May 7, 2011
Day One: A late start but I'm finally on the road
It could have been an early start, but it wasn't. I got going by about 09:30... Oops - forgot my lunch and didn't check my tire pressure, so back home to pump up the tires and make my lunch. Did the obligatory shot at the driveway with the fully loaded bike. Looking at that photo, it's pretty obvious I'm carrying too much gear. Is that a smile or a grimace on my face.
I promised myself that I would be taking it easy for the first couple of days (weeks?) until I was fitter - gotta look after those knees. Did I pack my spare knees?
For those of you that may be contemplating a similar venture, I exited Perth on the Kwinana Freeway bike path heading south. Like the freeway it follows, the bike path is fairly straight and level, has a great surface and most importantly is completely isolated from the road traffic. There was a pretty stiff wind from the east (20 km per hr?) but it wasn't too much trouble coming off the left shoulder. I turned off the bike path at the Lakes Rd exit and headed east for North Dardanup. Went straight from the luxury of a dedicated cycleway to a narrow two lane road with no shoulder (this was to be the standard for the rest of the ride). On went the fluro yellow vest. Had a couple of close calls, but overall the traffic was quite kind. From North Dardanup there is a road up to Dwellingup - it goes pretty much straight up for about 25 km. I stealth camped at the bottom of the hill.
I love sleeping in a tent, spent years travelling and living out of one. But yikes!! sleeping on the ground is going to take some getting used to. I spent most of the night rolling around trying to get comfortable.
50 + 20 = 70 km, more than my allotted distance.
Top speed 34 km per hr (tail wind and downhill assisted)
Memorable moments: * The friendly service station and home cooked pies at the North Dardanup service station * A great stealth camping spot (100 metres down the Whittaker Road turnoff)
Today's ride: 70 km (43 miles)
Total: 70 km (43 miles)
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