I spent over a week in Melbourne. My visit coincident with the Australian Open tennis tournament. I really enjoy being in Melbourne when the tennis is on.
Train to Warrnambool
I took the V/Line train from Southern Cross station to Warrnambool. The train is fairly old and not particularly fast. However, it is comfortable and much better way of travelling than a bus, car or plane.
Catching up with another Cyclist
Before I left Melbourne, I made contact with a fellow cyclist that I met a on the ‘Outback Odyssey’ bike ride back on 2009.
This ride follows the Mawson Trail which runs for Adelaide to the Flinders Rangers. It has three sections. The ride I did was the northern section from Melrose to Blinman. I met my fellow cyclist of the second day of the ride. He told me that he had a bicycle shop in Warnambool. He said the named of the shop was a “family name”. The name is very famous in Australian cycling.
The ride was very good. The fellow cyclist with the bike shop turned out the very an exceptional rider. I followed him of parts the ride. It was like following a very good skier. He was able to pick lines over the rough terrain that you would not seem possible.
I was great to catch up with the fellow cyclist and chatting about cycling and other issues. He has sold his bicycle shop. Like many small bike shops, the competition from the large chains and the internet makes it very difficult for smaller operators. He is now running a ‘solar power’ business.
The Rail Trail
The rail line form Warrnambool to Port Fairy ran from 1890 until 1977. Some of its history can be found at the link to the Rail Trail website below.
In 2005, community groups started pushing for the old railway line to be converted into a rail trail. Various sections were completed over the period 2015.
On the Rail Trail
The Rail Trail starts at the Breakwater at the mouth of the Merri River in Warrnambool. This is a fairly spectacular part of the coastline.
Heading inland along the river, the trail follows the river through the outer suburbs of the town. Bits of the trail are on boardwalks.
Once out the town, much of the trail is on dirty roads shared with vehicles.
At one point I spotted a snake sunning itself on the road ahead. I am a bit wary of snakes, knowing that tiger snakes can be very aggressive. Fortunately, this snake wasn’t interested in me and slithered off into the bushes beside the road.
The next section was across some wetlands, again with some boardwalks and then into a farm. Up to this point it was not obvious where the original rail line had run.
The run into the village of Koroit involves some riding next to a fairly busy road.
I stopped in Koroit for the coffee. It is a historic little place with some interesting old building.
The old railway station in the town is well preserved.
Into Port Fairy
After Koroit the trail is obviously following the original rail line. It is very straight and on the corridor between paddocks on either side. The old ‘mileage’ makers showing the distance from Melbourne are still in place. There are also signs for the old ‘intermediate’ stations along the route.
The last part of the trial into Port Fairy is sealed. A sign on the edge of town proclaims that it is the ‘Most Liveable Town in Victoria.
Sports Rorts
I had booked a room in the Port Fairy YHA. The hostel is in the historic building with some the rooms in the old stables out the back.
As I approached the reception, I could hear a woman talking loudly on the phone. She was talking about her tennis club and the ‘government grants’. The big ‘political’ issue of the day was a scandal involving government minister handing out grants to sporting clubs in marginal electorates. It was clearly blatant ‘pork’ barrelling.
The woman turned out to be the manager of the hostel. I told her that “I could not help overhearing what she was saying”. She told me that “the tennis club didn’t get any money because this is a safe Liberal Party seat”. She went on to say that “if we couldn’t get money, clubs in safe Labor seats would have even less chance”. We both agreed that the behaviour of the both the minister concerned and the ‘prime minister’ was a disgrace.
Remembering the Great Ocean Road Ride 2009
One of the reasons for coming to Port Fairy was that it really impressed me when I first visited the place back in November 2009. That was when I did ‘The Great Ocean Road’ ride.
I did that ride with Bike Victoria. The ride went from Portland which is west of Port Fairly, through to Queenscliff on Port Phillip Bay. We stopped in Port Fairy for two nights.
The town is on the Moyne River and one of its features is the wharf that runs along the river. The town has always been prosperous. It was a key port for wool and wheat being transported from the rich farming areas to the north. Even after rail took that business away, the town prospered as fishing port and a place for the wealthy Western District graziers to holiday.
Today, the town remains a very popular holiday destination. It hosts a number of the music festivals and other events. It is also has become a popular place for people to retire.
The town has some great old cottages and some very fancy new homes. It has pretty good restaurants, cafes and pubs.
Telling Locals about Malcolm Fraser Losing his Trousers
I was having a beer in one the pubs when I got into conservation with some of the locals. They were having a ‘political’ discussion. One bloke was clearly ‘left of centre’ and was expressing views critical of the current ‘prime minister’. These views were not shared by his ‘mates’. He was clearly outnumbered.
I made number of comments in support of the ‘left winger’.
The discussion moved on to the blokes reflecting on previous ‘local members’ for the seat of Wannon. The most famous of these was of course, Malcolm Fraser. The Fraser became Prime Minister after the ‘Dismissal’ of the Whitlam Government in 1975 and lost his Prime Ministership to Bob Hawke in 1983.
Their recollection of Malcolm prompted me tell them about my memoires about when he ‘lost his trousers’ in 1986. You can find details of those memories at the link below.
The story seemed to interest most of the people listening. One of two of the more ‘right leaning’ drinkers were not so impressed. They were even less impressed when reminded them that in later life Malcolm Fraser resigned from the Liberal Party in ‘disgust’ and the developed some very “enlightened left wing views”. I recalled the former Labor Foreign Minister Gareth Evans commenting in a Phillip Adams interview that he was “surprised when Malcolm overtook him on the left”.
In the end the conservation was in good humour. The ‘left leaning’ bloke shouted me a beer.
Leaving Port Fairy
After a pleasant stay I left Port Fairy for Mount Gambier by bus.
Flickr Links
Rail Trail
Outback Odyssey
Great Ocean Road Ride November 2009
Garmin Link
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/4493080328
Other Links
Link to Mawson Trail
Link to Rail Trail Website
Home
Malcolm Fraser Loses his Trousers
Remembering when Malcolm Fraser (MHR) lost his trousers in October 1986.
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