Although we wanted to spend time in Byron, we decided to keep moving because everything was inflated due to the holiday. It worked out well because Byron was extremely crowded because it is a desired holiday destination because. Rightfully so with the beautiful beaches and great surf breaks. Back on the bikes and we continued down the coast through Ballina, catching the Pacific Highway for the first time down toward Illuka. Riding the 26k on the Pacific Highway made us grateful that we had changed our original course, allowing for smaller roads with less traffic. The highway had very small shoulders with many cars and road trains. We couldn't wait to be off this highway.
Illuka and Yumba were spectacular. Taking a ferry between the two towns, we were praised on the ferry by a tour group of older Australian's in their 70's and 80's. They encouraged us to "do it while you can" words of reassuring wisdom. I'm not sure if I have mentioned this before, but it is a pretty typical trend to have people between the ages of 30-50 wonder why we aren't buying a house and saving for retirement while the people 70+ tell us to do this while we can, life is too short and how they now wish they too could have experienced something similar. It is refreshing to hear these words of wisdom from people who have lived long lives.
After spending the night tucked in the woods, hidden amongst trees as a rest stop, we woke with the sun to break down our tent before the ranger made his rounds. The brisk morning air was chilly on our knuckles as we headed into town to make our typical breakfast of oatmeal and tea. As we sat at a table along the water, we were greeted by a older gentleman who informed us that it was our lucky day because we were sitting at "the table of wisdom." The local men in the area would meet at this table each morning and just talk. Lucky us! 2 hours later, we were still exchanging stories, hearing about the fishing and how the town of Yamba had grown over the years. Great men and great stories. In these situations, we try to close our mouths and open our ears as this is what traveling is all about.
The towns along the water are simply gorgeous, and had we been there during a less touristy time, we would have continued down the coast. Because of the inflated costs for those few short weeks, we headed west, back into the mountains. McClean is a town known for their Scottish festival and Grafton is known for..... well, I'm not sure. To us, Grafton was the place where we learned about showgrounds, an alternative to campgrounds that only charge $5-$10 for a place to put our tent and have a shower. From here to Sydney, we would occasionally stop at a showground for a long, hot shower. Again, it's all about the little things that we often take for granted. A hot shower or a hot cup of tea can make all the difference in the world.
Stopping in a bike shop in Grafton, we asked the woman working which way she would travel by bike. After some coaxing to hear her road less travelled, she told of the route taking the Old Glenn Innes Highway up into the tablelands. It was spectacular! The beginning section was miles of uphill but at least paved. A day of riding led to a unmarked camping area along a beautiful river. Supposedly these rivers are clean enough to drink, but we used our UV water filter because of the cattle in the area. This road was built because of mining and had flourishing towns at one point in the 1800's. The towns now are barely visible having been reclaimed by the forest. It's hard to believe that a few thousand people lived there with saloons and stores and homes. The highway is rarely used nowadays, only by the locals looking for wilderness.
Most of this highway was gravel and dirt, making for slow time but tremendous beauty. Knowing we would not see any towns with stores to restock, we prepared for 3 nights out along with an emergency dinner. Thankfully we had some extra food because it took us longer than expected. The Old Glenn Innes Highway ended with what people and maps referred to as "The Big Hill." It was obviously steep because they took the time to pave those last 7 miles. We ate the last of our oatmeal that morning and started our steep climb. People were not lying, it was steep.....and long....and tiring. Getting to the top, we had our last granola bar hoping that the main highway we were now on would have something for a snack before the 20 miles to Glenn Innes. No luck. We were starved and running out of fuel. With about 10 miles to go, we scrapped every last bit of peanut butter from the jar. That was a tough moment for us. Running out of water and food is a totally unique experience, making us appreciate how fortunate we are to not be hungry on a regular basis. No worries, we did make it to Glenn Innes and stopped to gorge at our first opportunity.
Continuing south, taking back roads when possible, we passed through Armidale, Uralla and Walcha. The temperatures dropped considerably once up on the high plateau, at one point crossing close to 5,000ft up. It was like riding from summer at the beach to autumn in the hills. At Walcha, getting off the main highway, we took Thunderbolts Way for ups and downs of beautiful rolling hills through Nowendoc to Gloucester. If you are pronouncing Gloucester, chances are you are doing so incorrectly. Those Australian's do not follow the phonetics that we are used to! Over the last few weeks, we found ourselves too hungry too often. We no longer had one extra meal but rather stocked up for two or three. I'm very thankful we learned that lesson because everything, and I mean everything, closed for Easter day, Good Friday, and Anzac Day. Basically, all shops were closed for 4 days. Being prepared saved us and we easily continued our ride with full bellies, only in constant search for water.
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