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Day's 1 to 6 12/8/2014 to 17/8/2014
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- Day 1 - Wangaratta to Renmark
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Day 25 - Tenterfield to Byron Bay - Thurs 5 Nov 2015
Saddling up in Tenterfield.
The sky was ominously heavy above us as we saddled up in Tenterfield. There was an expectation of rain from the forecast on smart phones and by just looking up into the sky. Carl completed a telephone interview with Matt Dowling on ABC Shepparton in his very natural style. We left the van park to go down the street for brekkie. On the way we passed by the home of Peter Allen, one of Tenterfield’s famous sons, but we weren’t sure if it was number 30 or number 40, so we nodded at both. A nice breakfast was eaten at a local café; the presentation of the coffee was excellent, prompting photos to be taken. Today our plan was to cover the last 210 kilometres to Byron Bay to complete our trek.
The last great divide.
Another challenge this morning as we pushed up and across the Great Dividing Range, reaching an elevation of 888 metres. This was a nice link back to home as we knew that the divide runs all the way back to Wangaratta and beyond. The road was everything that most of our other roads on this trek were not; up, down, left, right, diving into corners, accelerating out. We aimed for Bangalow, which is situated about 20 kilometres west of Byron. Here we would re-group, dust ourselves off and proceed in. The other great thing that happened here was that Stevie Larke got the Dakar off the trailer to ride the last section with the team. The previous night he had tested his shoulder by riding the machine; it wasn’t in good enough knick for him to do the full distance but nothing was going to stop the brave bloke from doing the last section.
On to the last step.
The eastern most point in Australia is Cape Byron, a big lump of rock jutting out of the coast and surrounded by sandy beaches and the busy but laid back town of Byron Bay. We left Bangalow in tight formation for filming and safety purposes; the number of cars on the road ramped up considerably as we got closer to town. We rode across a ridge of hills, the road twisting and winding, eventually offering up views of our target. Cape Byron is surmounted by a magnificent lighthouse that is seen from far and wide, a safety beacon for ships and a sign of the finish for us. As we got closer the roads narrowed and we were in the outskirts of Byron without any fanfare or sign to welcome us or denote the town. It didn’t matter, we knew where we were and what we were going to complete.
We kept tight formation, Maxi at one stage with a spin of his wheels cutting off an icon image of this surfing town, pink Holden EK with a surfboard on the top. We continued up the road to a same-same but different place to Steep Point where we had started 21 days ago. Rugged coastal cliffs, sandy beaches, crashing surf. Dolphins played in the water, reminding us of the whales that we had seen at Steep Point. The difference was people. There were people and cars everywhere in the tight little car park and roundabout woven around the historic buildings as we landed at around 12.45. Waiting for us and sorting stuff out was our very much appreciated ‘local contact’, Cynthia. She had been in town for several days working hard on organising some media and arranging for us to be able to access Cape Byron. There was a spot for the bikes to park up amongst the people coming and going to take in the views. Everyone was in summer gear and looking clean and fit. We were in our best bike gear and looking decidedly scruffy. Immediate feelings on arriving were of celebration, satisfaction, relief, need for a beer and even a little hollow feeling that our adventure and time together was finishing. There was a huge sense of achievement felt also as we recognised each other with handshakes of thanks and mateship. This epic journey would not, could not have been achieved individually. It took a team to do it.
Final ceremonies and celebrations.
At the lighthouse we posed for photos and videos and put the drone up for some videos of this spectacular location. We were pleased to receive a ‘welcome to country’ from Delta, a local indigenous woman. She explained to us the indigenous history and some of the dreaming stories of her mob, the Bundjalung of Byron Bay – Arakwal Bumberlin people, who have lived in the coastal landscape around the Byron Bay area for at least 22,000 years. The wordsmith formulated a suitable reply. Our final ceremony was in recognition of the Leyland Brothers who were the first to complete this journey. In October 1966 after 111 days of travel, they poured water that they had collected from the Indian Ocean at Steep Point into the Pacific. We too had collected Indian Ocean water, and we watched on as the Captain and The Chief completed this ceremony, acknowledging the Leyland Brothers and acknowledging Trek The Trak.
The aftermath and reflection.
So after the semi-formal part of the day we nearly all adjourned to the Byron Luxury Beachhouse; they have come on board to support us which is much appreciated. Rob McNally had family commitments back in Mildura on the weekend and so he was straight back on the road to knock out some miles. Cynthia had put a lot of work into the support we received here and we are grateful for that. It included beer and produce from local brewery Stone and Wood and local food providores, a massage and a great lunch at the Byron Beach Café.
We appreciated these things and the opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company in different surrounds to the previous 25 days, several of us with family. On reflection the enormity of what we had achieved was starting to dawn on us. Something that we would not be able to do individually. We enjoyed the luxury as we had enjoyed the hardships of the road and the bushcamps. We like things simple, as per this song from Lynyrd Skynyrd
Saddling up in Tenterfield.
The sky was ominously heavy above us as we saddled up in Tenterfield. There was an expectation of rain from the forecast on smart phones and by just looking up into the sky. Carl completed a telephone interview with Matt Dowling on ABC Shepparton in his very natural style. We left the van park to go down the street for brekkie. On the way we passed by the home of Peter Allen, one of Tenterfield’s famous sons, but we weren’t sure if it was number 30 or number 40, so we nodded at both. A nice breakfast was eaten at a local café; the presentation of the coffee was excellent, prompting photos to be taken. Today our plan was to cover the last 210 kilometres to Byron Bay to complete our trek.
The last great divide.
Another challenge this morning as we pushed up and across the Great Dividing Range, reaching an elevation of 888 metres. This was a nice link back to home as we knew that the divide runs all the way back to Wangaratta and beyond. The road was everything that most of our other roads on this trek were not; up, down, left, right, diving into corners, accelerating out. We aimed for Bangalow, which is situated about 20 kilometres west of Byron. Here we would re-group, dust ourselves off and proceed in. The other great thing that happened here was that Stevie Larke got the Dakar off the trailer to ride the last section with the team. The previous night he had tested his shoulder by riding the machine; it wasn’t in good enough knick for him to do the full distance but nothing was going to stop the brave bloke from doing the last section.
On to the last step.
The eastern most point in Australia is Cape Byron, a big lump of rock jutting out of the coast and surrounded by sandy beaches and the busy but laid back town of Byron Bay. We left Bangalow in tight formation for filming and safety purposes; the number of cars on the road ramped up considerably as we got closer to town. We rode across a ridge of hills, the road twisting and winding, eventually offering up views of our target. Cape Byron is surmounted by a magnificent lighthouse that is seen from far and wide, a safety beacon for ships and a sign of the finish for us. As we got closer the roads narrowed and we were in the outskirts of Byron without any fanfare or sign to welcome us or denote the town. It didn’t matter, we knew where we were and what we were going to complete.
We kept tight formation, Maxi at one stage with a spin of his wheels cutting off an icon image of this surfing town, pink Holden EK with a surfboard on the top. We continued up the road to a same-same but different place to Steep Point where we had started 21 days ago. Rugged coastal cliffs, sandy beaches, crashing surf. Dolphins played in the water, reminding us of the whales that we had seen at Steep Point. The difference was people. There were people and cars everywhere in the tight little car park and roundabout woven around the historic buildings as we landed at around 12.45. Waiting for us and sorting stuff out was our very much appreciated ‘local contact’, Cynthia. She had been in town for several days working hard on organising some media and arranging for us to be able to access Cape Byron. There was a spot for the bikes to park up amongst the people coming and going to take in the views. Everyone was in summer gear and looking clean and fit. We were in our best bike gear and looking decidedly scruffy. Immediate feelings on arriving were of celebration, satisfaction, relief, need for a beer and even a little hollow feeling that our adventure and time together was finishing. There was a huge sense of achievement felt also as we recognised each other with handshakes of thanks and mateship. This epic journey would not, could not have been achieved individually. It took a team to do it.
Final ceremonies and celebrations.
At the lighthouse we posed for photos and videos and put the drone up for some videos of this spectacular location. We were pleased to receive a ‘welcome to country’ from Delta, a local indigenous woman. She explained to us the indigenous history and some of the dreaming stories of her mob, the Bundjalung of Byron Bay – Arakwal Bumberlin people, who have lived in the coastal landscape around the Byron Bay area for at least 22,000 years. The wordsmith formulated a suitable reply. Our final ceremony was in recognition of the Leyland Brothers who were the first to complete this journey. In October 1966 after 111 days of travel, they poured water that they had collected from the Indian Ocean at Steep Point into the Pacific. We too had collected Indian Ocean water, and we watched on as the Captain and The Chief completed this ceremony, acknowledging the Leyland Brothers and acknowledging Trek The Trak.
The aftermath and reflection.
So after the semi-formal part of the day we nearly all adjourned to the Byron Luxury Beachhouse; they have come on board to support us which is much appreciated. Rob McNally had family commitments back in Mildura on the weekend and so he was straight back on the road to knock out some miles. Cynthia had put a lot of work into the support we received here and we are grateful for that. It included beer and produce from local brewery Stone and Wood and local food providores, a massage and a great lunch at the Byron Beach Café.
We appreciated these things and the opportunity to relax and enjoy each other’s company in different surrounds to the previous 25 days, several of us with family. On reflection the enormity of what we had achieved was starting to dawn on us. Something that we would not be able to do individually. We enjoyed the luxury as we had enjoyed the hardships of the road and the bushcamps. We like things simple, as per this song from Lynyrd Skynyrd