Finding the right line…

Posted on by helenhmk

Cycling on gravel roads for me on this trip has been all about finding the right line. I do not like corrugations… I suppose if I had a bike where the seat was responsive to the conditions – maybe I might find it more enjoyable.

The above photo has some good options… I say go on the right. I know it’s wrong but…

…. And they call this a re-done road. This infact is the most unpleasant surface. Sigh. Okay I know I shouldn’t complain- but trust me I said worse while cycling it.

Oh… I have one more request- if you are a driver out on one of these types of roads and you see a cyclist – please slow down. Nothing worse than giving your fellow road user a cloud of dust. lastly if anyone knows the people who own a trailer with “Tilly turtle” as it’s name – these guys get the gold star award. They stopped about 500 meters in front and waited until we past before driving again. That’s gold standard!

Heaven…

Posted on by helenhmk

I will acknowledge cycling on a road surface feels like heaven after days on dirt roads.

…especially when you have a tail wind.

We took the Marion Bay Road – out of Marion Bay – and surprisingly they call it a scenic drive. Given you don’t see much apart from farmland… I guess it’s different to the usual views of the ocean.

But finally we did make it to the lighthouse.

… and for that view alone I think the scenic view was definitely worth it.

Day 7: The final day – Corny Point to Point Turton

Posted on by kymdt

Every tour needs one of those days to remind fellow riders how tough and competent they were. Well … the final day of the Southern Yorke Peninsula was going to deliver. After all thus far we had pretty good weather, some amazing tailwinds, and even the corrugations were manageable.

I didn’t take pictures when it was raining

Today an Antarctic wind was blowing – good news was we rode with it behind us most of the way – bad news it brought with it random showers and some light hail!

After the hail

I ended up riding with two pairs of pants on (the water repellent variety and the wet weather pants) and two jackets on (my regular rain jacket and a spray jacket). Without my think thermal I am sure I would have frozen to near death. I can also vouch for the fact that walking into light hail is not a pleasant experience.

Plenty of corrugations to add to the ride.

On this day, I put in practice lessons from M & D about riding into gravel. Go fast and don’t thing about steering – I reckon thats what they said and that what I did. I seemed to skim over the tops of the corrugations. I am not sure all the parts of my bike are still on it – but enough to get home were!.

No spray on dirt.

The GPX file is available from Strava – Day 7 – Corny Point to Point Turton.

Day 6: Marion Bay to Corny Point

Posted on by kymdt

There is not too much accomodation available on the South Western part of the Yorke Peninsula so it’s difficult to have a reasonable length ride and go through the national park. That’s why we chose to have the national park on ride on the rest day and take the sealed (but only since 2002) Marion Bay road most of the way.

Marion Bay Road

We left early (8:00am) to avoid traffic – although it was hard to imagine too many people leaving Marion Bay that early on a Saturday. The road itself is quite wide with pretty good sight lines most of the time. It also helps that there was wind behind us and not in our faces. We flew up that road!

Random building

Our route couldn’t just be direct there had to be a scenic bit thrown in! We achieved this by following West Coast Road to Corny Point past Gravel Bay and Berry Bay. Unfortunately the turn gave us a big head wine and dirt road. But it was worth it with lunch overlooking Berry Bay South with the added benefits of toilets. (hey YP council why not proper shelter?)

Scenic Cross Roads

Corny Point lighthouse was a highlight of the day. It looks good from so many angles.

Bikes and Lighthouse

The GPX file is available from Strava – Day 6 Marion Bay to Corny Point

Reward on a “short day”…

Posted on by helenhmk

Technically we only had to cycle 12 km to move locations – and this is what makes it a rest day. But given we were in Marion Bay it was best to take advantage of our location and go through Innes National Park.

As we had done this park of the ride before… we knew where we were heading. We entered the park the back way… and these bikes were certainly perfect for the terrain.

As expected- the views were stunning…

The dirt roads were smooth (oh if the whole ride was like this..)…

..no not sure what he was doing there either

And then the wildlife also did not disappoint…

… and the a proper road on the way back – just bliss!

…if all rest days could be as good.

Day 5 – Rest Day

Posted on by kymdt

Every organised bike ride plans for a rest day. Sometimes people ride more on the rest day than they do on a normal day.

This ride was no different! But to make sure we actually scheduled in a short 15km ride from Hillocks Drive to Marion Bay and then offered a option to riding into Dhilba Guuranda-Innes National Park.

There we so many options – we explored Hillocks Drive (by car). We also cycled to Meehan Hill Lookout before even getting to Marion Bay!

Contemplation
Yes ma, the walking track goes straight down to the beach!

We arrived at Marion Bay in time for lunch, but all we wanted was Golden North Icecream! No photo from me because I ate it too quickly. Everyone was keen to take up the optional ride – a nice easy trail through the National Park to Stenhouse Bay and then a doodle back on the bitumen to Marion Bay. If you’re lucky Helen will share her Emu photographs with you.

Smooth rocks at Stenhouse Bay
Celebration!

The GPX route gets you to Marion Bay and beyond. But I can’t say that has all been ridden and proven today. Give it a go, but with you risk assessment brain on. Day 5 – Hillocks Drive to Marion Bay

Cycled the coast road…

Posted on by helenhmk

Here is the start…

… and got to the end

I can say the south coast road is certainly worth cycling. Not much traffic. However there are corrugations – so if you can cope with that (and I know many of you can) you would enjoy being on the road with your bicycle.

Day 4 – Port Moorowie to Hillocks Drive

Posted on by kymdt

This was a new adventure for us – we hadn’t checked out this part of the ride. It was pretty simple however, follow a couple of dirt roads (Greenhill Road and then South Coast Road) for around 46 km along some of the least populated areas of the Yorke Peninsula.

Sign of the times

Perhaps because of its isolation the ride was quite pleasant with next to no traffic and fewer corrugations compared with the previous day. It was not enough to save our companion from having a tyre blowout. Without the support vehicle it would have been another 20 or so kilometres of walking. There wasn’t much chance of getting that going.

Is that a hole I see?

A word of wisdom, just because Google doesn’t show a bike shop on the Yorke Peninsula doesn’t mean you can’t get tyres. Your friendly sports store in Minlaton might have some? Perhaps the hardware store? Or even a Hardware store. In any case, the support vehicle managed to buy tyres and bakery goods and meet us again before the end. Amazing eh?

There are NO shops along this route, so you need to plan. There are only a few shelters so you need to plan to stop at them!

But those shelters are neat some nice beaches – except maybe Foul Bay!?!

The GPX is available from Strava – Day 4 – Port Moorowie to Hillocks Drive

When cycling- there is always a head wind…

Posted on by helenhmk

We attempted to leave early today knowing there would be a head wind… at least it was 30+ minutes earlier than yesterday. Started off with a nice tootle along Port Moorowie.

Ironically enough we took Greenhill Road… and there was slightly less traffic at the same time of the day as there is back in Adelaide.

.. there were also less corrugated roads – so another bonus for the day! although I do tend to drift to wherever there is a clean line and less bumps. There some elements which are frustrating… due to too many small stone being on the road.

As you can see by the photos the weather was really outstanding- apart from the wind. I know, and understand the reason for head winds, but if I can avoid them on the bike that would be great. At times the wind was so strong we were only going a few km’s per hr. When it’s like that you really doubt how long it’s going to take to reach the destination.

… but as long as there is an ice cream waiting for me I guess it’s worth it!