Saturday: Great Southern
Saturday morning saw Doc Homebrew and I hit the road to Meeniyan, near Leongatha, to take a spin on the Great Southern Rail Trail for a dirt series ride with Audax. An overcast morning turned to bright autumnal sunshine as the group of about ten riders sauntered along the trail bound for a laidback lunch at Foster.
I've not been on this trail before, so I was keen to see what it's like, and I wasn't disappointed. The committee of management and volunteers have done a good job of constructing a pretty hard-wearing gravel path, and although the section between Meeniyan and Fish Creek looked like it had been softened a bit by recent rain, it had drained and dried pretty firmly. (That said, I don't think the riding would be quite as smooth immediately after a heavy downpour!)
Undoubtedly the best part of the ride is between Fish Creek and Foster, where some really splendid views over Corner Inlet to Wilson's Promontory are on show. Also the trail surface seems to be slightly different in this section—a different material perhaps, and a bit drier.
And then, quite abruptly, the trail ends—a tantalising taste of what it might one day be like if it's opened all the way to Yarram.
At this point we took the minor detour into Foster itself for an early and much appreciated lunch. And then it was a gentle cruise back over the kind of gentle undulations that only a rail trail can offer. About the easiest 70km possible, but still not a bad day out.
My impression of the Great Southern Rail Trail is that it's a bit under utilised: we didn't meet any other traffic on the trail until after lunch, and the amount of small debris on the path itself suggests fairly low traffic flow. This is a shame, because it's a good route.
Sunday: Party de Wheels
Sunday's event was an entirely different proposition: a birthday in the Homebrew clan saw eleven kids of primary school age and below (with assorted parents/grandparents in tow) descend by bike on Jells Park for something of a mobile party. And you've got to admit that a ride to the park and a picnic in the autumn sunshine is a pretty agreeable way to celebrate a birthday!
I noticed that these kids are getting pretty strong and they are all learning excellent road discipline. It's truly great to see.
Following that weekend MLSP remarked this morning as I mounted up for the commute: "You've hardly been off that bloody thing all weekend!" And you've gotta wonder what's wrong with that?
Well, when cycling becomes almost a default family activity, I guess it doesn't present too much of a problem!
The Bike Birthday Party did take a fair bit of organising—plenty of email and sms ping-pong—but if a trundle to Jell's Park on a beautiful autumn day wasn't enough incentive, a lavish spread of plunger coffee, cakes, chocolates, fizzy drinks and other treats for a picnic afternoon tea, along with a kick of the footy in the park took care of the WIIFMs for all family members.
A great way to celebrate a birthday!!!
Cheers
DocH
Oh yeah - happy birthday to the BusWalker
Comments
Biking to a birthday party is such a great idea. To get all those people to agree is quite and accomplishment.