Grant and Barbara

TransOceania Canberra rest-day

A six day cycling block so ready to have a recovery day.

Canberra is a planned city after a stand-off then compromise between Melbourne and Sydney over who should be capitol: create a new one. 1913 saw the start with the major expansion in the 1950s. Today it approaches 500000 population and became a Australia Capitlal Territory (an add on to the States) in 1988.

Today it starts to sprawl with other satellite cities (more like towns ) growing up around it, though with green belt. Quenbeyan and Tuggeranong amongst them. Commuter towns and we passed through the latter 13 miles out yesterday. I remember thinking a) how much further? b) interesting name – sounds like something you can get arrested for.

Along the [today] quiet broad streets, the car dominates, vs public transport. Which is a problem if you want to “green’.

Geoff – who we’d met on a previous trip – kindly took us to interesting places. Mount Ainslie afforded a great view of the planned layout, and the new 1988 Parliament Building. The New Parliament Building is excellent inside too: a celebration of tasteful design which feels lasting and solid. The old Parliament has been repurposed. A pity we can’t get on with our own Parliaments modernisation.

Sumptious Embassies must be hard for the poor foreign office workers have to endure. Other State buildings (Library, Gallery) reflect the Capitol status. Sadly we didn’t have time to go into the vast Australian War Memorial.

A good rest day: last leg of this part of the ride starts tomorrow en-route to Sydney.

Australia, Cycling, New South Wales, Orient Express

D31 TransOceania Cooma – Canberra

To avoid a dangerous road, our route changed to take the backroad through Namadgi National Park. The translation of Namadgi is shit roads. Shake rattle and roll along a bumpy track.

Only 2 years ago 80% of the park was destroyed in the bush fire which raged through the area. An amazing amount of vegetation has come back. Nutrients released by the fire are available to growing plants, and there is also abundant light and space. Animals have it tougher but they too have strategies to survive.

Fire causes the opening of woody fruits in resprouting plants such as banksias and ti-trees and seeds are released onto the soil surface after the fire has spread. Epicormic buds also come into play. Ecology is fascinating.

Of course these thoughts were dormant at the time of cycling, as survival is of a higher order. The views helped though as the eyeballs were bouncing around it was difficult to focus at times.

Thankfully this was only for 20 miles or so. The next challenge was a 15mile entrance to Canberra on a maze of cycle paths. Safely navigated, tomorrows rest day awaits……

Australia, Cycling, New South Wales, Trans Oceania

D30 TransOceania Delegate – Cooma

As though we have moved to a different planet in crossing to border. Gone are the forests. Now miles of deforested land used for ( over ) grazing sheep and cattle. Arid, dry, parched. Beautiful in a different way.

Sparsely populated, for Delegate we reach Bombala after 20miles then nothing until Cooma 65 miles later.

The remains of a railway station and stockyard – a passing shepherd told it used to have one train a day to Sydney until closing in the 80s. He thinks reopened to Canberra it will help populate the towns. He asks me where I’m from in Scotland – he’s never been but imagines the Highlands must be like the landscapes here. Lowlands more like – though a lot greener and wetter. Nice chap.

Tomorrow will be Capital….

Australia, Cycling, New South Wales, Trans Oceania, Victoria

D29 TransOceania Orbost – Delegate

Delegate was a candidate place for the Capital, which ended up being Canberra. I suspect it didn’t take long to be ruled out. Though what might the 250 or 425 residents have thought had it won. Population estimates vary.

It’s a small watering hole. Water is non potable due to water table and farm contamination. Future growth might be a challenge. Makes you appreciate more the daily convenience we take for granted.

The route was one country road. Empty and a wonderful surface. Dense lush green forest with the sound effects of cicadas kept the senses occupied. Hills kept the lungs pumping. Only a few homesteads along the way.

We’ve just crossed into New South Wales. Thankfully named before North Wales had a chance to winge about Cardiff bias, or the Welsh Language police got to work. All Captain Cook’s doing apparently. Diolch.

Australia, Cycling, Trans Oceania, Victoria

D28 TransOceania Bairnsdale to Orbost

Navigation was simple today. Join the East Gippsland Railtrail. Stay on it until near end. The Gippsland line was opened in 1916 to serve the agriculture and timber industries. Closing in 1988 it became a rail-trial not too long afterwards. The surface is tarmac or packed gravel for the main part, with a rough stone surface for a 10 mile section to keep you awake.

If that didn’t, the sights would. From old hop-kilns (like lime kilns but for hops), to maize storage frames, to former timber yards: all dating from early 1900s.

The trestle bridges are amazing in their decaying grandeur: red iron bark and grey box timber sourced locally. One was burned leaving nothing but melted rails in 2011 (1 February 2011 if you want to be precise) along with 11000 hectares of land. New word for me – epicormic buds along eucalypt trees started sprouting 3/4 weeks later. Now only the burned bark remains.

The work continues with the restoration of the Snowy River Railbridge (trestle of course) approaching Orbost. To be completed soon, a 3.5mill AUD project. Its huge longitudinal beams are made from now rare Southern Mahogany. Scale: it’s 770 metres long, straddling the Snowy floodplains since 1916.

Cycling via the rail-trail has help revitalise Orbost. The locals we see staggering around might need revitalised too. !