Day 12: Gowrie Park to Cradle Mountain
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Useful Resources
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Last night has to be one of my favourite campsites so far on this trip. I could quite happily spent a couple of days here walking up the mountains near by. Will have to put it on the to-do list for next time.
This morning I was pleased to see there was some nice patches of blue sky. Once I had my extra large serve of breakfast, I was back on the bike just after 8am.
The climb starts nice and gently just as you leave Gowrie Park. It then descends a long way down into the valley. So I enjoyed the downhill as I knew shortly I'd be climbing back out.
Sure enough, once I crossed the bridge the road began to climb. The climb was certainly not as steep or as long as I was expecting. I think the grade was about 10% and went for about 5km before I got to the service station. The views climbing up to the top were great. It was also nice to feel the sun on my back.
Once I got to the service station I turned left. Then continued to climb, but the grade was certainly a lot less. After about another 5kms the road opened up to open plains. Being so exposed I soon started to feel cold. Thankfully I didn't need to look far for an extra layer and I was nice and warm again.
After about 10kms cycling through the open plains I saw the turnoff for Cradle Mountain. I was certainly here a lot earlier than planned. I was going to go to the coffee shop first, but it was packed with a couple of tour groups. So instead I went across the road and checked-in to my campsite for the next couple of nights.
Once I was all setup I went for a ride down to Dove Lake, which is about 10kms away. It was nice to have the bike unloaded this time. Last time I was here everyone drove down, but the park has introduced a complimentary bus service. So a lot of people park just outside the park and get the bus. What this means though on the bike is that the road is so much quieter. You can actually enjoy the great views and also get to see some native wildlife.
When I rolled into the carpark at Dove Lake, some of the caravan guys who I keep meeting at various locations gave me a round of applause for making it so far. They seem to be fascinated by people touring around on bikes. After 20 minutes of chatting I went down to Dove Lake to get my pictures of Cradle Mountain. It has to be one of the most scenic spots I have been to. I was also very happy that the sun was out. As the last few times I have visited it has been raining.
When I finished relaxing and chatting around the lake, I had a ride back to the campsite. Before going back to the campsite I had burger at the cafe. Again another pretty big serve. I also had a look at some walks I might do tomorrow. As tomorrow is a day off the bike and the weather is looking good for a nice walk. There are so many to choose from here.
Today has been a great day. Fantastic scenery for my climb up. Along with good weather and friendly drivers made it all just perfect. I'm looking forward to a day off the bike tomorrow.
This morning I was pleased to see there was some nice patches of blue sky. Once I had my extra large serve of breakfast, I was back on the bike just after 8am.
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| A great campsite next to the river |
The climb starts nice and gently just as you leave Gowrie Park. It then descends a long way down into the valley. So I enjoyed the downhill as I knew shortly I'd be climbing back out.
Sure enough, once I crossed the bridge the road began to climb. The climb was certainly not as steep or as long as I was expecting. I think the grade was about 10% and went for about 5km before I got to the service station. The views climbing up to the top were great. It was also nice to feel the sun on my back.
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| The road was like this for most of the initial climb this morning. So scenic |
Once I got to the service station I turned left. Then continued to climb, but the grade was certainly a lot less. After about another 5kms the road opened up to open plains. Being so exposed I soon started to feel cold. Thankfully I didn't need to look far for an extra layer and I was nice and warm again.
After about 10kms cycling through the open plains I saw the turnoff for Cradle Mountain. I was certainly here a lot earlier than planned. I was going to go to the coffee shop first, but it was packed with a couple of tour groups. So instead I went across the road and checked-in to my campsite for the next couple of nights.
Once I was all setup I went for a ride down to Dove Lake, which is about 10kms away. It was nice to have the bike unloaded this time. Last time I was here everyone drove down, but the park has introduced a complimentary bus service. So a lot of people park just outside the park and get the bus. What this means though on the bike is that the road is so much quieter. You can actually enjoy the great views and also get to see some native wildlife.
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| The ride to Dove Lake. The road is narrow, but thankfully there are generally just a few mini buses travelling along |
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| With there being so little traffic, there was plenty of wildlife to be seen, like this Echinda |
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| Location shot next to Dove Lake, with Cradle Mountain in the background |
When I finished relaxing and chatting around the lake, I had a ride back to the campsite. Before going back to the campsite I had burger at the cafe. Again another pretty big serve. I also had a look at some walks I might do tomorrow. As tomorrow is a day off the bike and the weather is looking good for a nice walk. There are so many to choose from here.
Today has been a great day. Fantastic scenery for my climb up. Along with good weather and friendly drivers made it all just perfect. I'm looking forward to a day off the bike tomorrow.