Hello all,
We were so tired after our big drive yesterday that we didn’t even make it to watch ‘The Front Bar’ at 9.15pm. After some fish and chips, we went to bed and had a big sleep.
This morning we got up and got ready for a bike ride. All things considered, we were pretty lucky weather wise. The forecast originally said it would rain all day here. We only had a few showers during the time we were actually riding.
We chose to ride our bikes from Bright to Harrietville, approximately 25km each away. We brought our own bikes from home so it was great being able to ride bikes we were comfortable and familiar with. For about half of the ride, there were proper bike paths. The rest of the time we were riding on the shoulder of the road. This wasn’t so bad though as it was pretty wide and open and easy for cars and trucks to see us. When it wasn’t showering, it was nice to take in the scenery. The surroundings reminded me of the Topdeck trip to Norway I took in 2014. It was very alpine, with trees and greenery reminding me of that area. The only difference was the cows everywhere instead of reindeer!!
The route we were taking originally started as a trail creating by local Aboriginal people. It was later used by horse stealers and then prospectors looking for gold. When we arrived in Harrietville, the gold history there was obvious. The Ovens River went right through the town and we enjoyed looking at statues of prospectors and an old water wheel from the 1860s that was brought back to Harrietville in the 1960s and still today even works (I pushed the button and watched it go around!).
Every time it rained, Rob and I had a good laugh chatting about what we would have been doing today in Hamilton Island if COVID didn’t exist. We decided that today we would have been lounging by the pool and swimming at Catseye Beach. Instead, we were freezing cold on our ride!! The only thing that kept us going was the knowledge that we weren’t too far away from the Harrietville Bakery where we planned on enjoying a hot drink and a pie.
Unfortunately, when we arrived, there was a big sign in the window saying “cash only”. We hadn’t brought any, as during the pandemic we had thought people were preferring electronic payment methods and were trying to avoid it where possible. We tried to hide our disappointment, but started to feel like we didn’t know how we would make it back as we were so cold. We started to walk back to our bikes and took shelter near a local map and guide board. At this point, a lady that had been sitting with her husband and two kids outside the bakery approached us with one of the kids. She pulled $10 out of her pocket and said “please have a coffee on us – it sucks that you’ve ridden all that way and can’t get one!” We tried to refuse, but it got to the point where saying no was awkward as she obviously really wanted to help us out. I don’t know who that family were, but we were so appreciative and they restored our faith in people during what is a really strange time in our lives. We promised to pay it forward and then remembered we had given some money to a man in Puerto Rico that had been robbed. I supposed it goes around in cycles!!
We bought our coffees and they helped us to warm up, and we then found a nearby tuck shop that had muffins (and took card!). None of the shops were open to eat in, so our next issue was that we had to stand outside in the freezing cold. We eventually found a bus shelter under which we finished our muffins. Again I was reminded of Norway, because everything there was so expensive there that half the time I would buy takeaway food and eat it outside!!
Feeling slightly warmer, we headed off on the ride back. It started raining just as we left but thankfully eased off a little later. Once back, Rob had a quick shower and then we drove to Mount Beauty. It was pretty foggy by this stage and the rain started to get heavier. We were grateful that we were no longer riding!!
In Mount Beauty, we had a look around the pondage and the main street before heading back to Bright. Tonight, we are going to Parma night at the Star Hotel in Bright. We are then planning on watching Carlton vs St Kilda. I despise both teams so I’ve no idea who I want to win haha!!
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
We were so tired after our big drive yesterday that we didn’t even make it to watch ‘The Front Bar’ at 9.15pm. After some fish and chips, we went to bed and had a big sleep.
This morning we got up and got ready for a bike ride. All things considered, we were pretty lucky weather wise. The forecast originally said it would rain all day here. We only had a few showers during the time we were actually riding.
We chose to ride our bikes from Bright to Harrietville, approximately 25km each away. We brought our own bikes from home so it was great being able to ride bikes we were comfortable and familiar with. For about half of the ride, there were proper bike paths. The rest of the time we were riding on the shoulder of the road. This wasn’t so bad though as it was pretty wide and open and easy for cars and trucks to see us. When it wasn’t showering, it was nice to take in the scenery. The surroundings reminded me of the Topdeck trip to Norway I took in 2014. It was very alpine, with trees and greenery reminding me of that area. The only difference was the cows everywhere instead of reindeer!!
The route we were taking originally started as a trail creating by local Aboriginal people. It was later used by horse stealers and then prospectors looking for gold. When we arrived in Harrietville, the gold history there was obvious. The Ovens River went right through the town and we enjoyed looking at statues of prospectors and an old water wheel from the 1860s that was brought back to Harrietville in the 1960s and still today even works (I pushed the button and watched it go around!).
Every time it rained, Rob and I had a good laugh chatting about what we would have been doing today in Hamilton Island if COVID didn’t exist. We decided that today we would have been lounging by the pool and swimming at Catseye Beach. Instead, we were freezing cold on our ride!! The only thing that kept us going was the knowledge that we weren’t too far away from the Harrietville Bakery where we planned on enjoying a hot drink and a pie.
Unfortunately, when we arrived, there was a big sign in the window saying “cash only”. We hadn’t brought any, as during the pandemic we had thought people were preferring electronic payment methods and were trying to avoid it where possible. We tried to hide our disappointment, but started to feel like we didn’t know how we would make it back as we were so cold. We started to walk back to our bikes and took shelter near a local map and guide board. At this point, a lady that had been sitting with her husband and two kids outside the bakery approached us with one of the kids. She pulled $10 out of her pocket and said “please have a coffee on us – it sucks that you’ve ridden all that way and can’t get one!” We tried to refuse, but it got to the point where saying no was awkward as she obviously really wanted to help us out. I don’t know who that family were, but we were so appreciative and they restored our faith in people during what is a really strange time in our lives. We promised to pay it forward and then remembered we had given some money to a man in Puerto Rico that had been robbed. I supposed it goes around in cycles!!
We bought our coffees and they helped us to warm up, and we then found a nearby tuck shop that had muffins (and took card!). None of the shops were open to eat in, so our next issue was that we had to stand outside in the freezing cold. We eventually found a bus shelter under which we finished our muffins. Again I was reminded of Norway, because everything there was so expensive there that half the time I would buy takeaway food and eat it outside!!
Feeling slightly warmer, we headed off on the ride back. It started raining just as we left but thankfully eased off a little later. Once back, Rob had a quick shower and then we drove to Mount Beauty. It was pretty foggy by this stage and the rain started to get heavier. We were grateful that we were no longer riding!!
In Mount Beauty, we had a look around the pondage and the main street before heading back to Bright. Tonight, we are going to Parma night at the Star Hotel in Bright. We are then planning on watching Carlton vs St Kilda. I despise both teams so I’ve no idea who I want to win haha!!
Love to all
Claire
Xoxox
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