And so – the final
chapter. I've been home (almost) a week now, and reluctant to finish
off this blog. Uploading this final installment draws a line in the
sand and forces me to admit that this great adventure is finally
over.
I spent 5 days in
Melbourne – staying with L and H and catching up with G. It was good to spend some
quality time with family again.
Celeste flew down to Melbourne for
Sat/Sun and we had a great family meal on Sunday to celebrate all the
birthdays that had occurred while I was on the road.
After lunch on Sunday,
Celeste flew back to Canberra and after bidding farewell to the rest
of the family I set out for the Dandenongs to spend the afternoon
with old friends. A pleasant Sunday afternoon ride up into the
Dandenong hills.
After great evening
with F and M and despite the temptation to linger longer, in the
morning I set off to follow a winding route back towards Canberra.
There were plenty of bikes on the road – it being the Melbourne Cup
weekend – as well as a strong presence of Mr Plod.
The plan was to wind my
way through Healesville and Mansfield towards Myrtleford and the Alps
and find somewhere in the Snowies to camp for my final night on the
road. Two things intervened to prevent this.
1st of all I'd failed
to take into account that most sensible Melbournians take to the
hills over the Melbourne Cup weekend, leaving Melbourne to the toffs
and the lager louts. The roads were busy – LOTS of motorcyclists,
and others who were taking advantage of the de-facto long weekend in
Victoria. The riding was pleasant enough and I avoided the main roads
as much as possible.
Secondly, the weather
was turning. The forecast was not looking good, with wet weather
predicted in all directions. Throughout the afternoon I encountered
patches of light drizzle – not enough to spoil the ride, but a
possible sign of things to come.
I reached Corryong –
passing a VERY full Lake Hume - at 4pm, refueled and headed up to the
Snowies. Between Corryong and Khancoban I passed scores of
motorcyclists heading the other way. Looked like there'd been some
sort of rally or ride through the Snowies over the weekend, and
everybody was heading back south.
Although the weather
was grey, overcast and threatening, the riding was great and I was
reminded how fantastic the Alps are and what great motorcycling
routes they offer. I pulled over at Tom Groggin and thought seriously
about stopping for the night. In the end the weather and the thought
of getting home to my own bed were enough to convince me to carry on. So
up and over Dead Horse Gap to Thredbo and Jindabyne. One final stop for
coffee and to call home then on into the gathering dusk.
The stretch from Cooma
to Canberra was made more difficult by the presence of millions of
insects. I was forced to stop at Bredbo to wash and clean my visor
which was covered in insect pulp – seriously limiting visibility.
Finally – home at
9:30pm after the longest day of the whole trip. Almost 750km! The
reward was being able to fall asleep in my own bed after 16 weeks on
the road – magic!
Postscript:
22,000 km in 16 weeks.
Over 2000 photographs and a gazillion new experiences.
I've been home for
almost a week. For the first few days I felt 'discombobulated'
in the extreme. Being back home felt surreal and I felt out of sync
with what was going on around me. No doubt reality will set in –
especially once I return to work tomorrow. However there is a clear
solution to my discomfort – I need to start planning the next trip
ASAP!
