Pyrmont to Dunns Swamp.

Monday 14 May : Pyrmont to Sefton

43.1km, 2h 37miin, 49.5km/hr.

Short and sweet for I had lots to do!

Breakfast with Michael - Robyn had flown to Sydney at the ungodly hour of 6am.

Watched a bit of morning TV while doing a bit more typing catching up.

A quick shower then left gear and rode to Subway for lunch.

To the Observatory Hill near the bridge then rode over the Harbour Bridge on the bike.

It's been to some fantastic places this bike.

Chilled out on the north bank under the bridge and watched some all ships sail past the Opera house.

Dropped by the Museum of Contemporary Art (weird, but containing a intriguing bedroom display of a fan of Kylie Minogue's) and at Cadman's Cottage (historic cottage on The Rocks foreshore).

Back to Robyn and Michael's to get the gear - it was getting late.

On the road to Molly's - a busy road with some very good drivers and some not so good. I was flying to get as far as I could before it got too dark.

Arrived in the dark unfortunately.

Molly was out. Had a shower and then packed some gear and continued journal work.

Did a load of washing and settled in to finish the site updates.

Tuesday 15 May : Sefton to uh... Sefton

Kupla kays to the shops. I did intend to leave today.

Started packing and getting organised, for I planned to get on that train to Lithgow and then get on that trail that I seem to remember traveling on a while ago. A friend of Molly's dropped by - bit of an adventurer himself - and his name was Brian. Two hours or so later I went to the shops to get my food update. Yes, we'd been talking away and looking at photos and recounting odd stories and the sort.

I rode into the back of a parked car on the way to get my groceries. Now that was amusing. So amusing in fact, that after recovering from the shock of the impact, the absolute disbelief of its presence on the roadway, and the stupidity of my actions I was laughing and shaking my head until I pulled up at the Chester Hill Post Office. Chin got bruised nicely and was sporting a bump which I cleverly disguised with a beard.

Back for a late lunch then minimised the food packaging and did cereal mixes etc. This is an unusual but essential routine and so Molly watched it for a while.

Finished packing the majority of stuff, but there was no way I was going to make it out to Lithgow since it was after 3pm. Molly had mended my buttons and had ironed all my casual clothes... what a dear. I felt bad about rolling them up tight to get crushed into my compression sack, but there was no other way around it.

Brian came back for a fish and chip dinner and a chat. When we went to get the fish and chips I realised I didn't know Molly's surname which made it hard to identify the order she'd rung through, and while waiting in the car Brian disturbed a person trying to break into a parked mail van. Very eventful. Conversations again went on for a few hours. All three of us were tired and it was only about 7:30pm.

Worked on the journal until week eight was complete and done. Replied to a few emails then sent it all and was in bed at 12:30pm. How early. It had become a habit, but it had to get done.

Wednesday 16 May : Sefton to Wallerawang

37+1.6km, 2h 36min, max 47+1.5km/hr.

Chug-a-chug-a-choo-choo.

Today had a simple goal : Get back on the trail. It ended up being well after 4pm by the time I actually achieved this by arriving in Wallerawang. (Oh, and my number eight key is stuck if you were wondering.)

Molly had to wake me up because I hadn't made a sound and it was 7:15am. She said she considered letting me sleep but we both agreed that that would have been a bad idea. Out of the sleepy daze to munch on a piece of toast and cup of tea which Molly had brought in for me. (I can tell you now it's going to be hard to get back in that tent!) Got myself organised.

Most of the packing was done, so it was just a matter of stuffing what was left out in the top of the panniers and then loading the bike. A very heavy bike due to the full load of food. I'll try to eat well over the next few days to lighten the load. Decided also to keep the pants and hat I got at St Vinnies, so that was extra weight.

A clean up of the little back room and a final check around the house to look for any little thing left lying around. Counted to eight while looking at my bike (that's the number of major load pieces I have) and decided it was time for a farewell. Quite happy to be getting back on the road but very sad to be leaving Sydney and Molly's. I had my little tear about 5 minutes down the road as I rehearsed the events of the past 6 days.

I really had a great time in Sydney . Much more to do and see than in Canberra and also a little more familiar with the contacts I had. I can see myself moving here to live for a year or two in the coming decade.

I stopped at Granville to get a cigarette lighter (the first time I've ever bought one!), work out the cost and schedule of a train west and to get Molly some flowers as a thank you. This all went off without a hitch, but I did have to ride a few minutes down the road to the Parramatta station to catch the Lithgow train. I paused as I completed my journey over the Granville Bridge. What a surreal incident that disaster was.

As I rode the lift down to the ticket level (no wheelchair ramp... that's what I need with the weight of the bike... no stairs, so use the lift) its alarm went off. People were looking through the glass windows at me and I just sort of gave them a dead pan expression in return. In hindsight I should have mimed a big panic attack and started scraping at the walls before sliding to the floor grasping my throat. That would have been some morning entertainment for them.

The train got as far as St Marys. We all had to vacate the train as it could go no further due to a "fatality" further down this line. The 'nasally voice' announced that there would be a courtesy bus to Penrith where passengers could continue. This was of no use to me. Up the lift, through the exit, down the lift and eight km later I was at Penrith Station. I used Robyn's last '2 for 1' voucher at the Red Rooster there for lunch.

Sat and waited for the train for an hour after I missed the previous one by about 2 minutes. Got to look over my maps again and make plans. I decided I'd get off at Bell about 16km from Lithgow as it looked like it would be a nice ride going purely on the squiggles and symbols on the map. As it turned out it didn't stop at Bell so I arrived at the end of the line a little disappointed.

I had to ride in the space at the end of the carriage on the trains. This was the only place I could fit my bike and me. It just so happened that the carriage I chose had a door which didn't shut properly. This made me uneasy at first but it did mean a good flow of fresh air and a crystal clear view of the glimpses of Blue Mountains range that we shot past. There are some stunning cliff structures to the north of the Katoomba area that are worth a look so I will have to return and explore one day.

Got into Lithgow but wasn't really interested in staying long. Saw Majorie Jackson's statue in the main street and then took a side road past the sports fields to the information centre. Two lasses who were somewhere between helpful and preoccupied helped me out there. The wind was strong and gusty. I don't know what rating number that is on the Beaufort Scale but you might want to look it up. Meanwhile, I'll look up what the D.C. stands for in 'Washington D.C.'. I was embarrassed to say I did not have the answer to this when asked by the info chicks.

Rode the 10km into Wallerawang into the headwind which threatened to blow me either into the path of passing traffic, or over the ledge of the highway. Dennis joined me for the remaining 5km into the 'W' town and then suggested that I camp at the recreation area where it would be more sheltered than the BNT suggested campsite. Dennis works at the coal power station that overlooks 'W' town and cycles a bit during the day to get some exercise because he's a Homer Simpson on the midnight shift. He cycles with the AUDAX cycling group type thing. Has done some mammoth rides including 1000km in less than 65 hours with about 4 others, and a 600km non stop ride in about 19 hours. (Photos : Wallerawang Power Station and the Presbyterian Church)

Thursday 17 May : Wallerawang to Baal Bone Creek

36.4km, 3hrs 16min, max 43km/hr.

A bit of a struggle.

I woke at 7:15 - my latest wake yet (11hrs sleep). I don't know how long you slept for but I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did mine. I also hope that you were a little warmer, and that your subconscious wasn't preoccupied with keeping your sleeping bag away from the tent walls in the dewy dawn.

Wallerawang. I'll let you know when I get the pronunciation correct consistently. 'Well-air-a-wang' it is, but it's just one of those names which I've already pronounced so many different ways that I can never get the correct one the first time. Wallerawang has a giraffe patterned side walk on the western side of the main drag. It also has a power station which burns good old coal dug from the local area and the seam which runs more or less between Newcastle and Lithgow in an arc around the west. This power station has steaming and hissing tubs, which are for cooling the steam that drive the turbines I guess. A cold wind blows here from the west at a consistent rate of knots, and there are no phone cards available to be bought unless you want to buy a $20 one.

Really, it was a beautiful day. The only problem was my somewhat indifferent attitude. I had enjoyed Sydney so much that I was in a bit of a quandary about getting going on the trail again. I wanted to continue, but had lost that trekking attitude of not really knowing what you are going to see and experience, and not knowing where you are going to be at the day's end. I had been warned about this syndrome. I knew what lay ahead would be great, it was just a matter of winding up the attitude to match the thought.

A good road to the turn for Blackfellowshands Cave. All one lane bitumen along steadily climbing but gentle hills. I deliberately took a wrong turn here. So I could see the cave. For once the map's suggestion and my estimation matched totally - the cave was 1km off the bitumen. The cave was not the Wombeyan or Jenolan type, but a huge sandstone overhang that would have been a poor shelter with a northerly wind or rain, but suitable for any other direction. Man it was huge. Not the type that stretches on forever, but just huge around and above you. Believe it or not I took a few photos. My camera free day in Sydney had taught me, however, that I should leave my camera alone for a little while before getting it out.

Back to take the correct turn, again deliberately. A nice bit of rocky track pushing to a) remind me that I was indeed on the trail again, and b) to attain the altitude of the ridge above. It wasn't a long climb - probably only 700m. I followed this ridge for the next 12km. There were great views for lunch, plus a banana with honey. Not much further down the track there were better views and I wish I'd had these for lunch but they did provide a sweet dessert. My eating habits had regained control while in Sydney, which was nice, but food is never further than a thought away while when riding this loaded bike. The BNT markers are in logical and good spots in this area and at a height more suitable to mountain bikers.

(The original of this photo of Donkey Mountain butte has been gracing my desktop for a week or so. It's a great photo in full size. I'll see what I can do to get it shown in full on the site elsewhere.)

At the end of this ridge there was a sudden drop in elevation that brought you into a gorge which in turn welcomed you with a warning sign about the hazardous effects of mining in this area. Uh-huh. Rode the bike down the first slope but then dismounted as I realised this little gorge was something special. This was Wolgan Gorge, or at least I assume so because it is very close to Wolgan Gap. I walked the bike down some of it and rolled through some... "very beautiful". I wonder if that Swiss cyclist ever got to see places like this?

There's an ant crawling along in my keyboard as I type and it's rather distracting. It must be like the Temple of Doom for him - not knowing which key is going to be pressed down next. He'd be getting a decent meal though - my keyboard needs a good internal clean... but I did got that #8 key working again.

It was 1km to the Baal Bone Creek campsite and it was only 3pm. Now there's a weird name. I dumped the gear and then headed back into the gorge for another look. Walked the bike through and up to see it from a different perspective and then rolled slowly back out again. If you go there check out the 'face' looking to the north on the eastern wall which is a bit Mt Rushmoreish.

Rode up to tomorrows descent which was about 1500m away. Read NP signs for a while and worried about private property entry tomorrow. Was happy to find a water pressure reducing station at the edge here as the water in the creek was a little putrid. Back at camp I cleaned the bike of gunk and mended the rack to avoid the tyre rub which had annoyed me all day. Swapped pannier loads to help alleviate the problem and found I had a wide range of choices for dinner (the beauty of a full load). Dinner was beef stroganoff + mash + peas, with a swig of Comfort.

A bit of an interlude for the week...

"The Gardens of Stones"

If you're looking for a place to roam not far from old Lithgow,

The Gardens of Stone not far to the north is a place of which you should know.

You'll find there scenery of stone and Mum Nature's habitats.

So listen in, then pack your bag, and don't forget your hat.

.

Blackfellowshands is on the right but left is how you'll turn,

Up a hill that'll make you sweat but it's dried by a sun that burns.

Along this ridge you'll get a glimpse of cliffs afar and rugged,

But wait a while before you peep - the views? Well I'll be buggered

.

Take a dive in the four wheel drive, but I'd recommend a push bike,

Into a gorge of ferny floor, then stop and take a foot hike.

Down and back is not too far - not even one full mile,

I guarantee from what you'll see you'll have a 'Wolgan' smile.

.

A little further on's a camp, a super spot no doubt,

But if you've time, carry on, but "No 4DWs" may make you pout.

Baal Bone Gap is where you'll start a descent that's sure to test,

But three miles on at the bottom are some stunning spots to rest.

.

Where the old dry creek springs to life, over your shoulder toss a stick.

It'll probably land on a campsite ideal - if not, well - take your pick.

Granite boulders, ferns and gums - a haven for life to hide.

Pitch your tent, get out, explore, there's no time to spend inside.

.

Cool and fresh is the stream that winds, you can't help but splash your face.

Rock slides perched uncomfortably close, could bury a man without trace.

Air so crisp you search for scents, but that's for early Spring,

And that trickling, well in years to come fresh memories it will bring.

.

Further on you'll find a gate that says "Private Property",

Unless you've asked and are on the Trail, your turning point this shall be.

What luck for you, for once you've turned you do it all again,

A long walk up but a different view and perhaps some glistening rain.

.

So there you have it, in some verse, The Gardens of Stone National Park,

Bring your tent to stay a night and thus experience it in the dark.

But leave no trace of your short time, and photos only take,

So tomorrow another soul may find the beauty in your wake.

Friday 17+1 May : Baal Bone Creek to Glen Davis

34.1km, 2h 47min, 48.5km/hr.

On the road properly again - attitude and all.

Cool in tent in the early morning - enough to make me keep rolling around trying to warm the cool spot which kept randomly appearing. (Ok nature - back off with the sub zero temperatures please.) I haven't been cold in the tent yet, but am now regularly tightening the hood of my sleeping bag in dawn's early hours. The humming and clunking sounds of a nearby power station filtered through the bush all night which was interesting as I calculated I was a good 10km away from the nearest industrial and commercial area. My map suggested it was as close as 4km.

Filled water bottles at the pressure reducing station then rode a very steep descent into the Gardens of Stone NP. A very steep descent. Really. Like going down Lazarinis Spur in some places, but not with the consistent angle of a Billy Goats Track. Wrote the poem above on location by the stream mentioned. Was there for about an hour just chilling out in the cool bush beside the stream. Very serene and full of good karma.

I had no permission to enter 'The Crown' but I rode on regardless - I had tried several times at different times of the day and evening. I sensed I would not get a 'double barrel welcome'. Rode past some very tame, then very edgy sheep and donkeys. The cows were a bit indifferent. I stopped, explained and apologised for my unannounced arrival at 'The Crown' homestead. To the manager, not the indifferent cows.

Was early into Glen Davis which has magnificent surrounds. Rain had threatened but seemed to prefer hanging around the Glen Alice area to the NW. I walked around taking photos and exploring the little town which was a little ghostly. Had a swing on a swing (hence the name), then wrote email replies in my tent while it spat outside. The camping spot had good facilities with a power point so I was able to recharge later. Had a shower after dinner which was an unusual break in routine.

Saturday 19 May : Glen Davis to Glen Alice

17.2km, 1hr 07min, max 29km/hr.

Batteries, bricks, birds and BBQs.

Woke early to crowing roosters and barking dogs and wondered if the residents of Glen Davis started every day like this. Decided to charge the iBook battery in the approaching dawn since I'd been woken, so plugged it in to the point in the toilet block. I wasn't expecting to be able to charge it until much later down the track so this situation was a bonus.

For some reason I don't trust this little town. It seems odd - scattered with houses, very limited facilities (not even a pub), hardly a soul to bee seen or heard, very quiet in general and surrounded by these intimidating walls of sandstone.

After a double serve of breakfast I rode to the phone box and missed a glorious photo opportunity of a sun lit cliff emerging from the dense fog beyond a house. Rang 'Grassy' and spoke to Michael there about local stuff and his suggestion for the path to take near Kandos Weir. Told him about the difficulty in getting through to the owner of 'Tayar Creek'. He gave me the neighbours number ('Tayar') and I spoke to him about access. As it turned out Ray from 'Tayar Creek' was returning for a few days. Will ring him from Glen Alice this evening.

Recharged the phone batteries in the men's toilet while working on the National Parks web page for the site in the laundry. Hanging out in the amenities with batteries is not my normal idea of fun but this morning it would do. Washed riding shorts but am pessimistic that they'll dry considering the overcast and sprinkly weather.

Left Glen Davis at 11:30am on a second attempt. Took a wrong turn for about 500m past some amused but quiet locals until I realised I should have crossed a causeway. It did provide a good photo opportunity over Glen Davis and of the range to the north. The locals nodded and waved as I corrected my path. I'd love to know exactly what it was they were thinking.

1 hour later I was in Glen Alice which basically has a very modern hall, an unusual church and a two building school 200m further up the road. Had some lunch then took some photos as my odometer had just ticked over 2000km as I dismounted at the hall. A subdued celebration compared to the 1000 mile mark, but not so unpleasant in terms of the weather. I crossed the road to continue the photo session with the local church. It has a surface of tin pressed to resemble blocks of whitewashed stone. It does a very good impression. (Ha! Get it?!) Inside was very neat yet simple. I realised later from a photo I took through the window that the inside is also of pressed metal - and that's really unusual. It also looked like you could slide a pallat jack under the whole thing and wheel it away. (Is that how you spell 'pallat'?)

A bird observers club from Parramatta arrived as a convoy of vehicles to take over the picnic tables at the hall. I moved my drying pants off a table and shifted my bike so they could have them all. I wasn't really expecting company, but I got plenty of it. Got talking to one from the crowd (whose name escapes me) about his club and provided my usual rendition of what I was doing. Their club is a breakaway from a larger Sydney bird observing club. Numbers and logistics got to be too much of a headache. Still, they have about 400 members which really impressed me. I asked what drew people to bird observing and he said that it was the 'chase' and the challenge of being able to correctly identify the birds found. Their web site is something like http://www.cboc.org.au which is a darn sight shorter than mine! (See if that address guess takes you there.)

Walked around the cemetery and took some photos while reading the headstones. If you lived past 6 y.o. then you'd probably make it past 70 y.o. was my conclusion for life expectancy in this district. Some very old stones in a very large and secularly arranged yard which meant that in one far away corner there was a solitary headstone. They're all heading in the same direction anyway aren't they? Got nipped on the ankle by something while walking between the heavily grassed graves and got paranoid about it being a snake bite. Won't go into that in any detail. It was probably just some thing.

Cranked up a fire in the ample BBQ and cooked a beauty of a meal while the smoke drifted over my too closely pitched tent. First course was mashed potato with a small bit of heated corned beef mixed through it, followed by rice and peas with nothing but the remaining corned beef mixed in. One of the top 5 meals I've eaten on the trail easily. Liquid of choice was a cup of tea. How British.

Rang Ray at 'Tayar Creek' at 9pm after my alarm woke me from slumber. Outside a crystal clear sky with an amazing view of the stars, even with the hall light beaming every which way, was waiting to be gazed at. And so I did.

Sunday 20 May : Glen Alice to Dunns Swamp

43km, 4h 11 min, max 48km/hr.

A U there - read this!

Today's entries are merely interesting things that happened or I thought about.

a) The foggiest morning to date. Because of the valleys and the high cliffed areas weather seems to be very localised

b) I hope Ang's map package has arrived in Aberdeen and Steve's glove package as well. Steve's more so as my fingers were nearly blue for the first half hour on the bike this morning.

c) Stock horse stud by the side of the road near Glen Alice. To the north is an area renowned for horse breeding and quality.

d) Ray Agnew, whose property has a section of the trail pass through it, has family ties with this area dating back many years. A dedication/rememberance plaque for his father or grandfather sits beside the stock yards on his property. Chatted to him and his son for half an hour when I passed through.

e) Fog started to clear. Hadn't been able to see the mountain scenery edging this valley as I rode through it. By the time I got to the top (more on this episode later) it had fully cleared and I was able to see right down the Capertee Valley towards Pantoney's Crown (unique butte to the west of 'The Crown').

f) When leaving the bike shop in Canberra the mechanic had informed me that my shockies had seized. I told him I was well aware of that, but not to worry about it. Steve and I pulled the shockies apart in the motel room in Oberon but got few answers or results. When cleaning my bike at Sefton I gave them a good external clean and oiled the shafts under the accordion rubber sleeves. Used my cross Country Lube, nothing special. If the shockies were dead they wouldn't come good and the oil may have damaged the rubber. If they were ok I might get a response from them. They are working fine since Sydney.

g) I wish my shockies weren't working fine now because it makes it that much harder to push the bike up the steep parts of steep hills. It sort of absorbs the thrust of your intense pushing attempts, and this is a no-no. I do however wish that they had been working when coming down Billy Goats Track near Dargo.

h) 3km in about 2 hours, and when at the top I was literally a cricketer's stones throw from Rays place albeit some 400m below me.

i) Dozer had been through this track and all the way through Wollemi N.P. recently. The tracks it left were like little steps and were most handy when pushing on the steep bits. Except of course where it was sandy or boggy, or bare rock.

j) Did a bit of dragging and the other things that come with that. Ended up on my knees twice when pushing. One part near the top was so steep that in addition to using all of my four regular pushing appendages I had to use my chin on the handle bar. This helped me to get the last 3m. How stupid.

k) Coming up I hit a flat bit of track (!!?) and there was this little sandstone cave off to the side. Caught a glimpse of a strange orangey-brown colour filtering through the undergrowth so went to check it out. Investigated over a creek and up a slight hill about 60m. An unusual formation and lit in an interesting way.

(Photos : The Glen Alice School and the rock mentioned in Wollemi N.P.)

l) Winding Glen Alice Trail passed through some diverse terrain. One angelic little camp spot deserves a second look in year to come. The 'wall' I came to and rode right next to in one part was similar to Blackfelowshands cave and was at least 200m long. The dryness and roughness of the sandstone was the direct opposite of the moss upon it which was damp and very spongy. A very wet area here, but 2km back it was dry and dusty. Beeping birds followed me through the forest for a while here.

m) The locked gate which doesn't let you out of Coricudgy State Forest had me baffled for a moment. The lowest fence wire strand on the western side is very loose so I was able to slide the bike under without too much drama. An open gate a few km earlier in the N.P. was open thankfully - 6 feet high of welded railway iron extending well to the side. It would have required a total dismantle of the gear.

n) Did a fair bit of fishtailing where I'd be cruising along the track and it would turn to sand. Here's a particularly good one :

o) Decided to go to Dunns Swamp camping area which had to be better than a roadside TSR. Just before the turn I felt I'd done about 40km. Checked the #1 distance odometer (total since starting for the day) and it read 40.00km. How uncanny.

p) A very informative notice board at Dunns Swamp. Will stay here all day tomorrow to look around and to have a rest from riding as there's plenty to do.

q) People totally sit and stare when you roll into a camping ground on a loaded bike.

r) Steven, a friendly camper with a young family, bought a round the world plane ticket a few years ago. He took his bike and camping gear and rode thorough / across countries between airports for a year. Didn't my eyes light up at that idea. He went the 'wrong' way and ended up riding into the wind in the Northern Hemisphere. Lesson there is to learn about global weather patterns on a global journey. He rode for 12 months in winter. Best temperature to cycle in was -5 to -10 degrees C, or about 18 to 23 degrees F for you international people. Stuff that - especially when you stop. I understand his theory though.

s) Had decided to rid myself of some of my weight that was locked up as damper ingredients. Mixed it before the above conversation and then left it sit. Cooked it on the hotplate and then on the coals with dinner. Tested it before bed. Don't know whether it was the sitting time, method to splash of S.C. which made this the best damper ever.

t) A crystal clear sky with winking stars that can't be photographed digitally. Ate dinner with them on this mild evening beside the diminishing red coals. Had just caught the best sunset of the trip which could be recorded digitally - deep pink clouds over the range reflected in the still waters of the swamp.

u) This was one of those days that had it all and more, and the type you wish could either go on for longer or happen again with the new day.

Notes:

Molly - Wollemi wasn't a problem. No panthers or anything. Happy as Larry to be back on the road.

Shauno - There was a brown Kingswood parked in Kingswood as I rode through to the Penrith train station. My guess is that there'd be many more there too!

Dennis - I finally met a 'Dennis' on the trail. I've come across many other name, but not that which I can remember. Some names have an uncanny frequency.

Fellas - Yes, I have been informed that Southern Comfort is a "chicks' drink"... you'll be alright I think.

Judith - Bird observing club has a website http://www.cboc.org.au I think. This may be of interest.

Shauno / Fe - Now that I'm seeing a few stars at night I'd really like to be holding the astronomy book you gave me. I'll see if I can get someone to bring it out on a rendezvous. It is in the purple box from memory, but may be inserted in the bookshelf.

Keffo - There'd better be an email on my next check buddy! Nicole wrote that you were writing one. I'd hope you missed a few rounds with the golf sticks to compose a work of incomparable timeless literature.

7C - Hello - hope life's grand and that you are 'communicating' well. Mr C has an email in his in box for you regarding our communications.