AUSTRALIA - VICORIA - ALPINE NP AREA - 'mount beauty, bogong, falls creek, raspberry camp' - 3 to 5 January 2014

3rd January 2014 Friday

We drove to Mount Beauty and camped at Caravan Park – $30pn. After resting, we peddled around the ‘pondage’. It was nice with a few caged bridges.

4^th January 2014 Saturday

We parked at the Mount Beauty Mountain Bike trailhead carpark for the ‘Gorge Walk’. The walk started along a service road then developed into a track which crossed a river via a suspension bridge. The track followed the valley which became narrower as we progressed. Finally the track descended next to the river and we continued over the river bed rocks. We stopped and I had a swim in a large river hole. The water was ‘refreshing’. The scenery was very pretty.

distance - 3.4 km
time - 57 mins
av. speed - 3.6 km/h
elevation range - 40 m

We drove onwards and stopped at Lake Guy in Bogong. I had a kayak around the lake. The lake was created by a dam which was surrounded by high wooded mountains. Another pretty location.

distance - 1.8 km
time - 28 mins
av. speed - 3.8 km/h

We drove to Falls Creek and passed lake … which had an icy cold strong wind skirting its surface. Not very inviting! We continued onwards and camped at Raspberry Hill camp site. It was cold and we organised a fire and met Ron, who had been camped there for a week. We had a good night chatting and sharing stories.

5^th January 2014 Sunday

I stated the day with a bike ride along the track from Langford Gap to Langford West. It was very windy but the scenery of mountain tops and valleys made for an excellent ride. Jacinta picked me up at the end of the ride.

distance - 8 km
time - 35 mins
av. speed - 12.4 km/h
max speed - 32.3 km/h
elevation range - 27 m

AUSTRALIA - VICTORIA - POREPUNKAH AND MOUNT BUFFALO - hikes, kayaks, mtb - 1 to 3 january 2014

1^st January 2014 Wednesday

We departed Beechworth and drove to Everton Rail Trail Station. Jacinta was suppose to go towards Everton but ended going to Tarrawingee which was in the opposite direction. No problem except I was to meet her at Bowman. All’s well that ends well and after a series of unfortunate events, I met Jacinta at Tarrawingee. She really enjoyed her ride saying it was flat and so much easier than the last rail trail.

distance - 6.07km
time - 22mins
av speed - 16km/h
max speed - 28.7 km/h
elevation range - 61m

We drove towards Bowman and it was my turn for a ride. I started at Bowman, I think, and then it was uphill for the next three kilometres. The rest of the ride was downhill then sort of flat until I reached Myrtleford where Jacinta was waiting. It was also a great ride.

distance - 14.46 km
time - 53mins
av speed - 16.3 km/h
max speed - 37.9 km/h
elevation range - 118m 

We continued driving and set up camp at Porepunkah at the Riverside Caravan Park - $40 pn. It was bushier and was it was beside the Buckland River.

Later that afternoon, Jacinta dropped with somewhere upriver along the Buckland River. It was one of the best kayaks I have had yet – pebble races, rapids and two drops. I portaged around the drops.

distance - 4.24 km
time - 52 mins
av speed - 4.9 km/h
max speed - 10.2 km/h
 

2^nd January 2014 Thursday

We drove up to the top of Mount Buffalo with the last few kilometres being on dirt road. We stopped at the Horn car park and completed the Horn hike. It was a little cold and windy but the trail was excellent winding through alpine vegetation and rocks. The view at the top was excellent.

distance - 0.5 km
time - 7 mins
elevation range - 79 m

We continued downhill and stopped at the ‘Dickson Falls Walk’.  A different and great walk along an undulating path past and over alpine wetlands. It finished at the Dickson Falls which cascaded down a series of rocks for quite a distance.

distance - 3.43 km
time - 38 mins
av speed - 4.8 km/h
elevation range - 28 m

The next stop was the ‘Old Galleries Walk’. Jacinta rested on this and I had a steep hike amongst large rocks and boulders. It was a lot of fun winding around them and crawling under a couple.

We rested the rest of the afternoon and had a bike ride around the area outside the camp along dusty, sandy roads and trails. Nice finish to the day!

distance - 5.36 km
time - 38 mins
av speed - 8.7 km/h
max speed - 22.6 km/h
elevation range - 9 m 

3 rd January 2014 Friday

We drove up Mount Buffalo again to Lake Catani. We kayaked around the alpine lake. It was so cool with grasses, mountain backdrop and a dam wall. Very pretty!

distance - 2.06 km
time - 23mins
av speed - 5.4 km/h 

Next, was the Cathedral/Hump hike. It was steep but the end views and boulder formations made it worthwhile.

distance - 1.34 km
time - 20 mins
av speed - 4.1 km/h
elevation range - 127 m

We stopped at the ‘Chalet’ on the way down and Jacinta rested while I walked around a few of the viewing outlooks. Nice views!

AUSTRALIA - VICTORIA - BEECHWORTH - Lake Samwell, Woolshed Falls, Allen's Flat, Yackandandah - 28 to 31 december 2013

28^th December 2014 Saturday

The next stop, after Stromlo, was Beechworth in Victoria. We camped at Lake Sambell camping area - $24 per night - and then went for a bike ride around part of the lake and through a garden park. Cycling down the steps to the gardens was fun!

29^th December 2014 Sunday

Today, we tackled the Beechworth to Everton rail trail bike ride. The ride down was easy and fast. There was a mountain bike track that followed the bike rail trail path for part of the way allowing for some fun cycling on a narrow and challenging dirt track. We reached Everton station and after a rest it was a 17 kilometre grind back up the hill. That part was hard and not fun! I turned off a few times on the dirt trail and at one stage nearly ran over a brown coloured snake just as I was going around a sharp corner. Luckily, the snake was fast and got out of my way.

distance - 35,92 km
time - 3h 21m
av. speed - 10.7 km/h
max speed - 37.9 km/h
elevation range - 325m

We rested (recovered) for most of the afternoon. Later, we drove to Woolshed Falls for a short hike and a swim/sit in the rock water pools formed by the cascading water. The water was cool and the weather was hot.  The scenery around the falls was rugged and very pretty. Opposite the falls and perched a little higher was a viewing platform.

30^th December 2014 Monday

We drove to Yackandandah and walked the gorge walk, which didn’t really have much of a gorge but it was a nice trail. After that, we walked back to town and walked through the main street. The buildings were old, selling a variety of wares and services from banks to hippy shops. The furniture shop at the lower end of the main street had huge tables and very unusual metal work sculptures.

distance - 3.12km

Later in the afternoon, we drove to Allen’s Flat Lake for a kayak. It was a pleasant and peaceful paddle. I tried a bit of fishing but, as usual, no luck. I did manage to lose my reel off my rod. Luckily, I was able to retrieve it and set it on the rod tighter.

distance - 0.82km
time - 11mins
av. speed - 4.3 km/h

On the way back, we drove along the Gorge scenic drive at Beechworth. Nice short drive with great views at the top. The top area had a large area of sloping plants and smooth rocks.

31^st December 2014 Tuesday

Early in the morning, I dragged and carried the kayak to Lake Sambell while Jacinta was sleeping. It was a pretty and glassy paddle. There were mainly ducks and nice morning views across the lake with mist in some parts.

Later in the morning, we drove to Beechworth Mountain Bike Park. Jacinta and I did the green loop which was easy but challenging in sections. Jacinta continued to do the green loop a number of times getting better on each turn while I did the ‘Mojo’ blue run. It was hard and fun with lots of sharp turns, downhill sections and short uphill grinds.

mojo
distance - 3.51km
time - 18 mins
av. speed - 11.7 km/h
max speed - 21.7 km/h
elevation range - 30m

loop
distance - 1.24km
time - 9 mins
av. speed - 9. km/h
max speed - 19.7 km/h
elevation range - 18m

Later, in the afternoon, we walked through town and booked dinner at the ‘Beechworth Brewery’. We bought a 10 sample beer tray and after testing we decided Beechworth Pale Ale was the one we liked the most. We spent the late afternoon and early evening drinking and eating. We were joined by a couple and their young child from the camping area.

AUSTRALIA - CANBERRA - THE JOURNEY AND THE A.C.T. - 27 to 28 december 2013

27^th December 2014 Friday

 We loaded the campervan, filled with petrol, picked up a coffee and we were on our way on our ‘South Trip’.

We arrived at Canberra and camped at Cotters Camping - $12 per night.

In the afternoon, we drove to Tidbinbilla – entry fee. It is a great place for walks. We drove to the refuge section of the park and walked around the wetland areas. There were a number of different types of b birds. The brolgas were the highlight.

Distance 2.71 km

The sunset on the way back was awesome across the kangaroo dotted grasslands with mountain backdrop.

28^th December 2014 Saturday

The first stop was Stromlo Mountain Bike Park. I started the ride at the top and Jacinta picked me up at the bottom. It was a fast and fun ride from beginning to end. One stack at the beginning with a slight chunk of flesh missing.

Distance - 2.62
Time - 14 minutes
Av speed – 17.2 km/h
Max speed - 24.8 km/h
Elevation range – 146 m

After the ride, we drove back to the top for the café and the great views towards the west.