Gerry and Ruth Travels

Today has been a frustrating day of almost but no cigar. In hindsight we placed too much reliance on the XPT being able to run. While early on it were the last means of return to close, understandably since then we realise they will also be the last to reopen while there is any risk involved. Our next brilliant option was to check out motor home relocations from Sydney to Brisbane. We went through the whole booking process for a 6 berth camper & paid a deposit. Luckily, soon after it was cancelled along with-all other relocations due to road closures & the overall fire risk. As all exits north are closed the only way out is back but the bikes have been our main problem. We have now organised a freight contractor to pick up ... read more

Our plan B was to ride to Dungog & catch the evening XPT to Brisbane. One condition was to reach the station by 2.30 to pick up bike boxes which they insist were necessary before we could book our tickets. We remarkably made the 66 km journey with a hour to spare. Fortunately the roads were very quiet but the hills were endless with 858 mtrs of ascent mostly into strong winds & some roads in very poor repair. We held up our end of the bargain & it seemed our plan was on track but soon after we were advised the evening train was initially delayed & later cancelled due to a new fire threat. We are now booked into a Dungog hotel & will re-assess tomorrow. Regardless we are safe & well away from ... read more

Day 5 After my best night sleep so far we set out for our planned longest day to date at 86 kms. The route promised to be a fantastic day of highlights. The day started with a idyllic 12 km ferry ride across the crystal clear waters of Salamander Bay & up the Myall river to Tea Gardens. Before setting out we checked out the latest fire situation with tourist information & given the all clear. Riding started with 26 kms along the Mungo Brush Trail which was a lot better than it sounds being a flat sealed road that bisects the ocean on the right & the the amazing Myall Lakes NP on the left. The track linked up with the Old Gibber Rd & Mining Road trail but when we got to the start ... read more

Day 3. Was a bugg** covering 83kms split roughly into two halves over 8.25 hrs & a brutal 1156 mts of assent for the day. Yesterday’s bad weather had cleared to a brilliant cloudless blue sky. The morning stage was to The Entrance & started with some nice bike paths but soon changed to a very busy main road with some narrow shoulder that required total concentration not to wobble while ascending hills up to 13%. Terrigal was only half way to The Entrance & I was already spent. The beautiful outlook & morning tea at the surf club revived our spirits. Shelly Beach & Long Jetty were were memorable view stops. The afternoon stage was to Swansea & we seemed to get a second wind with riding mainly on cycle paths. A slight diversion to ... read more

Today was our last full day with the tour with another long but more comfortable 7 hr train journey to Berlin. After a quick check-in to the Moxy Hotel for a 2 night stay we headed straight out for an orientation walk around the huge city. We covered some of the main attractions included the Brandenburg Gate the Reichstag (parliament), remnants of the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, and Berlin Cathedral but to be honest not that exciting compared to some of the smaller cities we have been over the last few weeks. The city has also been under continuous reconstruction for decades. We ha a final group dinner at a Bavarian style brewery pub. Next day was hot again. Not knowing what we wanted to do & having to navigate the S Bahn & U Bahn ... read more