GOR Day 18 Parkdale Cool start again but getting to like the no rain forecasts. The food served by Phil Bock and his lovely wife Yuko at the French Island Eco Lodge is first class and enough for cyclists who normally take some filling. The wine is good too and not extortionate. A koala was grunting up a tree outside our cabin at 7am, which was a nice surprise to start our day. Ferry crossing at 9am on a smooth ocean to Stony Point to resume our journey north to Melbourne. Son Paul met us on his bike at the terminal since his wife Kat brought him in the car. Great ride to Hastings along a lovely boardwalk through the mangroves and dunes under a clear blue sky and warm sun. Coffee in Hastings at the ... read more

GOR Day 16. French Island Out into the blustery cold went the Draughty Dozen to be transported to the heaven (to some)that is French Island on the morning ferry. Eventually we found the Eco Lodge and left our panniers before venturing out into the wash board dirt roads. The island store reminded me of a shearing shed but produced some good sandwiches and proper coffee as well as being the island ???? Office. I imagine a life saver utility on such a remote/barren island just 3 km from the mainland with no services provided. They all have to generate their own electricity, find water and create their own water disposal systems. The roads are something else. Soft sand throws you on the bike, the washboard rattles your teeth and the puddles are a swimming bath in ... read more

GOR Day 14. Stony Point. The forecast was right. Rain, followed by rain, followed by rain. We were away at 0730 for an excellent and speedy breakfast in Blairgowrie, 6 km away from our hotel, and we only managed to lose two riders at that point. They had to have breakfast in Rosebud. The rain dampened things a bit after breakfast but the sun came out briefly by Rosebud and we could cycle on the Bay Trail which was interesting along the coast. (Whoa, we are just having thunder and lightening as I write this as we wait for the ferry to Philip Island. Big flashes and big noise, flowed by rain). I stopped in Dromana to look at the history board telling the story of how it was developed before Melbourne in the early 1800’s. ... read more

GOR Day 11. Queenscliff I love Queenscliff and what a lovely day to travel there from Geelong. We were a bit sad to leave the Gatehouse on Ryrie, despite its lack of en-suite facilities, due to its old world quaintness. The day started a bit dull and we had a headwind for much of the way making it hard riding on the long straight roads. There was a nice cycle route just before 13th Beach with the big rolling waves off to our right. The Jirrahlinga Wildlife Sanctuary were having a Koala talk when we arrived which was very good and we saw a large male and several females munching away on gum tree leaves. There was a good variety of birds, including Kookaburras, tawny frogmouth owls, kestrels, lorikeets and parrots etc. Obviously we saw kangaroos, ... read more

GOR Day 9. Geelong. A great meal of Indonesian stir fry last night at the busy Torquay Hotel, perhaps the best $26 I have ever spent, followed by a pleasant walk along the sea front in the wind at dusk. Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes yesterday. Warm sunny day as we left Torquay cycling along the seafront which is always a pleasure after a breakfast at Miami, a few doors from the hotel. After Horseshoe Bend Road we turned onto Boundary Rd only to find that it was blocked after the B100 dual carriageway. We rode to the next junction and eventually got back onto Boundary Rd again to take us into Waurn Ponds. I remember having problems on this section in 2016 when we had to lift our bikes and panniers over a gate ... read more