On this occasion it was just Cathy and I joined by good mate Craig, a man of little words but the smile on his face said it all as he hasn't ridden up north until now and he enjoyed it as much as we did. We managed to take in the Putty Rd, Bucketts Way, Lakes Way, Oxley Hwy, Thunderbolts Way and Waterfall way, all popular among NSW motorcyclists.
Day 1: Map (563 km travelled)
After meeting good mate, Craig at Penrith, we set off at 8 am through Castlereagh, up the Putty road, Singleton and on to Dungog, where we stopped for our first break. Dungog is a quiet little town in the upper Hunter Valley and a peaceful place to rest and enjoy a drink and a chat.
Cathy and I recently discovered this new micro brewery that has opened up in Dungog, and looked forward to sharing it with Craig, who enjoys a beer or two on occasion. As you can see by the sign, today was Australia Day and we spent it doing what we love.
Cathy and Craig enjoying an early light lunch at the brewery.
The spotless new brewing vats looking quite impressive.
After leaving Dungog we rode on through Stroud, Bulahdelah, through the Lakes Way and here to Forster where we enjoyed another break off the saddle. This area is south of the bridge on the inside of the inlet.
Hard work this riding business!
Nearby, families enjoy the area, fishing and swimming, on our national day.
This boat takes people out on sightseeing cruises, dolphin and whale watching.
This little fella trying his best to catch fish with all the jumping and splashing by nearby swimmers.
This lovely board walk follows the river inlet out to the beach.
Celebrating Australia Day their own way.
Leaving Forster, we move on to Port Macquarie where we spend the night at the Port Macquarie Hotel. One of our favourite pubs, in a good location and great value at just $65 a night per room.
Here, Craig laps up a "sneaky" beer to celebrate a great day's riding, before we all go for a walk.
At this time of the evening it looked like rain, but never came. The sticky humidity was very high though.
As in Forster, children were enjoying having a fish off the local wharf.
This walk is very pleasant and follows the river out to the ocean front.
So many rocks painted by families to commemorate their stay in Port Macquarie or to remember someone dear to them that has passed away.
This local cormorant dries off after diving for fish.
He turned his head to have his better side photographed. Who am I to ask questions?
At the end of the walk way, we reach this surf beach.
Surfers waiting for that perfect wave to ride in.
You go girl !
Off to the side, swimmers also enjoy the water and now the sun has come out.
Eventually, we return to the pub, where we enjoy a nice meal and a few drinks together, while chatting about the ride we had and other small talk.
Upstairs rooms in the pub which are all very tidy and comfortable to rest in.
Day 2: Map (421 km travelled)
This morning, we were met with blue skies which got us excited and eager to get on the bikes. The bikes are packed and ready to go, while we had breakfast across the road from the pub.
I took the opportunity to snap a couple of pics while waiting for breakfast. The sunshine really changes the outlook, compared to the cloud the previous evening.
Loving the crisp morning temperature and calm water.
After refuelling in Wauchope, we look forward to riding the Oxley Highway, popular amongst NSW motorcyclists.
This was Craig's first ride on the Oxley and he set off to enjoy himself on some great roads, knowing we wouldn't be too far behind. As usual, Cathy and I make a few stops to take the odd pic and "smell the roses".
And this is what it's all about.
The Oxley Hwy is exciting to ride and in very good repair.
Here we make another stop at a picnic ground along the way.
Barbecue anyone?
Another biker passes by, enjoying himself no doubt.
After leaving the "twisties" section of the Oxley, the road opens up to fantastic open farmland, not too far from Walcha.
And more great road to enjoy.
Just outside Walcha, Cathy and I stop to enjoy Apsley Falls.
Cathy walks on to the lookout.
The falls weren't flowing too impressively but the sheer drop to the bottom of the gorge was very dramatic.
While our baby waits patiently for us in the car park.
A short walk away, another lookout shows off the enormity of the gorge.
So deep and hard to understand that it was shaped by just water erosion.
We meet back up with Craig in Walcha where we refuel the bikes for the second half of the day's ride and take a break at this cafe, popular with bikers. Also owned and run by bike enthusiasts, with beautiful rooms available upstairs.
The cafe stands at this round about where we turn right to ride on through to Urunga, just south of Coffs Harbour.
To the rear of the cafe, the owners show off their collection of old cars and other memorabilia.
This tree is entirely hand made, believe it or not.
Close up, you can see it is made of hundreds of steel star posts artistically welded together. Love it!
Meanwhile, a collection of rusty old bits and pieces hang on the fence.
The only other place I have seen boots used as pots was in Southern France. Must try it one day.
Another steel piece of artwork stands in the garden while Cathy enjoys a light snack.
We leave Walcha to join the Waterfall Way back to the coast to Urunga. A beautiful little village just south of Coffs Harbour.
The Waterfall Way is so named due to the amount of waterfalls and gorges you can visit along the way. Unfortunately we had many kms to ride and could only stop to enjoy one of them.
Previously, we have visited Ebor Falls near by, so this trip we decided to take a look at Wollomombi Falls and Gorge.
Craig enjoying the view.
These falls were flowing a little better and the gorge was huge and very impressive.
This whole area is quite fertile and receives a considerable amount of rain throughout the year as you can tell by the moss growing from the trees.
Cathy walks on back to the bike to continue the ride on to Dorrigo and lunch.
This pub in Dorrigo was our choice for a break, where we enjoyed a cold drink and lunch.
While our bikes waited outside.
Just outside Dorrigo, we find Newell Falls.
In times of heavy rainfall, this waterfall has been known to shoot straight across the road, effectively closing it until the flow recedes.
We arrive in Urunga at about 4 pm and to one of our most favourite pubs. The Ocean View Hotel.
Urunga is a sleepy little village that stands on the Bellinger River and this lovely scene is just across the road from the pub.
As we have done before, we take a walk on the timber footbridge that follows the river out to the ocean for a kilometre.
It was low tide so the water was very shallow.
This is what remains of the older previous foot bridge.
The end of the walk way makes for a good viewing platform for whale watching.
Looking north up the coast.
There are viewing platforms along the walk with interesting information posted for anyone interested.
This fisherman doesn't seem to want too walk too far so drives his car on to the beach.
Various birds and other wildlife can be seen along the way if you take your time and pay attention.
The inlet makes for good fishing.
Quite a few pelicans around too. Apart from the human variety.
Then it was back to the pub for dinner and drinks and again to enjoy each other's company.
Day 3: Map (633 kms travelled)
The morning of our final day of the tour, we decided to get an early start as we had some big kms to tackle.
The pub serves an all inclusive breakfast at 6:30 am so we were ready packed and on our way by 7:30 am. But not before taking our compulsory photo outside the pub.
Due to the larger distance we road boring freeway all the way to Taree before turning off to Gloucester and the Bucketts Way.
Here we fuel up in Kempsey.
Another great road with great scenery and little traffic.
Short break in Tinonee before riding on to Gloucester, Dungog and lunch in East Gresford.
We were going to stop for lunch in Dungog, however I remembered this pub in East Gresford that we have passed on many occasion and decided to ride on to there instead.
The pub stands at this confusing intersection. We were riding on in the direction of Singleton after lunch.
Our girl parked in the shade out of the sun. The bike told me that the ambient temperature was 37 degrees and the heat off the tarmac was very uncomfortable.
Lunch on the verandah out back was very pleasant and quiet.
After lunch, we rode on to Singleton where we refuelled for one last time, before heading up the Putty Road once again and taking one last break at the Grey Gums Cafe, halfway to Richmond. Another cafe very popular with motorcyclists.
Cathy and I arrived home at 5 pm, tired and smelly but very satisfied with our three day tour with Craig. It was another great ride that saw us take in country side that was the best that NSW had to offer, that varied from beautiful green dairy farm land to temperate rainforest and Australian bushland and fresh coastal beaches. The roads were great and the weather was very kind to us with just a light sprinkle halfway through our first day. Can't wait for the next one.
