Week 25

Day 169

Saturday 14th December 2019

Goondiwindi to Karara.

Left Goondiwindi realising we had lost an hour as the time changed over the state border - so we were late!

We stopped to take pictures of sculptures by a local artist. We then headed off into what was fertile farmland before it stopped raining.

We stopped in Yelarbon for a drink. This small community had pretty much run out of water (the general store’s loo- as an example). They had a fund to feed the local wildlife. We saw a few watering holes where birds were gathering - in the past this would have been wetland.

We arrived in Inglewood and stopped at a local cafe. A journalist from the Goondiwindi Argus (Katie) had tracked us down and interviewed us about our ride. This generated a bit of interest in the cafe and the lovely owner gave us water and a sandwich to go. She also told us that the road ahead was closed because of fire so we will be heading north tomorrow to avoid it.

We started to climb as we have to cross the great divide before we can descend to Brisbane. We saw more wildlife in this area- kangaroos, wallaby and emu - however a shocking amount of roadkill which smells terrible and lines the side of the road.

We noticed that even the cacti is dying in this area. I’m sure you are all bored hearing about how hot it is but forsake of completeness- it’s hot. We stopped at Karara - which has a pub and motel and nothing else. 2 day’s riding to Brisbane.

Day 170

Sunday 15th December 2019

Karara to Forest Hill.

Finally got some sleep after disabling the bleeping fire alarm (which required an acrobat leap from top of a table). We ate toast for breakfast and set off.

The route was part of a scenic drive and it was lovely to be on a quieter road lined by forest. We saw lots of kangaroos and wallabies. We climbed steady finally reaching Clifton for lunch having crossed through fallow agricultural fields.

We met the president of a local bike club who told us how much easier it is to cycle on a tandem and that we had lots of luggage (too much). We were too hungry and hot to disagree (but we managed it). We decided that he’d never ridden a tandem and tried to explained that tandems are harder to ride up hills than solo bikes (which they really are).

We finally started descending through a beautiful valley lined by cliffs stopping in Ma Ma Creek to cool down - Not sure whether I’ve mentioned it but it’s hot in Australia at the moment.

A few steep hills later and we made it to Forest Hill. We met the lovely Edwina and Gary who made us incredibly welcome and cooked a fantastic meal. Thanks

Day 171

Monday 16th December 2019

Forest Hill to Brisbane.

Today was our last day of riding in Australia. We set off from Perth on 4 November and have cycled over 3400 miles (12,100 in total) over 42 days in Australia.

We have crossed the Nullabore desert into a headwind. Experienced temperatures from 43 degrees to less than 10 degrees as we rode along the Great Ocean Road.

We changed our route to avoid bush fires and smoke. We have passed through areas where there is a devastating drought.

We have met some amazing people who have been incredibly kind and supportive. Australia has been amazing and challenging.

Today was hot - probably the hottest day so far - and hilly. The temperature was a record high in Brisbane for this time of year.

We said good bye to Edwina and Gary and set off towards Brisbane stopping for coffee on route. The temperature continued to rise. We stopped again at McDonalds as we were simply too hot. We cooled down (a bit) and set off again trying to follow a convoluted and poorly sign posted cycle route along the edge of the highway into Brisbane. We turned off through Toowong cemetery which was on an incredibly steep hill. The view from the top was amazing but it really wasn’t the day for a hill climb. We continued onto The Gap as we are staying with the lovely Alysia Stark who to our lives in the hills overlooking Brisbane (which tested our legs in the 43 degree heat). We got to within 200 meters of Alysia’s house and the back tire exploded. Alice had clearly had enough.

Once we had cooled down we took Alice (tandem) to the local bike shop. The grumpy mechanic is keeping her in overnight. We are hoping she will feel better in the morning with new tires, chains and various other expensive bits.

Day 172/173

Tuesday & Wednesday 17th & 18th December 2019

Brisbane to Queenstown New Zealand.

Amazingly (and because we were not riding) the temperature had dropped dramatically overnight and we woke to a nice warm (as opposed to hot day). We headed out for coffee with Alysia. Managed to fit in the obligatory haircut. Raz even had her fringe cut as she was starting to look so much like Tammy Wynette I was concerned that she was about to start singing stand by your man. ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corp) had invited us to give an interview - we headed into Brisbane taking in the sites as we drove into the city.

After the interview we walked along the river, had lunch and enjoyed a day off the bike. Alysia was fantastic driving us around and showing us Brisbane. We went to collect Alice (tandem) - who’d gone for a very expensive makeover - including new tires, chains, and derailleur. We spent the rest of the afternoon packing up Alice. Alysia made us dinner and we had an early night.

Day 173

On route to Queenstown New Zealand.  Up early to get to the airport. Flying with a bike is always tricky. Unfortunately one of the boxes (containing Alice) was 0.3kg over the weight limit. This resulted in us having to un-tape the box - remove a couple of inner tubes and a mug! -and repack. It also cost us $160 - thanks #AirNewZealand.

We are excited about New Zealand