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Published: November 27th 2017
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Port Fairy Folk Festival - Day One
So after a good nights sleep, we sure needed it, after such a tough few days. The weather is still cold wet and windy. I had previously organised to store our bikes at a work colleagues, (Sue Clarkes) parents house in Port Fairy. Bikes safely stored in the shed, its time to hit the town and check out the action at the folk festival and have some fun. Over the next few days, we checked out every pub, hall, garden marquee, theatre, sports pavilion, every where wall to wall folk music. I caught up with good friend and work colleague Ian Hunt, his partner Lisa and daughter Sarah at an alfresco café. Coffee and cake went down a treat even in this drizzly cold wet weather.
At the "Star of the West Hotel, like moths to the flame, Beers to the honey pot, we caught up with Bruno and Kirk to share our stories over several rounds of the amber liquid, of the journey so far. At the crowded bar, a bikie gang were holding court. When some dude obviously said or done something very naughty and was king hit by a
7 foot bikie monster. A very ugly scene soon developed, so we decided to vacate elpronto before injury from fight scene. As we walked past another pub window, Colin's friends Emma and Jane spotted us, "So set up another round of drinks boys", many beers later...., Well....... you get the picture. The festival food stalls were dishing up very yummy and affordable epicurean delights, a big change from carbo travel food. That night I checked out a folk band called "Raglan Road", at one of the theatre venues, if this was the standard of folk music, the next few days should be awesome? After the show I stumbled back to my tent, quite "Molly the Monk", but very happy to be here.
Day 2 of the Folk Festival
The weather is still bloody cold and wet, and seemingly getting worse. However my spirits are high as today I would experience a John Williamson show, he is a very inspiring performer. John is responsible for inspiring me to travel this great country on the treddlies. His recent album "Road through the Heart" was written as he travelled through the outback of Central Australia". It seemed surreal that we were doing
Jane and Emma
""Where is our BLANKET Colin?" what he was singing about. I was anticipating our very own "road through the heart". Visioning riding on dusty outback roads, surrounded by rich red earth under the bluest of endless skies. We would eagerly await the coming of the dark night, around a crackling desert camp fire, the aroma of dinner cooking, boiling billy and jamming under a 360 degree chandelier of the brightest stars. "So bring on the high road to outback adventure". Somehow like "Ground Hog Day" we found ourselves in the pub again!, for some more amber nectar. Whilst imbibing said nectar, we met Gerard, a Canadian backpacker, who enlightened us on some pretty amazing stories of the history, geography and brutal weather of northern Canada.
Kirk and Bruno, have had enough of being stuck in this drizzly weather and decided to ride north to Heywood to visit some of Kirk's relos. I gave kirk my work number, so we could keep in contact and effect a rendezvous at Port Augusta or Wilpena Pound in the Flinders Ranges. in about 3 weeks. Well Colin and I partied with Jane, Emma and Chris until late in the evening. I got drunk again and stumbled
back to my tent around midnight. It was around 3 a.m, when I was awoken by Jane and Emma, they were looking for Colin and in particular their blanket. "I think I saw him with another girl and your blanket", needless to say they were unimpressed with Casanova Colin.
Day 3 of the Folk Festival
Cavalier Colin returned to his tent in the wee hours of the morning, a little worse for wear, but never the less happy and smiling. His nocturnal endeavours are not to be sneezed at. However one poor creature we definitely sneezed at, was one disgustingly abhorrent fellow affectionately known as "PigPen". Colin and I were visiting the hotel yet again, where we caught up with Jane and Emma. Whilst Colin was attempting to explain "The Blanket", I set up a round of coldies. Upon my return, I was introduced to "PigPen", he was the most disgusting human I had ever seen. His countenance was deplorable, half his front teeth were rotting away, his unwashed matted hair reeked of Eudi cologne "Fetid", he must have used the entire bottle. He wore a pigtail at the front, which covered his eyes and hung down to his
chest. There was a long piece of leather tied to it, which hung down even further, with some rusty old badge attached to it. He made pigs smell like English Roses.
Colin and I soon left the hotellery to go to the sports pavilion to catch the final show of the festival, "The Kelly Gang". I couldn't see Ned, but they sure looked like modern day Bushrangers. After the show we returned to camp to find the weather clearing up and the campers clearing out, to go back to work. The poor buggers they seemed to be unamused at our seemingly apparent laughing at their misguided misfortune, of being chained to the wheel of the 9 to 5 clock. As for Colin and I, we use our chains on our bike wheels for the "Freedom ride". This busy camp and village was now pretty much empty of people, except for a few desperate food vendors, offering the last of their epicurean delights. We stocked up on yummy pancakes and anything else we could relieve the packing up foodies of their edible offerings.
We had a short journey back to Sue Clarkes parents house to be reunited with our
trusty bikes. They had patiently waited for 3 days to feel rubber on ashphalt. Our bums would need breaking in with the saddle after days of neglect. But it sure felt great to hit the road again on this epic journey of unknown adventure.
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