Middle of Everywhere

I didn’t like leaving Wilsons Prom.

But felt all the richer from having been so surrounded by the wildlife that had delighted us so much. Just having time to sit and have animals so close in proximity - popping out of bushes next to you, flitting through the air above you, or munching grass in front of you - never fails to inspire in us an overwhelming sense of childlike wonder. Especially holding space with the wombats which I loved so completely. It’s hard to put into words, but for me these experiences intensify deeper appreciation for the sheer beauty of the natural world and our own place in it. We felt so fortunate for having visited.

However the wheels keep turning. So with a last farewell from our friendly rosella bird friends, we set off to spend the next six days cycling to Paynesville (to see some koalas) taking us through the ‘Middle of Everywhere’ - local council branding for the central Gippsland rural area of quiet roads and small towns. On the whole, pretty straightforward - especially as some of the route was along an old rail trail - but it didn’t always go to plan!!

29 August - Tidal River to Foster (37 miles)

Full of joie de vivre from spending time at Wilsons Prom it didn’t seem as bad climbing up over the saddle and back up the peninsula to the park’s entrance. We saw a couple of emus by the road, spotted a natural beehive, and I was thrilled to find some bright blue tail feathers. The sun was out, but the wind started to pick up as the day wore on. In our last hour of cycling we were buffeted about in scary gusts. We needed to battle hard to reach Foster and were glad to have a motel to shelter from the worsening wind and rain.

30 August - Foster to Woodside (43 miles)

Still pretty breezy, we joined the Great Southern Rail Trail, navigating around detritus and a fallen tree left by last night’s wind. Easy cycling in the sunshine, under blue skies.

We saw our first handful of wind turbines up on the hill above small town Toora, and our first anti-wind farm placard in Yarram barely 18 miles (30 km) down the road. Intrigued by this, and by something my friend Jason said about Australia still debating whether climate change was a thing, I looked up the energy mix here. Dominated by fossil fuels - 91% oil, coal, and gas, renewables account for 9%. (UK comparison: 80% fossil fuels, 13% renewables, and nuclear 7%). Installation of wind farms has attracted strong local protests, especially in New South Wales and Victoria. Off-shore wind has more support, and Australia has vast, world-class potential for offshore wind energy comparable to or better than Europe's North Sea. The government has declared six offshore wind areas where wind turbines could be erected, but Australia doesn’t have any offshore wind turbines yet. Not one. The Gippsland offshore wind area in Victoria is predicted to come online in the early 2030s.

When the rail trail ended we cycled very straight long quiet roads through flat farmland, before taking an off-road woodland track to our caravan park in Woodside.

Marian, a soon-to-be-permanent-resident of the caravan park came and joined us whilst we were cooking dinner in the kitchen and together we enjoyed the open fire. A natural storyteller and lady who knows her own mind, we found her an inspiration. Recently diagnosed with cancer she had such a pragmatic and open approach to her death which I found quite moving. She talked freely about what she is happy she’s done in life, what remains unsaid and how she’s started to write things down for her children to read, and her plans to involve people in achieving her last aims.

31 August - Woodside to Sale (43 miles)

A sunny morning, we left Woodside to follow forestry tracks through Mullungdung Nature Reserve to avoid cycling along the highway to Sale. Mullungdung area represents the largest continuous native forest remaining in the South Gippsland Region (excluding Wilsons Promontory) and covers approximately 25,000ha. It felt vast. It all started off well… we were enjoying cycling through endless trees…however the forestry track started to deteriorate, getting narrower, becoming sandy, waterlogged and overgrown. By the time we were ‘bushwhacking’ and having to manhandle one bike at a time to navigate gnarly ruts we decided the going was far too slow and if we were to reach Sale before dark we’d need to map our way back to the highway. Sad to leave the trees, we saw a few bouncing kangaroos on our way out of the woods. The highway was straight, sunny and quiet and with the wheels automatically turning we were in Sale before we knew it.

1 and 2 Sept - Sale

A couple of rest days in Sale to plan the route ahead. Our next section contained two options to reach NSW’s east coast and we needed time to work out the comparison pros/cons : 1) main Pacific highway for five days, 150 miles, 10,000 ft total ascent, or 2) narrow, windy, scenic Bonang hwy for six days, 159 miles, 13,800 ft ascent. Option two was highlighted by our friend Jason who recommended it as a quiet, picturesque path through forests and mountains, much better than a slog along the busy main highway. After looking into options to camp and get food, we were all set to climb the Bonang route.

Exploring Sale Common Nature Conservation Reserve, part of an Aboriginal cultural landscape, took us through stunning freshwater marsh and red gum woodland. Cycling round the edge of Sales’ lakes and tranquil wetlands we found to be utterly peaceful and calming, watching the waterfowl, seeing the light play on the water, the reflections of the gums, and listening to the different bird calls, buzzing of insects, calls of frogs, and the sound of the wind in the reeds and trees.

3 Sept - Wed. Sale to Paynesville (51 miles)

A day of quiet backroads with bright warm sunshine and strong westerly winds. The wind made for tricky cycling when cycling north, but at each right turn the wind pushed at our backs and we sailed along reaching highs of 25 mph (40 kph).Read more