I left Marlo and headed along the Snowy River to Orbost.
On the East Gippsland Rail Trail
From Orbost, I headed on to the East Gippsland Rail Trail. This is the second time I have been on this trail. The last time was back in 2010.
The trail is 95 kilometers long. The last time I did it, I travelled the whole distance in one day twice – Bainsdale to Orbost and back the next day. This time I was taking three days in one direction with a rest day.
Nowa Nowa
My first stop was Nowa Nowa. The route took me across the Snowy River and along a relatively hilly part of the country. It can’t have been easy to build the rail line here. A feature of this part of the trail is a series of timber bridges. These are amazing structures. Check out the photos.
As I was riding along I came across an Echidna. These guys are so funny. It was in the track and when it saw me it headed into the bush. However, it only moved into the bush about one metre where it curled itself into the ball. Check out the video.
I stayed a camping ground in Nowa Nowa. The business has recently been taken over by a new owner. He charged $30 for the night. I thought this was a bit rich for my little tent. My neighbour was a ‘long term stayer’ in a caravan. He told that “the new owner is a ‘rip off merchant’ and the pervious owner only charged $10 for small tents”.
Old farts on the Trail
As I was leaving Nowa Nowa, I came across a van towing a large trailer with lots of bike racks. I stopped to chat with the driver. He told me that he was the “support crew for a bunch of ex-servicemen who were riding the bike trails in Victoria”. They had done the ‘River to the Mountains’ in the North East, the Gippsland Trail and now this one. He was waiting for the riders to arrive from Bruthen.
As I headed off, I came across the first of the riders. They were travelling quite quickly. There was a very long gap before I came across the next rider and an even long gap before next lot. It was extraordinary how spread-out they were over. Clearly, there was ‘fast’, ‘slow’, and ‘very slow’ in this group.
Bruthen
When I got to Bruthen checked into the Hotel. At $40 for a single room, this was excellent value compared to the campsite in Nowa Nowa.
The big attraction on Bruthen is the Brewery. It has a good selection of beers including a ‘sharp’ IPA. The food is also good.
I decided to stay a day in Bruthen.
Bairnsdale
It is relatively short ride from Bruthen into Bairnsdale.
Into Melbourne
From Bairnsdale I caught the train into Melbourne. The service is an old 1960’s train. However, it does have the advantage of having a freight car. This enables you to simple roll a bicycle onboard without having to detach the panniers.
It was good to be back in Melbourne.
Flickr Link
Garmin Links
Marlo
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/2527461064
Nowa Nowa
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/2527461104
Bruthen
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/2530615498
Gippsland Rail Trail
http://www.eastgippslandrailtrail.com.au/
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