May 12, 2017
Day Nine Sale to Stratford
After handing in our cabin keys to the receptionist at the Sale Caravan Park and having our photograph taken to show the diverse groups of people who stay at the park, we were off.
This was going to be a short day across flat terrain, and crossing the Princes Highway we cycled along Reeve Street until we reached the old train signal box, on the corner of Railway Place, opposite Gippsland Centre (Sale's large shopping centre). Stopping for photographs we admired the iconic old building and were off again, heading for Maffra and morning tea.
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Cycling north wards along Reeve Street until we turned left into the remaining section of Raglan Street and over the level crossing. Turning sharp left into Finegan Close and sharpe right into Government Road we crossed the Flooding Creek as it meandered its way through the green country side. Government Road was a wide dirt track / road which headed west wards between two arms of the Flooding Creek, before curving right and changing its name to the Back Maffra Road.
Cycling along the dirt track / road until the Back Maffra Road went past the Sale Public Cemetery on our right, where the track turned into a sealed bitumen roadway.
We continued cycling along, until the Back Maffra Road ended at the junction of the C492 Maffra-Sale Road where we turned left towards Maffra.
Cycling along we pasted the Sale Racecourse on our right and came to Myrtlebank, where we stopped for a rest next to a farmer's water dam. Just along the road we found the Roaming Chicken Egg Farm, (which has 500 hens that wander around freely) which has a honesty box egg stall next to a large sculpture of "Chicalleta" made from the typical scrap metal items that you would find in the back of a farmers shed. The owners may lose the odd dozen eggs from time to time but once the money is inside the honesty box it is unlikely to be stolen as the box is welded up from steel plate !
When we arrived at Maffra we bought morning tea in a cafe which was so small the customers queuing to buy food were literally wall to wall, full of trades people buying lunch etc.
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Leaving the Maffra Bakery we cycled through town east wards on the C105 Johnson Street, where we rode around a large round about, and passed the C105 Stratford - Maffra Road exit. Here we turned sharpe left into the open space in front of the information board which outlined the Gippsland Plains Rail Trail, which we would cycle all the way to Stratford.
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The Gippsland Plains Rail Trail runs parallel to the C105
Stratford - Maffra Road all the way until it reaches the outskirts of Strafford. Here the trail veres to the left away from the Stratford - Maffra Road a short distance before the road stops at the junction of the Princes Highway. Leaving the rail trail we cycled down a slope and under a small railway bridge to ride beside the Princes Highway. From here the bike path runs between farm land on the left and small trees planted next to the Princes Highway on the right. Soon we saw the long Avon River Bridge ahead of us and we cycled onto a dedicated pathway for pedestrians and cyclists which extends across the bridge on its Northwest side : the pathway was protected by barriers.
Having crossed the very long bridge we stopped on the corner of McMillan Street and the Princes Highway, outside the municipal swimming pool and under a large sign for the Stratford on the River Tourist Park which was next door.
Soon we had settled into our small cabin surrounded by large lawns, and walked along the highway to the local supermarket, where we bought two frozen dinners and other groceries as well as picking up the free local paper.
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Today's ride: 36 km (22 miles)
Total: 346 km (215 miles)
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