on a jet plane heading back to Brisbane. I'll let you know how we fare.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-33466120521527940452015-02-28T18:55:00.002-08:002015-02-28T19:47:46.039-08:00WHEN A RIDE COMES OUT OF THE BLUE<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was sitting at home working on some cycling maps when the phone rang and a friend asked if I would like to go for a ride along a new route he had discovered in the area where we both lived. As a cycling blogger, I am always hungry for new and adventurous routes so I eagerly accepted and I was pleased that I did.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For an embedded map of the ride please open the following </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">link: </span><a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7084361" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7084361</a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This new route covered old ground but in a new way and as our riding group's name is </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Pedaling Pathfinders </b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and our charter is to find new cycling paths, trails, etc. to ride, this new ride fitted in well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ride took us through the suburbs of Ormiston, Alexandra Hills, Thornlands, Cleveland Point and Raby Bay.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We covered the 48 km at a respectable average speed of 19.4 k per hour which I thought was reasonable on hybrids riding predominantly on off road paths and dirt tracks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On arrival back at my place we cracked a cold bottle of home brew whilst producing the above map courtesy of <b>Ride with GPS</b>. <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/" target="_blank">ridewithgps.com/</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What a nice surprise and one, totally out of the blue.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-61377623585461514712015-02-24T17:56:00.003-08:002015-02-24T17:56:29.234-08:00SOMETIMES THINGS GO AWRY<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As this was to be the first ride of the season, I wanted everything to go right but Murphy had other ideas. Sometimes I think that Messrs. Murphy and Hubris take great delight in tipping the proverbial when things are done that are not quite right.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Norman Park Loop via Indooroopilly, Qld.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Embedded Map: <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7065425" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/7065425</a></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UYepi-3GyOw/VO0nHVkN0WI/AAAAAAAAIVY/-a8FiZNmhaY/s1600/BRISBANE%2BRIVER.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UYepi-3GyOw/VO0nHVkN0WI/AAAAAAAAIVY/-a8FiZNmhaY/s1600/BRISBANE%2BRIVER.jpg" height="400" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The beautiful Brisbane River</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Part of the Cycling Exhibition at the Queensland Museum</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The plan was to incorporate a Brisbane River loop with a stop at a bicycle exhibition at the Queensland Museum. The only difference between this ride and previous Brisbane River rides is that I wanted to start and finish at Norman Park Station, which was longer and the added stop over at the museum. This all seemed quite doable when planning but in hindsight there were a number of factors, had they been thought out properly, would clearly have shown that although feasible, the plan was flawed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I did my postmortem of the ride, it was patently obvious that I failed to consider crucial points when planning, such as:</span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Considering the length of the ride, have I allowed sufficient time to have all riders back on the train before peak hour. There is quite a difference between the fastest and slowest riders within the group.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I failed to set a time period for visiting the bicycle exhibition at the museum. Trying to muster everyone was akin to herding cats. (Thanks Dave)</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hadn't factored in school holidays. It took us a long time waiting for our coffee etc. at the coffee spot due to the influx of mums, grannies and kids being at our preferred cafe.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ride was unusually slow, not because it was over long but it was hot and humid and people had become over relaxed too early in the ride which rose to lethargy among some of our riders. </span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The group became fractured, with some wanting to complete the ride, others wanting to split and do their own thing and the remainder wanting to cut the ride short and catch an early train.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As leader, I decided at this point, to disband the ride allowing each group to do their own thing with me riding to the nearest station with the slowest members. My reasoning for this is that when some riders are unusually slow, it could be because of underlying medical reasons brought to the fore by the hot and humid conditions and I wasn't about to leave them on their own to find the nearest station. The other riders I knew to be perfectly capable of completing the ride. I have to give credit here to one of our experienced riders remaining with me (Thanks Les) and as he was accustomed to the area was able to navigate to the nearest station quickly.</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A lesson well learnt and not to be repeated. </span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I learnt from this exercise is attention to detail and having the plan checked by another set of eyes is paramount, it is very easy to miss the obvious.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Jimmy Bee</span></span></td></tr>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-36649942318205066842015-02-22T22:17:00.000-08:002015-02-23T02:11:50.821-08:00THE LIGHTHOUSE RESTAURANT<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lighthouse Restaurant, Cleveland Point.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> I had planned a ride last Friday to Wynnum via Capalaba but as luck would have it, an angry maiden called Marcia decided to invade our shores to the north of us in the form of a cyclone and poured buckets of rain upon us, so much so that I had to call off the ride.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In my depressed state, I sent out the following email:</span></span></div>
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Unfortunately, due to weather conditions, the ride to Wynnum North via Capalaba is cancelled.</div>
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If anyone who is stuck at home feeling down and claustrophobic, you may join me for a coffee at The Lighthouse cafe at 10 am so that we can feel down, miserable and claustrophobic together.<b>Warning!</b> do not sit too close to the outside railing, as we may have to arrange to have you picked up from South Stradbroke Island.</div>
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<b>Alternative:</b> If weather is such, that at the time you have to que for a rowboat to get to the cafe, we'll adjourn to Coffee Secrets where we can be really miserable because we have missed out on all of the wave action on the point. </div>
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Your not so intrepid and miserable leader,</div>
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jimmy bee<img class="CToWUd" goomoji="33F" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/e/33F" style="margin: 0px 0.2ex; vertical-align: middle;" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I donned on the wet weather gear, drove to Cleveland Point and parked the car where it wasn't likely to be sprayed with salt water. Entering the cafe, I spotted one of our members sitting in a corner, her head ensconced in a book. I ordered a large coffee and joined her thinking that at least one intrepid member of our group was going to join me. Before I had time to take my first gulp, another one turned up and then another and another, all looking a little like drowned rats. bringing the tally to nine. It is amazing how quickly an animated group of cyclists can change the mood. What started out to be a depressing morning turned into an enjoyable social occasion. The cyclonic conditions didn't dampen our spirits at all.....not for long anyway.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The photograph of the Lighthouse Restaurant was not taken at the time but used to illustrate just how beautiful Cleveland Point is.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jimmy Bee</span><br />
<br />Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-42611808442193095772015-02-18T02:28:00.000-08:002015-02-21T23:17:45.741-08:00CYCLING PARK ROAD to ALBION via THE GAP, QLD<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wcYTFgdCMOo/VOPiXnuVxVI/AAAAAAAAIRc/GVbjvO9Yif0/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B18022015%2B104924%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wcYTFgdCMOo/VOPiXnuVxVI/AAAAAAAAIRc/GVbjvO9Yif0/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B18022015%2B104924%2BAM.jpg" height="428" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There is always a certain amount of satisfaction from planning and executing a new cycling route, no matter how long or short it may be. Trepidation is also present when riding the route for the first time, particularly if riding with a group. The saving grace is that all the riders share the same emotion which heightens everyone's awareness of the surroundings and they also share in the satisfaction of having a good ride.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Entrance ramp to Eleanor Schonnel Bridge</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Eleanor Schonnel Bridge spanning the Brisbane River between Dutton Park and St. Lucia<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Beans On The Green - a great spot to visit</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">On this particular ride, we took a train from Cleveland to Park Road, crossed the Brisbane river to St. Lucia, riding through the campus of Queensland University, passing the lower portals of Mt. Cootha to Bardon Bowling Club where we stopped at <b>Beans on The Green</b> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BeansOnTheGreen">https://www.facebook.com/BeansOnTheGreen</a>or for some well deserved refreshment. Well deserved in this case as the route in this area is quite undulating with a couple of reasonable hills to be climbed and as fate has it, a wrong turn was taken and we found ourselves off route for a short while.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enoggera Creek</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The second part of the ride took us to The Gap, where we retraced our steps to Ashgrove and followed the Enoggera Creek Bikeway to Windsor and then on to Albion Station where we boarded the train back to Cleveland.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The ride itself is 26 km but our little error in navigation added on another 4 km, making 30 km in total.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b>Embedded Map: <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/6971847" target="_blank">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/6971847</a></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: blue;">LIST OF CYCLING MAPS WITH JIMMY BEE</span>:</b> <a href="http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/" target="_blank">http://jimmyb9.blogspot.com.au/</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Cheers and safe riding,</span><br />
<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" style="font-size: medium;" /></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: small;">Jimmy Bee</span></span></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-77494831653993712502015-02-07T19:06:00.003-08:002015-02-07T19:06:35.104-08:00BETTER HEALTH and WELL BEING IN 2015<div style="text-align: justify;">
Is it just me or does time appear to build up momentum the older you get. January is now history and we are out of the barrier racing towards Easter which will be here before we know it.<br />
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January started well with a week of pure relaxation in beautiful Burleigh Heads, my favorite beach on the Gold Coast. After that, it was pretty much all downhill. Not only did we have to contend with the hot and humid weather necessitating in the postponement of a couple of good cycling trips but my father in law and good friend became extremely ill and passed away in the wee hours of Sunday the 25th January.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The above four photographs are a sample of what can be seen on a ride or walk through the Redlands</td></tr>
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Apart from losing a good friend, it has brought home to me the necessity of grabbing life with both hands, no matter how old you may be and embracing it to the fullest. Although the cost of living in Australia is not cheap, it is possible to lead a full and satisfying life without costing an arm and a leg. This country is opening up more with the governments building a network of cycling and walking paths for all to use and it doesn't cost a cent. Even our parks have exercising equipment. It is not an excuse to say 'I can't afford it' and the benefit to your health is immeasurable. Personally, completing a morning's ride through a forest, park or a pathway by the sea gives me a high, my whole body feels enriched and I believe the same feeling can be achieved by walking. If you are feeling down, hop on a bike or slip on a pair of walking shoes and head for the great outdoors. One thing I have noticed though is riding or walking with a friend and that may be a hairy friend, of the four legged variety, makes the journey so much better.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jgnXooAgKys/VNV0CiKMX2I/AAAAAAAAIKg/BSxvil_6bZg/s1600/IMG_5763.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jgnXooAgKys/VNV0CiKMX2I/AAAAAAAAIKg/BSxvil_6bZg/s1600/IMG_5763.JPG" height="293" width="400" /></a></div>
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A pair of Tawny Frogmouths--- <a href="http://australianmuseum.net.au/tawny-frogmouth">australianmuseum.net.au/tawny-frogmouth</a><br />
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Taking up recreational cycling since retiring from the work force has meant so much to me, I have more friends, partake in amazing conversations, feel fitter and healthier and it has given me the opportunity of getting up close and personal with, not only nature but actually finding places within this fair city which I was completely unaware actually existed and guess what, the only cost has been the cost of a coffee shared with friends, the occasional rail fare to a start point somewhere else in the suburbs and regular servicing of my bike.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cleveland Harbour</td></tr>
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Last Friday was a typical local ride with eleven of us Pedaling Pathfinders riding a loop starting in Cleveland, following a route through several forested areas to Capalaba and then via Birkdale to Wellington Point where we stopped for coffee at <b><i>Refueled</i></b> and then headed back home to Cleveland for a debrief over a beer at <b style="font-style: italic;">Hog's Breath </b>by the harbour.<br />
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Without a doubt we are the daggiest group of cyclists in Brisbane and proud of it......a complete contrast from the lycra brigade you see on Saturday mornings sitting astride fine thoroughbred shiny machines, heads down and riding in perfect formation. None the less, we are dedicated to achieving good health, well being and relaxation and as we are in the 3rd stage of life what more could we ask for.<br />
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For a map of the ride, open the following link, <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/6951180">http://ridewithgps.com/routes/6951180</a></div>
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<b>Walk or cycle to a better way of life in 2015</b></div>
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Cheers and safe riding,</div>
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Jimmy Bee</div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-80227542968485661712014-12-21T13:55:00.000-08:002014-12-21T13:55:40.280-08:00CLEVELAND loop via Ormiston, Alexandra Hills, Thornlands and Cleveland Point.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqKtXASFaxk/VJJlr0UT4pI/AAAAAAAAIH0/RVtUWFrAcPo/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B18122014%2B32234%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YqKtXASFaxk/VJJlr0UT4pI/AAAAAAAAIH0/RVtUWFrAcPo/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B18122014%2B32234%2BPM.jpg" height="316" width="400" /></a></div>
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It is quite easy to form a habit of riding the same route over and over again but it doesn't have to be like that. Merely by changing the route slightly by adding a climb into the ride or an unfamiliar trail, the whole aspect of the ride can change and therefore doesn't have to become boring.</div>
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Two friends and I started the ride at Cleveland Harbourside climbing 3 consecutive hills in the first 10 minutes, the last two although short, had a gradient of approximately 20% which was enough to get the blood pumping through the veins. These hills are in the suburb of Ormiston, (Dundas Street East and Sleeth Street) and are excellent for training purposes. As an added advantage, the views overlooking Raby Bay from the top are spectacular.</div>
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Platypus Corridor</div>
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We continued on, weaving our way through a number of forested reserves changing from cement paths to dirt tracks following the creek line until we entered Alexandra Hills.<br />
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The ride takes you through 14 forested areas and park lands, in 35 km.</div>
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This route took us to Cleveland Point where we stopped at one of our favorite refresher stops, <a href="http://www.lighthouserestaurant.net.au/">The Lighthouse Restaurant</a>, where we ensconced ourselves for a short period sipping coffee etc. whilst engaging the view.</div>
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From here it was only a short ride of 4 km back to our start point.<br />
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As Christmas is only a few days away I would like to wish all of my readers a very happy and safe festive season.<br />
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Cheers,<br />
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Jimmy Bee</div>
Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-43646864557861180642014-12-11T13:31:00.000-08:002014-12-11T13:31:01.619-08:00 THE PEDDLING PATHFINDERS <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>The Peddling Pathfinders</b> are part of the University of the Third Age ( U3A), Redlands group and was initially set up to search out paths, trails and roads suitable for the much larger <b>Peddling for Pleasure group </b>from the same organisation.<b> </b>We ride every Friday unless the weather is unsuitable and often take a train to the start of the ride and back again on completion. As we are purely recreational riders, the aim is more to the social side than speed and personal bests and apart from experiencing better health, the enjoyment is gained through riding in a variety of different locations around Brisbane. Each year, the number of suitable paths and trails expand and a lot of them actually criss-cross which offers a number of alternatives and variations, particularly if combining rail travel because you can start the ride from one station and finish at another. Our group is small and controllable which is a plus when crossing major roads, it is also easier seating 8 riders rather than 20 when stopping for coffee.<br />
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The benefits of riding with a group of friends are many:<br />
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You get to share great cafes and have a lot of laughs<br />
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There is safety in numbers and we support each other when things go wrong.<br />
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Cycling is an excellent form of exercise and it is much more enjoyable doing it together.<br />
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Taking in nature at it's best.<br />
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Sharing a conversation en route on the train.<br />
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or on a ferry.<br />
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Even doing the hard yards pushing up hill.<br />
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Some of us even wear outrageous socks.<br />
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Whilst others just don't give a damn,<br />
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All of this and more is a whole lot of fun when riding in a small group.<br />
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Cheers,<br />
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Jimmy BeeJimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-25431075553185313702014-12-01T21:10:00.000-08:002014-12-01T21:10:44.693-08:00RIDING WITH POINCIANA<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Igr0VOrJLIY/VHJMCe4yLrI/AAAAAAAAIBY/1h-BxZiVQt4/s1600/IMG_0270.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Igr0VOrJLIY/VHJMCe4yLrI/AAAAAAAAIBY/1h-BxZiVQt4/s1600/IMG_0270.JPG" height="410" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lady in red</td></tr>
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After reading the title you are probably wondering who Poinciana is. She is a gorgeous, voluptuous redhead which slips into and out of my life once a year. In fact, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delonix_regia">poinciana </a>is a beautiful flowering tree which, when in bloom signals the coming of Christmas. This year however it burst into bloom far earlier than in other years, possibly alerting us to the fact that we are in for a very hot festive season. In all of the years I have lived in the Redlands, I have never experienced a spectacle such as we are experiencing now with these trees in full bloom. Streets of vivid red with just a dash of white.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gqEE6TGSxlE/VHJL-UVL8kI/AAAAAAAAIBQ/jP1IWw8hda4/s1600/IMG_0268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gqEE6TGSxlE/VHJL-UVL8kI/AAAAAAAAIBQ/jP1IWw8hda4/s1600/IMG_0268.JPG" height="406" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red heads are the order of the day</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hUkdlfF47jY/VHJMOxKPmlI/AAAAAAAAIBw/GaAHXCnhgg8/s1600/IMG_0273.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hUkdlfF47jY/VHJMOxKPmlI/AAAAAAAAIBw/GaAHXCnhgg8/s1600/IMG_0273.JPG" height="334" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quite voluptuous</td></tr>
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We, in Australia are still in our spring season but a visitor to our fine land may well be mistaken for thinking they had arrived in the middle of summer. Just recently, I had a friend from England arrive and although she has experienced our summers at their worst, coming from a northern hemisphere summer to the heat we are experiencing at the moment, was quite a shock and it is taking a while for her to become acclimatized.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MvpZYnMV9W0/VHZ8vo-DkbI/AAAAAAAAICY/4Y4bPRJ3c8k/s1600/IMG_0261.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MvpZYnMV9W0/VHZ8vo-DkbI/AAAAAAAAICY/4Y4bPRJ3c8k/s1600/IMG_0261.JPG" height="344" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Manly Harbour</td></tr>
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Last week, the Pathfinders decided to ride to Manly for our weekly ride. Although this is a frequent ride for us it never becomes boring as there are a number of routes that can be taken which make for a more interesting ride. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_nUEYdkndzk/VHZ_W-aACoI/AAAAAAAAIDM/Dmeac02TIms/s1600/20131202_115449.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_nUEYdkndzk/VHZ_W-aACoI/AAAAAAAAIDM/Dmeac02TIms/s1600/20131202_115449.jpg" height="384" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wellington Point with King Island in the background</td></tr>
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The ride from Cleveland Harbour to Wellington Point was slightly different in that we chose to cruise down the hill leading to the Point and then just to make it a little more interesting on the way back, we ascended the hill on the eastern side via a series of steps with just sufficient room on the side to wheel our bikes up.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thorneside, Qld.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birkdale, Qld.</td></tr>
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As the next stage involved riding through Thorneside and Birkdale, we stayed on the cycle path following the coast line as much as possible. Like all of our cross suburb rides there is a necessity to ride on some back streets but these do not present any problems as they are in excellent condition and traffic volume is low.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RwPUeTPzJ6k/VHZ8tKUy-vI/AAAAAAAAICQ/Cmyxq0WaWdI/s1600/IMG_5962.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RwPUeTPzJ6k/VHZ8tKUy-vI/AAAAAAAAICQ/Cmyxq0WaWdI/s1600/IMG_5962.JPG" height="443" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lota Creek boardwalk, Qld.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5LDLJz9t4OM/VHZ8nQHp2RI/AAAAAAAAICI/-ooHCVnzHII/s1600/IMG_5969.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5LDLJz9t4OM/VHZ8nQHp2RI/AAAAAAAAICI/-ooHCVnzHII/s1600/IMG_5969.JPG" height="340" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lota, Qld.</td></tr>
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From Birkdale to Manly is another pleasant section, crossing wetlands via boardwalks and bridges to Lota and then following the pathway to Coopers Restaurant and cafe, situated on the water in Manly. Although we do vary our coffee stop from time to time, Coopers seems to be the favorite, mainly due to the view, openness and the friendly staff.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxWtJGNYy9o/VHZ9AeJ1BeI/AAAAAAAAIDA/t8MlR4XEQ14/s1600/IMG_0266.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VxWtJGNYy9o/VHZ9AeJ1BeI/AAAAAAAAIDA/t8MlR4XEQ14/s1600/IMG_0266.JPG" height="362" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sensational view</td></tr>
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On the way back, it's just a matter of retracing the same route back to Cleveland. We vary our rides to and from Manly quite a lot. but unless you are a local or love riding with a map in your hand, it's best to stay on the beaten track and I have to say that it is the most scenic route.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PYDrcEFO-Kc/VHwNX2aNcKI/AAAAAAAAIDw/IC9TkGhrays/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B1122014%2B43652%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PYDrcEFO-Kc/VHwNX2aNcKI/AAAAAAAAIDw/IC9TkGhrays/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B1122014%2B43652%2BPM.jpg" height="452" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cleveland to Manly via Wellington Point, Qld.</td></tr>
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If you haven't done this ride now is a good time to think about it.......another great ride with the beautiful poinciana's in full bloom as an added bonus. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k63mAvSRH8s/VHzTLY5Oz1I/AAAAAAAAIEA/tStKNSgaXjI/s1600/IMG_0290.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k63mAvSRH8s/VHzTLY5Oz1I/AAAAAAAAIEA/tStKNSgaXjI/s1600/IMG_0290.JPG" height="310" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flaming Red, Bold, Beautiful and Voluptuous </td></tr>
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Although this route is approximately 55 km long, it is quite easy, however, if you are feeling the pinch, you can always hop on a train from Manly, Lota, Thorneside or Wellington Point back to Cleveland.<br />
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I use <a href="http://www.mapmyride.com/my_home/">Map my Ride</a> for simplicity and elevation information. Become a member (free) and find similar rides within the area and elsewhere.<br />
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Cheers and safe riding,<br />
Jimmy Bee<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-74270843866766438782014-11-18T03:38:00.000-08:002014-11-18T03:38:22.833-08:00CYCLING CAPALABA to WELLINGTON POINT<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nUrixNdrSBY/VBQc4nzKUrI/AAAAAAAAHww/H-6L4pH-GvM/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B13092014%2B82818%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nUrixNdrSBY/VBQc4nzKUrI/AAAAAAAAHww/H-6L4pH-GvM/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B13092014%2B82818%2BPM.jpg" height="316" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Capalaba to Wellington Point </td></tr>
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There is normally more than one route between A and B and Capalaba to Wellington Point is no exception. This ride is similar to other rides within the Redlands in that it combines riding through small areas of forest, parks or native bush to rolling along the shoreline of Moreton Bay. Apart from crossing a number of busy roads, it is very relaxing and scenic. Of course, there is the inevitable riding on back streets but these are quiet and if precautions are taken, quite safe. Naturally enough, if you left your vehicle at the start point, you will have to return and this can be achieved by taking a number of routes.</div>
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1. Retracing the same path.</div>
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2. Looking at a Google map and connecting the green cycling paths back to the start point, through Birkdale and Alexandra Hills.</div>
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3. Completing a loop back to Capalaba via Wellington Point, Cleveland and Alexandra Hills.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dZLfaFToG04/VGP81_vzV2I/AAAAAAAAIAc/23ntkBoR6Bo/s1600/IMG_7040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dZLfaFToG04/VGP81_vzV2I/AAAAAAAAIAc/23ntkBoR6Bo/s400/IMG_7040.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dedicated paths</td></tr>
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On the way to Wellington Point, you travel via Thornside and Birkdale each of which display their own personality. This route will take you through natural bush land on dedicated paths where one is able to appreciate not only the variety of bird calls but also the coolness of the forest whilst riding through, particularly during the early morning and late afternoon. Queensland is noted for it's hot and humid summers and it is always a pleasant relief to seek refuge within the forest.<br />
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A point of interest is that there is a well known canoe and kayak course on Tingalpa Creek running from Capalaba to Thornside. I navigated this trail some years prior and was amazed at the variety of bird life finding shelter in the trees lining the banks of this creek. There were times when the only noise to be heard apart from the sound of paddling, was the many and different bird calls, from the common Shag to the majestic Sea Eagle. It's moments like these that I really cherish, having so much natural bush land set aside for our recreation.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1UeA8kjYL-k/VGQE-mzm85I/AAAAAAAAIAs/7c26Wvs2CYk/s1600/THORNSIDE%2C%2BQLD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1UeA8kjYL-k/VGQE-mzm85I/AAAAAAAAIAs/7c26Wvs2CYk/s640/THORNSIDE%2C%2BQLD.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Various photographs taken in Thornside and Birkdale</td></tr>
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Wellington Point is very picturesque and has a number of good food and coffee outlets as well as being able to take a swim in the salt water off the Point. Taking time out to appreciate the view whilst indulging in a tasty snack, coffee or cool drink under a tree or shelter is well worthwhile. If the tide is out, take a stroll out to King Island and back, which is worth the effort. Clean toilets are also available for your convenience.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lRfEOWJx15U/Up6AjnKfgWI/AAAAAAAAFm4/fkKPcWTmZvY/s1600/IMG_2900.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lRfEOWJx15U/Up6AjnKfgWI/AAAAAAAAFm4/fkKPcWTmZvY/s640/IMG_2900.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wellington Point with King Island in the background</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-orlLsGN1cTI/Up6AgOGkpUI/AAAAAAAAFmg/b39mrquYNVs/s1600/IMG_2866.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-orlLsGN1cTI/Up6AgOGkpUI/AAAAAAAAFmg/b39mrquYNVs/s640/IMG_2866.JPG" width="499" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wellington Point at low tide with the march of the crabs prominently displayed in the foreground.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R5eQyOxwQB8/Up6AiVmGWzI/AAAAAAAAFmw/_doF80NzUe8/s1600/IMG_2856.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="345" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-R5eQyOxwQB8/Up6AiVmGWzI/AAAAAAAAFmw/_doF80NzUe8/s640/IMG_2856.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wellington Point</td></tr>
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There are so many people residing
in the suburbs who would like to ride for recreation and pleasure but are
afraid of mixing it with traffic on the roads, even riding in dedicated bike
lanes. If you happen to know any of these frustrated potential riders residing
in Brisbane, direct them to either a Google map showing bike paths or
alternatively, point them in the direction of Jimmy Bee's blog as there are
many trails and paths on both sides of the river of which they can avail
themselves.</div>
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I use <a href="http://www.mapmyride.com/my_home/">Map my Ride</a> for simplicity and elevation information. Become a member (free) and find similar rides within the area and elsewhere.<br />
<strong><u></u></strong><br />
<strong><u></u></strong><br />
Cheers and safe riding,<br />
Jimmy Bee<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /><br />
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-7803415935092276722014-11-10T17:36:00.000-08:002014-11-12T15:34:03.664-08:00CYCLING ON THE GRANITE BELT -- Day 2<div style="text-align: justify;">
As promised, here is the second half of 'Cycling on the Granite Belt'written by a cycling buddy of mine, Graham Kimber. Hope you enjoy it.......</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Map courtesy of Riding with GPS</td></tr>
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We came back a week later to ride Highland Way to Ballandean and return by the Regional Council’s road bike trail. Ballandean is roughly south of Stanthorpe, about 20 km along the New England Highway. Highland Way does not follow the highway, but runs from Stanthorpe to Ballandean in a 31km arc over the hills to the east. Interactive map and elevation profile for Highland Way is <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/5346417">here</a>. </div>
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The return trip using the Regional Council’s new road riding trail zigzags through the hills, roughly parallel to the New England Highway along quiet back roads. The cumulative climb for the round trip Stanthorpe to Ballandean by Highland Way and return by the Regional Council’s bike trail is 679m.</div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">In order to get an early start, we had stayed in Stanthorpe the previous night. The next day we really did experience tourist brochure weather – cold clear air, just a slight haze from last night’s wood fires, truly dazzling blue sky, grey-green eucalypts, occasional bright native flowers, bluish hills with weathered granite outcrops, slight winds just right for cycling.</span></div>
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Leaving Stanthorpe, for the first few kilometres along Sugarloaf Rd, we experienced the nearest thing to “traffic” of our whole time on the Granite Belt. Something to do with the time of day perhaps – maybe parents returning from the school run. About 4km out of town, Sugarloaf Rd forks into two. Highland Way takes the right hand branch, and at this point we were back to the virtually empty roads we’d experienced on Armistice Way a week ago. This branch of Sugarloaf Rd becomes Eukey Rd a little further on and continues all the way to Ballandean. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PyWMzbrZVu0/VEWhhrAHF8I/AAAAAAAAH7s/8JM_HZVPfMg/s1600/IMGP0459.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PyWMzbrZVu0/VEWhhrAHF8I/AAAAAAAAH7s/8JM_HZVPfMg/s1600/IMGP0459.JPG" height="468" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Storm King Dam</td></tr>
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The scenery for the first half of the ride along Highland Way was similar to what we’d seen on Armistice Way. For the first 19km the slope was fairly relentlessly upward. There are a couple of possible side trips; the first at around 10km, where a short 500m ride takes you to the Storm King Dam picnic area, which was almost eerily empty of people or vehicles, but with a sense of tranquillity enhanced by the sight of water birds and a few cattle on the other side of the dam. The second is at at Breens Rd at about 15km, a couple of kilometres short of the locality of Eukey. Turning off here is a possible 13km trip to Bald Rock Creek campground in Girraween National Park. This is not the main road into the national park and is unsealed. We noted this as an exploration for another day with more appropriate bikes.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wdLjdtlNSEo/VEWhmlAdUCI/AAAAAAAAH78/Xj7sH-fo9qc/s1600/IMGP0463.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wdLjdtlNSEo/VEWhmlAdUCI/AAAAAAAAH78/Xj7sH-fo9qc/s1600/IMGP0463.JPG" height="336" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vineyards galore</td></tr>
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Two km past Eukey we reached the highest point of the whole trip at 1020m above sea level. The descent from here to Ballandean included some fast downhill runs through winery country, with the granite mountains of Girraween National Park off to our left.</div>
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In the village of Ballandean, at the end of Highland Way, we crossed the New England Highway to the start of the new road bike trail. The trail turned out to be very easy to follow, with clear signposts at all road junctions. Except for two sections, the first of about 1.1 km and the other of about 100m, the roads were sealed, but the surface was of variable quality, some sections with coarse aggregate and some with ripples, bumps and occasional potholes. When riding through forested sections these irregularities are sometimes hard to see because the road is in patchy shade. In some places the road is quite narrow, but these are back roads and there were very few motor vehicles. At about 13km from Ballandean we encountered a sign outside a winery inviting cyclists (or possibly just one of them!) in for refreshments, but it seems there was nobody around that day.</div>
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At the village of Glen Aplin, 16km from the start, the trail crosses the New England Highway. At this point the highway is only two lanes, the speed limit is 60km/h through the town, and there are large signs alerting motorists to the presence of the bike trail. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gdEFtC-Rb_4/VFsVMyk4djI/AAAAAAAAH_0/FKuIzl-TZME/s1600/2014-10-13%2B-%2BStanthorpe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gdEFtC-Rb_4/VFsVMyk4djI/AAAAAAAAH_0/FKuIzl-TZME/s1600/2014-10-13%2B-%2BStanthorpe.jpg" height="400" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A collage of photos taken on this ride</td></tr>
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At several points on the trail there are stops with a route map complete with elevation profile, sheltered tables and bike racks. Toilets and drinking water are available at the Glen Aplin stop. The next 10km passed very quickly, and suddenly we were back at the Stanthorpe tourist information centre, just 3km from our accommodation at the other end of town. </div>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">So what are our impressions of Stanthorpe and the Granite Belt as a road cycling destination? I hesitate to tell you truthfully, because you’ll probably tell someone else, and soon everyone will know and there will be cyclists all over the Granite Belt! The total experience was great. We often felt the sort of meditative sensation that people associate with the granite country – helped along by the colours, the silence, the empty roads, steady exertion on the climbs, the dreamy scenery. The roads are generally good and our road bikes were well up to the task. The locals are friendly; they waved encouragement when they saw us on the bikes, and if we asked directions, as likely as not they would draw a map. The volunteers at the tourist information centre were rightly proud of the new trail and were keen to hear our feedback. </span></div>
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Accommodation of all sorts is available, motels, villas, chalets, tourist parks, campgrounds. Their standards are all high, including a motel we stayed in with an operating-room level of cleanliness; no surgeon’s glove would pick up a molecule of impurity here. There is a variety of eating places in town; even a couple of Italian restaurants, <a href="http://www.annas.com.au/">for example this one</a>, which have survived the Australianisation of the descendants of the post-war settlers. A cycling holiday could be readily combined with food and wine tourism, or bushwalking with seasonal native flower appreciation.<br />
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All photographs in this post were taken by G.K.</div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">Graham Kimber</span></div>
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<strong><u>I really appreciate receiving good, constructive and polite comments.</u></strong><br />
<strong><u></u></strong><br />
<strong><u></u></strong><br />
Cheers and safe riding,<br />
Jimmy Bee<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
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Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51135816377077702.post-58495599717329767562014-11-05T13:49:00.001-08:002014-11-05T13:49:57.111-08:00CYCLING ON THE GRANITE BELT - Day 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D90TN4zPFCM/VFmDMsNv9QI/AAAAAAAAH-A/ep4id493WeE/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B114629%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D90TN4zPFCM/VFmDMsNv9QI/AAAAAAAAH-A/ep4id493WeE/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B114629%2BAM.jpg" height="289" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stanthorpe, Qld.</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: justify;">To us thin-blooded lowlanders of the sub-tropics, the town
of </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanthorpe,_Queensland" style="text-align: justify;">Stanthorpe</a><span style="text-align: justify;"> and the surrounding Granite
Belt offer the unfamiliar experience of cold weather, plus the attendant
attractions of temperate fruits, vineyards and peculiar </span><a href="http://www.granitebeltwinecountry.com.au/" style="text-align: justify;">tourist phenomena</a><span style="text-align: justify;"> such as
“wine tourism”, “Christmas in July” and “Brass Monkey Month”. Stanthorpe is over
800m above sea level with a population around 5000. It is about 230km southwest
of Brisbane, about 2½ hours drive. In a straight line the town is about 150km inland
and is as far south as the coastal resort
town of Byron Bay in New South Wales. On any day of the year Stanthorpe, or nearby
Applethorpe, will almost certainly record the lowest minimum temperature in Queensland.
Stanthorpe claims the record for the lowest temperature ever recorded in the
state at minus 10.6°C (+13°F).</span><br />
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The surrounding area is known as the Granite Belt; the name comes from the underlying granitic bedrock and abundant granite outcrops and boulders. Ores of tin occur as accessory minerals to the granite and the name Stanthorpe (from <i>stannum</i> – the Latin word for tin) derives from the town’s early settlement as an alluvial tin-mining centre. The well-known local national parks such as Girraween and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald_Rock_National_Park" title="Bald Rock National Park"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none;">Bald Rock</span></a> have typical granitic peaks, extensive views, precariously balanced boulders, clear streams, and seasonal wildflowers.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pOcxV7R8cDU/VFp_ffF4f2I/AAAAAAAAH-Y/tRxB4fodYqA/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B113606%2BAM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pOcxV7R8cDU/VFp_ffF4f2I/AAAAAAAAH-Y/tRxB4fodYqA/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B113606%2BAM.jpg" height="400" width="281" /></a></div>
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A road cycling trail from Stanthorpe to Ballandean (28 km) was
recently developed by the Southern Downs Regional Council in consultation with Granite
Belt Wine Country, the local tourism marketing organisation. The locals tell us
that this is the beginning of a move into cycle tourism, with other road routes
and mountain-bike trails to come. One might wonder about riders injudiciously
combining wine tourism with cycling tourism, but apparently it’s not a problem
yet, at least not on weekdays; during our stay we saw no other cyclists apart
from children riding to school!</div>
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Our
plan was to stay two days and assess two tourist motoring routes, Armistice Way
(Tourist Drive 5 - 34km) and Highland Way (Tourist Drive 6 - 31km) as potential
road cycling rides, and also to try out the new road cycling trail. The new
road bike trail combines neatly with Highland Way for a trip from Stanthorpe to
Ballandean and return. </div>
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See
the links to <a href="http://www.granitebeltwinecountry.com.au/explore/maps-and-itineraries/drives">maps
and itineraries for the drives</a> and the brochure for the <a href="http://svc115.bookeasy.com/images/granite/Bike%20Trail%20Brochure.pdf">Stanthorpe
to Ballandean</a> cycling trail. My interactive map of the cycling trail is <a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/5372683">here</a>.</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-giho4I9hS5Q/VEWhwSq0V-I/AAAAAAAAH8c/GSh1bPjfNfs/s1600/stanthorpe6_samsungphone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-giho4I9hS5Q/VEWhwSq0V-I/AAAAAAAAH8c/GSh1bPjfNfs/s1600/stanthorpe6_samsungphone.jpg" height="400" width="351" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author's wife and fellow cyclist Jennifer<br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
distances given for the tourist drives (34km and 31 km) are driving distances
for just the tourist routes themselves. Unsupported cyclists have to add on the
necessary riding from home base to the start point of the drive and from the
finish point back to home base. For us this extended the Armistice Way ride
from 34km to 55km, and the combined Highland Way-road trail ride from 59km to
68km. Armistice Way follows Amiens Rd which is paved all the way and in good
condition. Weekday traffic in mid-July was very light, but may vary with
the time of year, depending on tourist seasons and crop harvesting. The route
involves some climbing. The elevation gain from lowest point to highest point
is 163m, and the cumulative climb for the trip is 466m. Map and route profile
is </span><a href="http://ridewithgps.com/routes/5354569" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">. The day we rode, the Granite Belt declined to provide
what we city dwellers think of as a typical winter’s day in this part of the
world. The sky was not the clear blinding blue of the tourist brochures; rather
the day was overcast and cold with occasional rain. </span><br />
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Armistice Way passes through a mixture of picturesque
country. At different stages there are dairy farms, forests, vineyards and
orchards. The views of distant hills are pleasant rather than spectacular. We
had chosen to ride in a clockwise direction, opposite to the direction
described in the tourist drive brochure, mainly because the elevation profile
suggested that the climbing was a little less arduous. </div>
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The French place-names on the way refer to localities rather
than towns; there are occasional schools, community halls and general stores
but no coffee shops! Returning WW1
soldiers were offered resettlement here on farming leases resumed from local
pastoralists. They chose place-names
such as Amiens, Passchendaele, Bapaume and The Somme, recalling battlefields on
the Western Front. After the next war, another group of farmers arrived and
gave another set of European names, this time Italian, to some of the side
roads and lanes. These post-WW2 Italian
settlers were more experienced and more successful on the land than the
ex-diggers of a generation earlier, and so began the region’s “stone fruit,
apple and grape” tradition.</div>
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We planned a coffee stop at Singing Lake Cafe at <a href="http://www.robertchannonwines.com/Scripts/openExtra.asp?extra=1">Robert
Channon Wines</a> about 11km from our starting point, but when we arrived
at 10.30am in drizzling rain we found that the cafe didn’t open until 11. We decided
to try to stay warm by continuing to ride.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0IxFYOPuJXc/VFp_hLjNXfI/AAAAAAAAH-g/P2_hp2HLP18/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B122640%2BPM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0IxFYOPuJXc/VFp_hLjNXfI/AAAAAAAAH-g/P2_hp2HLP18/s1600/Fullscreen%2Bcapture%2B23102014%2B122640%2BPM.jpg" height="320" width="273" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo courtesy of Wikipedia</td></tr>
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We
made a stop at about 26 km to be entertained by a deafening flock of about a hundred
<a href="http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Calyptorhynchus-funereus">yellow-tailed
black cockatoos</a> feeding in trees either side of the road. (The link includes
the call of a yellow-tailed black cockatoo. Listen, and then amplify it one hundred-fold
to recapture our auditory experience.) As we rode along the road towards them,
they continued their games, flying with fragments of pinecone in their beaks,
screeching and chasing each other and splashing in puddles, but they gradually
moved their activities further down the road as we approached. They were aware
of us, but not about to let our presence detract too much from the fun. Their behaviour took me back to school days;
the birds were just like we kids in the playground when we spotted a teacher on
patrol. Perhaps there’s something in the highland air that not only makes
cyclists light-hearted, but turns cockatoos light-headed ̶ further
into the ride we saw a small flock of <a href="http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Cacatua-sanguinea">corellas</a>
playing a typical adolescent game,
taking it in turns to swing on a rope they’d found hanging from a tree.<br />
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At about 34km is <a href="http://www.stanthorpecheese.com.au/">Granite Belt Dairy</a> which claims to offer uniquely flavoured
cheeses because it is “Queensland’s highest and coldest dairy farm cheese shop”
We certainly won’t argue with “coldest”. Attached to Granite Belt Dairy is the
Jersey Girls Cafe, where we had a great lunch. The attentive staff offers a
small range of meals based on their own dairy products and local produce, and
the two dishes we selected were superb. There was a minor glitch when we asked
for “skinny” coffees; the sweet waitress gently explained that the only milk on
offer was full-cream, but since it was authentic (and therefore non-homogenised)
she could carefully remove as much of the cream as possible! We opted for the
full-fat experience and decided the taste was worth the risk to our arteries.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uEv65-vfpW0/VEWhyUtMHuI/AAAAAAAAH8k/A2UmB09fYOE/s1600/stanthorpe8a_sonyphone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uEv65-vfpW0/VEWhyUtMHuI/AAAAAAAAH8k/A2UmB09fYOE/s1600/stanthorpe8a_sonyphone.jpg" height="251" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The author changing a flat on his Gellie (custom)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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A couple of kilometres on from Jersey Girls, I had a
catastrophic front tyre puncture of the “bang-whoosh” type. As I changed the
tube and used the well-known five dollar note trick to protect the replacement
tube from the hole in the tyre, I mused on the ingenuity of polymer scientists and
concluded that their greatest gift to us cyclists was not carbon-reinforced
resin, rejected in any case by us steel frame retro-grouches, but the
indestructible bank note. Although of more immediate import were my thoughts on
the scarcity of bike-shops on the Granite Belt and our isolation (no vehicles
came past during the repair operation, despite the fact that we were close to
the village of Thulimbah). I returned to this thought frequently during the
remaining 20km, because the brand new replacement tube (from a well-known
European manufacturer) slowly leaked all the way home. I discovered later that
it was not damaged; rather it had a faulty valve.</div>
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Because the tourist drive ends at Thulimbah, the final 19km to
complete the circuit back to our motel in Stanthorpe was beyond the designated Armistice
Way. We followed the New England Highway, a major interstate road, but managed to
avoid riding on the actual highway. Initially we followed another of the
tourist drives, the Granite Belt Drive (Tourist Drive 3), which travels
parallel to the highway. Granite Belt Drive was formerly the main highway and Tourist
Drive 3 was known as the “Fruit Run” because of the fruit stalls along the way.
The realignment of the upgraded highway and shifting agricultural emphasis led
to the abandonment of the fruit stalls, but some of the buildings survive in
various stages of dereliction.<span style="color: #f79646;">
</span> After about 5km there is an
underpass beneath the highway, crossing to Old Warwick Rd, which, after a
couple of name changes, joins the Stanthorpe High St, completely avoiding the
highway.</div>
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When we woke on the morning of our second day we abandoned
our plan to ride the Highland Way that day. The weather was cold (as expected)
but also seriously wet. The thought of attacking empty country roads in the
rain and cold with only one spare tube remaining between us was quite
off-putting ̶ even
mounting the bikes on the car in the freezing rain was daunting enough. So we drove back to Brisbane with every
intention of returning soon.<br />
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Day 2 to follow shortly.<br />
<br />
Graham Kimber</div>
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Graham is a riding buddy of mine whom I encouraged to write this post. I hope you enjoyed his article on cycling in this fascinating area of Queensland as much as I did.<br />
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About the author: <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 12px; text-align: start;"><i>As a child I owned and rode bikes, but between reaching car-driving age and having enough money to purchase my first car, I thought that being seen on a bike was an admission of low financial status, so I walked everywhere and permanently relegated the bike to the dirt floor under the verandah of the Queenslander. Thirty-five years on I had open-heart surgery and took up cycling in an effort to regain some cardiac fitness, soon working up to the 20km round trip to and from work. On retirement I almost gave up, but then discovered mass-participation rides, which served as a great source of training goals. I also discovered another wonderful attraction of the cycling life - the opportunity to socialise with like-minded retirees. </i></span><br />
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<strong><u>I really appreciate receiving good, constructive and polite comments.</u></strong><br />
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Cheers and safe riding,<br />
Jimmy Bee<img border="0" closure_uid_114801687="16" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9hD4vcKt9O8/URwjT1wj53I/AAAAAAAADao/LqoCTiUHFho/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+14022013+91743+AM.jpg" /></div>
Jimmy Beehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638560956334943177noreply@blogger.com2