Day 15 - Made it to Manjimup

Man what a cold night. It's supposed to be summer,  did someone forget to tell down south? We woke up early, as we do, and it was way too cold for me to get out of my sleeping bag. Will lit the stove for a coffee and to cook or breakfast  (2min noodles with smoked salmon in a tin, all we had left ).

 We only had 23kms to go today,  so we sat and enjoyed the quiet bush sounds while we waited for the sun to get a bit warmer.  Then we headed off.  A long slow uphill gradient, for the first 14km through the water catchment area. Really pretty.

We came out close to Dean Mill  (yet another place I had no idea about ).

It was a pretty nice ride all up, and we were glad to get to Manjimup and have a couple of days rest. Will was also happy to dump his hitch hickers.

We stopped at the visitors Centre to sort out some accommodation

. ....huh. ...typical of Manjimup. ..nothing!  We are forced to stay in our tent  ($32/night) with no bbq's or camp kitchen facilities  (Lake Brockman rocks,  $25/nt with evening ) or pub for  $190/nt. Not happening at the pub.

So,  plan B (Will always had one, or twenty ) , we will ride to Bridgetown tomorrow  (36km down SW Highway ) and spend two days resting there  instead. I have never found Manjimup to be a very welcoming town.

Day 17 & 18 - Donnybrook Again

Tuesday gave us a lay in and then a nice walk into town for some groceries and a catchup with Julie at the community garden. 

We borrowed Julie's car and had a little drive around Bridgetown before heading home to relax overlooking the Blackwood river. 

It was really nice listening to the birds and watching the giant black skinks rustling below us. 

Wednesday we had to head towards home. 

On advice from Julie and Jon we left town on the old rail track. It's a really nice track and mostly flat, and only 28km to Balingup. 

Must remember not to listen too closely to walkers or drivers,  when riding the bike. 

The track was NOT mostly flat, and who knows if it was pretty, as we were too busy with our heads down pushing through the soft boggy track that had recently been graded to shit.

We decided that,  no matter how big or how bad the hills along Southwest Hwy were,  we were taking them over this track. It had taken us just under 3hrs to ride 25km. We did see a massive Kangaroo bounding away in front of us, but he would wait or give us a lift. 

Again, on recommendation by Jon & Julie , we stopped at The Packing Shed for a famous sausage roll. Nope! The last 3 were sold to some old codgers who could have done without it.  Ugh! So we had a pie. ....and coke. 

After a nice 45min rest we thought we were ready for the last 31km. Nope! Oh my god,  the day of rest was not enough. ...them massive hills,  just pushing up them, grinding away in 2nd or 3rd gear for a few kms.

Stopped in Kirup for a powerade and to try and psych myself up for one last burst. 

Thank the holy lord the last 10kms were mostly good downhills or I would not be laying here exhausted on this lovely bed. 

Traffic was busy between Balingup and Donnybrook with so many logging trucks. Really noisy. Three ambulances went past and not one stopped to offer me oxygen or pain relief. Fucking Bastards.

I think this may be the end of our journey. We are knackered. 

Day 16 - Heading Home

Woke up this morning and it was raining. ..ugh!  Did Manjimup forget it is summer? 

No point rushing out of bed, I didn't want to ride in the rain and according to the weather app, it was easing around 10am.

So we had a coffee and some muesli and chatted to the grey nomads and waited for the tent to dry,  before heading off. 

According to Google maps it would be mostly down hill and the 36kms should take us 1hr 46mins. I had no way of telling it we were unfit fatties. 

After about 8kms of powering along we had a short stop for a drink and minor maintenance. 

Of we went and stopped again at about 16kms, in a roadside stop. I was really disappointed at the rubbish strewn everywhere. Come on people, look after our amazing country. 

We stopped again in Yornup, 13kms from Bridgetown and applied some RID. Lots of livestock around so their little black buddies were super annoying. 

Up one last hill and it is down hill into the caravan park. ...woo hoo.

A nice little cabin overlooking the river for a rest day tomorrow. ...

Unpacked the bike, sorted the dirty washing, and found a little stow away. The little yellow cat  (Kitty) has been photo bombing our journey and is in many of our photos. 

Now go back and find Kitty. ...ha ha ha . She has sustained an injury and will need a small repair when we get home. She is well traveled and comes from Singapore. She is a perpetual stow-away.

Thanks to Julie and Jon for coming and picking us up and letting us use their washer and dryer and for cooking us dinner. 

Bridgetown is always so nice. 

Day 14 - Karta Burnu Hut

After a relaxed morning watching the wildlife and waiting for our clothes to dry we were off. 

The track today was a real mix with some stunning bush, lots of tough riding and one absolutely AWESOME downhill run that went for about 2.5km along a creek. Wished we had a Gopro.

Just before lunch at Green Island  (nice camp ground for future Kombi adventure ) we reached the halfway point of the Bibbleman track.  The two tracks did cross and meet a few times on this section. 

After lunch we didn't have far to go but we knew it was the challenging  bit. The forest fairies were not looking after us today, instead bombarding us with forest litter and leaving all their broken bush in our way. "Come On! "

We were just pushing around some switchbacks when suddenly my phone rings. Thought I was delirious. Had to stop and answer it. ...thank god I can now catch my breath in amongst the cammo gums. 

We came to the last climb. 80mtrs up over a couple of kays. The track looked like a tornado had been through. There was shit all over the place. Switchbacks no one could cycle up, and just as we  (especially me )were about to through the bikes off the mountain. .....

Just in the nick of time. ...I was starting to call this hut some pretty nasty names. ..those who know me can rightly guess. ...hmmm.

Day 13 - Up The Hill to Donnelly Mill

Leaving Nannup was uphill for about 15kms. Not too many super hills  (we're now using Vernon rd as our bench mark ) but a steady gradient about double the one from Jarrahwood. 

                               

Some great scenery, lots of lazy cows and excited horses, and one strange bus stop for hobbits.

Luckily Will had stopped in at the bakery before we left town and picked up some buns (which we had to order yesterday? ??) and a sneaky surprise. ..donuts. 

Just what you need after a big hill. 
We had some pretty good down hill runs,  one nearly brought me undone. ...Phew my sphinkter was tweaking...I started fishtailing so badly,  left, right, left, right.  I don't know how I didn't fall.  After, I checked my speedo. It said I got to 52km/hr....that would of hurt. 

We made it to Willow Brook  (about half way ) and had a nice rest and some lunch. Fresh rolls with ham and tomato. 

Then onward, upward and over the hills, through the bush...

Along the track. ...

And up some more hills to Donnelly Mill. Another place I didn't know about. It is cool. 

                            

Lots of friendly locals. ....and some scary ones. 

We stayed in the bunkhouse which is the old Primary School. 

Day 12 - The Day of The Easy Rider

We woke up early and we were still feeling a bit tired from yesterday,  so we took our time with porridge and tea /coffee.  It was also nice just to sit in the quiet surrounds of Jarrahwood.

It's only 28km today,  and an easy track along the old rail line. The first half up hill but a slight gradient for just over 8km.

It was a beautiful ride.  I would recommend to anyone to do this section. Lovely groves of  Banksia and then Sheoks and heaps of kangaroos and lizards. 

                            

What a nice little town Nannup is.  We stayed at The Black Cockatoo, which is a quirky spot on Derek and Sue's block,  right in town.  They had studios, one flasher than the one we stayed in,  and a couple of safari tents,  all secluded by their amazing garden. 

A short walk to the Lucky 7 for some food supplies, and to the pub for dinner and a chat to some of the locals. 

We headed back to The Black Cockatoo with a couple of beers under our belts and happy full tummies,  to relax on our veranda watching the possums race around the garden. 

A really nice spot. We may have to come back for their music festival in February.