update ....

rains are forecast for the coastal strip .....so were heading inland first up .

planned meet points are ...brown plains bp servo ...(just south on beaudesert road ) leave time 8.30am ...

then beaudesert ...boonah ...aratulla ...warwich...

stanthorp for meet with kfreak ...(maccas... quick bite ) around 11.30

then tenterfield ..glen innes ...etc to uralla for a propper lunch 2.00 ish ...the trip to tamworth then nundle less than a couple of hours later ,should make it an mid afternoon day for a pull up to a pub and nice relax with some friends .



the trip is open to all ....love to see some others along the way

Don't forget Charlie we lose an hour going into NSW (stupid daylight saving).

...dang tripped me up again ....umm 3.00ish edst then ... hmm ...we better stick to qld time till we get to nundle ...we can start nsw time the next morning ?

Enjoy boys!

88

Pissing with rain, but the riding is fantastic in spite of the rain-damaged road surfaces. The causeway into the site is flooded but Charlie and Rick are going in for a look. I got the last room in town.
Nothing to prove to anyone but me...

Guest in the House wrote:Pissing with rain......Nothing to prove to anyone but me...

Proves you've got more sence and wisdom is coming with age! 'Onya!

88

The boys made it in and out alright, hail and thunderstorms throughout the night. We met for brekky, now on the sunny road called Thunderbolts Way. Awesome road! Home tonight, 700 kms away.

Hope you guys are having fun. Stay safe!!!

Just over 1200 km for me and around 1800 for the others and me bums so sore I just gotta get a new seat.
Blew a set of fork seals on an enormous pothole but thats the way it goes. Just about ready for the sack.

just made it home ...about an hour ago ....

awesome trip with good friends ....got some pics and all that stuff ...

made stanthorp to brisvegas in 2 hours .....thanks gith ...and kf ...

Just landed myself, fifteen minutes ago, the last half an hour in the steady rain, but I am dry. 1850+kms for me. The bike was flawless. What a great ride with two good riding mates.

Just a bit of a pictorial travelog

after a meet up in the highlands of southeast queensland we headed south to new south wales ...and a litle off the beaten track ...to a small country town ...verry typical of many around the country ...in this case nundle ...a small town situated southeast of Tamworth in a picturesque valley that may have been forgotten ...by many ...

wish i had some pictures of us on the road ...fantastic sight of 3 "k" bikes in tight formation heading down the highway ...trully amazing all the greenness along the road ...when normally it would be as our reputation suggests wide and brown with the sunsoaked and burnt grasses that normally guide the path of the road ...

fortunatly some other southbound friends ...on bmw gs type bikes had talked to "gith" and mentioned "nundle" as a place for a nights stay



and a welcome place to put ones head down was trully appreciated



next day ...further down the road ..(after a quick bath in the sproradic rain falls ) with the hills in the backgound ,,over a pass through the hills into the "hunter valley " proper



after ulricks suggestion and recomendation of the "gresford" route ...a fantasic country road of sweeping corners and fantastic vistas ,,,we arrived at "dungog "

rumors of site access and another rain storm dampened our resolve to proceed further into the wild enviorons of "the barrington tops" an area of steep ravines and tall trees ..a world heritage listed area of many thousands of square kilometers of pristeen temperate rain forest

bikes lined all 4 corners of the small town ..near the pub ...(a landmark of its own ) small groups of gs riders had already left to the challenge of the forest and the still continuing rain storm ....

i hadnt come 700 plus kilometers for a little rain to hold up proceedings... kfreak and i ventured forth .. (gith found other arrangements)



at "the causeway " a raging torrent of a stream awaited us ... we helped a few fellow "road bike" riders cross ...obviously with doubt in their minds





finally after 30 odd killometers of rock pounding vibrations through the suspension we arrived after traversing many gullies of magnificent forrest , hill and chasm



a wet and thoughly soaking enviroment awaited us ....the firewood stacked for use by the campers ..was unfortunatly unburnable ...lord how i tried to get a decent fire going ...but alas it wasnt to be ...smoke was the only result







awards ceremony was performed and many happy faces were pleased to recieve a boost to their efforts

about 130 bikes made the trip into the great woodlands





a cool bleak night of a cloud filled valley of around 50 acres and many wet souls was quite subdued ....but with out busts of laughter ..tall tales of acomplishment and friendly banter small groups of fellow ventureres crowded round the couple of successful fires .



the morning brought a welcome warm meal of sausages , eggs ,bacon etc (something to "stick to the sides "in our aussie vernacular .

many leaving the site by 8.00am ....

some awesome machines were spied ...

returning to the "kick off" point ...dungog ..an amazing array of machines could be seen ..with quite damp looking owners ..thankfully the night had been kind to us and no more rain had fallen ,,,,but the evidence of rough riding was all too evident ...



we decided to head north along an unfarmilliar route ..through small country townships like glouchester ...

an awsome track from dungog to the town of walcha awaited us ....river crossings , hill climbs of awesome length led us to a completly unexpected vista of the highlands dropoff into the coastal region ...







onto the new england area of open roads and high reving corners led us towards home ...and after 5 or 600 killometers we were back in queensland .....kfreak dropped off at his home town ...and we proceeded on into the bleak looking aftermath of storm season towards brisbane ...



home at last ...ahhh

gith found a hail storm to fight with along the way after my turnoff

that made my creek crossing look pretty ordinary i have to find a better one

Great pics and write up Charlie, thanks for taking the time to do that, you've cheered up my cold, wet and Gray Monday morning considerably!
88

Great pics Charlie , i didn't miss the rally after all ! Your descriptive turn of phrase is excellent , spending too long in the company of GITH i suspect !

Good work guys!

It looks as though you still had fun despite the rain, muddy roads, creek crossings, rain, wet camp ground, rain, wet clothes, rain, more dirt roads, rain, hail, rain...

I'm just jealous.

thanks guys ....

hey there are many more talented folks than me, at spinning a yarn ....my bad english spelling and punctuation is a riot ...

but just hope to share some of the things we all might appreciate ,,,

if not in real life, well .....through here



hope you enjoyed it as much as we did doing it



dont forget the queensland meetup is planned for not far off in the future ...we would love to see as many folks as can attend ...enjoying the great country that surrounds us and a pot or two with friends

i must say that sitting on the verandah with a couple of friends, sharing a tale or two at "the peel" was most enjoyable ...and sad i wasnt able to stick around for a leisurly ride back ... (work stuff has got me going left right and centre )

thanks to kfreak and gith for the excellent companionship and suggestion for the trip ...it has been many years since i have ventured out on a challenge such as this one ...





dang .....shakey hands ,,,,,,

Great pics, Charlie.

Brings back lots of memories!! Esp the rain, rain and more rain. That causeway is just before the Tellegherry camping area. Is that where you blokes camped, or did you actually get to Frying Pan?

Rickmeister.

yes mate ...........all the way up and down to frying pan .... the blessing was all the dirt that might have smoothed the ride on the road bikes,,, was long gone ,, being an old bush cocky i was lucky enough to follow the highside gravel trail which eased the bumps while i was watching kfreak bounce around quite vigerously (actually he blew a front fork seal which we found at gloucester fuel stop )

grin,,,,, i left the campsite with a nice rear end slide ....for quite a few meters ....hey i know how to throw rocks ...grin ....ploughed my own way up the hill

pity we didnt see you there mate ..but may isnt far off

Great pics and story Charlie. Looks like you guys had a blast. Thanks for sharing.

Love the creek crossing pics in particular.

Thanks so much for sharing these mate!

Here's a gem I just found on my camera of our man Chazza, enjoying the scenic view and the twisty ride, atop the range on Thunderbolts Way, near Baxter's Ridge, New South Wales.