Monday 22 April (cont.)
The afternoon ride went like this:
Fuel up and get some lunch at Grafton, head up the Gwydir Highway, turn off at the Old Glen Innes Road. The scenery was always changing:
An old church:
A renovator's delight:
An old bridge:
Good but slowly deteriorating sealed road for around 35km, then ...........
Gravel road, first section very loose, gravel marbles, very slippery, very slow - 1st and 2nd gear for the Mighty CB, engine temp guage showing over 100 Celsius at times. Surface improves, faster speeds, 3rd and 4th gear, temp drops.
Around a few hundred corners, uphill and down dale, and turn a corner to see the Nymboida River at Buccarumbi:
Then Dalmorton:
Around 6km further to the
Tunnel on the edge of the Boyd River:
Some interior decorator had been there already:
The tunnel is listed as a "convict built tunnel" on many websites, but this has been disputed. I don't care either way, it's just something I saw on a map around 30 years, and wanted to see it since.
It's about this time I should mention that Mal's Harley has almost brand new when he left Melbourne, at this stage it had around 3,500km on the clock. From my point of view riding a new Harley on a road like this, and keeping with the Mighty CB, that's Adventure Riding. Well done Mal!!!
Mal & I had our lunch, boiled the billy (well the whistling kettle on the gas stove), had our cuppa, chatted to some gnarly adventurers on a Transalp and a KTM, drank a James Squire each, turned around (Mal had to find a spot for me to around the Mighty CB and trailer).
On the way back Mal spotted the James Squire stubbies I had left behind to keep the XXXX stubbie company, he made me put the back in the Esky.
Two hours to the tunnel from Grafton, two hours back. Arrived Grafton intime to get a pub room, off-street, under cover, lock-up parking at the Great Northern Hotel, $60.00 per twin.
Whilst this ticked all of the boxes, I'd never, ever, ever, ever go back there, but that's another story.
This afternoon's distance = 145km
This afternoon's fuel consumption = 9.5 litres per 100km
It was worth it, the Tunnel was the highlight of the trip so far, and it can't be topped.
Or can it???