|
|
|
Riding Down Under - Tropical Cairns Australia
- Thread starter MacDoc
- Start date
Ah so nice today. Lake Barrine teahouse.
www.lakebarrine.com.au
Getting Devonshire cream on my nose from the piled high scones.
Bottomless cup of strong black tea with milk and just one bar on the phone to let me check in.
29 and sunny in Cairns but cooler up here sitting next to the lake. Light winds and no traffic on the Gillies.
Figure I'll go back down the Gillies ....new tire tomorrow so scrub off some rubber before retirement.
Heading down to bro -in-laws next week for some fishing so new tire in order. 420 km south. Long day but looking forward to it...start early.
Lake Barrine
Bottomless cup of strong black tea with milk and just one bar on the phone to let me check in.
29 and sunny in Cairns but cooler up here sitting next to the lake. Light winds and no traffic on the Gillies.
Figure I'll go back down the Gillies ....new tire tomorrow so scrub off some rubber before retirement.
Heading down to bro -in-laws next week for some fishing so new tire in order. 420 km south. Long day but looking forward to it...start early.
Last edited:
Nother lovely day - mid 20s puffy clouds and silent running. New tire on the Kuranda Rsnge road and very very quiet inside the helmet.
Once in a while a blind squirrel finds a nut.
I bought an oversize helmet and returned it but just in case I could not I snagged this.
Figured neoprene was comfie and keep my earphones snug.
Well damn it works the charm and quieter than my C3.
View attachment 51292
Was a tad tight off the bat on my XL but after 15 minutes did not notice it except for the exceptional quiet.
Shure 215s stayed super snug, helmet on and off with ease. Better than the balaclava and all of $17. Made in the US too.
Once in a while a blind squirrel finds a nut.
I bought an oversize helmet and returned it but just in case I could not I snagged this.
Figured neoprene was comfie and keep my earphones snug.
Well damn it works the charm and quieter than my C3.
View attachment 51292
Was a tad tight off the bat on my XL but after 15 minutes did not notice it except for the exceptional quiet.
Shure 215s stayed super snug, helmet on and off with ease. Better than the balaclava and all of $17. Made in the US too.
Missed a good riding day due to sheer indolence. Low winds and mid-20s tho somewhat overcast.
Had a busy week online.
Did manage to meet up with a new riding buddy down at Etty Bay. He put up a very good dropbear shot on the photo contest on Stromtroopers.
No cassowaries about but had a good chat and I unloaded the wrong size HWK pants I was sent.
Pigged on a marginal chocolate eclair for lunch
and came across a very fresh road kill of a grey kangaroo in its prime
This was not far from Etty Bay and cassowaries get hit far too often.
Had a busy week online.
Did manage to meet up with a new riding buddy down at Etty Bay. He put up a very good dropbear shot on the photo contest on Stromtroopers.
No cassowaries about but had a good chat and I unloaded the wrong size HWK pants I was sent.
Pigged on a marginal chocolate eclair for lunch
and came across a very fresh road kill of a grey kangaroo in its prime
This was not far from Etty Bay and cassowaries get hit far too often.
Not letting this day get away ...zero wind, sunshine at 7.30 am and 22 going to 29. Good sleep and nice to get out early.
Had a hoot...perfect weather, no traffic - could push the bike on the twists at my leisure ....up the Gillies and down the Kuranda range in a 2 and a bit hour non-stop.
Cept for this
Hundreds of black cockatoos pigging out in a field.
Had not seen this many together
the blacks have taillights.
Looks neat as they take off.
There were gangs of sulphur crested too...
Use to seeing them in big groups
very smart and alert birds..
Had a hoot...perfect weather, no traffic - could push the bike on the twists at my leisure ....up the Gillies and down the Kuranda range in a 2 and a bit hour non-stop.
Cept for this
Hundreds of black cockatoos pigging out in a field.
Had not seen this many together
the blacks have taillights.
Looks neat as they take off.
There were gangs of sulphur crested too...
Use to seeing them in big groups
very smart and alert birds..
Last edited:
Raining during the night but looking like another good day if I can avoid painting duties.
Got home late enough to dodge the brush but tomorrow I'll have to paint in the morning.
Was very enjoyable ride up to Port Douglas, took a break at my fav picnic table with fast 4G signal for the phone and nice shade.
It's almost exactly 100 km round trip to there and just a superb ride along the Pacific coast the James Cook National Highway.
This is longer than needed but actually real time at a leisurely pace.
There are a few spots you can crank it over and nice twists plus elevation changes which are just plain fun. Getting more confident on the CB300. The pavement is pretty much perfect and they design it around being wet so great traction. This video has far more traffic than I usually encounter. Speeds are 60 kph to 100 kph and some of the 60s you can't do much more in the twists.
Smithfield is the toughest one and being re-designed. Some white knuckle moments. Bikes can filter and I do.
all of the white dots are roundabouts.
There are numerous round-abouts at speed prior to this video which are fun and you have to stay on your toes to keep up speed and weave in with traffic which is two lanes each way. Driver discipline is good but you do see the occasional prang up parked on the side. Think four lane 400 series with round abouts every 5 km instead of four leaf clovers. Speeds 60 to 100 kph and traffic coming in from several directions as well as no entry exit restrictions tho on the fastest part most are funneled to the roundabouts. But even on the twists you have to watch for traffic entering and exiting on both sides. Not a ride you want to do tired but it is VERY enjoyable.
Bicycle and pedestrian is pretty dire tho lots bicycle the whole distance .....it's part of an Iron Man course.
Lane discipline is good even with the large trucks but you get tradies that move fast and like to cut the occasional corner.
Felt like 30 and was the wind pattern for the warm season starting in Nov. Come Oct will be new ground for me being in Australia.
Did not wear my kidney belt today and a tad sore but could be painting too which I detest as can only do limited motion with my right hand and left hand is clumsy...
Tomorrow is another day .....
Got home late enough to dodge the brush but tomorrow I'll have to paint in the morning.
Was very enjoyable ride up to Port Douglas, took a break at my fav picnic table with fast 4G signal for the phone and nice shade.
It's almost exactly 100 km round trip to there and just a superb ride along the Pacific coast the James Cook National Highway.
This is longer than needed but actually real time at a leisurely pace.
Smithfield is the toughest one and being re-designed. Some white knuckle moments. Bikes can filter and I do.
all of the white dots are roundabouts.
There are numerous round-abouts at speed prior to this video which are fun and you have to stay on your toes to keep up speed and weave in with traffic which is two lanes each way. Driver discipline is good but you do see the occasional prang up parked on the side. Think four lane 400 series with round abouts every 5 km instead of four leaf clovers. Speeds 60 to 100 kph and traffic coming in from several directions as well as no entry exit restrictions tho on the fastest part most are funneled to the roundabouts. But even on the twists you have to watch for traffic entering and exiting on both sides. Not a ride you want to do tired but it is VERY enjoyable.
Bicycle and pedestrian is pretty dire tho lots bicycle the whole distance .....it's part of an Iron Man course.
Lane discipline is good even with the large trucks but you get tradies that move fast and like to cut the occasional corner.
Felt like 30 and was the wind pattern for the warm season starting in Nov. Come Oct will be new ground for me being in Australia.
Did not wear my kidney belt today and a tad sore but could be painting too which I detest as can only do limited motion with my right hand and left hand is clumsy...
Tomorrow is another day .....
Last edited:
Painting duty today and it's already a humid 26 at 8 am. Sort of overcast. Got lots done. Right arm is holding up from the rotator cuff tear and actually the stretching to paint is likely good for both arms and shoulders.
At least the undercoat is mostly done now. Full painting not looking forward to....painters are jammed up here so even if we wanted to there is no access and partner is fussy on the details. Painting the inside of tall cupboard doors in a dark hallway seems a bit over the top but hey it's her house and worth a pretty penny so will carry on. 4-5 hours with breaks not a burden.
Weather turned very nice ...not so humid and 27... mostly overcast so no great loss of riding time.
Hotter tomorrow tho heading above 30.
Weather turned very nice ...not so humid and 27... mostly overcast so no great loss of riding time.
Hotter tomorrow tho heading above 30.
Last edited:
No painting, no riding ...partner taking a needed break.
Came across this
edition.cnn.com
trying out a pair of Bose QuietComfort BT heaphones but they are unlikely to fit under the helmet. Kicking back to Dire Straits and reading. Trivia tonight
Came across this
World's most dangerous bird raised by humans 18,000 years ago, study suggests | CNN
The earliest bird reared by humans may have been a cassowary, according to a new study. This aggressive bird is best known for its long dagger-like toe and colorful plumage.
edition.cnn.com
trying out a pair of Bose QuietComfort BT heaphones but they are unlikely to fit under the helmet. Kicking back to Dire Straits and reading. Trivia tonight
Last edited:
Looks like a decent riding day today ...sunny mid to high 20s and little wind.
Had a good time with trivia in a good cause ( rescue dogs ) and our hotshot team trounced the locals. 4 of us in 60s and 70s, 4 in 30s and all well travelled cover a lot of bases cept sports. We set some sort of new record.
Was held at a new for us location tho partner sez is was a scene of her misbehaving 4 decades back and a fav watering hole for more than a century.
Cairns fav even now
Decent pub food, fast service and fun.
We got most of the questions correct...I'm local North American for sports, states etc. Blank looks on where does short stop play ...but then the cricket questions I'm the one looking bewildered.
Got foxed on one of these "what's the animal".
Enjoyable night, no covid restrictions....just check in on the app. We won a $50 certificate which we will spend on a rematch. Jude and I going out to Salt House for a feed using another Trivia win from last year.
Terrific setting
salthouse.com.au
But they cheaped out on the type of trivia and many teams lost interest after that. Was pretty intense competition with medical people, pilots, boaters all sharpening wits.
One soon to be doctor was doubtful she could contribute much but then an odd one came up ...identify ten tattoos of famous people.....we mostly looked completely helpless but then she rattled off nine out of 10 correct. who knew??!!
It's one of my few social activities and I really look forward to trivia nights.
Had a good time with trivia in a good cause ( rescue dogs ) and our hotshot team trounced the locals. 4 of us in 60s and 70s, 4 in 30s and all well travelled cover a lot of bases cept sports. We set some sort of new record.
Was held at a new for us location tho partner sez is was a scene of her misbehaving 4 decades back and a fav watering hole for more than a century.
Cairns fav even now
Decent pub food, fast service and fun.
We got most of the questions correct...I'm local North American for sports, states etc. Blank looks on where does short stop play ...but then the cricket questions I'm the one looking bewildered.
Got foxed on one of these "what's the animal".
Enjoyable night, no covid restrictions....just check in on the app. We won a $50 certificate which we will spend on a rematch. Jude and I going out to Salt House for a feed using another Trivia win from last year.
Terrific setting
Home - Salt House Cairns
Salt House is Cairns favourite waterfront spot, distinguished by its sweeping views over the ocean, marina and mountains.
salthouse.com.au
One soon to be doctor was doubtful she could contribute much but then an odd one came up ...identify ten tattoos of famous people.....we mostly looked completely helpless but then she rattled off nine out of 10 correct.
who knew??!!It's one of my few social activities and I really look forward to trivia nights.
#6? A manatee? They normally aren't that blotchy though.
Camel?
Strange wind this evening coming from the interior - gonna stay in the mid 20s all night. Will be fine as need to get out for a ride early and back before noon.
We'll see how busy work is tonight.....best laid plans n'all.
Got a short spin up the Kuranda Range Road which was fun. Needed bread and milk so took an hour detour to hit the supermarket 10 min from home
Going to be 31 and sunny by 10 am so early riding a must. Not sure where yet. Been wearing my heavier riding pants and jacket...might switch out to the mesh jacket and cooler pants.
It definitely felt like tropical weather yesterday with strong sun and relatively high humidity.
Rainy season.....The Wet ....starts November so riding days are precious. I will ride in the wet except when the monsoon trough comes down from the north...then the deluge is epic.
Our house, the roads and infrastructure is geared for that ....not me tho.
Forget rain gear ( as I learned early ) - it's so hot and humid that you are drenched with sweat anyways.
Regular showers you just ride through and the strong sun dries you quickly.
Monsoon rains you stay out of. We are just to the left of the big L
Think Ontario's heaviest Tstorm but for hours
The Barron River which I can ride across on the causeway up river from the falls
the Barron Falls in the dry.
when it's low water becomes a monster in just a few hours you can hear for miles away.
a tribute to tropical vegetation tenancity it can survive the extremes on what appears to be a bare rock.
We'll see how busy work is tonight.....best laid plans n'all.
Got a short spin up the Kuranda Range Road which was fun. Needed bread and milk so took an hour detour to hit the supermarket 10 min from home
Going to be 31 and sunny by 10 am so early riding a must. Not sure where yet. Been wearing my heavier riding pants and jacket...might switch out to the mesh jacket and cooler pants.
It definitely felt like tropical weather yesterday with strong sun and relatively high humidity.
Rainy season.....The Wet ....starts November so riding days are precious. I will ride in the wet except when the monsoon trough comes down from the north...then the deluge is epic.
Our house, the roads and infrastructure is geared for that ....not me tho.
Forget rain gear ( as I learned early ) - it's so hot and humid that you are drenched with sweat anyways.
Regular showers you just ride through and the strong sun dries you quickly.
Monsoon rains you stay out of. We are just to the left of the big L
Think Ontario's heaviest Tstorm but for hours
The Barron River which I can ride across on the causeway up river from the falls
the Barron Falls in the dry.
when it's low water becomes a monster in just a few hours you can hear for miles away.
a tribute to tropical vegetation tenancity it can survive the extremes on what appears to be a bare rock.
Last edited:
No wind, 22 and sun just comine up at 6.30 am. Time to get a ride in before the heat.
Fantastic riding day ...came the long way up to Millaa Millaa.
Just perfect mid-20s and little wind. 300 doesn't have much puff on the steepest part of the Palmerston but a downshift fixes that.
It's such a pretty ride through rainforest then Tableland.
lots of others out
nice latte and lemon tart at the local diner ...we briefly considered downsizing to Millaa Millaa but too far from family in Cairns ...gorgeous area.
and there is the Falls Circuit and my fav Teahouse there as well which was closed today.
Their own pie and mushed peas was on my mind.
a swim in the Millaa Millaa Falls was not tho I have in the past...feels very nice on a hot day.
just about to leave and this showed up this was not all of them,
Fantastic riding day ...came the long way up to Millaa Millaa.
Just perfect mid-20s and little wind. 300 doesn't have much puff on the steepest part of the Palmerston but a downshift fixes that.
It's such a pretty ride through rainforest then Tableland.
lots of others out
nice latte and lemon tart at the local diner ...we briefly considered downsizing to Millaa Millaa but too far from family in Cairns ...gorgeous area.
and there is the Falls Circuit and my fav Teahouse there as well which was closed today.
Their own pie and mushed peas was on my mind.
a swim in the Millaa Millaa Falls was not tho I have in the past...feels very nice on a hot day.
just about to leave and this showed up this was not all of them,
Last edited:
Definitely a better time to ride ....back at noon...gear kept me cool mostly but shower definitely in order ...bit funky. Much fun tho I prefer riding up the Gillies than down. Ride was starting to make my torn rotator cuff ache but a short break, some panadol and water cut that short. Unusual wind direction.
Few more weeks of this and Milla Milla Falls swim will be a weekly event.
Another perfect morning 21 clear and not humid at 6 am but going to 32. Really need to get moving early.
Wish there was a shore snorkeling spot. Reef adventures are glorious this time of year on the Great Barrier Reef but $$.
Went out overnight with my daughter in 2019 and glad we did as not possible yet now. It was a magical night 40 km off shore, no sound of anything mechanical as the pontoon was shut entirely, only wind waves and the Magellenic clouds sprawled across the sky ....and by unplanned coincidence the debris from Halley's Comet was providing quite a sky show of meteors including some excellent fireballs.
We were in swags on the top deck - snug and warm but perfect view of the sky.
www.sunlover.com.au
Should be on everyones bucket list....
These are what's out there in the water where we dove. Not my photos. Courtesy the reef boat.
Wish there was a shore snorkeling spot. Reef adventures are glorious this time of year on the Great Barrier Reef but $$.
Went out overnight with my daughter in 2019 and glad we did as not possible yet now. It was a magical night 40 km off shore, no sound of anything mechanical as the pontoon was shut entirely, only wind waves and the Magellenic clouds sprawled across the sky ....and by unplanned coincidence the debris from Halley's Comet was providing quite a sky show of meteors including some excellent fireballs.
We were in swags on the top deck - snug and warm but perfect view of the sky.
Great Barrier Reef & Fitzroy Island Tours - OFFICIAL WEBSITE
Experience Great Barrier Reef tours with Sunlover. Explore our award-winning tours, including Moore Reef pontoon & Fitzroy Island.
www.sunlover.com.au
Should be on everyones bucket list....
These are what's out there in the water where we dove. Not my photos. Courtesy the reef boat.
It is thick with humidity ...not hot yet but gonna be. Nice ride to Daintree village with little traffic so I could dawdle and enjoy my audio book. Back home by noon - still quite amazed at the cooling in pants and jacket.Having tea and scones in a hobbit second breakfast.
The tea is black and strong the way I like it....grown just up the coast and sold around the world.
Welcome to Daintree Tea Co. - Tea as Mother Nature Intended
Welcome to Daintree Tea Established in 1978 Tea as Mother Nature Intended. Daintree Tea SHOP NOW Daintree Honey SHOP NOW Giftware SHOP NOW Popular Products 4 x 500g Leaf Tea + 4 x 50 Tea Bags SKU: H From $53.9 VIEW OPTIONS 50 Cup or Teapot Bags Premium Packaging SKU: N-N6-N12 From $10.88 - 50.40 […]
daintreetea.com.au
Quite strange having a tail wind on the way home from Daintree and seeing the planes take off in the opposite runway.
32 feels like 35 tomorrow. Sure looked like thunderstorm CUs on the tableland but nothing here.
Still 29 at dusk.
Last edited:
Might just take a pass today tho low wind is tempting and Tablelands cooler
Noisy Friarbirds in the backyard keeping me from snoozing - that is actually their name and they live up to it.
no ride ...no painting ...yet..partner got hung up getting paint. 32 feels like 36 but lowish humidity so not oppressive. Do need to ride tomorrow.
Trivia tonight down the street - looking forward to that.
Last edited:
|
|
|
|
|