I set a goal of 200 kilometres for the month.
The goal was set taking into consideration the normal May weather and the shortening days as we head for June and the Winter Solstice. Although we had plenty of morning fogs lasting until midday, there was enough good cycling weather for me to achieve the goal and even hit the standard 250k for the month.
I was pleased with that.
Most riding was shorter trips around Longford and close surrounds. I was getting to grips with riding my Brompton more – initial weeks went well but some leg aches and pains appeared, I think, caused by the different riding position. Anyway, consistent riding on the bike seems to have fixed most issues by the end of the month.
This May I haven’t ridden my age in Kilometres. I have for several years but this year, not. I can point to various factors but they are all excuses! So I will just put that down to a focus on shorter rides plus not much opportunity to tackle what would be pretty much a whole day ride. Maybe next year?
I did fit in one “away-day” ride up in the North-West on the coastal trail.
In June 2024 a group of us rode from Don to Turners Beach. It was the last ride I went on with good friend Ken. I decided to return and do the ride again but this time as a way of testing how I was going with the Brompton.
I have no pictures for the ride and only ended up with a bitty video. Once again I had troubles with the 360 camera but didn’t realise it was playing up. It will be junked.
The last day of Autumn dawned bright and clear in Longford after plenty of rain the day before. It’s a 100k + drive to Don so there was no telling what the weather would be there – but things looked promising. The car had been packed the night before and after coffee plus a bacon and egg sandwich I was able to get away.
On arrival it was pleasing to find the sun still out and the sky blue. The only fly in the ointment was that wind. It was promising to be a headwind to Ulverstone and a tailwind back. And it was.
The bike was soon unfolded, front bag “wind-catcher” mounted and we were away. From the car park the trail starts down to slip under the highway. Last time we did this the underpass had collected a lot of rubble taken in by rain. As it had been raining recently I was expecting to maybe have to dismount but no, the surface had been cleared. Thanks to whoever did that.
After going under the Bass Highway the trail winds around quite a bit and is quite scenic. I am guessing it had to avoid various bits of farm boundary. There are several gates which obviously close over the track to allow stock to cross but today they were all open for the trail. There were signs of stock crossing left on the trail!
Soon the trail straightens up and as it does so the view over to Bass Strait opens up. Initially the rider is on high and can appreciate the vista as they descend to the point where the Bass Highway is close by and the trail parallels it. This section is quite noisy from traffic and, today, with the added headwind blowing past the helmet.
Just shut out the noise and focus on the scene and the ride is enjoyable.
For a while the trail is straight and crosses several farm / house access roads plus a couple of rural roads. Then it starts to climb. First on an asphalt surface and then on a suspended recycled plastic based jobby as the route goes over some more difficult terrain. Here I found I had to walk for a while as the gearing without mountain drive is not low enough to allow me to pedal. I expected this so no worries.
Then there is a descent (quite steep) down to a second tunnel under the Highway. You come out in the Leith outskirts and proceed through the village to the banks of the Forth river. Here I always think about my first visit before the track was extended. The river bank is Common Land but the houses nearby access it at the bottom of their gardens and, in some cases, had incorporated it into their landscape. I wonder what they thought of a shared path being placed between them and the river. Not that happy I should think. Anyway, it was done and now makes a very pleasant section of the ride leading up to the re-purposed railway bridge that now takes the coastal shared pathway across the Forth.
Once across, the trail goes through some wetlands and into the Turners Beach township. This time I didn’t take my usual turn off the trail and I found I had been going the wrong way for years! Going the right way I found the Council has widened the footpaths leading the way out to the road by the coast.
I fancied a coffee and cake at “The Berry Patch”, a very busy cafe just outside Turners Beach. There I would decide whether or not to continue into Ulverstone as I wasn’t really enjoying the headwinds. Plus the clouds were getting a bit darker ahead.
On arrival I found the Berry Patch closed !!!
Decisions, decisions. Go on or go back?
I cycled back to the coastal pathway and turned towards Ulverstone with a vision of a cafe by a park somewhere on the way into town. It was a rather longer ride than I wanted mainly due to increasing headwind. Eventually the cafe came into sight and, yes!!, it was open.
After a large milky and weak coffee plus a tasty savoury muffin I grabbed a small bag of lollies for fuel and set off back.
The tailwind kept blowing, my speed was greatly increased and the ride back was well worth the effort applied when going.
Click Here to watch the video : https://youtu.be/nnH46hZkBG8
That’s it for May – let’s see what June has in store.
’til next time ……………………………..
Tony's Tasmanian Cycling Blog 