I hit the road at 7:20 this morning.
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| Why did the cow cross the road? |
I knew I had a climb right off the bat. Up I went, and before I knew it, I was at the top of Weld Hill. I said to myself, “That’s it?” However, the descent was amazing! It even made me think I could go all the way to Launceston (even though I knew it was 116km). I thought, if I could get to Scottsdale by 11:30, I would look at the elevation for Scottsdale to Launceston, and perhaps go on.
I went through Moorina (a golf course masquerading as a town), Derby (the mountain bike mecca of Australia—yes, there were lots of Mtn bikers there), and Branxholm. I stopped for a break in Branxholm. Across the street was a lovely park that had free camping. If only I had known, I may have gone there yesterday instead of stopping in Weldborough.
Today’s terrain was quite rolling. Up down, up down, and up down some more. While there was virtually no traffic to start with, it really started picking up. There were numerous log trucks, and it wasn’t much fun. Then I saw the best sign ever. It said, “Rail Trail 300m”. Then I remembered Bob saying something about a rail trail when I was in Hobart.
I got to the start of the trail. There was this sign saying, “Take the Rail Trail to Scottsdale!” Well, how about that! I was going to Scottsdale! The sign said it was 26.2km to Scottsdale.
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| Well, sure! |
The Northeast Tas Rail Trail was amazing! It was a dirt/gravel trail that, surprise, used to be the NE Tas Rail line. The direction I was going was almost entirely downhill. It reminded me of the John Wayne Pioneer Trail, only not quite as improved (or, maybe, maintained). It was the best part of the day, and ranks up there as my favorite part of Tassie! Instead of riding along with log trucks barreling by me, I was riding through beautiful fern forest way above the highway. There were places I suspect one could camp, with a shelter and picnic table. They were the old “stations”.
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| A most awesome ride |
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| More trail awesomeness |
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| One of the Station shelters |
Eventually, I came down to the level of the highway. I crossed the highway a couple of times. This part of the trail was pretty flat, and much more gravelly. Still, it was better than being on the highway.
I came to a sign the said “Free camping, with toilets and showers, 700m”. Now, remember, I said I was possibly going to go on to Launceston. So, I pulled out my Cycling Australia book, and looked at the elevation for tomorrow. Uh, no, I would NOT be going on to Launceston today. Besides, it was already almost 12:30. It would have been another 64km with a 6km steep climb. I followed the path to the park where the camping was free. It was a little tricky, but I managed to end up in the park.
It’s a very nice park. There are several people camping here. I met Rodney and his less-than-stellar son Niles (he kept dumping pots of water right where I wanted to put my tent). Rodney was quite the talker. He offered to drive me and my bike to Launceston for $20 (for fuel). While I do feel he was an okay guy, I declined his offer. Besides, I now think I can make it to Devonport without taking a bus from Launceston. The other guy I met was Steve. He was a nice older gentleman who I met while I was exploring for a better way to get back to the trail tomorrow.
I had walked into town, up a very very steep hill, to a Take Away for some food. I initially planned to just take the road in the morning, but I do not want to go up that hill! I asked the guy in the Take Away where the Rail Trail came out. It is just down the road. Then he told me it would be better (and about the same distance) to go to Launceston via Lilydale. I would avoid the busy Tasman Highway, and I would also avoid the 6km climb. Sounds good to me! It means I will come into Launceston in a different place, but that’s no problem. So, I will go back to the trail, and I will go via Lilydale. Should be an okay day.
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