RAAUST

About : RAAUST

Adelaide – Sydney September 10 – 25, 2002 Perth – Adelaide October 7 – 25, 2002 Why? “For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move; to feel the needs and hitches of our life more nearly; to come down off this feather bed of civilisation, an find the globe granite underfoot and strewn with cutting flints.” Robert Louis Stevenson

The Summing Up

RAAUST 2002 – Ride Across Australia Adelaide – Sydney September 10 – 25, 2002 Perth – Adelaide October 7 – 25, 2002 Why? “For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move; to feel the needs and hitches of our life

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Adelaide 0km, 0mi *

I spent my last cycling night in the Flinders Hotel in Port Augusta. Like many of the rural hotels in South Australia, it features “Pokies” – a video slot machine/poker game thing that I don’t understand, but it’s a big addiction and controversy around here. Then I wandered around Port Augusta a little bit while

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Pt Augusta 189km, 116mi *

These updates usually end when I get to the destination town. At that point I need to a) find the grocery store, b) find accommodations and c) find dinner – quickly. Grocery stores (supplies for next day) close at 5:30P, and restaurants stop serving at 7:30 or 8. I write the updates at dinner. Some

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Kimba, 244km, 152 mi*

The Eyre Peninsula is shaped like an upside-down pyramid. There are two ways across. You can go (roughly) 500km across the top through farmlands, or 800km (400 down the west side and 400 up the east side) through some small seaside towns to get across. In spite of limited time, I really wanted the coastline.

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Streaky Bay 267k 167m**

Let me start with a diversion – this Japanese guy. He was heading west (!) and we passed somewhere between Penong and Ceduna, maybe 100km into my day. He was really well equipped, didn’t speak hardly a word of English, and was riding slowly into a good 15km+ headwind (my tailwind). After yesterday, he had

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Nundroo 152km, 95mi *

At 18.9kmph this was my slowest riding day. When I left Nullarbor at 6:45AM there was already a moderate headwind. It was overcast (good) and cool (good). Going past the mileage sign I was only able to cruise comfortably at 20kph, in the aerobars. The wind didn’t overly concern me because as the sign indicates,

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Nullarbor 199km, 124mi **

Since I didn’t get to photograph the Eucla Roadhouse in the darkness last night, we need to start with it today. This makes 6 down, 5 to go, I think. The next roadhouse was ridiculously close – only 15km into the morning. Here’s the first mileage sign, the sign announcing Border Village Roadhouse, and the

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Eucla 351km, 218mi ***

Riding with the Scandinavians yesterday, we finished early. Just in case I rode with them today, I went for a brief solo ride at the end of the day to catch the local distance and information signs. This second sign presents a challenge. For some reason, South Australia (Adelaide) is on the half hour. That

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Ciaguna 182km, 114mi *

There’s nothing out here except the roadhouses, usually 120 miles or more apart. The roadhouses are basically a gas station with a little café and a few aged motel rooms tucked in behind. They need to supply their own electricity (diesel) and water (collected from rain). All the roofs are connected to tanks. Belladonia’s had

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Belladonia 193km, 121mi *

Called by various guides “one of the worlds epic car journeys” and “a trip of legendary monotony”, I left Norseman at 8:15A for the ride to the Belladonia Roadhouse. I expected some fanfare, but all I got was the usual mileage sign. Plus water and hazard warning signs. Since it was a 200km day, I

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Norseman 206k/129m*

My brain started shutting down non-essential functions around 3PM to concentrate remaining resources on getting to Norseman before dark. 129 miles on flat road is normally no big deal, but this wasn’t quite flat, and there was a steady headwind most of the day that kept my speeds below 25kph. (In fact I averaged a

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Ravensthorpe 121k/72m*

I woke up about 12:30A and considered leaving the dump at Jerramungup very early and going for a record mileage day. I put on my moccasins and wind breaker, and took a walk to check it out. A couple blocks away was the intersection where the South Coast Highway turns east. (I had been going

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Jerramungup 185k/116m*

I left Albany before 6AM on a Sunday Morning in a dead quiet, except for the birds. The Albany Highway heads about 6km NW to the world’s biggest roundabout where I transition to the South Coast Highway heading NE and came to the mileage sign. A kilometer or two up from here there was a

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Albany 141k/88m*

First, here’s a picture of the Tree Top Walk Motel, where I stayed last night. Chris, who with her husband just bought it a month ago, traded a glass of a local Cab/Merlot for this placement. They keep an immaculate accommodation, provide great service and cook a nice dinner. If you’re ever in Walpole, you

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Walpole 125k/78m**

Big hills, big wind, and cold, driving rain kept me from getting anything like momentum going today. Much of the day was quite miserable but interesting as my bike and I huddled against trees and scrub seeking shelter, waiting for breaks in the weather. Now, at dinner in the Tree Top Hotel in Walpole, watching

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Pemberton 135k/84m**

It’s come to my attention that some of you have little idea where I am, other than Australia. Itinerary, Section I, has details, but here’s a map, just in case. I’m in Pemberton, at the top of the little inverted V. Someplace few of us will ever see. My map study indicated it would be

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Augusta 191k/119m****

Yes, that’s 4 stars – ****. In spite of the fact that I’m staying in the Bayview Resort (read “Youth Hostel”) in Augusta, in a room that is lacking heat and a phone, and that I had dinner at an unlicensed (no beer or wine) café attached to the Gull gas station a block away,

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Bunbury 176k/110m*

When I woke up this morning at 5:30A, I realized I had forgotten my routines. No water, Gatorade, nuts, gummi-bears, M&M Peanuts, Bananas, Orange Juice – no fuel. If there were any stores, they would be closed for the first couple hours and that would be a problem. However, the hotel manager directed me to

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Fremantle 43k/25m**

By chance I picked up a copy of ‘The Wheels of Chance – a Bicycling Idyll’, originally published in 1896 by H. G. Wells (‘The Time Machine’, ‘The War of the Worlds’, etc.). The protagonist, a Mr. Hoopdriver, leaves his job as a ‘drapers assistant’ for a fortnight tour of the southern coast (of England),

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Sydney(!) 85k/53m**

My last day of part 1 of RAAUST, I left the restaurant (closed Tuesday), gaming, bar and accommodations place called Beaches in Thirroul 20km north of Wollongong before 6:30A. It was the most beautiful morning of the trip to date. No layers of clothes, just 70’s and sunshine. The two-story part on the right has

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Thirroul 171k/107m**

The Royal Harbor Hotel in Ulladulla gets the first hotel of the trip award. They gave me their best room for a great rate (nowhere near the $A25 from the Genoa Hotel a couple days ago but I don’t want to get anyone in trouble here by publicly disclosing it), almost washed my clothes, gave

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Ulladulla 168k/105m**

From Lakes Entrance in Victoria to Eden in NSW is the “Wilderness Coast”. Forests with just a couple small camping/fishing oriented towns along this 300km long area, where the coast turns from facing south to facing east. I’ve been riding along the Pacific Ocean for the past couple days. Eden starts a series (heading north)

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Burmagui 185k/115m**

In these small town bars, you can’t always tell who’s a patron, an employee, an owner. Regardless of position, the locals all provide support and direction to one another. The guy who tried unsuccessfully to fix the heater in my room in Genoa last night (they moved me to another room) also told me that

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Genoa 49k/30m**

It’s been a fun day. I couldn’t get any transport to Cann River until 12:41P, so I had time to go back and ride part of the Bairnsdale-Orbost rail trail (it currently ends at Nowa Nowa – 30km of the 60km total distance remains to be completed – they need $A400,000. Good places to ride

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Bairnsdale 104k/62m*

Walking out the door of the Royal Hotel in Mornington this morning, I noted that my rear tire was soft again. So I pumped it up, rode into town, made some inquiries, settled down for breakfast with the morning paper and waited for Mornington Cycles to open at 9. When they did I told them

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Mornington 181k/113m***

The Great Ocean Road is Australia’s Pacific Coast Highway. The Lonely Planet Guide to Cycling in Australia says that if you only have one week to ride here, this is the best place. A plaque (later) says it runs from Nelson, by the South Australia border, to Geelong. Most guide books cut it down to

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Apollo Bay, 0k/0m*

After 9 days, 7 on the bike, I’ve ridden 685 miles (1,097km), covered another maybe 150 (240km) by car and another 60 (96km) by train. The problem with this is that I’m supposed to be riding across Australia, not taking cars or trains. It’s been fun being distracted (see Ballarat and Melbourne), but it was

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Where is Bob?

Where is Bob? Bob was last seen at the Melbourne Train Station, enroute to Apollo Bay, Victoria. It was traumatic abandoning him in cold, rain, and wind but his spirits were high and his “paniers” (containers on the side of the bike) were perfectly packed. He can explain the route deviations. The morning news in

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Cann River 154k/92m*

We returned to Bairnsdale around 7:30A under partly cloudy skies, with cool but comfortable temperature. Got on the bike. The back tire was flat. Pumped it up and saw water spurting out from around the stem. Everything was soaked from the day long rain the day before, but this was an unusual and ominous sign.

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Paynesville 136k/82m*

It wasn’t an exciting day, but it was much better than I thought it would be. The forecast was for high winds, cold and rain. We got the cold and rain. Melbourne is a big, world-class city. It has layers of suburbs linked to the downtown by radii of rail links. To avoid the Monday

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Lots of miles, many stars!

Bob invited me to do an update. This is both a privilege and a curse. It means I have to use his miniscule computer, with a dot for a mouse and its new and improved web software to upload, cut, paste and pray that the Internet connection will hold. He needs next generataion software for

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Melbourne 2k/1m***

Pre-story opening comments: Thanks for the comments on the Murray River, the Coorang aborigines, and the magpie repellent. It’s nice to have the brain trust keeping things clear. In Melbourne the night of the 15th, I’m right on schedule, but only with Lisa help yesterday. Today is likely to be the worst weather day of

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Apollo Bay 169k/101m***

The first *** day! I left Warrnambool late, around 8:30A again. Losing the first couple hours of daylight, when it gets dark at 6:00P leaves little margin for error or sightseeing. About 10k out of town I came to a decision point. A two day ride via the Great Ocean Highway, or shave a day

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Warrnambool 175k/105m*

After 4 days, this place is starting to become a little familiar. The people are “give the shirt off your back” friendly, they have an interesting vocabulary, and things are opposite here (September = Spring, drive on wrong side of the road, day = night (12 hours different from the US), swans = black). You

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Nelson 169k/101m*

3 days done. 98, 118 and 101 miles, 317 total – 106 average. 9/11 was a fairly easy ride – head out of picturesque Robe and into flat cattle land along the ocean. The first interesting sign I came to said: They heard cattle down the road. When I came up to the three vehicles

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Robe 196k/118m**

We haven’t seen a chain restaurant or hotel, or a stoplight for that matter, for the past 300k or so. The September 11 ride was good. 300km, mostly flat, no wind, cool (10-15C), sunny to begin and end the day, and cloudy in the middle. I kept a steady 25kph pace, about 30% faster than

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Menengie 164k/98m *

I left Adelaide at 7:20A. Here’s the first bike picture, coming off Rundle Street at East Terrace. This is one of the busiest trendiest streets in Adelaide. Note the architecture. Reminds one of a frontier town. Consider this the before picture. Long shadows, early morning, a slight climb toward the Adelaide Hills. At the foothills

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Adelaide (The Beginning)

Charlotte, Chicago, Los Angeles, Sydney, Adelaide. 23 hours in the air over 2 days. Yes, there are easier ways, but my parent’s 50th wedding anniversary was not to be missed. 80 relatives and friends gathered in Illinois to show love and appreciation. We were warned by Bill James, a friend they had not seen for

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Greetings

This site covers Bob Perkowitz’s spring (Sept & Oct) 2002, 3,800 mile bike ride across the continent. You might want to bookmark this page as a favorite. The splash page (raaust.com, or perkowitz.com) gives you the options of going to this RAAUST site or the RAAM site (Bob’s 2001 Ride Across America) site. It also

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