Remembering Lennie Gwyther

1932 was a tough year. The Great Depression had been ravaging the world's economies for the past two years. In Australia 1 out of 3 men was unemployed. Across the countryside groups of unemployed men wandered from town to town in search of work.

Closer to home the Gwythear family of Leongatha had their own personal disaster. They owned a small farm of around 30 acres which was thrown into despair when the father broke his leg in an accident. It was at this time that nine year old Lennie Gwythear took on the task of plowing the fields and preparing the paddocks for the upcoming harvest.

His father was so appreciative of this amazing effort that he asked young Lennie what he would like as a reward. Young Lennie was obviously a curious kind of lad and had been reading all about the building of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which was now nearing completion. He told his family that he wanted to go to the opening.

Instead of hitting the roof, Lennie was helped to pack his tiny haversack, saddle his pony "Ginger Mick" and then sent on his way with the family's blessings. Of course a journey of over 600 miles would be a significant feat for anybody, for a 9 year old undertaking a solo trip without any form of communications was breathtaking.

As Lennie began his 6 week journey, the famous bush telegraph started to go to work. Towns were notified of his arrival and offers of accommodation and food made sure that he was looked after.

By the time he reached Canberra, his story had captivated the nation, so much so that he was invited to meet the Prime Minister Joseph Lyons at The Lodge. He continued on his way, eventually reaching Sydney to find the streets lined with thousands of welcoming people, all waving and cheering for this tiny lad on his pony.

His fame had grown so much that he was invited to take part in the official opening of the bridge. A few days later he was feted at the Royal Easter Show and even got to meet his hero Don Bradman, who presented him with a signed bat.

Of course getting to Sydney was only half the task. He still had to get home. He climbed back on Ginger Mick and made the long journey back to Leongatha. On the way home he turned 10 !

He arrived back in Leongatha to be welcomed by a cheering crowd of 800 people, including all the most important people of the district.

Lennie went on to serve in the Army in WW2. He later settled in Hampton and got a job with General Motors Holden. He died of cancer in 1992 at the age of 70.

For a long time this incredible story was forgotten, but in recent times his achievement has been celebrated by the erection of a bronze statue of Lennie and Ginger Mick in Centennial Park in Leongatha. No trip to Leongatha would be complete without a visit to this famous landmark.

When we began the first day of our riding adventure at Fish Creek I explained to the group that the main aim of the day's ride would be to ride to Leongatha and visit the statue of Lennie. So that is exactly what we did.

The conditions were hot and dusty, so the 75 km ride was a somewhat challenging start to our cycling. After riding through to Leongatha, we stopped at Koonwarra on the way back for lunch.

By the time we finally made it back to Fish Creek, most riders said that their legs and nether regions could not have taken much more. Tomorrow our plan is to ride in the easterly direction to Port Welshpool and back again. The only potential spanner in our works is the absolutely terrible weather forecast, which threatens heavy rain, storms and flash flooding in the region. Will that stop us ? Most probably yes.Read more