IT'S BEEN A HARD DAY'S RIDE ...

... and if I weren't so whacked from wheeling into the wind all day and now imbibing a bit of Coopers to soothe my stressed thighs I might try to paraphrase that great Beatles tune. Not up to it at the moment though. Actually, it's good to be here in Robe and although the day was challenging it did have its good points.

The Foggy Dew

We set off this morning from Salt Creek quite early due to the forecast: a headwind increasing as the day progressed. The other part of the forecast that was a bit interesting was the "Fog clearing" bit. And it was foggy as we set off, with a temperature of only 5 degrees. Given the forecast and the 130 or so kilometres that we needed to cover, Collis had suggested we should all try to get away by 7:30.

Neil was first out of the blocks, getting on the road by 7:00 o'clock. Di and I were next to leave at 7:17. Jacquei actually left camp before us, and was riding around in circles out at the highway waiting for Jim and Jen, who were only a minute or two behind, so we were all well and truly out of camp by the time Collis wanted us on the road.

Conditions, although cool and foggy, were quite okay as the wind was merely a zephyr at this stage. It did take a while to warm up, but once we did we scooted along quite nicely. The fog didn't concern us for long at all and within about five kilometres we started to find our rhythm after what was a pretty slow start ...

The Sun Pays Us a Visit

We were delighted when the sun came out and we could stop for Di to take off her heavier rain jacket, which she'd worn primarily for the additional insulation it provided. She found that she had warmed up nicely and was glad to get it off before she got too sweaty . I shot another video just a little while afterwards when we were at about the 30 kilometre mark ...

Collis had set the 50 kilometre mark as our stop for morning tea and things went very well up until that point. The sun was still shining when we arrived. Collis and Kathy had just caught up to Neil, who had made great progress up to that point, especially as he's just flown down from Cairns and conditions here are a tad cooler - to put it mildly! He made a very brief stop as the wind was still light at that point. Just after Jacquei, Jim and Jen arrived I hurried Di back on to the road shortly afterwards for the same reason. Di and I both stripped off a bit of clothing as the sun's warming presence seemed to bear out the forecast of "mostly sunny". Sadly these conditions did not last and we weren't as warm as we'd anticipated. Another good reason to drive on without delay.

The Wind Arrives In Spades

After such good conditions for almost two hours - and the past two days - I guess we had dues to pay. Only a few kilometres out of morning tea, the wind suddenly picked up. The ride to the Caltex servo at Kingston for our lunch stop was only another 32 or 33 kilometres but was a lot harder work than the 51 kilometres to morning tea. We decided - well, I did really - that the best tactic here was head down and bum up - and James, don't spare the horses! We cranked it out, passing Neil a few kilometres down the road and arrived at Kinston just a little before Collis and Kathy pulled in. We were greeted by one of Australia's examples of an obsession with big things.

In Queensland there's the giant banana and the giant pineapple. In Victoria there's the giant koala. I'm pretty sure there are lots of other giant things strewn about the country. Here they've got the giant lobster ...

Giant lobster at Kingson

Meanwhile Jacquei was fighting off magpies. She kindly gave me access to this video -which you might want to watch straight from YouTube if you'd like to see a larger format - make sure you've got your speakers turned up for Jacquei's dubbed in  soundtrack ...

A Respite From the Wind

Neil arrived a little while after Collis and Kathy, then - having survived the magpies - Jacquei pulled in, followed by Jim and Jen.

Our main priority at lunch was to get something hot into us, as battling into the headwind meant that we were getting a blast straight off the Southern Ocean and it was cold! We both had a coffee; Di also
had a potato pie and I had a fantastic lamb pie - both made nearby in Bordertown. (Neil liked the sound of the lamb pie, and so did Collis. They enjoyed theirs as much as I did mine) For a little energy boost Di and I both had a sweet treat. We seem to have no problems burning up the calories on days like this!

Back to the Fray

We took quite a long break for a change, partly because we felt we needed it and partly because Collis and Kathy wouldn't be leaving for some time. Once we did set off we thought that the wind might have abated a little, but it must just have been that we were a bit refreshed from the break because it wasn't long before we found ourselves in the same battle as before lunch. So, once again head down and bum up beating into a southerly buster. Here's a from the Bureau of Meteorology showing the conditions at the time as measured by the weather station nearby, with actual & apparent temperature highlighted along with wind direction, speed and gusts ...

So it's cool and windy. Just get on with it!

While I'm at it I might as well show you the direction we were travelling today ...

Salt Creek to Robe

On we drove into the wind. I started to get a little tired and called Di through a couple of times to give my legs a break - before they broke down! At least the sun was out adding it's cheer to the situation.

Collis had nominated 25 kilometres down the road as a spot to have a pause and refresh. Just before arriving we came through some beautiful vineyards - this area is known as the Limestone Coast - and is a popular destination for wine tourism - at other times of the year than right now! We stopped briefly to record the nicest spot on video ...

Just after this Collis came past, but Di and I thought we might as well push on as it was only another 19 kilometres to our destination for the day. The landscape became more rolling for a while, which broke the monotony of plugging away into the wind on flat ground. But soon it levelled out again and I found myself searching for some inspiration to keep the legs going around and I found it in, well ... what else but a song about the wind.

Chilling in Robe

Eventually of course we did arrive. Collis and Kathy pulled in shortly afterwards.  Jacquei, who seems to most enjoy riding at her own pace, then arrived and the three of us helped unload the trailer before Collis and Kathy repaired to a cabin - no doubt in search of relief from the cold. Once Di and I got the tent up my main priority was to soak in a hot shower. I am very grateful to Di for her keenness to get the laundry done which she undertook before getting to the showers herself. Neil arrived and after a bit of a sit down in a camp chair for a while rather than his bike seat put up his tent and got into the showers. Gentleman Jim towed Jen into camp shortly afterwards and we were all united once again.

Di and I have since had a wander into town with Neil, a refreshing drink, did the shopping and had a great feed of curry cooked up by Di. Although it's only 8:45 I think everyone else is off in bed. It's Sunday - the best night for the best television in Australia ( the ABC of course!) and there's a TV here in the camp kitchen. But maybe this open-air kitchen doesn't provide the best conditions for TV viewing in the winter, with the apparent temperature currently at 5 degrees Centigrade.

We are very pleased tomorrow is a rest day. I'm off to bed shortly myself. But you know, Di and I have been musing about what it's going to feel being home in under two weeks with this epic journey done and dusted. We are both wandering souls at heart, and have got increasingly addicted to long, self-propelled journeys since we've had more time on our hands. I guess we were both born under a wand'rin star ... and with that, good night!