Author: Mrs A
Location: Hervey Bay, Fraser Coast, Queensland
Distance cycled: 22.25km
It was a perfect washing day, so that’s how our morning commenced, ticking off blankets, towels and sheets which needed their weekly freshen up. Mr A dropped off the car at Battery World so they could do an in depth investigation into why it was not charging the caravan properly. A staff member dropped him back at the caravan park and we prepared for a bike ride exploration of Hervey Bay.
An off-road cycleway follows the coast for several kilometres, commencing at Urandangi Pier to the south and leading to Point Vernon in the north. We’re staying in a suburb called Torquay (now where have I heard that name before?!) so we started there and headed north. It’s the first time in a long while (since South Australia) that we have seen flat water along the coast, the islands and reefs offshore calming the waves. The beaches are pristine and empty – it’s like a little paradise, a long way from the Hervey Bay I remember. I first visited this town 19 years ago as a backpacker – it has changed substantially since then, becoming more of a destination in its own right than just a hopping off point for Fraser Island.
The pathway winds its way along the coast through picturesque scenery, through parklands and bush, along cliff tops and past mangroves. We had a small diversion to a bike shop on our way so Mr A could check out a strange clicking sound on his bike. The bearings had worn down and needed replacing. He later found someone to do the job on the spot for $55, for a 45 minute job. Certainly not Sydney prices!
The expensive part of the day came later in the afternoon – our faulty plug and under-spec wiring in the car was replaced, we had to purchase three new batteries for the caravan (replacing the ones which had been damaged and no longer held a full charge), and a 160 watt portable solar panel…more than $2k in total spent – gulp! At least we are back on track again for getting off the grid without sleepless nights worrying whether our fridge will still be running in the morning.
Miss Tassie had a good explore of the caravan park this afternoon, her favourite locations tending to be my least – ie the dusty, dirty areas behind and under cabins, apparently all smelling intriguingly of mice and lizards. A sunny supervisory spot on a cushion was her preferred place of rest, as Mr A and I ran around servicing her needs and cleaning her palace. Oh what a life it would be to reincarnate as our blue Burmese Princess!
We rode down Gyndier Drive, a locked gate road winding up through the forest. The route is used as part of the Noosa triathlon and twice a year the site for road and race cars which enter the Noosa Hill Climb, with 14 corners to race through – just us there today though, on our private road.
Everything seemed to be against us, as the rain fell down as hail, and then in ridiculously heavy torrents. The road was mostly unpaved and the orange mud ran down in rivers, making the surface sticky and slippery as well as it already being extremely steep. We kept on going. Finally, we reached the carpark with some relief, and the rain stopped!
We left the bikes leaning in the car park, hoping nobody would steal them, and hiked up the final kilometre to the summit, with fabulous views over Noosa Heads and the next rain shower heading our way.
We enjoyed the view, then retraced our steps (wheels?) a short way before heading through the forest along an ‘easy’ route.
I’m certain it is easy when dry, but the wet conditions had us slipping and sliding sideways down the tracks, thankfully staying upright. It was a short way from the end of this track back to our caravan, with just over 20km under our belts. Boiled eggs & Marmite soldiers burned off I think!
We headed back to camp for a relaxed evening. We move on from here tomorrow…
It was sensory overload, and bike panniers were filled at a rate of knots. We tore ourselves away and cycled back, to find Ray and Wendy cooking up a storm of a breaky with their friends Sue and Chris who were house sitting in the apartment downstairs. The nitrate free bacon was definitely the tastiest I can ever remember.
Catherine and I then jumped on the bikes again to explore around town, finding ourselves on a network of shared paths and ending up at the stunning main beach at the river mouth.
We headed back through a packed out Hastings Street. Sunday would be a day to avoid coming down here, especially with a car, but we cruised past the traffic jams on our bikes of course.
Ray negotiated the sandbanks today very carefully, and pulled us up on the other side of the river mouth where the water was rapidly draining out, making for some fun fast floats with the current. We watched kite surfers racing across the water in the stiffening breeze, what amazing skill – it looked exhilarating.
Sea eagles again soared overhead. What a place.
And what an end to the day, Mrs A produced for dinner the most amazing Thai basil chilli stir-fry. It was just so delicious. She knows just how much heat we like, all the ingredients are made up from scratch, and there’s been many a Thai restaurant I’ve been to over the years that have turned out a lot less tastier food. Mmmm
Late afternoon and we were back at Zone with all the jobs having been ticked off.
It was almost dark though as we headed off to find our camp for the night on a property north of Noosa. We pulled into the farmyard and there’s another Zone! Fellow Sydneysiders as well from the northern beaches enjoying their “gap year” travelling around Australia. We are looking forward to hearing their stories in the morning!
We retreated and headed back and headed off through town on the bikes to the next ride. This thankfully was a lot drier and we had a great ride round part of the reservoir.
The bikes have been so well used on this trip already, I couldn’t imagine doing a trip without them. We love walking, but cycling the bush is just a very different experience. You can cover so much more distance, and there’s the thrill of the ride when its a bit bumpy :). The downside is that we don’t see as much wildlife, especially when I am in front, the big old Surly crashing through. When we are walking I’m not allowed in front as I block the view! We did see a large lace monitor today though – can you spot it up the paperbark gum? Not the best disguise…!
This hinterland is really stunning. I can see the attraction in living up here, a little cooler in the evening, plenty of big blocks.
I loaded up the bikes onto the Cruiser, so glad we have a spare wheel mounted bike rack with us, as it was a 30 minute drive through narrow twisting country lanes that were decidedly un-bike friendly, to where Google told us was the start of the trail. This turned out to be 7km from the actual start of rail trail itself, but still on a good bike path. After a detour to find a toilet (there’s none on this section of the trail) we were finally on our way.
What a fantastic ride – we were almost immediately surrounded by bush and farmland, rolling hills on either side, only the birds twittering away and not an engine noise to be heard. The trail is called the Brisbane Valley Rail Trail and stretches for 160km, with further sections still attracting funding and being completed. I do hope no one who agreed to spend the money is counting traffic on it. Four of us on the first 22km of the trail on a public holiday would surely cause them to think ‘Is this money being well spent?’ Perhaps the “build it and they will come” philosophy is operating here. Let’s hope they are right, but with cycling participation nationally falling for this type of casual riding, I have my doubts. What a shame. We had an awesome few hours on this gem of a ride.
Back at base in Pullenvale and a late lunch magically appeared from Maria (our friends’ mum). Given we were two hours earlier than planned I’m not sure quite how, but we weren’t complaining. A Moravian favourite apparently of cauliflower, broccoli, mince and spaghetti was washed down with a beer. Perfect. 
Then it was off to the local garden centre for cake, coffee and potting compost – not all these items were consumables of course.
I then settled in for a long overdue bike cleaning and maintenance session while madam did some work on a couple of research papers she is preparing with doctors in the USA. A very light salad and a dose of Netflix and a sound sleep again in the quiet haven of our location.
We headed out for a paddle this morning, unfortunately just as the wind picked up so it was a pretty short one. We headed across the Wooli Wooli river (so good they named it twice?) right from our caravan, then headed along the opposite shore towards the ocean. Beautiful paperbarks and mangroves lined the edge, twisted into incredible shapes.
Massive sand dunes towered over us, framing a beautiful contrast with the blue water. Love these little packrafts to enable us to get out here on the water.
The afternoon saw us out on the bikes for a quick spin along some of the same trails as yesterday, and they were equally gorgeous.
We attempted to ride back along the beach but the incoming tide and soft sand defeated that plan. So it was a quick rest stop at the Wooli Hotel for cold one before retuning to the Zone, just 11km under our belts.
A happy hour was spent trying to get our plumbing sorted, with limited success, so we have a pretty measly dribble of water unfortunately. Hoping this will get sorted at Zone when we go for the service in a couple of weeks.
Our caravan park wasn’t anything to rave about, we are about a metre from a road, albeit not a busy one, but once the privacy screens were up it felt a little better. Sadly we then got the news that our friends have had to say goodbye to their cat today. We knew it was coming but still it will be a tough time for them. We have so enjoyed sharing the joy with them that our respective feline fur children have brought us. Happiness is fragile.
We road back through town and out into the national park along a sandy track. The bird life was prolific, a black shouldered kite soared overhead and a noisy friarbird made…well noisy noises.
Our catch up was made possible by the hard work of fellow Zoner Ash Cook, who set up and administers a Facebook group so Zone owners, and those considering buying, can exchange stories of their travels and experiences with the caravans. It’s been a fantastic resource for us all.
I love Australia’s naming conventions and how they keep you guessing! It was a fabulous view, massive rollers coming in after the recent wild weather and pounding the coast. Looking forward to exploring a bit further afield tomorrow.
The other side of the river was much quieter, with hardly a car on the road. We passed more oyster farms and beautiful white gum trees, before reaching the next ferry about 6km later.
While the afternoon was bright and sunny, we noticed that the sky to the west was looking very dark. A quick look at the weather forecast listed a whole load of warnings, including for severe thunder storms, large hail and strong winds…we whizzed back to the campground to make sure windows were closed and the awning was secured. Of course, no inclement weather eventuated, just a hot cloudy humid evening. Still it was a good 18km ride, and got the blood moving after a few days of not much activity.