June 2, 2023
Day 23: Yea Springs to Tooborac
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The good thing about staying in solid accommodation is that it's much easier to get up and ready. Consequently, we can set off at 8.30am instead of 9.00am. Big deal, somehow we can't seem to crack the early start. The morning was very misty and if we had to ride a dodgy road I would have held back.
Fortunately, we were still on the rail trail. We were cruising along nicely in the eerie morning mist when we came upon a fallen tree. It covered the whole track with no way round. The option was to go back and find a way onto the road, not in this mist, or unload and climb over. So, off with the luggage and carry the bikes through the debris.
Whilst repacking a guy turned up on an E-Bike, obviously facing the same problem as us. We had actually seen him near Bonnie Doon but didn't stop for a chat. He was doing the trail there and back and set off at six in the morning.
The trail carries on to Tallarook where you can catch a train to Melbourne, we just stopped for a cuppa and a look around. The town boasts a railway station, a pub and a take away shop. I highly recommend the trail, particularly for people in Melbourne or near the railway. Country rail travel in Victoria is incredibly cheap.
So much for the tranquil days of the rail trail, we were now into the Macedon Ranges. Our route plan was changing every day and becoming a bit erratic. We headed out of Tallarook on a minor road for a town called Pyalong. This was on the main road to Bendigo. We were again into some challenging hills after having it relatively easy on the trail. These minor roads tend to have much steeper hills than the major roads. The major highways just bulldoze through the hills. The final hill into Pyalong was short but brutal, about 6%. We got to the intersection of the main road and would have had to turn south and downhill to visit the town, from where we were it didn't seem like there would be much there. After much soul searching and a little persuasion we decided to carry on to Tooborac. Google maps, the one I said that I would never trust again, assured us that it was 'mostly flat'. It lied.
Still, I'm glad we continued on as Tooborac turned out to be a nice place. The post office/General Store wasn't selling food until spring but the pub was open. I called in at the pub and enquired about meals for later on and all was fine. We road out to the footbal oval and ensconced ourselves by the undercover BBQ. Lights, electricity to charge the phone, seats and table, toilets. Heaven. The light was motion sensored so we decided to camp under the verandah of the tennis shed, notice a pattern emerging? We had a cup of tea and relaxed. I got talking to a young woman who pulled in for a break on her way to a house/pet sitting job in Echuca who lived on the outskirts of Melbourne in a van. Interesting to hear other peoples stories when their lives are so different from your own.
As it got dark I called the pub and ordered pizza and chips to take away. It wasn't too long a walk so I wandered down there and left Annette at the BBQ. I met a couple of people on the way also going to the pub. The pub was just firing up and I had a short wait for the pizza, the barman bought me a drink and it seemed like a place I could spend a few hours. The pizza arrived and my only thought was of Annette sitting on her own at the BBQ, no other thought crossed my mind.
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We put the tent up under the aforementioned verandah, flysheet and all, not falling for that again. Just as well because it rained quite heavily during the night.
Today's ride: 68 km (42 miles)
Total: 1,280 km (795 miles)
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