13 January 2010 NOTE from Lorraine: "Covers newly tarred & dirt roads in the Alps not well known, good reading" There were rumours about that the Falls Creek to Omeo road is now all bitumen. Three of us, Dave (Suzuki V-Strom DL650), John (BMW R1200GS) and I (BMW R100GS) decided to give it a try. Unfortunately for us, we selected a couple of the hottest January days known to mankind - somewhere between 42 and 44 degrees C on Monday and Tuesday, with a much milder day on the Wednesday - just 30 something degrees. We set off early, around 8.00am from Maccas Weston and with Tharwa bridge closed went via Point Hut Crossing to Tharwa then Shannons Flat to Adaminaby. The bitumen terminates about 63kms from Weston and then there is gravel for 39kms. Not good quality gravel - perhaps the grader hasn't been in the area for a while. I found myself travelling at 60kph most of the time. There was bitumen again just 10kms from Adaminaby. After 112kms we arrived at Adaminaby and it was 10.30am, - time for morning coffee. Then we rode the well known route via Kiandra, Cabramurra, Tumut Pond and Tooma Reservoirs to Corryong for lunch - about 141kms. After lunch at Corryong, the ride along the Murray Valley Hwy to Tallangatta for a cold drink - the temperature was around the 40 degree mark by this time. Dave led us on an interesting back road through Gundowing, parallel to the Kiewa Valley Hwy, and we arrived at Mt Beauty with another 158kms on the trip meter. A total of 411kms since we departed Weston - a very hot ride, however we reached Mt Beauty, our overnight stay, at 2.45pm. Plenty of time to relax with a cold beer! Very satisfied that we had booked into the Snowgum Motel - the air-conditioners were quiet and very effective! Tuesday morning and due to the heat we decided an early start was the best alternative, we departed Mt Beauty at 7.45am and rode 32kms of 35-40kph corners on good bitumen to Falls Creek. Then we rode the 36kms of "new" bitumen to join the Omeo Hwy. The "new" bitumen wasn't great - just one and a half lanes wide, is starting to break up in parts and much loose gravel. The loose gravel was possibly caused by cars placing two wheels on the edge of corners. Added to this is the amount of bush and trees close to the road and no advisory speed signs on corners. Not being able to see the exit out of the corner is difficult - then the problem if the local fauna jumps out of that growth! Not a fast section of road, however good scenery at the top before the descent to the Omeo Hwy. The Omeo Hwy follows the Mitta Mitta River to Omeo. This stretch of good quality bitumen provides an interesting ride of 40 to 60kph corners. At Omeo we had ridden 111kms since Mt Beauty and time for a cold drink. Then we rode the well worn route via Swifts Creek and Ensay to Bruthen. These sections are reasonable bitumen with plenty of twisty stuff, especially alongside the Tambo River. Then to Orbost for lunch, that tallied as 166kms since Omeo. It was very hot by this time, at least 40 degrees and a breeze was picking up as the forecast change eventuated. I must admit I wasn't feeling like the ride to Delegate via the Bonang Hwy - the heat had taken its toll. However, it's on the plan so we started the 128kms ride to Delegate - our overnight stay. The Bonang Hwy is not something to ride when you are tired. The corners seem to never cease and the leaf litter and branches from the now strong breeze, soft bitumen on some corners due to the heat and oncoming trucks just add to the complexity. To aid concentration, we did stop several times for a drink and a brief rest. About 80kms from Orbost there was an 11kms section of gravel. With corners damaged by the heavy vehicle traffic and some corrugated parts - it is just a 60kph section of road. After that you are rewarded with some good quality bitumen and some open sweeping corners through Bonang (a couple of houses) to Delegate River. There is a rather modern Tavern at Delegate River that was erected about twenty years ago. However, it has been closed for about two years as successive owners have failed to make it a profitable business. There are no other facilities at Delegate River. Then about 6kms of good quality gravel (suitable for road bikes) interspersed with bitumen sections for the final ride to Delegate and the overnight stay. Therefore, nothing between Orbost and Delegate - take all your supplies with you! I was surprised to see the sign on the outskirts of Delegate - population 450; I thought it was a much larger town. We arrived at 3.45pm and had ridden 405kms for the day. The hotel had no air-conditioning - it had hot and cold showers, cold beer, the publican was friendly and helpful. The café across the road provided a good quality steak dinner. The town did provide a good overnight stay. A storm during the night, around 4.00am, lasted about five minutes and was a refreshing change to the previous days. Wednesday morning and it seemed to be less than 20 degrees when we departed Delegate for the short ride, just 37kms, to Bombala. The road was damp, however very good quality bitumen, a few sweeping curves and good scenery. The scenery was limited due to the mist from last night's rain. From Bombala it was misty and cool; we turned left in the direction of Jincumbilly on the Snowy River Road. This road leads to Dalgety. The road is bitumen apart from an 15 kms section of good quality gravel which is suitable for road bikes. There was no problem travelling at 100kph on this gravel section. We turned right at Maffra and proceeded to Cooma where the temperature had increased. It is 100kms from Bombala to Cooma along this route. After Cooma the usual route home and I arrived at Amaroo just before 12.30pm - in time for lunch. From door to door at Amaroo it was a journey of 1,118kms over the two and a half days. Peter Wilson |