My original plan had been to ride to Melbourne to farewell the 50CC riders then work Friday before returning to Canberra. But, the lure of the ride was too strong and after a brief discussion with my work boss, a couple of extra days leave were added and planning began for the 50CC and the return trip to Canberra from Darwin.
My approach to this was to treat the overall return trip as a multi-day(6 days) long distance ride with a 50CC embedded in the middle of it. With the bike serviced, new tyres fitted, and packing completed, Piglet and I headed for Melbourne on the Thursday. Me on the R1200GSA, Piglet in her trusty Subaru as she would be returning to Canberra on the Friday.
Packed and ready to ride, freshly serviced and new tyres
The ride down to Melbourne was uneventful, we checked into the Guiding Star Hotel and enjoyed catching up with the rest of the team (riders and supporters) including an early dinner, before we got some sleep. All too soon the alarm goes off and once preparations completed, we headed for the Port Melbourne servo where everyone was gathering. It was quite a gathering of Long-Distance riders, including IBR vets and plenty of supporters.
Jeff and Moi reminiscing on IBR23
All too soon, we were collecting our starting receipts, the 5-minute warning was given and those riding the 50CC readied themselves. And then we were off, with our wonderful group of supporters waving us off. It felt very fitting for this 20th anniversary of the first Australian 50CC. Into the darkness we went as we wound our way out of Melbourne, with individuals finding their own pace and the group gradually dispersing and disappearing out of sight.
The team!
I found my rhythm and settled into riding in the inky blackness as I made through northwest Victoria towards the South Australian border. I had a couple of toilet stops along the way, cursing that coffee I had had back in Port Melbourne. It had seemed a good idea at the time! My first planned fuel stop was Keith, SA but I decided to top up at Nhill as I became nervous about consumption. I took the opportunity to turn on the heated jacket also as the temperatures had dropped to low single digits. Just after dawn, I decided to refuel at Keith anyway and have a short break off the bike.
Topping up the tank at Snowtown (on the main highway)
Once rested, the ride from Keith to Gawler was uneventful and once through Gawler I really enjoyed the Adelaide Hills/Barossa section of this ride. Hardly any traffic through this glorious section of motorcycling nirvana. All too soon, I rejoined the A1 at Nantawarra and settled in for the run up to Port Augusta in the late morning sunshine. At Port Augusta, I took the opportunity to refuel, shed many layers and snack/hydrate. Hackle gave me a toot as he went past, followed by Spaz and Wombattle rolling into the same servo as I was departing.
Go north young man
From Port Augusta, the route is simple, keep riding northwards on the Stuart Highway. The sun was shining and there was little traffic. Perfect riding conditions. The miles rolled by as the fuel gauge sunk lower. I decided to fuel up at Pimba and not risk running low into Coober Pedy. I saw Scott refuelling at Pimba and we swapped notes on our rides.
Sunshine on the Stuart Highway, somewhere near Pimba SA
Back on the highway and it's onwards to Coober Pedy, where I pull into the servo right on dusk. The pub is going off, while I fuel up, pay, and make my way back to the highway for the evening run to Marla. Its only 2.5 hrs to Marla and seems to take forever. There are a few roos about with two making runs across the highway in front of me, but otherwise it was a relatively quiet moonlit night to be riding.
Coober Pedy at sunset, into the dark.
I refuel at Marla and check into my accommodation, just missing the bistro, as the kitchen had closed early. Scott and Hackle had made good time and were just finishing up their meals. Wombattle and Spaz rolled in a few minutes after me. I hit the sack quickly with plans to be away sometime between 3-4am.Next morning, I walked out of my room to find Foxton (Sam) packing his bike, prepping to leave. We chatted briefly, before he headed off and I finished packing, and collecting some more water from the servo. Once done it was back out onto the Stuart Highway heading north for Darwin. It was a beautiful moonlit night, the miles rolled under the wheels as I worked my way through my playlist. Foxton’s taillights gradually came into view and we waved as I passed him a few minutes later. He was using a fuel conservation strategy which was serving him well. About 30 minutes later, a set of LED lights came into view in my rearview mirrors, with Hackle passing me a few minutes later.
Stuart Highway, Saturday dark O'clock.
Right on dawn, I pulled into Eridunda Roadhouse to top up the tanks, and as is my habit, take a short break and have a coffee with a B&E roll. The Roadhouse was quiet, and I was served very quickly. Foxton pulled in not long afterwards and we swapped notes on the mornings ride. Waving goodbye, I continued ever northwards, Alice Springs followed by Tennant Creek. Only 1,700kms to Darwin!
You meet the nicest people riding BMW's
Not long after Alice Springs I came up behind Hackle and we settled into a cruising rhythm together, occasionally swapping lead, and stopping to take the odd photo. I had planned to fuel up at Three Ways, but nearing Tennant Creek, I only had about 70km range left, so decided to fuel up at BP Truck stop in Tennant Creek. For some reason I had in my head Three Ways was about 70m from TC, not 30kms! I then felt the pain of choosing the busiest/slowest Truck stop in the NT. Both Hackle and I were patient, no choice by then.
Tennant Creek, NT, and smiling all the way!
Once done, back on the road heading northwards to Darwin, with the only intermissions being for refueling at Truck stop's. The miles rolled by! Nearing Larrimah, there was lots of smoke around from burn offs, and occasionally the fires were right beside the road, with very dense smoke and visibility down to a few metres. We then had a good run into Mataranka, where we refuelled, and agreed to refuel one more time at Katherine.
Where else but the NT?
The ride into Katherine was uneventful, other than been accosted by a drunk as I was trying to take a photo coming into Katherine. Once clear of that, we refuelled at the new Caltex on the southside of Katherine, where all was going well until I tried to swallow a sandwich the wrong way, while refuelling, cleaning lights, checking the bike. Hackle came out of the servo to find me almost choking to death on said sandwich, followed by a coughing fit, followed by a nosebleed. Poor fella must have really been questioning his life choices by then! Anyways, once I had recovered sufficiently to be able to remount, we agreed he would lead for a while in the dark I regathered myself. At Adelaide River, we stopped briefly to check in on each other, and I took the lead from there.
Taking a moment at Adelaide River, NT. Still smiling!
Not too long later, the lights of Darwin came into view and before we knew it, we were pulling into the servo in Daly Street Darwin to collect out finishing receipt. Mission accomplished! After calling our respective partners to inform them all was well, we fare welled each other to find our digs for the night, Hackle was staying over a day or two, while I was hauling ass back to Canberra in the morning.
Sunday morning, between Darwin and Katherine hauling ass back to Canberra
After a good 5 hrs sleep, I rode out of Darwin in the pre-dawn darkness, bound for Camooweal, QLD. This ride was uneventful, other a long wait at Three Ways where a customer who had refueled and his credit card wouldn’t work, so what became a 10 minute refuel stop became a 20-minute comedy watched by a crowd of frustrated grey nomads and me. Rolling into the Barkley Homestead Truck stop I was impressed to see the renovations that have transformed this place. Its nothing like I remembered it from my 2007 lap of Australia. I made Camooweal right on dusk, and even managed to get a meal at the bistro before they stopped taking orders.
Barkley Homestead, NT
Welcome to Queensland, near Camooweal, NT.
Next morning (Monday) I rode out at 4:30am bound for Charleville via Cloncurry and Longreach. The ride into Mt Isa was uneventful, followed by that glorious stretch of highway into Cloncurry that snakes its way through the ancient hills of this part of QLD. Good times! Just past Cloncurry, I took the Matilda Way, heading southwards for the rest of the day. The sun was shining with the temperature hovering in the high 20’s, perfect, stopping only to refuel or take some photographs. I had seen little wildlife on this part of the trip but that all changed past Longreach with lots of roadkill.
Longreach, QLD
Past Tambo heading towards Augathella, there was more and more wildlife near the road, with the last 30 minutes in the dark riding into Charleville been slow going. I was happy to get off the bike and check into my accommodation for the evening in Charleville.
Blackall, QLD
Charleville QLD. I was happy to get off the road.
Bourke, NSW
Next morning, (Tuesday) it was back on with the heated jacket and inner liners. It was cold! Today was the last day of the ride, back into NSW through Bourke, then Nyngan, Narromine, Parkes. It was another perfect early morning with the stars out, followed by a blue-sky day. The miles just rolled by, as I worked my way through my playlist with the occasional phone call home. Last stop was in Boorowa where I put the heated jacket back on and changed to warmer gloves.
Sunset near Canberra, ACT
The lights of Canberra eventually came into view, and I pulled into my garage just after 6:30pm, feeling very satisfied with 6 days of riding covering 8,389kms for the trip.
6 days, 8,389kms
The round trip
What a great ride through Outback Australia! My humble thanks to so many people, the riders, the supporters, and those at home who sent encouragement along the way. A special thank you to Pillion Piglet!
My approach to this was to treat the overall return trip as a multi-day(6 days) long distance ride with a 50CC embedded in the middle of it. With the bike serviced, new tyres fitted, and packing completed, Piglet and I headed for Melbourne on the Thursday. Me on the R1200GSA, Piglet in her trusty Subaru as she would be returning to Canberra on the Friday.
Packed and ready to ride, freshly serviced and new tyres
The ride down to Melbourne was uneventful, we checked into the Guiding Star Hotel and enjoyed catching up with the rest of the team (riders and supporters) including an early dinner, before we got some sleep. All too soon the alarm goes off and once preparations completed, we headed for the Port Melbourne servo where everyone was gathering. It was quite a gathering of Long-Distance riders, including IBR vets and plenty of supporters.
Jeff and Moi reminiscing on IBR23
All too soon, we were collecting our starting receipts, the 5-minute warning was given and those riding the 50CC readied themselves. And then we were off, with our wonderful group of supporters waving us off. It felt very fitting for this 20th anniversary of the first Australian 50CC. Into the darkness we went as we wound our way out of Melbourne, with individuals finding their own pace and the group gradually dispersing and disappearing out of sight.
The team!
I found my rhythm and settled into riding in the inky blackness as I made through northwest Victoria towards the South Australian border. I had a couple of toilet stops along the way, cursing that coffee I had had back in Port Melbourne. It had seemed a good idea at the time! My first planned fuel stop was Keith, SA but I decided to top up at Nhill as I became nervous about consumption. I took the opportunity to turn on the heated jacket also as the temperatures had dropped to low single digits. Just after dawn, I decided to refuel at Keith anyway and have a short break off the bike.
Topping up the tank at Snowtown (on the main highway)
Once rested, the ride from Keith to Gawler was uneventful and once through Gawler I really enjoyed the Adelaide Hills/Barossa section of this ride. Hardly any traffic through this glorious section of motorcycling nirvana. All too soon, I rejoined the A1 at Nantawarra and settled in for the run up to Port Augusta in the late morning sunshine. At Port Augusta, I took the opportunity to refuel, shed many layers and snack/hydrate. Hackle gave me a toot as he went past, followed by Spaz and Wombattle rolling into the same servo as I was departing.
Go north young man
From Port Augusta, the route is simple, keep riding northwards on the Stuart Highway. The sun was shining and there was little traffic. Perfect riding conditions. The miles rolled by as the fuel gauge sunk lower. I decided to fuel up at Pimba and not risk running low into Coober Pedy. I saw Scott refuelling at Pimba and we swapped notes on our rides.
Sunshine on the Stuart Highway, somewhere near Pimba SA
Back on the highway and it's onwards to Coober Pedy, where I pull into the servo right on dusk. The pub is going off, while I fuel up, pay, and make my way back to the highway for the evening run to Marla. Its only 2.5 hrs to Marla and seems to take forever. There are a few roos about with two making runs across the highway in front of me, but otherwise it was a relatively quiet moonlit night to be riding.
Coober Pedy at sunset, into the dark.
I refuel at Marla and check into my accommodation, just missing the bistro, as the kitchen had closed early. Scott and Hackle had made good time and were just finishing up their meals. Wombattle and Spaz rolled in a few minutes after me. I hit the sack quickly with plans to be away sometime between 3-4am.Next morning, I walked out of my room to find Foxton (Sam) packing his bike, prepping to leave. We chatted briefly, before he headed off and I finished packing, and collecting some more water from the servo. Once done it was back out onto the Stuart Highway heading north for Darwin. It was a beautiful moonlit night, the miles rolled under the wheels as I worked my way through my playlist. Foxton’s taillights gradually came into view and we waved as I passed him a few minutes later. He was using a fuel conservation strategy which was serving him well. About 30 minutes later, a set of LED lights came into view in my rearview mirrors, with Hackle passing me a few minutes later.
Stuart Highway, Saturday dark O'clock.
Right on dawn, I pulled into Eridunda Roadhouse to top up the tanks, and as is my habit, take a short break and have a coffee with a B&E roll. The Roadhouse was quiet, and I was served very quickly. Foxton pulled in not long afterwards and we swapped notes on the mornings ride. Waving goodbye, I continued ever northwards, Alice Springs followed by Tennant Creek. Only 1,700kms to Darwin!
You meet the nicest people riding BMW's
Not long after Alice Springs I came up behind Hackle and we settled into a cruising rhythm together, occasionally swapping lead, and stopping to take the odd photo. I had planned to fuel up at Three Ways, but nearing Tennant Creek, I only had about 70km range left, so decided to fuel up at BP Truck stop in Tennant Creek. For some reason I had in my head Three Ways was about 70m from TC, not 30kms! I then felt the pain of choosing the busiest/slowest Truck stop in the NT. Both Hackle and I were patient, no choice by then.
Tennant Creek, NT, and smiling all the way!
Once done, back on the road heading northwards to Darwin, with the only intermissions being for refueling at Truck stop's. The miles rolled by! Nearing Larrimah, there was lots of smoke around from burn offs, and occasionally the fires were right beside the road, with very dense smoke and visibility down to a few metres. We then had a good run into Mataranka, where we refuelled, and agreed to refuel one more time at Katherine.
Where else but the NT?
The ride into Katherine was uneventful, other than been accosted by a drunk as I was trying to take a photo coming into Katherine. Once clear of that, we refuelled at the new Caltex on the southside of Katherine, where all was going well until I tried to swallow a sandwich the wrong way, while refuelling, cleaning lights, checking the bike. Hackle came out of the servo to find me almost choking to death on said sandwich, followed by a coughing fit, followed by a nosebleed. Poor fella must have really been questioning his life choices by then! Anyways, once I had recovered sufficiently to be able to remount, we agreed he would lead for a while in the dark I regathered myself. At Adelaide River, we stopped briefly to check in on each other, and I took the lead from there.
Taking a moment at Adelaide River, NT. Still smiling!
Not too long later, the lights of Darwin came into view and before we knew it, we were pulling into the servo in Daly Street Darwin to collect out finishing receipt. Mission accomplished! After calling our respective partners to inform them all was well, we fare welled each other to find our digs for the night, Hackle was staying over a day or two, while I was hauling ass back to Canberra in the morning.
Sunday morning, between Darwin and Katherine hauling ass back to Canberra
After a good 5 hrs sleep, I rode out of Darwin in the pre-dawn darkness, bound for Camooweal, QLD. This ride was uneventful, other a long wait at Three Ways where a customer who had refueled and his credit card wouldn’t work, so what became a 10 minute refuel stop became a 20-minute comedy watched by a crowd of frustrated grey nomads and me. Rolling into the Barkley Homestead Truck stop I was impressed to see the renovations that have transformed this place. Its nothing like I remembered it from my 2007 lap of Australia. I made Camooweal right on dusk, and even managed to get a meal at the bistro before they stopped taking orders.
Barkley Homestead, NT
Welcome to Queensland, near Camooweal, NT.
Next morning (Monday) I rode out at 4:30am bound for Charleville via Cloncurry and Longreach. The ride into Mt Isa was uneventful, followed by that glorious stretch of highway into Cloncurry that snakes its way through the ancient hills of this part of QLD. Good times! Just past Cloncurry, I took the Matilda Way, heading southwards for the rest of the day. The sun was shining with the temperature hovering in the high 20’s, perfect, stopping only to refuel or take some photographs. I had seen little wildlife on this part of the trip but that all changed past Longreach with lots of roadkill.
Longreach, QLD
Past Tambo heading towards Augathella, there was more and more wildlife near the road, with the last 30 minutes in the dark riding into Charleville been slow going. I was happy to get off the bike and check into my accommodation for the evening in Charleville.
Blackall, QLD
Charleville QLD. I was happy to get off the road.
Bourke, NSW
Next morning, (Tuesday) it was back on with the heated jacket and inner liners. It was cold! Today was the last day of the ride, back into NSW through Bourke, then Nyngan, Narromine, Parkes. It was another perfect early morning with the stars out, followed by a blue-sky day. The miles just rolled by, as I worked my way through my playlist with the occasional phone call home. Last stop was in Boorowa where I put the heated jacket back on and changed to warmer gloves.
Sunset near Canberra, ACT
The lights of Canberra eventually came into view, and I pulled into my garage just after 6:30pm, feeling very satisfied with 6 days of riding covering 8,389kms for the trip.
6 days, 8,389kms
The round trip
What a great ride through Outback Australia! My humble thanks to so many people, the riders, the supporters, and those at home who sent encouragement along the way. A special thank you to Pillion Piglet!
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