The South Pole

Around the end of September 2023, I decided to take a little trip out of town with the bike for a change of scenery. The location I picked - Tamworth - was chosen in no small part because of Williamsburg - a previously mentioned burger joint. The burgers were still delicious, but not as good as before since they removed slow cooked brisket from the menu. What were they thinking? Anyways, the primary goal was going cycling somewhere that's not too hilly and far enough from major cities that the traffic would be light.

The lack of hills was important as this was pretty soon after a few somewhat rough months - an injury, a prolonged cold, a bit of weight gain spurred by the getting-kicked-out-of-the-rented-appartment stress. As a result, I found myself quite a bit worse off than at a recent peak in April, when I was able to complete the Mount Buffalo climb in one go - a thousand metre high continuous climb at approx 5%.

September was different. In September, basically any climb seemed daunting. Tamworth it was.

Which still offered some rolling hills, but no major climbs. (somewhere between Nemingha and Kootingal, NSW)

The most obvious way to get to Tamworth from Sydney is following the motorway north, then taking the Hunter Expressway through Kurri Kurri and New England Highway all the way to Tamworth. There's an alternative route, offering much more picturesque views - Thunderbolts Way - but it means an hour long detour, so I opted against it. The idea was that I would cycle in afternoon of the day I arrive. Little did I know, a caravan crash caused an hour long delay, thwarting my time saving route choice. On the way back, I opted for Thunderbolts.

Initially, I planned 3 rides of approx 50 km each, but in the end - due to the poor shape I found myself in - only did two - one on the day I arrived, one the next day, with somewhat embarrassing distances of 44 and 50 km respectively. But I still managed to have a great time.

The first ride took me from Woolomin to Nundle and back, through the rolling hills and by the Chaffey Dam reservoir. A very low traffic route with a lot of farm animals around to keep me company. The view of the reservoir is also quite pretty, especially on the way back, as the sun was setting over it.

Some of Woolomin’s decoration (Woolomin, NSW)

Nundle - where I've been before, but where I haven't cycled - turns out to be home to some of the most vicious magpies I've ever encountered. There was a pair of them, holding a territorial claim over the road into the village. On the way in, they weren't too dangerous, as it was a fairly fast downhill and the sun was behind me, meaning I could respond to their shadows. I say ‘respond’, but what I really mean is panicked flailing of my head to scare them off just as they approach.

The way out - uphill and into the sun - was much more challenging. They swooped aggressively, pecking at my helmet, one actually landing on my back. I got out of it with no injuries at all, but the sharp claws of the maggie right below my neck were quite a scary sensation. Before that last encounter, though, I stopped at the local store for some ice cream and had a chat with the shopkeeper - he told me that some unfortunate tourist lady needed medical attention after they poked a bloodied hole in her head earlier the same day.

Chafey Dam reservoir, a little bit past sunset

For my second ride, I went from Nemingha to Limbri and back. The traffic was very sparse again. The first part of the route - to Kootingal - is a road parallel to the much busier New England Highway, while the latter part is a bit of a road to nowhere. Limbri is a locality of about 250 people and the paved road ends therein. A gravel road continues and rejoins a major highway - the Oxley - in Woolbrook. But realistically, there's hardly any reason for anyone but the locals to take it, so there really aren't many cars going into Limbri.

End of the road. Well, basically. (Limbri, NSW)

The road led through more rolling hills and farmlands, approximately following the train line from Tamworth to Armidale and I even got to see the train a few kilometres from the village. I didn't investigate the train station, unfortunately, which I think is defunct - I wish I had taken a slight detour to have a look at it. What I did see, though, was a great abandoned bus - and a number of sheep, in places dangerously invading the road.

The bus. (somewhere southwest of Limbri, NSW)

Kootingal turned out to be of particular interest to me on account of it's large sparrow population. The chirps of the little guys accompanied me all the way throughout the village, some 2 or 3 kilometres long. A really nice and nostalgic experience, especially considering how rare it is to bump into a sparrow in Sydney.

This isn’t a sparrow. (dead female superb fairywren, somewhere between Nemingha and Kootingal, NSW)

The third and last day, I felt a bit too worn out to go for a ride. I went to the Tamworth Marsupial Park instead - with no entry fees, it offers a nice little walk with a lot of native vegetation, some - if you can believe it - marsupials, and, most importantly - several aviaries. Some are walk in, some are fenced off, but I got to hang out with some birds and made friends with a galah who was kind enough to entertain me by dancing, singing and saying 'hello'.

The road back was uneventful, but - Thunderbolts - pretty.

Overall, it was a really nice, if short, trip. I wish I could do these more often. Unfortunately, places with really light traffic tend to be a fairly long drive away from Sydney - making it a rather time-intensive weekend getaway, and the fuel and accommodation costs easily add up.