28th & 29th April 2025

Ten days in Adelaide was just the ticket.

So good to get off the bike and not think about cycling! Though I did explore the Torrens River Linear Park on Good Friday.

What can I say about Adelaide? A very pleasant city with a nice, relaxed vibe. Metro system was easy to use, plenty of places to eat and drink, wide, tree lined streets, and an ambience that said, ‘hey, come and relax. Enjoy the hedonistic lifestyle for a short period, after all, you’ve earnt it!’

Great to catch up with Sue and the family, though another round of farewells at the end of the sojourn was pretty tough!

Bike on Train to Gawler

Caught the first train out of Adelaide on the Sunday morning, along with the throng of ‘all night’ party revellers heading home. I heard one guy mutter, “loser”, as he walked past me and the bike😂😂 He was much bigger than me, so I kept my thoughts to myself.

Joined the Barossa wine trail from Gawler, some 35km meandering through vineyards. All very pretty, but the grapes have long been picked and having worked on vineyards in a previous life, all pretty ho-hum.

The rail trail was all bitumen and you would think it would have been busy, but along it’s length I passed one cyclist and half a dozen runners.

Jacobs Creek Winery Sculpture

 Approaching Tanunda, the trail traversed through the Jacobs Creek vineyards, a massive enterprise and pretty impressive, and I could imagine that if you lived near the area, a weekend’s wine tasting by bicycle would be a very pleasant experience.

I had a coffee in Tanunda, because I was feeling a bit down and a tad lonely. This long distance cycling is a tough gig, especially immediately following happy times in Adelaide. 😒

The Barossa Trail ended for me in Nurioopta, where I joined country roads towards Kapunda.

You may be wondering why I’m avoiding the Mawson Trail. The answer is Caltrope (Three cornered Jack). A vicious weed that has caused such frustration over the years that anyone attempting the trail now, travels with tubeless tyres (self-sealing). Unfortunately, I am travelling with tubes, as the extra strong wheels I installed (to better carry heavy loads) are not tubeless compatible. So, yes, I’m a coward, but who cares. With luck, and a good tail wind, I shall avoid the worst areas and look at joining the trail somewhere north of Laura.

DRY COUNTRY

29th April 2025

So much for careful planning…

Puncture Repair

The Culprit "Calthrope'

Woke up to be confronted by a flat tyre. I re-inflated but it went down immediately. I couldn’t find the cause initially, but removing the tube and finding the hole enabled me to pinpoint the location of the breach on the tyre, and yes, it was a three cornered jack.

Break at Tarlee

The journey to Tarlee seemed to be all up hill, which was confirmed with a long descent into Riverton. At some roadworks on the way, the traffic management worker at the traffic lights insisted I wait until all the vehicles had gone through with me bringing up the rear, which was nice of her as she was concerned for my safety. But the vehicles waiting at the other end of the 1km stretch gave me some nasty looks for holding them up 😂🤣😂. I had a coffee in Riverton to try and put a happy face on the day. 😊

The Rattler rail trail was a smooth, undulating, gravel track that, after 20kms, placed me in Auburn, the campsite for the night.

Kapunda Campsite

A small supermarket in Riverton provided the bread rolls and ham for tonight’s meal.

Thoughts… coffee no longer feels like a treat, and I am getting sick of bread based meals🤣🤣.

16th April 2025 (1285kms)

The camp at Mount Compass was very pleasant and a huge improvement on Victor Harbour. Very quiet, with numerous toilets and showers, and a nice vibe.

My neighbour was an Austro-German war refugee, having just suffered a stroke. She told me her one and only adventure in life was to cycle around Latin America in 1985. I was there climbing the same year I think (or 1984). Anyway, she was pretty excited and brought out a photo album. Turned out to be a very pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

Nice - Step back in time

Still stinking hot, so I decided to cycle back into town and head to the pub for a drink and a feed, however, on the way I passed a small shop selling takeaway Italian meals (to heat at home). I told them my situation and they kindly cooked one for me, plus an iced coffee, plus a gelato… excellent.

Up early and another hill, but payback was hitting 65km/h on the way down to Willunga😊😊

Nice Bike leaning post

Granola and a coffee for breakfast before hitting the ‘Coast to Vines’ rail trail. A sealed route all the way into Marino Rocks.

Amongst the vines

Started out really well, vineyards and pastures, but it got hotter and hotter.

Willunga Station - start of the Rail Trail

I couldn’t find the Marino Rocks rail trail into the city and ended up sitting at a shaded bus stop to cool down, which was hard because I’d run out of water. A bus turned up, turned out it was a trainee driver (no passengers) and his trainer. The trainer commented that I looked pretty fucked, I told him my story, to which he responded by giving me a litre of water (his lunch drink). It was ice cold and beautiful… what a nice man!

I joined a highway with a bike lane and ended up in Glenelg, where I was able to join the ‘Mike Turtur’ bikeway into the city.

Oh Dear, Kona is all good though

Hop, skip, and a jump and I almost made it to the Airbnb , when I fell off and grazed both knees. So happy to arrive. The shower was one of the best I’ve ever had!

A long hot day, 84km, and so happy to finally be in Adelaide.

13th - 15th April 2025

Encounter Way

Utilised the ‘Encounter Way’, a designated bike trail between Goolwa and Victor Harbour. My first use of this type of trail and I must say I was quite impressed. Easy riding with no traffic to contend with other than fellow track users, albeit these types of tracks are designed for the slow journey.

Approaching Victor Harbour

Had breakfast at Port Elliot. A healthy breakfast consisting of granola, fruit, and edible flowers. A nice change from eggs on toast, and first time I’ve seen on a menu this trip.

Healthy Breakfast for a change

Victor Harbour… what can I say… tourism 101. It could be a beach resort on the coast of England. Awful, but people love it, the place was packed. A fairground next to the beach, camel rides, and a horse drawn tram across to Granite Island. Awful… awful.

Camel Rides and Horse drawn Tram

The campsite, oh my God! A mini themed water park come swimming pool. People everywhere… kids everywhere… noise, still, to be expected, it’s school holidays.

More bike discrimination

Everyone seemingly thoroughly enjoying themselves, so I had to suck it up and wander around with a smile on my face, conscious I didn’t want to be seen as a creepy old man😂😂😂

Pitched my tent next to the boundary fence without paying too much attention, only to peer over the fence, once finished, to see a homeless camp set up. Probably makes me sound terrible, but I didn’t feel at all comfortable, so relocated. Unfortunately, the only shady site left was adjacent to the kids playing area…

With the temperature still hovering above 30, I ended up having ‘Hungry Jacks’ for tea, for nothing other than shear convenience.

Woken up at 1:30am with a headlight playing on my bike. The noise I made must have scared them off. Yes, I lock the bike all the time, and at night I lay it down with the front wheel in the tent vestibule, with fishing line attached between the bike and the tent zips (inside). Paranoid or what? 😂😂

14/04/2025

Long day in Victor Harbour…

Random Cow

15/04/2025

Up at the crack of dawn, ready to attack the hills above Victor Harbour, towards Mount Compass.

Hard, very hard in the heat. Another plus 30-degree day. 28 degrees by nine o’clock. It was tough going and the legs eventually gave out. A rest on the side of the road with a Red Bull. Checked my phone, only to discover I was 35 metres in elevation from the top, what a prune!

Shadow of a bike rider

Cruised down into Mount Compass for an iced coffee and heaps of water.

Last camp before Adelaide😊