Posted: 16 June 2010 at 1:01am | IP Logged

Holding a RTE (Ride To Eat) on the Saturday before Mothers Day was a brave and bold call made by Nico, but over two dozen of us put our hands up to say that we’d be there at noon, at the Walwa Hotel meet location on that Saturday.

My plan was to leave around 8:30 EST on Friday the 7th and make my way to Gundagai via the Hay plains and Wagga Wagga. I’d be staying in Gundagai on the Friday night and sharing a room with TOURA aka Pat aka Court Jester. We would then meet MIXR and Dee at Macca’s for Saturday morning breakfast and afterwards go for a little run through the Snowies then onto Walwa for lunch. After lunch head home with the aim to arrive back in Broken Hill somewhere between midnight and 01:00hrs Sunday morning.

I had toyed with the idea of attempting an IBA sized ride but you know what, for once I was just going to ride without schedules, timetables or tasks to complete. This would be a ride just for the fun of it besides I’ll be seeing parts of the world I’ve not seen before. I also decided not to use my Camelbak for this trip as I’d figured I’d be stopping regularly and would just use a water bottle that I always have with me.

All packed and bike warmed up, final goodbyes said to Lee (wifey) and what is this, no GPS! Turn the engine off get the tools out, remove GPS from cradle, remove battery, return GPS to cradle and….it’s works. Finally on the road about 8:45am, the weather’s almost perfect. Calm, sunny and not too cool. The scenery is green, green, green from the big rains and it’s great to see the scrub rejuvenating itself as I travel south to Wentworth and first fuel up at Buronga. About halfway I get a phone call from Tabledrain but I can’t hear him to well and barely make out that I’m to call him when I can. I decide to stop at Popiltah Lake rest area to call him but he’s engaged. Back on the road and he calls again, I need to slow to a crawl to hear him but I actually stop for safety concerns. Answering the phone while riding via a GPS, Bluetooth and a headset is not something I normally do. He gives me a heads up on a ride he’s planning for later in the year.

Off again and fuel up at Buronga and make for Hay. I just know I’m heading for locusts on that stretch but them’s the breaks. Balranald and still just the odd grasshopper but every vehicle I pass coming from the east is splattered with bug guts. I stop at a rest area for an energy bar and take my first pics of the day. Approx 50kms west of Hay is where I meet the locusts. I was kept entertained ducking and weaving my head the rest of the way into Hay.

Looking east towards Hay:

Looking west to Balranald:

Fuel up and have a quick look through the main drag of Hay, the post office is a lovely old building but parking is at a premium so I don’t stop for a pic and head back to the Sturt Hwy.

Shear Outback:

Left at the roundabout and parked on the verge is a red highway patrol and the officer has his radar gun out. They must raise so much revenue along this straight stretch as the road is 60kph for a good 1,500 mtrs before a right hand bend and the city limits.
Narrandera comes and goes and it’s getting late so around Sandigo I find a rest area and have one of my on the road meals put the liner into my leather jacket, change visors on my lid and off again. A little later the sun is setting and I receive yet another work related phone call. I take this opportunity to stop, take care of the call and then take some sunset shots. I missed taking pics of the sun actually setting because of that call but at least of taken some more pics today.
Bugs and sunset of Friday:



Wagga Wagga and it’s dark now, fuel up and make tracks for Gundagai. The HID’s work a treat when I can use them, so much traffic down these parts! Finally, the Hume and the last stretch to the motel when about 7kms from Gundagai I receive a phone call from greybeard aka Trevor. He’s in Gundagai where am I? We arrange to meet at the motel in south Gundagai which we do not long after I check in.
Trevor at the motel:

Looks like it’s three of us to share the room, I phone TOURA and he lets us know he’s still an hour or two away as he’s planning to eat at Yass. Trevor and I head into Gundagai for a meal and find that the bistro at the Criterion pub looks the goods. Hmmm, nice big juicy scotch fillet thank you. Back to the motel and not long before the “Court Jester” arrives, boy doesn’t he liven the joint up!
Pat arriving:

More bug guts:

We talk bikes, FarRiders and FarRiding and all too soon it’s hit the hay for an early start. I set the alarm on my phone, I just love that ‘siren’ ringtone.
Pat is ready to rock and roll:

Saturday and it’s up and at ‘em! We get ourselves together and individually make our way to the servo which is across the road. Here we catch up with MIXR aka Mick and Gags99 aka John, we fill up and head to Macca’s which is just around the corner. Trevor and Dee meet up with us there not long after. The part of the ride that I’ve been really looking forward to, apart from the meet proper, was about to begin.
Riding buddies:


I had my trepidation about riding the twisties on the Conti Motions but apart from the fact that they are a hard compound tyre, the tyres worked ok and didn’t give me any grief like they did in the wet a couple of weekends ago. We climb and climb as I watch the altimeter on the GPS reach 1,500 or so metres above sea level, the yellow lines and 2 metre high orange guide posts tells me we are in alpine country. It’s a whole new landscape to the semi arid desert of Broken Hill. We turn right somewhere and meet up with Tsp3 aka Ed and southroads aka Skip.
Meeting up with Skip and Ed:




Lots of hand pumping, pic taking, tips on what to expect on Elliots Way and ah, bush walking then the convoy is off. More twisties, lots of breathtaking scenery and riding fun.
Mick and Pat:

Dee:

greybeard:

Gags99:

southroads:

Tsp3:

Last stop before Corryong:

Then we’re in Corryong for fuel. Back on the road again and it’s funny how within a short space of time a couple of close calls happen as we head for the meet. I’ll leave those stories for others to tell as I was merely an observer. All too soon we’re in Walwa and theres already plenty of bikes of various varieties in front of the pub.
Park the bike, helmet and gloves off, FarRider cap on and name tag on, get the camera out, many greetings with new and not so new FarRiders, much hand pumping, great to see so many smiling faces all with a story to tell. Into the pub for food, more introductions or just catching up and again all too soon, it’s time to leave. Excellent location choice, good food and company, you’ve done good Nico!
Walwa pics:



Nico arriving:



From left to right, MIXR, Nico, kwaka, fzIan:

So many happy faces and ya gotta love Lyn’s nail colour, sesta in the middle, sorry guys your names escape me, wingman and fjrfatman??:

Stu and Annette:

Gags:

Russell:

Lionel:

More grinners:



Around 14:00hrs I’m heading back to my hometown. From Walwa I head to Holbrook,  Culcairn, Warbundrie, Daysdale where I miss a turn and go through Oaklands (a lady sweeping in front of a shop waves to me, nice), Berrigan and fuel up at Finley. On the way to Moulamein I’m riding directly into the sun and am blinded so safety first. I stop and take sunset pics, I also have an energy bar and change visors. Moulamein and it’s dark now, those HID’s really make a difference.
Sunset east of Moulamein:


Love this shot:

Locusts that didn’t survive the day:

Daylight just about over:


Wildlife is everywhere so I drop my speed to 90~95kph, wildlife is not improving and I slow even more then it happens, I hit a roo.
See my write up about this here: http://farriders.com/forum/index.php?topic=2538.msg47982#msg 47982
Now it’s going to be a slow and long ride home as I’m about 600kms away. I make my way to Balranald for fuel and inspect the damage under the lights of the servo. Not a bad patch up job with the duct tape even if I do say so myself. I call wifey to let her know I’ll be running late and assure her I am fine and unharmed. Back on the road and with the speed I’m doing everything overtakes me. It’s starting to cool right down now and it’s getting late and I need food. I stop somewhere near Trentham Cliffs in a rest area and have one of my on the road meals and put on a warm sloppy joe, that’s better!

Buronga and fuel up the time is now 22:40hrs I should be home by 01:30~02:00hrs. I stop outside the city limits to the north of Wentworth to let wifey know how I’m travelling and that all’s good so far. After that phone call, I had an attack of the yawns that didn’t stop, I wasn’t sleepy, I didn’t feel fatigued perhaps I just need more oxygen because it was cold. Back on the road and back up to speed no go, after Wentworth it must have been a roo convention, I slow down again. All the time yawning, yawning, yawning. This was a new phenomenon I didn’t feel sleepy although I’m sure I could have nodded off in no time had I laid my head down to rest. I planned to do this at the next rest area.
 
At Popiltah Lakes rest area I stopped to put my Nordic 4 DriRider over my leather jacket as I was feeling the cold now. I had also planned to shake off the yawns by having a nanna nap and set the alarm for 20mins into the future. Just as I was getting comfortable on the concrete seat, a 4x4 with a couple of yahooing lads pulled in and park at the opposite end of the rest area. Doof, doof music blaring, the lads were in party mode and I wasn’t going to get any shut eye however much I tried. By the time I was heading out of the rest area they already had a huge bonfire going. Ah to be young again!

The roos weren’t as bad now but I know this road fairly well and there are pockets of roos, goats and stock still to negotiate before I’m home safe. The time and road pass all too slowly, the yawns haven’t stopped but I make it home and am in the door approx 03:25hrs. Wow! What a slow trip from Buronga, 300 odd kms away, approx 5hrs! I wasn’t watching the clock so I don’t know if the receipt times were out or how much time I spent at the rest area.
With all that yawning you’ve have thought all I wanted to do was sleep but I unpacked and parked the bike, got changed and checked my emails then headed to the warm bed.  :upWhat an absolute adventure packed couple of days. Thanks again to all involved in the making of this little sojourn.

Broken Hill to Gundagai approx 930kms
Gundagai to Walwa, no idea! 300kms maybe.
Walwa to Broken Hill approx 950kms