Jan 19

Today our goal is Derwent Bridge. It lies 107k’s to the northeast. There are forest fires
Sweeping through various parts of Tassie and the resultant smoke has obscured the
Mountains as we move closer to the dense rainforests of the west. We are also gaining
In altitude. Baz and I have been battle tested in the Andes during our four and a half
Month bike ride down the length of South America last year. Huge days of climbing in heat, cold, snow and rain leave you mentally tough if not physically ready for long hard periods of cycling. This past experience gives us a different perspective than most other riders.

Dave is a very strong cyclist who has spent a lot of time on the bike both summer and winter. The advent of the fat tire bike has made cycling a year round sport for so many more people like him and he loves being on the bike. Amanda, however, has very little bike experience. She is a marathon runner and a very good athlete but the hours she spent on the trainer for this trip cannot prepare you totally for the days we are putting in.
The two big climbs of the day and overall climbing total of 1900 meters make a tough
Hard day for any cyclist but for Amanda it was huge. Her knees were giving her a lot of pain on the hills, the time on the saddle was long, and the energy required was very
Draining. She was forced to push her bike up a lot of the hills. Not many novice cyclist would have gotten through this day but she persevered through it all. She’s one tough Lady.

We met a delightful young French woman pedaling today. She was loaded down with
Heavy panniers both front and back and a sleeping bag strapped on the fender. As Barry and I were waiting on the side of the road for Dave and Amanda, Justine pulled in to chat. We discovered that she was 23 years old and taking a year off following her college and resultant job as a surveyor. Now she wasn’t sure if she was going to go back to her job. She had biked both islands in NZ, was riding around Tassie now, and then heading to Southeast Asia. She had an open, airy attitude that drew us in and was moving about the same speed as as our group at this point so we had several opportunities to visit during the afternoon.

The countryside was changing from farms and rolling hills to herding country and more frequent mountains. More pockets of woods were interspersed in the still parched yellow hillsides. I heard but couldn’t see flocks of parrots in the trees. They fill the air with a cacophony of raucous chatter. This sound is but a brief interlude as we rush past on two wheels. The air was hot today making our efforts even more taxing.

Arriving at our accommodations in the little town of Derwent Bridge, we were pleasantly
Surprised to find nice comfortable rooms and a large beautiful dining area. Described as a pub hotel, the Wilderness Hotel turned out gourmet meals and a had a full bar lounge. As soon as we found our room, Barry and I hustled down to the bar. He grabbed a cold beer and I got a couple of soft drinks. As we sat chatting Barry asked if
I knew there was liquor in my drinks. I had just drained the lime flavored fluid only to now see that it was 5 percent vodka. Not my choice after a hard day ‘s cycling. I saved the second which Dave chugged down upon his arrival. Sitting in the high ceilinged
Dining room after ordering dinner we were pleasantly surprised by Justine who announced that she found herself bored so pedaled on up to join us. She used our room’s shower then joined us for drinks. A nice way to end our day.

I haven’t posted any photos since I purposely left my computer in Hobart due to the siza and weight. The process of using Wifi to transfer them to my iPad is a little laborious but I hope to accomplish that soon. Sent from my iPad

Jan 18, 2015

This morning we rose early, had a great little breakfast of Spanish omelets and toast, and then pedaled on down to the Hobart harbor where we picked up the bike trail leading us out of town. We all had pared down to the barest minimum of clothing and gear to keep our weight down. Barry was using panniers mounted on his rear bike rack while Dave, Amanda and I were using the new ultralight bag system developed by a small company named Revelate. The largest of these bags is waterproof and fits inside a holster mounted behind the seat post. It seems to work well but requires that the owner be happy with less. We felt that need. The bike trail is 15K long and eliminates the traffic problems for bikers trying to leave the city proper. We then hopped onto the A10 – the main highway leading north and west. 83k of riding today with about a 20k hill climb leading to the small town of Hamilton, our goal for the day.

Our ride today follows the Derwent River which empties into the bay in Hobart. Big rolling hills appear to cascade on down to the river banks. These banks are lined with large mature deciduous trees creating shade and greenery. The hills themselves are very dry now in the summer months here. Yellow and parched they nonetheless are populated with many vineyards and orchards as well as a few scattered large shade trees. The river has that deep dark swollen look and moves with great power. When we reached the hill section of our ride, the temp had risen to 33 C (92 F). With no shade, that type of heat just drains cyclists trying to climb. I stopped several times to cool off and rehydrate. We are very cognizant of the sun here with less ozone protection to block the harmful rays – you must reapply sunscreen often.

We are staying in a small cottage originally built by convicts in the mid 1800’s using sandstone. Very comfortable and homey, this little abode was a pleasant relief to us tired and hot bikers. Our host told us of an opportunity to view platypuses in a slow moving creek just below the cabin. These strange creatures are sort of like a cross between a duck and an otter and yet even much more. We crept hopefully down to the creek at dusk and took up stations waiting for the tell- tale ripple under the water accompanied by a bill just above and a couple of white spots behind. Luck wasn’t on our side tonight despite our patience and we hiked back up the hill to our cabin, crawled under the covers, and didn’t wait long for the sand man to take us away.

Sent from my iPad

January 15, 2016

I arrived at the Hobart airport early afternoon with expectations of having to deal with more logistical problems in getting out of the airport and finding my way to our accommodations at our B&B with duffle and bike box in tow. Instead, I met my buddy Barry in the baggage area, dragged our stuff out the door onto the street to the friendly Airporter Shuttle and were dropped off 1/2 block from the Gattonside Heritage Inn. I had arrived in Sydney early that morning from Dallas on the longest non-stop commercial flight in the world – 8577 miles and 17 hours long. I had had thoughts of being cramped in a cold window seat with little leg room and a snorer and maybe a crying baby nearby for this seemingly endless flight but happily I found myself with two empty seats next to me. Hallellulah! I stretched out in luxury and found myself enjoying a good movie, a pleasant time with my book and a nice long sleep. The connection in Sydney went smoothly and the airport in Hobart I ended up in was so small that there was only one baggage carrousel and our transportation sat waiting within vision just outside the door.

I had met Barry a year and a half ago during our Andes bike ride down the length of South America. It was a group ride of over 7000 miles and four and a half months long. We had become good friends with all the mutual experiences shared along the way. He is what you might refer to as a stand up guy. Genuine, honest and fun loving, this Aussie loves to tip a beer yet is a very organized traveler. His three boys had all graduated from school, Barry had retired at age 57, and his wife Trish was gracious enough to give him the freedom to venture out on these long bike adventures. Our trip here in Tassie will be 3 weeks long and include the circumference of this beautiful island just south of the Australian mainland. Two longtime friends of mine, Dave Taylor and his wife Amanda, will be joining us for the first half of our adventure, then they move on to Melbourne for a visit there. Dave is an emergency doctor and his wife works for a large firm in the health insurance industry. They have a home in Duluth. Dave and I have a long history of cross country skiing together and share many mutual friends. He is quite an athlete. Amanda is also very athletic but this will be her first biking trip.

Hobart is a robust port city which has retained its quaint flavor. It was founded in the early 1800’s when England was looking for a place to transport convicts and determined that Tasmania and Australia were perfect for this purpose. Much of the infrastructure in Tassie was built on the backs of these convicts including the beautiful period homes and commercial buildings that still dominate the architecture here. Despite being 13 degrees latitude further north from Antarctica than Punta Arenas and Ushuaia in South America, it is still a launching point for many people heading to the bottom of the world. Many of the boats we see in the harbor here serve that purpose. What we don’t see any trace of is also significant. The story of the fate of the aborigines here in Tassie after Europeans arrived is a sad one. The last full blooded aborigine died in the 1870’s.

Today we are going to put our bikes together and go for a little shake down ride. Temps are expected to be a pleasant 24 degrees C. Blue skies. It’s now 5 am and I have enjoyed a seven hour sleep despite the significant jet lag. Hobart is 17 hours ahead of Minneapolis.