October 16, 2022
Tough day, wet feet and lots of pushing
Whitfield to Mansfield
After an indulgent breakfast at the only cafe in town we retraced our steps for 5ks to Cheshunt, which also had a cafe/bakery so perfect for second breakfast. We grab a loaf of bread to go with the Parmesan and salami which will do us for lunch.
It’s another clear but cool day as we cycle further up the King Valley before peeling off onto a dirt track that will take us up and over the big climb of the day to the little town of Tolmey. Even the sealed road has plenty of water streaming over it and the dirt track gradually deteriorates with no thanks to a 4 wheel drive that churned everything up.
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The track gets worse and we’re in ankle deep mud and off and on the bikes regularly. Just before the climb starts there’s a much deeper stream we have to ford. It’s not flowing fast but it is deep; luckily there’s one section we manage to shimmy through that’s a bit over knee deep and our panniers remain dry. From there the track tilts up alarmingly so we pause for morning tea on a nice grassy patch.
For the next 6 kilometres the track rises over 700 metres and I manage to cycle a total of 150 metres of that. It’s about a 24 degree pitch at the start and fluctuates between that and about 18 degrees for a very long time. It’s also muddy and slippery so getting a foothold is difficult. We resort to double teaming to get the bikes up the really steep bits.
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1 year ago
1 year ago
Every corner you were hoping it was going to flatten out but that didn’t happen. Two and a half hours later we finally got to the top and slumped into our chairs for our lunch of Parmesan and salami rolls. Except I’d stupidly left both ingredients in the fridge in Whitfield. Vegemite rolls it is!
We’re back on a sealed road that takes us into Tolmey, a tiny town with a pub and that’s about it. We call in for a soft drink as we’re outside the 10k rule and there’s still more hills to come. The bikie behind the bar accuses me of being part of the ‘blue rinse brigade’ when I order a lemon lime and bitters. There’s rolling hills for a while out of Tolmey and then a screaming descent into the Mansfield valley.
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The only cyclist that passes us today stops and has a chat with me as I wait for the others. I couldn’t remember who was the tour rider that came from Mansfield, so I asked him. “That would be my son Simon Gehrens”. We had a good old yarn before he headed up the hill.
We’ve had such a big day that we give camping a miss and book an Airbnb for the night. After hosing down our bikes, we do the same to ourselves and head into the recommended hotel for dinner. Our legs resist the urge to walk back uphill to our house so we book a local cab. I think we earned that.
Today's ride: 63 km (39 miles)
Total: 636 km (395 miles)
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