Astute observers will note that it has been some time since my last entry in this journal. A lot has happened over the past few months. I was distracted from journaling. Due to Covid-19, and a range of family related circumstances, I had not left Canberra since March until last week. I have been doing some local cycling near Canberra but the rides, though fun, weren't really journal-worthy.
Fortunately, a couple of weeks ago I was able to visit relatives in Central West of NSW, and stayed in the regional city of Orange. Naturally I took a bicycle with me, and did a series of 1/2 day rides using Orange as a base.
Orange is about 300 km north of Canberra, 250 km west of Sydney has a population of about 40,000.
This journal entry is a compilation of various rides done over a week or so. Each day I did rides of 12km-80km in length on a mix of sealed and unsealed roads.
Orange sits at an elevation of about 800 metres on the slope of a long extinct volcano called Mt Canobolas. It is a verdant, rich agricultural area. It's blessed with fertile soils and reasonably reliable rainfall, and there are many different back roads which provide a lot of scenic options for local bike tours.
Road cycling and mountain biking are popular in and around Orange. Cycling facilities are reasonably well developed, especially recreational trails within the town area.
There are plenty of hills! The highest, Mt Canobolas is about 1400 metres above sea level.
My aim with the following captioned photos is to give you a sample of cycle touring in and around the town of Orange NSW Australia.
This is a link to notes and maps for rides in and around Orange NSW Australia.
In less than 20 minutes it is possible to cycle into the rural countryside which surrounds Orange. This is about 6 km from the centre of town. A fodder crop is just germinating. Spring is about six weeks away.
Looking to the extinct volcano Mt Canobolas. It's about 6 km to the summit. It's slopes are covered with a mix of orchards, vineyards and natural bushland.
A dog rescue mission. On one of the half-day rides, this dog appeared from nowhere. Fortunately I was able to hold him from running into traffic, and with the help of passing motorist, re-unite him with his owner.
One of the rides was to a locale known as the Ophir gold fields reserve. This is a conservation area which includes gold diggings from the mid-1800s. This area was one of the richest gold producing areas in the world. The Orange district is still a major producer of gold.
Today's ride: 180 km (112 miles) Total: 355 km (220 miles)
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Gregory GarceauHi Graham, things are looking pretty green for inland Australia and for a town named Orange. I did see a little orange in that rainbow though. Reply to this comment 4 years ago
Graham SmithTo Gregory GarceauGreg an amusing observation is that Orange is surrounded by apple orchards, but oranges aren’t grown there. And yes the Orange region is very green. The green environment there is also a contradiction because it is the only electorate in Australia with a Shooters Party (very non-green) Member of Parliament.
