DAY 37 - ECHUCA to GOORNONG

Today was a mostly straightforward ride through quiet country roads south from Echuca. After about 10km on tar we hit a dirt road, and were enjoying the lack of traffic. Also, it was not raining, there were no hills, and the wind (however slight) was behind us. So all seemed set for an easy day's cycling. 
We were enjoying the serenity, riding on a good dirt road
But soon there were some ominous muddy patches ahead
As we may have foreseen, the good surface was not to last. The road had been churned up by heavy vehicles driving on it while wet, and it had turned to a tyre-sticking quagmire in places. 
In a couple of places we wheeled our bikes off the road, to avoid getting the tyres clogged
Wheeling around a quagmired road
We were being very careful to look after the bikes.
But then on this innocuous-looking stretch of road Kath stopped

"I think something's wrong with my fender"

"I'm pretty sure it's not meant to look like this"
We were able to manhandle the fender back in place, more or less,  and continued with extra care along the boggy track. After a few kilometres the road improved, and we were able to enjoy the sights on the way in to Rochester. 
The road improved
Sights on the way to Rochester 
At Rochester, we followed our custom of supporting one of the local businesses at morning coffee time. 
We enjoyed coffee and treats from the Rochester Bakery at the adjacent park
Before leaving Rochester, we took some time to admire the town's impressive silo art.
Cycle tourists enjoying the silo art at Rochester
From Rochester to Elmore the going continued to be pretty good. The roads were mostly tar (being caught in a boggy quagmire a few times has fostered an enhanced appreciation of tarred roads), and we were able to appreciate the scenery. 
For example, we appreciated these sheep
And we appreciated this massive roadside wall of hay
On the way in to Elmore, we stopped at a pond to see if we could see some plumed whistling ducks. No, we're not making it up. Probably named by the same person who named the hoary-headed grebe.
Plumed whistling ducks. No, seriously. 
After a brief lunch stop in Elmore, we were back on the road. Mostly tar. We like tarred roads. 
A brief lunch stop in Elmore
There were a few interesting sights on the way to our b&b. 
There was a display of feral foxes on a fence

And another impressively large hay wall
And some eye-catching cloud formations
We settled in to our accommodation late in the afternoon, and set about planning tomorrow's final stage of our tour. 
Shadow of cycle tourist approaching Goornong in the late afternoon
Here are some of today's birds
The sun has set on the penultimate day of our tour
Day:  37
Distance: 74.33 km
Cycling time: 3 hrs 47 mins
Elevation gain: 645 metres
Cumulative Distance: 1783.83 km
Day 37 - Elevation profile 
Day 37 - Route

Comments

  1. Anonymous4 June 2022 at 07:57

    Gosh that went quick. Looks like you've had a great time. Safe trip back to Canberra!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kath and Russell4 June 2022 at 22:03

      Thanks, we have had a great time! Now looking forward to time with family and friends. 😊

      Delete

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