Hullo Hobart!

Start off with some glamorous pics of Kimbo…

After a hectic day of… going to McDonald's to check e-mail, eating sushi, finding a bike store that had bike boxes (the fourth one finally did… then we had to walk a few blocks with it…), buying a spare battery for the camera, packing the bike, taking the Sky Bus (no train to the airport! C'mon Melbourne… enter the 21^st century already), and checking the bike in… we finally boarded the plane… after a quick nap.

Bye Melbourne!

… a nice glory en route

Hobart!

Took the airport shuttle to our Warmshower's host… the Hobart airport is pretty inconvenient as well... Sydney Airport is still numero uno with it's bike path from the airport.

Dorothy and Greg were amazing hosts, and we took their doggie on a walk on a nearby trail… it was good to get some doggie time again.

We liked Hobart, with Mt. Wellington nearby, quick access to the ocean, and river (dewent)…plenty of options for all kinds of outdoor activities. After a nice dinner and a walk (we saw some climbers… lots of climbing in town, as well as near by) we went to bed early. The next morning, we rode up with Greg (a forest geneticist) up to the top. A nice view with many features to enjoy.

After Greg went to work, we went into town for a quick sushi snack… then back up for a tour of Cascade Brewery... Kimbo dressed up to impress.

Very nice… they had the First Harvest there… our favorite beer so far, and very hard to find… and usually only found around Oct and only in Tassie… we had a few pots of those… here's a tassie tiger.

Then back downtown for some fish and chips from a floating shop.

And right back up to meet up with Greg to test out his Klepper (a folding kayak).

We took her around the Derwent river a few km under the bridge… a very nice paddle and we really enjoyed the klepper… I'm gonna have to keep my eyes out for one.

Our amazing hosts... who later even shipped Kim's shoes up to Lonnie as she forgot them there! Thank you!

Next day we got a ride out of town from a prospective buyer of Bellabimibi.

…back on the road again… which means I get to eat enormous lunches... woohoo. I think I had 3 wraps that day... for lunch

Finished reading, "a year of living biblically"... the best book I've read this year (of the 6 or 7)... about an (initially) agnostic guy who tries to live according to the bible for a year... I'd be curious to see what other folks from other religious background thinks about it, I'd think it's be worthwhile, at least interesting to most folks. It's really funny (I guess it's more of my kind of humor), and I'd just like to say to my (more) religious friends that he tries to be very neutral, and this isn't a dawkin-type book with one sided arguments... anyway, check it out if you have the time.

Leaving Melbourne… again…

This post is a bit old… but it's better late than never egh?

Here's some pics to our second visit to Melbourne after cycling the GOR.

Here's where the rail track was burnt out… and why they were only running one train per day from Werrnambool instead of 3… and why we stayed there an extra day.

The next day we went to the Zoo with Kevin and Robin… as previously mentioned… but I had to post this pic

Then we did some drinking… mmm… My Goodness My Guiness

Oh, and we ate a lot of Sushi

Then went to the Melbourne Museum the next day… which was a mish mosh of very cool things…

…like this whale bone… recovered on the GOR…

Oh, and I just thought of this… it was actually kind of a revelation on km 80 or so… passing a field of hops…"What do IPAs and Kangaroo Meat taste like?"...HOPPY... anyway... get back to work y'all!

Cycling the Great Ocean Road…

We arrived in Melbourne a few days early due to the bush fires… (a terrible disaster, btw, we've been reading a lot about it in the papers... but on the other hand the amount of support we have seen from all the communities to support the bushfire fund has really been heartwarming to see).

So, we took off after one night in Melbourne for the Great Ocean Road (GOR). Stretching from Geelong to Warrnambool, it's an incredible section of coastline that was built to commemorate WWII soldiers (LOOK THIS UP). Although it's known to get really busy during the holidays (Christmas to Australia Day… Jan 26^th), we were fortunate to get there after the busy season, but still during nice weather.

"How we going?" is a common Aussie greeting… and for this section our answer was "fast!" …as we had left our camping gear with Kevin and Robin in Melbourne, so we were travelling two panniers lighter, and loving it.

We were hoping to catch the train from Melbourne out to Warrnambool, but due to the bush fires, the trains were not in service, and scheduled to resume service in a few days. So taking our chances, we set off into the headwind, departing from Geelong, where Neil Mann (one of Kim's mom's colleagues) put us up for the night.

We ran into more cycle tourists on this section, as the route is a popular route for cyclists… this is Roman, who rode from Perth across the Nullarbor, and is on his way up to Brisbane. If you can read Czech, here is his blog… (www.adventureroman.blogspot.com).

The first section that we rode is known as the "Surf Coast", the coast is less dramatic, but the beaches are nice, and the surf is big… hence the name. The world surfing championships take place down here, and there are some small communities that would be heaven for surfers…

The "official" start of the GOR... used to be a toll road.

at the Lorne hostel... a great place for some bird watching...

We had heard some horror stories of riding the GOR, with lots of traffic, no shoulder, etc… but we thought it was a very nice ride… with reasonable shoulders in the beginning, gradually getting smaller, but with traffic also getting thinner as well… the last day we got passed by maybe 10 cars for the 60 km stretch (although it was really early in the morning…).

This area of Australia is one of the wettest areas on the continent, and there are some rainforests inland. There are huge gum trees, beech trees, and a few of the short self-guided rainforest walks are quite enjoyable… OH, and the carnivorous snails like it here as well. They almost got us (they're quite fast), but due to Kim's ninja skills, we barely escaped.

The coastline here is also known as the "shipwreck coast" (lots of names for this coast…) as there have been numerous ship wrecks due to high winds, rough coastline, and shallow reefs. So there are numerous historic lighthouses, including the Cape Otway Lighthouse… we made the 24 km side trip out to the self-proclaimed, "highlight of the Great Ocean Road" … which was ok, but definitely NOT the highlight.

Kim even managed to fall asleep in the first 30 seconds of a short video about the shipwrecks… I'll return to this topic later… but Kim can sleep anywhere…other than the bed at night…

Oh, but we did see a few Koalas on the ride out… they're always cute and nice to see… it's as if you were riding around, then all the sudden you see a sleeping Mingus in the trees… that occasionally poops on you (a hint to future koala viewers… don't look straight up at them…)

The road doesn't hug the coast for the whole ride… but it veers inland up to Laver's Hill, skirting around the Otway Ranges, where we stayed one night at the pub… the only night of the five nights that we didn't sleep next to the ocean. Once you return to the coast near Port Campbell, the real highlights of the GOR await you… as do the tourist busses…

but there is too much to see in such a short length of coastline that you can find plenty of privacy on an amazing cove, beach, or inlet if you are willing to walk just a short way.

12 apostles…

I'm wondering if we would have seen some leashed cats if this sign wasn't here…

Our own beach…

With a cave

Kim showing how some of these features are formed…

The geology here is very dramatic, with arches, columns, and islands around every corner. Any one kilometer of this stretch would be an attraction elsewhere… put 30+ km all together in one place, and you have the "shipwreck coast". The 12 apostles, Loch Ard Gorge, the Grotto, Worm Bay, and countless other features along this coastline are definitely worth spending some time. Many of these beaches have a strong current and don't have any lifeguards, so swimming isn't recommended, but there are some sheltered coves and inlets that are relatively safe. This area would be great to explore and I've vowed to come back and sea kayak along the coast… once I become a little more proficient. Just imagine kayaking until you find yourself in a cove that you can only access from the sea, all to yourself after a long day of kayaking through some arches, exploring sea caves, and maybe top it off with some sushi that you just spearfished…

One of many arches…

The grotto

Near Peterborough, where we stayed in a caravan! … just crossed the street, and voila! Amazing coastline… we saw a spearfisherman coming out of the sea with a bag full of fish.

The next morning we had to get up early as we had heard that the last train back to Melbourne from Warrnambool departed at 11:45. But this turned out to be the flattest day so far, and we cruised it averaging 25 km/hr. After meeting a local cyclist on the road (who invited us back to his place to stay…) we went to the train station and found out that they were running buses… only one train a day, the early one. So now we didn't have a ride back to Melbourne, and our place to stay for the night rode off… oh well… we ended up staying at a nice backpackers near the beach. Oh, and we went to a restaurant called Bojangles for V-day, and Kim can't stop talking about how good the food was.

We're back at Kevin and Robin's… spent a day at the Melbourne Zoo… which we all agreed was one of the better zoo's we've visited… monkey's are amazing… and so was the little girl watching them.

Off to Tassie tomorrow.

Woohoo…

Update...we're safe from the bushfires. Great Ocean Road here we come!

So, we're in Melbourne.

Took the train here yesterday as many of the roads we were planning on taking are closed due to the bushfires around here (worst bushfires in at least the last 100 years and 100+ have died btw...don't know how much Aussie news gets out in the US) and we took the one train that left our area into Melbourne yesterday... just in time for the St. Kilda Festival. Bush fires are scary...if you ever read the first story from Sebastian Junger's "Fire" you get the idea...

It was kind of a bummer to miss some of the country, but now we've got time to do the Great Ocean Road... starting tomorrow. Last night, we stayed with B-Ral's brother and his wife, Robin, who moved to Melbourne a month ago and took us around their neighborhood and to the St. Kilda Fest.

Now we're in Geelong staying with Kim's mom's colleague and friend Neil... who's son went to Southern Oregon University in Ashland, OR where he met his fiance... craziness.

Here's some pics from the last few weeks...

On Raymond Island, Kim feeding one of Peter's horses...

Wombat skulls in the backyard.

Echidna in the front yard... the other "monotreme" (egg-laying mammal)

The one emu left at Heather and Jim's farm... "Nick". I only know of one Nick that's (quite a bit) uglier.

at Jim's father's house... showing off his hobby of making beautiful wooden bowls.

and the possum that lives in the woodshop.

Update: WWOOFing, koalas, and the heat.

So, we've been volunteering at a WWOOF host in Maffra, Victoria for the last week. It's been quite an enjoyable experience, and I'm sure our bums are not looking forward to getting back on the saddle tomorrow. The couple we have been staying with have an amazing house in the country, and live a very enviable lifestyle. We have had many topics to cover, as they are climbers (they have a cliff like 30 ft from their house they can climb… though the weather hasn't cooperated for me to hop on the rock), telemark skiers, avid cyclists (Jim lived in Belgium for 3 years as a pro), kayakers (there's a few places you can walk to from their house, a creek that I got to kayak down on my second day… for about 10 km or so, and a lake very close by), and travelers (they've been everywhere). It's very interesting actually living with a family as you slowly figure out similarities and differences between cultures. Having this time to relax and talk about culture, environment, wildlife, etc… has been very eye-opening. We've had a lovely stay and hope to do some more WWOOFing in the future… maybe in NZ and Japan?

Before arriving here, we were at Raymond Island for a few days as noted in the previous entry, and we took the 6 am ferry across and rode 100 km here most of it in the morning... then in the evening after we stopped in a pub around 2 pm… haven't rode since.