Port Fairy to Warrnambool

April 30, 2021

Rail Trail today

Bit of a shorter day today so I had a lay-in and finished yesterday's journal entry. While packing up I had a few people from the Probus club come say good morning and wish me the best on my travels. It lovely how complete strangers take the time to check-in on me. I really appreciate it.

After getting started at a very late 10am I had to pay a visit to the creperie I spotted last night. Yeh, I just had to 😃. The people at LeCrepe Man where friendly and their crepes where exactly as I hoped for, fantastic. Coffee was good to.

Second breakfast. Banana and maple syrup crepe with cream.

Then out onto the Port Fairy to Warrnambool rail trail. It's sunny with a slight wind, perfect weather.

The last signal. The light is flashing and I discovered if you hang around taking photos it also makes train noises.

The trail was varied and quite stunning in places. The volunteers have been planting parts of it with natives. That's where I saw and heard the most birds. Tiny wrens are my favourite.

Duckie and I liked this bit the best, lots of birds

The cows are interesting here, they don't care about bicycles, not one was watching me today. I guess they see bicycles everyday.

I got to Koroit and had a chat with a semi- local lady. She assured me I should make a detour into the main Street to check out the bakery and then head up to Tower Hill lookout to view the extinct volcano crater. So I did.

Tower Hill lookout. You hardly know it's there until you are right on the edge.

Back onto the rail trail, it's down hill most of the way to Warrnambool from here.

The trail then heads through what I think was called Kelly's swamp. There were lots of Swans and a few cygnets.

I think it was about this point I meet Andrew. He was also cycling the rail trail. We chatted as we made our way to the breakwater at Warrnambool. It turns out he did the Mawson Trail with Bike SA in 2017, the same year I did. Small world.

Breakwater at Warrnambool. That's the coast I'm riding on over the next week

I said goodbye to Andrew as he rode back to Port Fairy and I header to my caravan park.

Once camp was set I rode up hill to the information centre. I booked into the Flagstaff Hill sound and light show. It's started at 7pm so I had 2 hrs to shop, eat dinner and get back up hill for the show. Cool! I asked the lady, What's one thing I should see in Warrnambool? Answer, Thunder Point.

Thunder Point great views, the lighting wasn't the best for photos

If you keep going around the path it turns into Pickering Point. I had a ball riding the board walk around. It's like one long bridge and for some reason I love crossing bridges. Call it a personal quirk.

Through the plants I could make out a pedestrian bridge over the Merri river that I was sure I'd seen when I was near the breakwater earlier in the afternoon. Excellent that will save me back tracking to get to the caravan park since I have a deadline.

Mmm the stairs made me pause. But we three, Duckie, Monti and I are tough we can walk down some stairs, even if the first set are quite steep. Truth be to told, up stairs would have total stopped us.

The sound and light show was great, well worth seeing. The guys at Flagstaff Hill were kind enough to let me put my bike inside, as I'd left the key to my 2nd lock at camp. I also met Hilda and Bill. They are retired Victoria's, spending the next 2 weeks travelling slowly. They've just spent 3 days in Warrnambool. They told me about road works happening on the Great Ocean Rd. Lots of 40 and 60kms sections, very slow getting here. Excellent! They laughed.

Today's ride: 44 km (27 miles)
Total: 764 km (474 miles)

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