Sally and I rode to Bright on Monday but Al had to see his Bermudan banker or Samoan stockbroker or something on Tuesday morning so they couldn’t leave till after that. Sally and I were lucky. Monday was warm and sunny and by the time we got past Tumut and into the shelter of the mountains the wind had dropped. We had coffee at Jugiong, a pleasant lunch at the 4 Bears café in Tumbarumba, a break in the park at Tallangatta, and rode the last part of the journey to Bright via the Gundowring Road (where Mel Gibson used to have his cattle stud) and Happy Valley Road (both very pleasant).
Tuesday was a different story. The weather was decidedly dodgy as Al and Lyn rode from Holt to Jindabyne and across the Alpine Way. It rained all the way from Thredbo to Khancoban, where they stopped for lunch with that uncomfortably soggy feeling you get when you know the crotch of your rain pants has been leaking for the past hour. Meanwhile, Sally and I were sitting in our comfy cabin at the Big4 in Bright, watching the rain pour down and reading, eating, drinking wine and doing all those other things seniors do when they find themselves alone and far from home. Al and Lyn arrived late in the afternoon, fortunately just before the weather turned even worse, ripping branches off trees and causing some local flooding. While they warmed up in the shower (separately, don’t get any wrong ideas) Sally cooked up some spag bol to accompany our dinner of red and white wine and beer.
Wednesday dawned bright and sunny so while Al and Lyn’s bike gear was drying we all went for a walk down through the Ovens River canyon and 160-year-old gold diggings, across a swing bridge and back up the other side of the river.
After lunch (Subway sangers eaten in a bus shelter we had mistaken for a park) Al and Lyn rode up to the spectacular granite plateau of Mt Buffalo while Sally and I had a relaxing afternoon in town. Dinner was, again, red and white wine and beer, this time accompanied by delicious Scotch fillet steaks cooked on the Big4’s barbie.Thursday was possibly the best day of the trip. We left Bright and rode over Tawonga Gap to Mt Beauty, up the steep, winding road to Falls Creek, across the Bogong High Plains in some powerfully gusty winds, and along the incredibly twisty-turny Omeo Highway to Omeo, where we had lunch at the Twinkles café. Much of this road was gravel until it was sealed two years ago and it’s now a great ride. Most of it was in third gear, sometimes in second, occasionally in fourth. Only in the last 8 km into Omeo did the Wing make it into top (5th). The temperature on the Bogong High Plains was a brisk 16C but by Omeo it had warmed up to 26C.
From Omeo we took the Great Alpine Road back to Bright, stopping at Dinner Plain for Sally to don some warmer gear and at cool, windy Mt Hotham to admire the expansive views of Mounts Buffalo, Feathertop and Bogong and take some photos. The downhill run from Mt Hotham to Harrietville is an amazing ride! Dinner back at the Big4 was the usual fluids supplemented by barbecued snags and salad.
We returned home on Friday, stopping for coffee and a pie at Tallangatta, bypassing Corryong on the much more scenic route through Granya, Walwa and Tintaldra, lunching at Tumbarumba and farewelling each other at a rest stop at Jugiong. All up, we did just over 1400 km in the five fantastic days.
Ian Paterson
Ian & Sally Paterson GL1800
Al & Lyn Munday FJR1300
