I set out early in the morning with my bike fully loaded planning to ride from Taradale to Yackandandah. I expected it would take me three days to cover the 300 kilometre distance. It was the first time I had done any serious cycling since my tour down the east coast last year so I wasn’t sure how my legs would cope.
My first stop was the small town of Redesdale about 25 kilometres down the road. The town would barely register on the map but it is notable for its beautiful old bluestone buildings and historic bridge. A little further down the road I stopped in Heathcote where I stocked up on food at the supermarket.
Heading north from Heathcote the roads flattened out and I was able to make good pace. I passed through Nagambie and then kept on riding as I had plenty of daylight hours left. I eventually came to a stop a bit after seven o’clock in the evening. I had covered 150 kilometres which was the longest distance I have ever ridden in one day. I set up camp in Miepoll under the red gums on the bank of a small creek.
The next day after I had ridden a couple of kilometres I came across two men in a van stopped by the side of the road. They had stopped because there was a koala on the road. Unfortunately it had been hit by a car or truck and wasn’t in a very good state. There wasn’t much we could do for it except move it off the road.
The next town I passed through was Violet Town where I stopped for a cup of coffee. After that I was on to the Hume Freeway. Riding on the freeway was a little boring, but fairly safe because there was a nice wide, sealed shoulder to ride on. I passed through Benalla and finally exited the freeway late in the afternoon. I rode to Tarrawingee where I camped for the night.
The next day I returned to the hills after having ridden on pretty flat roads for last 200 kilometres. The climb up to Beechworth was a decent ascent. Beechworth is a beautiful, historic town built during the Gold Rush. I stopped at the bakery to refuel. While there I met another cyclist riding a new carbon-fibre framed Giant road bike. He told me that the bike was “an unfair advantage”. It wasn’t hard to believe and I thought how much easier it would have been riding up the hill on a lightweight bike like that rather than my bike which was loaded down with gear.
In Beechworth I also visited the cemetery where there is a very large Chinese section. It dates back to the presence of Chinese miners during the Gold Rush of the 19th century. From Beechworth it was mostly downhill to Yackandandah. In Yack I was able to relax at my brother’s house. Will and Fiona took good care of me for the night and I enjoyed some delicious food.
It rained during the night and was still raining the next morning. As a result I delayed my departure for a while. In the afternoon it looked like it was clearing, so I took my chances and set off. I got caught very briefly in a short downpour but for the rain seemed to have abated as I headed west. I rode 70 kilometres before I stopped to camp for the night between Rutherglen and Yarrawonga.
The next day I had a long ride through some pretty flat country. I passed through Yarrawonga, Cobram and Numurkah before I finally stopped to camp on Broken River near Barmah. I had covered 161 kilometres in about nine hours which was a long day on the bike. The day eclipsed my previous record for the longest distance in one day. I had always wanted to ride 100 miles in a day and finally I had done it.
From Barmah I crossed the Murray River and the border into New South Wales and then rode down to Echuca. I stopped there to visit the other branch of the Beechworth Bakery. Heading south from Echuca the riding was not great. The road was busy with trucks and I was battling head winds. I passed through Rochester, birthplace of Sir Hubert Opperman one of Australia’s greatest cyclists.
South of Elmore I got off the highway at last and rode on some good roads with very little traffic. I camped near Axedale. I knew it was only about 50 kilometres from Axedale back to Taradale, but I didn’t have a map so getting there was mostly guesswork. I worked on the theory that if I kept heading south I would have to get home eventually. The roads in the area had no signposts saying where they went to so I had no idea where I was most of the time. I had to ride on some pretty rough gravel roads at times. Eventually I got near Metcalfe and finally knew exactly where I was. It was about eight more kilometres to home and I got there in time for lunch.
| date | from | to | notes | distance (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2/3 | Taradale | Miepoll | via Heathcote and Nagambie | 151.0 |
| 3/3 | Miepoll | Tarrawingee | via Benalla | 106.9 |
| 4/3 | Tarrawingee | Yackandandah | via Beechworth | 46.9 |
| 5/3 | Yackandandah | Kellys Road (30km east of Yarrawonga | via Chiltern and Rutherglen | 71.1 |
| 6/3 | Kellys Road | 5km east of Barmah | via Cobram and Numurkah | 161.8 |
| 7/3 | 5km east of Barmah | Axedale | via Echuca and Elmore | 130.0 |
| 8/3 | Axedale | Taradale | via Lake Eppalock and Coliban Park | 53.4 |
total distance: 721 km
average speed: 17.5 km/h
average distance per day: 103 km
Note: distances are not the point to point distances but the actual distance cycled each day.