September 4, 2015
Adventures in the forest: And the bus stop
Our forest camp had been so nice and in the morning we had a breakfast treat that I could only honestly describe as scrumptious – we cut banana bread into slices and put banana flavoured spread in between them, and we titled this marvellous snack the 'Banana Bomb.' Then as if things couldn't get much better we continued cycling on our empty gravel trail and saw lots and lots of kangaroos as we travelled deeper into the wonderful forest scenery. Things were so lovely we couldn't help ourselves but to continue to scoff at the old fellow who the previous evening had warned against taking this route.
Of course we were soon to pay for our arrogance. The quality of the track deteriorated quickly, becoming bumpy and muddy and increasingly difficult to cycle on. Soon the forest closed in around us and the narrow trail branched in several different directions, none of them looking any more promising than the others.
| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Bravely undeterred, we pressed on through the forest until we eventually emerged at a railway line. This was good, because we now had a reference point, and according to our map the main road that we were trying to connect to was just on the other side of this track. In fact when we stopped and strained our ears we could hear the sound of motor vehicles. The only problem was how to get to them. Crossing the railway line was our first challenge, and it was a considerable one. There was an underpass but it was completely flooded, and so we traipsed as best we could alongside the railway line on a makeshift trail until eventually we came across another underpass that we could get through.
But even then we were still stuck, because a thick wedge of forest still separated us from the road and even though I was tempted to try and blunder through it, it was far too thick. Instead we cycled back along the railway line on another trail. More obstacles awaited us in the form of giant puddles. Now during our stop in Port Macquarie we had watched the 'Long Way Round' series, in which the affable Charely Boorman and the famous Ewan MacGregor (who, I believe, are still in the process of formulating their lawsuit) ride motorcycles around the world. At one point the affable Charley Boorman wades across a Siberian river to see how deep it is and to plot a safe course for the motorbikes. I now replicated this infamous scene, fearlessly wading out into an Australian puddle and declaring it okay to cycle through.
Finally we found our way back to a gravel road that connected to the main road we were after, but before joining the traffic we thought it prudent to take a little break to consume more banana based snacks. While we were doing so a car came along and a local stopped to chat with us from behind his steering wheel. He talked a lot, and said bloody a lot, and said it was impossible to find your way around here, and said you end up like bloody Marco Polo out here, and he seemed alright, but then he said something racist, and we didn't like him anymore. We left and cycled on the paved road to a place called Whimporie, which we thought was going to be a town, but turned out to be a gas station. We were tired, and it was really hot, and Dea's wrists were hurting again, so we sat in a bus stop at Whimporie for a long time to rest.
When we continued it was on a really lovely gravel road that had very little traffic at all. We'd been a bit worried about taking this road because of Dea's wrists but it was a good decision as it was flat and not bumpy at all. In fact Dea was feeling so good about cycling here that she, noticing what was lying on the ground again, suggested we have another game of pine cone wars!
I think I was nervous about playing again. I didn't want Dea to fall and hurt her wrists, so I didn't take it too seriously. At least this was the excuse I came up with every time I heard another 'ding-ding' on my helmet. The final score was 14-0 to Dea. I was humiliated at my own game.
Apart from that embarrassing result, which even I'm surprised I've written about publicly, the rest of the afternoon was seriously nice. The road was great – peaceful, flat, through the forest. At one point we found a big empty hangar, perhaps once an old mill of some kind, and we decided to take another long break here. We sat and played yatzy, a game in which I was able to save face, before pedalling on a little further and having another beautiful forest camp to ourselves.
Today's ride: 58 km (36 miles)
Total: 47,066 km (29,228 miles)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 4 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |