Day 4- Beechworth to Wangaratta 50 kms

Today we had an early start at 6.00 am ... for many it was after a long night of very little sleep with the band in the pub going until about 3.00am. Also there were a few die hard rugby supporters with the surprising English win over the Kiwis 

After a brief breakfast at the hotel it was off at 7.00am towards Wangaratta. We were promised a good downhill and we certainly got that!

The downhill was about 15 kms with a fall of about 450 metres. I was getting speeds of over 50 kms/ hr and I am a slower descender than many in our group. The only real issue was the cool and crisp morning with temps around 5 degrees.... the effect of the wind as we descended made for cold fingers despite long fingered gloves,

The trip to Milawa was through some lovely green country with mainly dairy cattle. Despite the green paddocks the creeks and dams seemed quite dry

We stopped first at the Milawa Cheese Factory for a coffee and cakes then proceeded on to Brown Brothers winery where we enjoyed the wonderful surrounds of the remarkable winery with restaurant and community areas. Well worth another visit sometime 

After this we made our way to Wangaratta to complete the 59 km ride and the 4 day sojourn through northern Victoria 

After a light lunch it was time to say goodbye to those journeying by train back to Melbourne so Dave Bonnett Abdy and I made our way home to Melbourne in the Ute 

Now being home for a few hours I can reflect on the 4 day trip which was well organised by Stephen Seymour and he must be congratulated on making sure we all had a terrific time

The weather was a mixture of the very hot (day 1) and the

Cold ( today and yesterday)

We were challenged on the climbs particularly the Towong Gap but all accepted the challenges and responded magnificently 

The road conditions were very good and we had very little traffic to contend with. The real joy was the comaradre we enjoyed with the group and the fun of enjoying a wonderful journey together 

It will now be rather hard to get back to life again in Melbourne although the legs will certainly enjoyed the rest

So to my fellow Wheeliebinners on the ride I say a real thank you to you all for being such great mates and to Steve a big thanks for bringing this all together 

Early morning line up as we were about to leave

A frosty and cool morning!!!

The turnoff to Milawa 

Breakfast at the Milawa Cheese Factory 

Ellio giving Garmin 191 lessons to Phil

Coffee and a chat at Brown Brothers 

The Wang sign to indicate the end to a grey4 days 

Lunch at the Wangaratta coffe shop ahead of the train and Ute trip home

Day 3- Bright to Beechworth 72 kms

Today started with 6.30 am wake up and shower to shake off the remnants of a great evening of celebration following the dinner cooked by Ellio and Ray

We were all ready for breakfast at a cafe in Bright by 7.30 ... there was a big crowd for breakfast at the cafe on blokes about our ages having bacon and eggs for breakfast... for me it was muesli and toast with coffee... a good start to the day.

As we left the rain and wind started and we headed on the rail trail towards Mytleford... it was cold and we had several stops to add layers of clothes to stay warm as the head wind gathered strength.

The ride included one climb along the trail which was a steady 3 pc for about 5kms which with a head wind was fairly hard work. The trail surface was asphalt and was really nice to ride on

We arrived at Mytleford for morning tea at about 10.30 and the food at the bakery was great.... really worth a visit if you are in the region 

After morning tea it was off to Beechworth which is another 40 kms along rail trails.... the climb in to Beechworth was with more of a tail wind fortunately although there was another steady climb of about 7kms which made for a bit of work!!!

We arrived at Beechworth at about 3.30pm and had a late lunch and warming coffee and settled in to the hotel accommodation at Tanswells Commercial Hotel.. the accommodation is a old world but the rooms at very comfortable and a warm shower was a delight!!!

The day was cold with warm breaks when the sun came out 

We had periods of shower activity which we were able to seek shelter along the way

The rail trails in this part of Victoria are well maintained and are popular... on a poor day weather wise we saw a lot of people on the track. I would imagine that warmer weather would bring more riders out 

Another great day with the guys and we had a lot of fun albeit with iffy weather 

Breakfast in Bright... good food!!

Steve had a puncture unfortunately... there was plenty of help available??

Gary and a few others at morning tea in Myrtleford

Sheltered from the rain... with a couple of ladies travelling in the opposite direction... with the wind!!!

A view of the rail trails

An interesting letter box... appropriate for the Wheeliebinners!!

A bike sculpture 

Skate lunch in the bakery at Beechworth 

Home for the night 

More photos from day 2

Here are some photos that were missed on the previous blog

At the top of the gap 

An interesting sign indicating the opening of the gap in 1895

A lilac tree almost ready to bloom 

Arriving at Bright 

Our home for the night 

Ellio cooking up a storm!!!

All of us having a well deserved dinner in Centenery Park in Bright 

A lovely sunset in the way home

Day 2-Dederang to Bright over Tawong Gap 71 kms

Before I get on to today’s ride I thought I should update you all on the dinner we had at the Dederang pub....to put it bluntly it was terrible... the food was poor and the service was very slow... we had to wait nearly 2 hour from order to get the food... they were embarrassed and gave us some free drinks to compensate which was some comfort!

The accommodation was quite good which made for a good night of sleep 

I was awake and up and about at 6.30 am and although the weather looked threatening it was warm and slightly humid 

We were on our way to the Dederang general store for breakfast at 7.30 am... and what a great breakfast it was! The store was very clean and the staff were very pleasant and accommodating. My breakfast was coffee and an egg and bacon roll very yummy!

The discussion at breakfast and dinner last night was all about the Tawong Gap ride with horror stories about the gradients being over 20 pc!!! So it was with some trepidation that we took off towards Bright 

The first stop was Mt Beauty after about 40 kms. This part of the ride was through the Kiewa valley essentially following the river. Very pretty ride with a couple of bigger hills to test the legs for the Big One!!!

Arriving at Mt Beauty at about 10.30 it was on for coffee and cake at the bakery. The bakery was excellent and the choices of cakes was great. We also bought our lunch rolls to have at the top of the Gap!

Then it was off for the climb up to the top of the Gap. The climb was about 9kms and about 750 metres so an average of about 10pc which was a bit of a test for us all. All of us completed the climb including Ray who drove the Ute up and then was driven back down by Rob to do the ride on his own... well done to everyone!

At the top the weather started to turn ugly with rain so we traveled down to Bright carefully. The downhill was quite steep with a lot of bends and was through some interesting country.

Coming it to Bright we passed through groves of walnut trees and saw some delightful lilac trees 

Arriving in Bright at about 3.30 pm it was time for a celebratory beer in the pub to await our rooms being ready 

Bright seems a very lively town with pretty avenues of trees and with a very lively town centre. In a funny way it reminds me of Queenstown in NZ as it seems to attract peoplywith a sense of adventure whether it is bike riding, Bush walking or skiing....

The hotel we are staying at is delightful with rooms just having been renovated and wonderfully clean

Tonight is Ellios dinner night and if the past is any gauge it will be a splendid feast for us all. Dave Little is in charge of the drinks and has promised us some good wines to accompany our dinner 

Today was a wonderful day of riding with a real sense of accomplishment having ridden the Towong Gap

The sense of being a true Wheeliebinner is great for us all

Looking forward to the next 2 days 

Looking along the Kiewa river 

The turn off to Mt Beauty 

The boys and Ute at the turn off

Morning tea at Mt Beauty

Note the boys in discussions about the climb!!!

The Garmin map of the climb 

Note the colour purple indicates the steep parts

The start of the climb... looks ok???

Halfway up looking out over Mt Beauty 

At the top

....and celebrating!!!

Day 2-Dederang to Bright over Tawong Gap 71 kms

Before I get on to today’s ride I thought I should update you all on the dinner we had at the Dederang pub....to put it bluntly it was terrible... the food was poor and the service was very slow... we had to wait nearly 2 hour from order to get the food... they were embarrassed and gave us some free drinks to compensate which was some comfort!

The accommodation was quite good which made for a good night of sleep 

I was awake and up and about at 6.30 am and although the weather looked threatening it was warm and slightly humid 

We were on our way to the Dederang general store for breakfast at 7.30 am... and what a great breakfast it was! The store was very clean and the staff were very pleasant and accommodating. My breakfast was coffee and an egg and bacon roll very yummy!

The discussion at breakfast and dinner last night was all about the Tawong Gap ride with horror stories about the gradients being over 20 pc!!! So it was with some trepidation that we took off towards Bright 

The first stop was Mt Beauty after about 40 kms. This part of the ride was through the Kiewa valley essentially following the river. Very pretty ride with a couple of bigger hills to test the legs for the Big One!!!

Arriving at Mt Beauty at about 10.30 it was on for coffee and cake at the bakery. The bakery was excellent and the choices of cakes was great. We also bought our lunch rolls to have at the top of the Gap!

Then it was off for the climb up to the top of the Gap. The climb was about 9kms and about 750 metres so an average of about 10pc which was a bit of a test for us all. All of us completed the climb including Ray who drove the Ute up and then was driven back down by Rob to do the ride on his own... well done to everyone!

At the top the weather started to turn ugly with rain so we traveled down to Bright carefully. The downhill was quite steep with a lot of bends and was through some interesting country.

Coming it to Bright we passed through groves of walnut trees and saw some delightful lilac trees 

Arriving in Bright at about 3.30 pm it was time for a celebratory beer in the pub to await our rooms being ready 

Bright seems a very lively town with pretty avenues of trees and with a very lively town centre. In a funny way it reminds me of Queenstown in NZ as it seems to attract peoplywith a sense of adventure whether it is bike riding, Bush walking or skiing....

The hotel we are staying at is delightful with rooms just having been renovated and wonderfully clean

Tonight is Ellios dinner night and if the past is any gauge it will be a splendid feast for us all. Dave Little is in charge of the drinks and has promised us some good wines to accompany our dinner 

Today was a wonderful day of riding with a real sense of accomplishment having ridden the Towong Gap

The sense of being a true Wheeliebinner is great for us all

Looking forward to the next 2 days 

Looking along the Kiewa river 

The turn off to Mt Beauty 

The boys and Ute at the turn off

Morning tea at Mt Beauty

Note the boys in discussions about the climb!!!

The Garmin map of the climb 

Note the colour purple indicates the steep parts

The start of the climb... looks ok???

Halfway up looking out over Mt Beauty 

At the top

....and celebrating!!!

A view from the top looking towards Mt Bogong

Interesting plaque recording the opening of the road in 1895

A lilac tree which is starting to flower 

Our final destination 

.... and home for the night 

Day 1 - Wodonga to Dederang-54kms

The day started early for the guys catch the train to Wodonga... 9 Lycra clad gents made there way through the Metro Trains network to Southern Cross Station at about 6.00 am . Abdy, Dave and myself had a sleep in and left Surrey Hills at about 7.00am.

The folks going by train were directed at Southern Cross to the bus depot for the trip to Wodonga... always a bit concerning at often bikes are forbidden on busses.... not this time.

The souls travelling with me in the Ute had to negotiate the early morning peak hour to get to the Hume freeway which is always testing. After some time on the freeway near Avenal Abdy and Dave thought they could not see Abdy’s bike so we stopped and sure enough it was not there... it had fallen off somewhere between Surrey Hills and Avenal.... what a bugger!!!

We thought it pointless to retrace our trip and continued on with the thought of renting a bike at Wangaratta our final destination in 4 days on Sunday...sure enough there was a bike shop that had the right bike for Abdy...so it was on to Wodonga to meet the train/ bus travellers !

We arrived at about 12.30 and after exchanging stories about our adventures so far it was time for lunch and get on our way... leaving about 1.30 pm !

The first few kms were very pleasant... then BANG !!!it was hills!!! And more hills and the Garmin was sending me red messages about the gradients in red!!

Anyway the scenery washreayand the downhill in to Jacandanda was joy so we could have afternoon tea at the Bakery... very nice ginger beer 

After this it was on to Dederang and after negotiating a couple of hills it was pleasing to have another downhill in to the pub arriving at about 5.30 pm

The day was hot so most of us enjoyed a pleasant and cool beer in the very pretty Kiewa valley.

It was a challenging and long day but enjoyable with the guys 

Arvo tea in Yackandada

A welcome relief from our water boy Dave!!!

Th e road ahead on a downhill in the Kiewa valley 

Frank with dead foxes draped on the fence

Dederang at last!!!

Home for the night in the pub