Faith in Humanity
Sydney to Melbourne Stage 2 – Sun 5th March 2017 – Koonawarra to Kiama (33 Km)
Weather: 18⁰C min – 24⁰C max, Partly cloudy. Medium (60%) chance of showers
“If you only walk (or ride) on sunny days you’ll never reach your destination” ~ Paulo Coelho
What a wonderful start to the day, waking up to find breakfast laid out for us, our wet clothes from yesterday washed and dried, and sandwiches packed for our ride. George and Gail’s hospitality has been superb … a really friendly, genuine, couple who made us feel right at home from the time we arrived.
After fond farewells we set off down the road feeling on good terms with the world, in spite of the steady rain that was starting to fall. Our mood soured a little when Sharad realised that he had virtually no brakes left, but our faith in humanity was fully restored when we stopped at a house to borrow some tools to make the necessary adjustments. There was a man working in the garage who could not do enough to help us, even giving us a couple of his Allen keys to take with us. There are some wonderful people in this world!
The route to Kiama that George helped me map out last night worked out perfectly. Just around the corner from their house we picked up an off-road cycle path that followed the western shores of picturesque Lake Illawarra, then on quiet roads winding through delightful farmland. After about 7 Km we rode on the generous shoulder of the M1 Motorway before turning off onto another cycle path alongside Macquarie Rivulet, then traffic free roads that took us through the little towns of Oak Flats, Blackbutt, Shell Cove, Dunmore, and Minamurra.
After today’s ride I take back everything I said about NSW bike paths. The NSW Coastal Path has some sections of dedicated cyclepaths as good as any I have encountered in Europe, particularly the final 10 Km around the coast leading into Kiama. Wet weather again prevented us from taking many photos, so you will have to take our word for it that the scenery from the cliff tops looking down over the beaches below was simply stunning.
Our AirBNB in South Kiama far exceeded our expectation … a very well fitted out two bedroom apartment with wonderful hosts, Wendy and Neil, who went out of their way to make sure our stay was as comfortable as possible. At $44 per head we did not expect such excellent facilities or complimentary breakfast, generous bowl of fruit and chocolates.
After finishing our chicken schnitzels at the nearby Kiama Bowling Club we reflected on what had turned out to be, on balance, a very enjoyable day, even considering the mechanical problems with Sharad’s bike, the persistent gentle rain, and a couple of flooded creeks that we had to ride through.
And the one good thing about such terrible weather is that it can only improve!
The photos look great guys – a bit wet and lots of water on the road, but just as well you are on a bike and can just ride through it !! Hope dinner was good. Stay safe !!
Luv
Ursula
Thanks,dinner was not as good as you would make it.
Love,
S
enjoyable read ……not the same route that i ride to kiama ……hope weather breaks soon .
Positive signs on the weather front. Awoke to see patches of blue sky … but strong winds. We are not in a hurry, so we took the scenic route into Kiama yesterday rather than the Motorway.