One of the things I love about cycling is the opportunity to experience things we often take for granted in all their glory. Yesterday I got my little side-trip to The Spit in the morning -- it was pleasant enough, but I still wanted more, so I got ambitious. Last night I went ahead and made today's lunch, storing it in the fridge, and did a couple of other things aiming at shaving about 15 minutes off my "getting ready for work" time this morning.
Off at 4.15am for an extra jaunt out to Hinze Dam. Normally I only do that ride after work, because I'm not quite so pressed for time then. To do it before work might have been a risk, if you can call getting home a few minutes late a risk! It didn't take me long to forget about the time concerns and just enjoy the beauty of the ride. First there was the fog around Carrara that had rolled in the night before, at around the same time I escaped from the (fortunately not very thick) smoke around the coast in the morning. I've seen this fog before, but it just seemed especially thick this morning. Then, as suddenly as it appeared, it disappeared again.
Westward through Nerang, then climbing to Advancetown, marvelling in the fresh morning air, and the slight glow toward the east -- also the sheer number of stars visible from beyond the city limits! Of course, the ride across the Hinze Dam wall is always pleasant, overlooking the water with the mountains in the background. The temperature out here was 7 degrees Celcius, which is just beautiful! There is something decidedly special about rugging up in those temperatures, and feeling really alive!
Toward the East, a whole new day was beginning. As the road twisted, climbed and descended all at once toward Gilston, the glow got bigger. By Mudgeeraba I could turn the lights off, and even Robina was bearable in those conditions. I even made it home by the 6am return which I normally set for the pre-dawn rides. Now that I hadn't expected. All the preparation last night turned out to be unnecessary!
Of course, we still have to go to work, to be a cog in a big machine for eight hours, with an hour in between to catch our collective breath. The day finished in frustration, seems the fax I was trying to send to a client didn't want to go. It wasn't prudent to attempt to telephone them, they are in the UK, and there is a time difference. No e-mail address for them either. Oh well, it can wait until Monday.
Tomorrow morning at 4.15am I do it all again with Martin. Not Hinze Dam this time, Austinville. There is actually something in that particular patch of rainforest that I have a slight reaction to at this time of the year -- my arms start to itch. It doesn't seem to apply to other patches of rainforest, such as Urliup last Sunday. Mind you, with scenery like this around, it's almost worth it!
Independent traveller - read my latest travel blog and access other travel related information that I have picked up along the way!
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
The pre-dawn chill, and a new day...
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Natural Graffiti
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-UihownZYYFN8XwYHgSjFCS4ysjpP2ouSfsOKapmmGVDGkZ0RAlljqwIKg8SE2bduBHFeHQ42tq_TA-Qe6LdMQ4tLGJD3Abf9C0LRZA6NaqtcTtLh4D8AtQnhHcBh7Ut-qdUe5Hera2w/s320/Graf3.jpg)
Fungi graffiti. (Spalting in tree trunk.)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc1jksU3geUFPb2OBK2_PmZJw24vZ7xkSvDqI7fwA_JbjZOBODUdAe9Yiq-8NPDvHjeDhLTo4mZlc2ARZuChB21lsCQtPtzdHr0yV0QmaxGi402NwMik52hZhLBQW01wBqaKx-WfQTzGM/s320/Graf1.jpg)
Snail graffiti.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6GsL5AD95cvhm1sIjxv4Zfv3-Ky4562ZndcrZVkraOiIMPXqyQPMpeghyphenhypheniC6vOcwwJWL6pQUrYssVaTM-PFQoXcGR_RrHK5rDZ4Mn5OqwqytmfOzlI-E1O-NmB5Jz1b-3mzHWsJhyphenhyphenDBA/s320/Graf2.jpg)
Insect scrollwork?
Sunday, May 27, 2007
The weekend has started
This could be the start of something awesome here. This morning was only supposed to be a warm-up ride through Currumbin Valley, but look at the results.
As I said, if a warm-up can offer this, who knows what the real thing is going to be like?
Monday, May 21, 2007
Snow!
The forecast was for two to four inches by daybreak.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwwr8Giw6yso2EmJ2EcemY2nWe2HUvBLeRXLsMHi9rgjW8ou8y2k9iL30PaxkEOcm-65wzRrCV6MDVxhrMBafGgl4Q7nKtfoUdHxxFzMvDBgtxi2DCDuhaL9kE_jVVUZEOV-vEbGUCJho/s320/snow1.jpg)
The TV is full of snowmen and snowball fights and cantevenseethegrass, but here - not yet.
We had five inches of rain day before yesterday, so I'm thinking that the persistent puddles are melting all the snow.
It's still coming down though, so I've got my fingers crossed.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwwr8Giw6yso2EmJ2EcemY2nWe2HUvBLeRXLsMHi9rgjW8ou8y2k9iL30PaxkEOcm-65wzRrCV6MDVxhrMBafGgl4Q7nKtfoUdHxxFzMvDBgtxi2DCDuhaL9kE_jVVUZEOV-vEbGUCJho/s320/snow1.jpg)
The TV is full of snowmen and snowball fights and cantevenseethegrass, but here - not yet.
We had five inches of rain day before yesterday, so I'm thinking that the persistent puddles are melting all the snow.
It's still coming down though, so I've got my fingers crossed.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Braunston circular
Led by Mel. With Norma, Maureen, Gordon, Barry, Barrie, Terry, Ian, Carol and me. Fine weather, but some overgrown fields and in places muddy conditions underfoot. Just under 6 miles.
We started from Braunston church, which we should have looked at a little more closely. - Confession time - we visited Braunston next day, took some better pics, and went for lunch in The Old Plough. A baguette with filling, salad with dressing and coleslaw for £6.25.
More discussion on this stone carvingand more info about the church and carving.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEsjjoMu4gKh7V7s8gw81MqQeUsSf3SfqUMiB-QCKdiWrXoC7Ok8auVBsQsf6ye2BEIdv6SSSZvi0dmINoRjQ8PWy1V6DTExCmzR0eeVDcrKZv7EGB05af6zZpZrqgrRdGTCprmbQ_Tzv/s640/IMG_4832.jpg)
We walked through the churchyard to take the footpath going west. After a couple of fields the path crosses the young river Gwash, and turns south-west. It followed field edges climbing gradually , with clear way markers until we came to a field of long grass where we followed our noses and the map, diagonally upwards to the opposite corner. In fact we veered slightly to our left, but rejoined our route after going through a gate at the top of the field.
We followed a wide bridleway east along the top of the ridge, until we reached a junction where we turned right. We walked downhill to and through a strip of muddy woodland. At the edge of this we turned left uphill along what looked like a wet and muddy track, but in fact it was reasonable for walking. The path met another track and we turned right and downhill for a short distance, before turning left again, following a bridleway to a junction of ways, where we stopped for a break, just after the three-mile point.
We continued walking straight on ( east) as far as Leigh Lodge. There we turned left (north-east) and followed the route of the Macmillan and Leighfield Ways, up a metalled road, for about a mile. When we reached the minor road to Braunston we turned left (north-west).
The original plan was to take a bridleway on our right, and follow the river Gwash to Braunston via the sewage works and the bridge pictured below. As it promised to be a mud-bath, we took the road instead.
The walk touches/overlaps with these two previous walks - this onefrom Nov 28 , and this one from July 21 .
![]() |
The footpath sign is just by the churchyard gate |
We started from Braunston church, which we should have looked at a little more closely. - Confession time - we visited Braunston next day, took some better pics, and went for lunch in The Old Plough. A baguette with filling, salad with dressing and coleslaw for £6.25.
Though the interior is interesting, the most intriguing feature of All Saints is outside. Go around the side of the west tower and there you will find an roughly carved statue, about 3 feet high, depicting a grinning figure. The reverse of the figure is flat, and it was used for many years to form a step, so the carving was only discovered when the step was taken up.
No one knows how old the carving is, or what it is supposed to represent, but it is almost certainly pre-Christian. It may be a symbol of an ancient fertility cult, or some form of Celtic Earth Mother. Whatever it is supposed to represent, it is a quite extraordinary bit of primitive sculpture, and deserves more recognition.
More discussion on this stone carvingand more info about the church and carving.
![]() |
According to the info board she is supposed to ward off evil spirits. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAEsjjoMu4gKh7V7s8gw81MqQeUsSf3SfqUMiB-QCKdiWrXoC7Ok8auVBsQsf6ye2BEIdv6SSSZvi0dmINoRjQ8PWy1V6DTExCmzR0eeVDcrKZv7EGB05af6zZpZrqgrRdGTCprmbQ_Tzv/s640/IMG_4832.jpg)
We walked through the churchyard to take the footpath going west. After a couple of fields the path crosses the young river Gwash, and turns south-west. It followed field edges climbing gradually , with clear way markers until we came to a field of long grass where we followed our noses and the map, diagonally upwards to the opposite corner. In fact we veered slightly to our left, but rejoined our route after going through a gate at the top of the field.
![]() |
Checking grid reference and map |
We followed a wide bridleway east along the top of the ridge, until we reached a junction where we turned right. We walked downhill to and through a strip of muddy woodland. At the edge of this we turned left uphill along what looked like a wet and muddy track, but in fact it was reasonable for walking. The path met another track and we turned right and downhill for a short distance, before turning left again, following a bridleway to a junction of ways, where we stopped for a break, just after the three-mile point.
We continued walking straight on ( east) as far as Leigh Lodge. There we turned left (north-east) and followed the route of the Macmillan and Leighfield Ways, up a metalled road, for about a mile. When we reached the minor road to Braunston we turned left (north-west).
The original plan was to take a bridleway on our right, and follow the river Gwash to Braunston via the sewage works and the bridge pictured below. As it promised to be a mud-bath, we took the road instead.
![]() |
Braunston |
![]() |
All Saints church, Braunston |
![]() |
Drawing of All Saints church by Harry Hamill |
The walk touches/overlaps with these two previous walks - this onefrom Nov 28 , and this one from July 21 .
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Gainsville, a hidden gem for mountain biking. The trails are nicely layered like a worm infestation while shooting out in all directions like a klepto octopi.
My first bike trip of a decent length was 10 years ago from California to Florida. Nevada City to Gainsville actually. Now having rode down to Gainsville from Maine its like the golden spoke of sorts. Two pointsmeetingin my spiderweb of tire tracks. This makes the 6th time I've ridden across the U.S. from one point or another. It felt welcoming, strange and sentimental to be back.
I spent a week in the G-ville. Truly great to see Dru again (the only old friend I found from back in the time) and traipse through the old spots. It still had the smell and feel of what made me stay those years ago. Good town, super folks. Its also saturated in bike shops and there is a lot of buzz in the air of making and building the cycling infrastructure. You can find yourself made of velcro in that fuzzy place.
This trashed out and neglected spot is where I used to live 13 years ago. (yep, in the shed) |
A metal roof I installed in 99, before I made a living fiddling with bicycles. |
A bunch of Great dudes (and Isis). Thanx for the everything. |
My honorary ride with the Velo Vixens |
We made more than a few stops by Volta for these. |
I spent a week in the G-ville. Truly great to see Dru again (the only old friend I found from back in the time) and traipse through the old spots. It still had the smell and feel of what made me stay those years ago. Good town, super folks. Its also saturated in bike shops and there is a lot of buzz in the air of making and building the cycling infrastructure. You can find yourself made of velcro in that fuzzy place.
The only blurry shot I got of a fantastic night ride |
This is what I call a "Go Bag". A huge and fat Thanx to David! It was a fantastic pleasure to hold down the Ranch! And to both Lauren and Dustin, your tour/ trail guiding and dirtbag adoption isunparalleled. |
Friday, May 4, 2007
New Tires
Yesterday I stopped by the bike shop. Several things on my mind. The Fuel EX7 needs new tires, the hardtail is soon needing tires, looking way to ride faster on one bike, and considering a road bike.
I was armed with information and questions from my cycling books and bicycling.com.
Should I look at purchasing a cross bike, a road bike, or modify an existing bike? Which bike and what components? What is a "plush" road bike? That and look a new tires.![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT54PKGSv0Pz99UPTRRC838deT1AxH5niSwlTULJiz4bJDvXb0gwmTF_2b9cJxo4H2lNvOZeUFS8aHHtpYhZs42wcL9KwadCzf7W6qKY1WwLMiGh4ABb4RoG0V4OntHaR4Y0oHdKBHFf_K/s320/pilot20_silverblack.jpg)
Regarding a "plush" road bike - that is a less aggressive, more upright bike, like the TREK Pilot (see photo).
To get some more speed on my pavement rides, the hybrid is getting 28c road tires. Thought about 25c tires, but I want to be able to ride on the Trace once in awhile with that bike. Zack and Blaine agree the 28c tires is the ticket.
Zack has a pair of tires that will fit my Fuel. They came off from a customer's new bike. Getting them at a friendly price.
When counting teeth on chainrings and cassettes, I noticed that the tires on the 4300 are really getting in bad shape. Very concerned about riding it until it gets new tires. Was hoping to stall that purchase until next year (as it will get the studded tires this winter).
So, today starts testing for modifications and perhaps a new bike. And for my dirt riding friends, I am not turning to a "roadie", just looking for more variety.
I was armed with information and questions from my cycling books and bicycling.com.
Should I look at purchasing a cross bike, a road bike, or modify an existing bike? Which bike and what components? What is a "plush" road bike? That and look a new tires.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT54PKGSv0Pz99UPTRRC838deT1AxH5niSwlTULJiz4bJDvXb0gwmTF_2b9cJxo4H2lNvOZeUFS8aHHtpYhZs42wcL9KwadCzf7W6qKY1WwLMiGh4ABb4RoG0V4OntHaR4Y0oHdKBHFf_K/s320/pilot20_silverblack.jpg)
Regarding a "plush" road bike - that is a less aggressive, more upright bike, like the TREK Pilot (see photo).
To get some more speed on my pavement rides, the hybrid is getting 28c road tires. Thought about 25c tires, but I want to be able to ride on the Trace once in awhile with that bike. Zack and Blaine agree the 28c tires is the ticket.
Zack has a pair of tires that will fit my Fuel. They came off from a customer's new bike. Getting them at a friendly price.
When counting teeth on chainrings and cassettes, I noticed that the tires on the 4300 are really getting in bad shape. Very concerned about riding it until it gets new tires. Was hoping to stall that purchase until next year (as it will get the studded tires this winter).
So, today starts testing for modifications and perhaps a new bike. And for my dirt riding friends, I am not turning to a "roadie", just looking for more variety.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Photo Show Information
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSkaRztDPkaHWMRfZk90tyqF7ir4WFbn2IgkTaFvWOY3ORl0ueb5X7C07ICbS033GbKuFiVao2vuOHYu45DZd_oTqVf81pL5Ss4NWRDvniGKYfM3msLZlvNUe4NKMymdVEgnxjS6bs5iIh/s320/BackCover.jpg)
My show is being held in the E. E. Warren Opera House, on the square in Greenfield, Iowa. Greenfield is about 80 miles east of Council Bluffs, on Hwy 92.
The show opens this Thursday. October 15th (my birthday). I will be present for the opening and to sign my calendars.
The show will be open on October 15th, 16th, 18th, 22nd, and 23rd. Hours are 1pm to 4pm and 7pm to 8pm on those days. Free admission!
Those wishing to purchase a photo in the show can sign a reservation form during the show. Calendars can also reserve a calendar when I am not at the show. Payment and delivery will be handled the Friday evening at close of the show.
My plans are to also have a book of some of my other work. Prints of those can be ordered. Details will be available during the show.
Unfortunately, the show schedule does not let me to bring some of my photos to the Bike Bash on Saturday the 17th at Platte River. However, I will have calendars available for sale.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)