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Just a big thanks to TB and the running crew
, thanks for making it all run sweetly and flow well .No thanks to Huey for the weather , cold and wet is not my favourite riding situation :angry: .
Thanks to the Group of guys I rode with , we did it quick and without fuss , great fun to be with , Jeffro , Pete and Bill
cheers guys .I only had my phone camera and a handy cam with me and due to the weather only got the phone camera out at stops , so only 2 pics from me .
Thursday night in Jindy pub .
Saturday morning at Dinner Plain
A great 3 days of riding.
The weather was against us but the ride went on and thats how the whole weekend went no matter what was thrown our way the ride went on!! Thats what Adventure rides are all about.
Thanks to TB Lefty and the crew,Chicken and pete in the support vehicles that were always there when we needed them and kept the whole thing going. Also Moose, fuchsy and Roscoe for there sweep skills and great company. Bring on the next one.
Boulder.Come on where is Usi’s, Wiggy’s, sweeps view come on Lefty, Chicken please more
TB
all my gopro video is crap due to bad angle and fog .
buy here are some photo’s I took
jacbos creek I think
got to love seeing signs like this
I only got a short go on the wr250 I bet its good in the tight stuff seen tb ride it for josh was eye opening what you can do on these things madness
1st night
1st lookout
sweeping fun the waiting game lol hats off to the cars only about 10 minutes apart
pete’s trailer did a wheel bearing so two trailers and a broken down dr650 hats off to chicken to drop the axle and make two into one cant wait for the video of us loading the dr on to it good fun lol
what I thought would be the last time I changed a tyre it was I pinch in the tyre that was pinching the tube’s thanks to boulder for picking up on that I think I changed 5 tubes in total the last one we sleeved it with the broken tube its still up but ill be replacing tube and tyre asap
this one was at 10:30am on top the snow fields dam cold
.. How good was that!!!, Ive got 3 brown kings (blame fuchsy) under the belt now so here it goes
Woke up friday morning to a bike in pieces and nothing organised as usual. Hit the missile switch and it started with only the fuel in the bowl.. Today was going to be a good day. After putting the tank and seat on came the task of ensuring all possible garage fuck ups were accounted for. All the remaining tools, tubes, oil, filters, food were dumped in the panniers. Then the swag aka fat slug was given a place.
The highway is a great place to go brain dead so lets fast forward this a bit
Upon arriving into Jindabine the road slowly revealed a big lake. It looked pretty good and i was happy that i could get a beer in my hand soon.
Rolled down the drive to meet TB and the regular faces. Only to be greeted with a bunk with no booking required!
Day 1: Wiggster gave up waiting after some bad intel advised i had left for fuel. Meanwhile i was fucking around with a pressure gauge wondering why it wasn’t working.. Turns out the tyre was flat
After nearly collecting a few trophies with 2 legs and a tail i got a bit spooked.. Then i realized i was in Victoria?
The ride into Mt Hotham was bloody freezing and the shiny black bits were intimidating, The visibility was shocking and now I’m getting snowed on Just f%$king fantastic! Bike was down on power in a big way i tried to give the thing a big blip in a tunnel and all that came out was a brop
Then i had a go at locking up the rear down the hill, The car up my arse at this time backed off after that. I guess it wasn’t a rentalThen im drawing a bit of a blank as the camera has lost a lot of photos and im sure it was great getting rained on the go slow
Dargo Pub
Day 3
Woke up in a dry swag hungover and cold. This is where the ride got interesting and ive got video of all the carnage on the go pro too. Blatting up the hill was a blast plenty of moments but keeping it up and on the throttle, Tipping down the whole lot just fell to pieces..
After picking it up twice i was physically done and that was only the start of it. The creek i was stressing about was a non event another 10 dumps later up hill down hill no hill just for fun the bike now had another 10kilos of mud jammed on the swing arm and in the bash plate i was done
Wiggster to the rescue – Ride it down champ im done im about to pass out
The hill wasn’t done with me yet, Dump your bike enough with the lights on and the battery goes flat. Thank f&%k there was still more down to go Got the good advice off the sweeps how to rectify the problem, Switch off all gear and 2nd gear clutch drop. I really wasn’t in the state to push the thing either, I love big hills..
After making it onto the sealed road i was relieved, So relieved the bike got parked on the trailer and i sat in the 4wd in cold sweaty gear. After i thawed out we were met with a clunk and then a solid metal on metal grind. I was spewing as now i know why everyone’s riding around in air conditioned 4wd’s.
After Chicken single handedly rallied the boys and unf&^ked the current predicament, I was back on the bike with the sun setting on some of the best looking views ever for the 70ks back into Jindabyne.
Watching the video is a pisser i will have to put something together, although im sure Josh has got some quality fail material in the works already
Thanks for the ride Boys!
Better late than never I guess.
My weekend started on Thursday Morning when I geared up and rode to Oldfatbeerman’s place where we loaded up the ute and hit the road for the long drive to Jindabyne.
Ready to ride
Loaded on the ute
On the road
We were passed by Big Pete with the rideadv.com.pre-run bikes
Eventually we came to Lake Jindabyne and found our hotel
‘’’’’ and one of these.
The brains trust hard at it loading GPS’s
While the rest of us hung around drinking, eating and talking.
The following morning the predicted low temperatures had arrived
But at least the skies were fairly clear so no rain to worry about yet.
On the road
Omeo was our first nights destination
A hearty breakfast to start the next days ride over Mt Hotham.
Before long our first look at the light snow that was falling.
Warming up around the fire pit was popular
As was rugging up against the cold
Once we got down the mountain a way the air cleared and we rolled into Dargo in what where almost summer type temperatures or so it seemed after the cold.
TB organized some fresh beef for lunch
After lunch we headed for The Little River Inn at Ensay, our home for the night.
One of the bunk houses.
Getting ready to head off into the wet in the morning
And out into the wet
Smoko time.
And back to Jindabyne
Then back on the road for the long trip home.
I think everyone was a bit disappointed that the much anticipated Blue rag part of the trip had to be cancelled with nobody more disappointed than TB himself but there is not much that can be done about the weather. But at least that gives me a reason to go back again.
A big thanks go to TB and those that helped with the prerun and organizing. Also to the sweeps and support drivers. Also to the sponsor Adventure Moto, of course thanks go also to Al for giving me a lift down and back again and to all who attended and made it an enjoyable weekend. It was my first time in the high country and I hope not my last.
Great stuff,love these reports n pics
Better looking at someone els freezing there asses of than me :laugh: :laugh: I’ll stick to the higher latitudes this time of year for a ride thanks.
That Vic high country sure looks like its worth a look some time though.
Thanks for the R R guyes.
Cheers Teza.
Hi everyone, I know I’m a bit slow off the mark so it should come as no surprise that my contribution to the trip report is a week overdue! I’ve included a couple of days of exploration prior to the RideADV event so forgive me if the addition of my solo adventures is not what you signed up for!
I’d managed to score 10 days leave so I headed to Jindabyne solo and early on Monday the 28th of April. I trailered my bike behind the Cruiser so I’d have half a chance of returning to Maitland in the event that I binned the bike or injured myself. Fortunately, both bike and I returned unscathed, but it took the pressure off mollycoddling the bike and, for a trip so far from home, I felt a little more at ease.
It also meant that I could load up the Cruiser with enough camping gear to spend the first three nights camping in relative comfort. I followed the Alpine Way through Jindabyne to Tom Groggin where I crossed the river to set up camp on the Victorian side of the border. There’s a huge campground on the NSW side of the crossing (NPWS fees apply) or you can cross the river and camp for free at either Dogman’s Hut or Buckwong Creek Camping area. Limited facilities at all of these campsites but since there are no fees in Victoria, I took the cheaper option. (I know TB!!!! Tight-arse KLR riders!!!)
The Murray River crossing is a rock based ford which is always wet and the entry and exit can at times be very chopped up. It can become impassable after heavy rain, or as the snow melts, and is really only suited to high clearance four wheel drives and/ or riders with experience in resuscitating a drowned bike. Buckwong Creek can catch the unwary too and as I arrived at the campground there were a couple of young blokes loading a very wet bike onto a recovery ute for the long trip home.
A handful of High Country tracks are closed from May to Dec to ensure they don’t get too flogged out and so I only had two days to explore a couple of cracker tracks that I figured would be out of play for the RideADV event. With rain forecast for Wednesday I decided to tackle the potentially harder Mt Pinnibar on Tuesday leaving me with the ‘relatively easy’ Davies Plain run on Wednesday.
There are at least two ways to get to Mt Pinnibar. If you’re TB on a fully loaded Tenere you take the masochistic way up the Mount Pinnibar Track. This track is steep. Loose and steep, rocky and steep, and then it gets ridiculously steep. Don’t attempt this on a big bike unless you are fit, very capable and just a little bit stupid. On my map we noted that the first 3km was a very steep 12 minute climb… and that was on four wheels in the Landcruiser. It is “technically” the shortest way to Mt Pinnibar, but it’s not for the feint hearted and certainly not for a solo big bike rider.
If you head up Tom Groggin Track as I did, you skirt the western side of Tom Groggin Station. At the Mt Pinnibar turn off, wave to TB, wish him all the best, and continue straight ahead along Tom Groggin Track. It’s steepish in parts and a little loose but otherwise a good road up to the top of the spur. Follow Tom Groggin Track past Anderson Track and turn right onto Buenba Road. Turn right again onto Mt Gibbo Track which becomes Mt Anderson Track and then finally left onto Mt Pinnibar Track. There are signposts marking Mount Gibbo, Mount Anderson and finally a trig point and a great view from Mt Pinnibar… unless it’s so damn foggy you can’t see more than 15 metres in front of you. Bugger!
From the summit I took Shady Creek Upper Track, Wheeler’s Creek Track, right onto Buenba Log Rd, left onto Buenba Rd, then left onto the well graded Tom Groggin Track back to camp. I hadn’t had much saddle time on my bike in the lead up to RideADV so this was a good day to blow out the cobwebs and get back in the groove.
Back at camp that night, enjoying a warm fire and a quiet beer, I read Tom Foster’s Editorial in the latest Adventure Rider Magazine and it struck a chord. He writes… ‘There’s something truly edgy and addictive about riding solo….As the time and distance roll away under his wheels, the solo rider leaves help, comfort and safety further and further behind, and more and more backs himself to cope and survive.’
With Foster’s tribute to ADVENTURE resonating in my soul, the following day was meant to be a bit of a toddle along Davies Plains Track plus a side trip down Kings Plain Track and a quick loop via Macarthy’s Track to the Poplars Campground. However, the rain fell steady for much of the night and I awoke to a sad and soggy camp. There were other campers not far from me who had driven Davies Plain Track last night and they told of slipping and sliding their way down to camp in their four wheel drives long before the rain had set in.
‘Surely it couldn’t be as gnarly as Mt Pinnibar’ I mused as I packed the tail bag with the days essentials. I ride what is essentially a stock 08 KLR650. I bought it from a 70 year old gentleman from Tamworth who should look away if he is reading this right now. Black and red, it was in pristine condition when I bought it, 20,000kms, but not a scratch or a hiccup to sour its image. Within a week I had given it severe gravel rash on both sides, bent the handlebars in such a way that initially required brute force followed by a comically unorthodox riding technique, and had broken a clutch lever and ‘redesigned’ the shift lever. The road oriented tyres were the nail in the coffin that saw me over the handlebars and flat on my back wondering if sewing quilts might have been a better hobby.
The gravel rash is now partly hidden beneath Motech crash bars, Dunlop 606’s give me a bit more bite, an alloy bashplate promises a little sump protection and a suspension upgrade thanks to Teknik makes my Gumby riding moves appear almost intentional!!!
The track from my camp at Buckwong Creek to Davies Plain Hut is less than 15 kilometres. However, much of this track is a steady climb rising from about 600m near Buckwong to 1700m along Davies Plain ridge. After the rain it resembled a slippery clay rollercoaster that was hell bent on preventing me from reaching Davies Plain Hut. I’ll admit that my upward success had a lot more to do with good tyres and sheer luck than rider skill, but eventually my luck ran out. On a snotty hill in the middle of nowhere both the bike and I lay sprawled on the ground enjoying the “freedom of solo adventure”!
Ever noticed how youtube clips demonstrating “how to pick up a big bike” are conveniently staged on a flat surface. No-one ever falls over on a flat surface!!!! I don’t!!!! Well… not usually. So I find myself alone, on a clay ramp that I can barely stand up on, the bike is laying downhill in such a way that it creates its own mini fuel fountain flowing freely from the keyhole in the fuel cap. I want to pick it up quickly. Really, I do, but I do a quick mental calculation. Bike weight is 187kg dry + 20L of fuel + tools + tubes + spares + tail bag + water + munchies = a depressingly heavy bike for my current predicament!
Riding solo may be ‘truly edgy and addictive’ Tom, but by the time I had pushed and pulled and grunted and groaned and finally heaved the bike upright I was ready to go cold turkey and book into rehab! I’d shed more layers than I knew I was wearing and with the bike now facing downhill, I had the slide to the bottom and ‘attempt number two’ to look forward to. After skidding my way down to a good spot, I walked up the hill to catch my breath and do a little trail grooming. Trail grooming is a technical term describing the process of walking a tricky section of track and realising there are many more obstacles lying in wait than you had ever envisaged at first glance. Boosted by this reality, I moved a couple of the largest rocks and dragged what was left of my ego back to the bike.
What followed was a masterful display of technique and bravado (feel free to interpret that statement in any way you’d like!) and by the time Davies Plain Hut came into view I felt like I had conquered the world! The truth is, if I had dropped the bike a second time on that particular hill I’m not sure I’d have had the strength to heave it back up again. Anything more than a handful of spills a day on a big bike and I would rather walk home.
My original plan was to return to camp via the same track but I was beginning to question whether slithering all the way back down again was a percentage move. In the end the weather tipped the scales as I rode through rain and fog, followed by sleet and finally snow. The track up on the plain was awash and in the end I decided to detour via Buckwong Track and then Mount Hope Rd/ Tom Groggin Track back to camp. Kings Plain Track and Macarthy’s will just have to wait until next time.
In fairness to Tom Foster, he continued in his editorial to outline the advantages of riding with a group of mates. How the simple addition of a helping hand to right a heavy bike can be the difference between a memorable story and an exhausting marathon. Add to that the collective wisdom and experience of a group to diagnose bike issues and the safety net available if someone is injured or lost. In the following three days I was to experience those advantages and loved the whole RideADV experience. But there’s definitely something ‘edgy and addictive about riding solo’.
By Thursday night, 50 or so bikes and riders had gathered in Jindabyne to hear TB’s briefing and to have our GPS’s loaded with tracks. This was my first RideADV event and although I knew no-one, the group was really friendly and we were keen for a great weekend. Friday promised the pick of the weather so the ‘special’ option was well subscribed.
I was paired up at the briefing with Anthony from Nowra and we’d agreed to meet at 7 the next morning. However, Anthony’s bike was having trouble getting out of bed in the frost and it took a little encouragement to get it to fire. We settled into an easy rhythm down the Barry’s Way and I was pretty happy to end up in the bushes only one and a half times. (If no-one sees it, I’m prepared to call it a half!) Teapot Creek Track was the highlight of the day and we all rolled into Omeo in one piece to fuel up and settle into the pub.
With the accommodation at the pub pretty full that night we had a ring-in called Frank, (a travelling salesman) bunk in with us and he was extremely lucky to survive the night. His snoring peeled wallpaper and even with ear plugs it was doing my head in! There’s a reason why some homicides involve complete strangers and by 3am we were searching for a blunt instrument and a shovel.
Saturday’s special was to include a run out to Blue Rag but the weather forecast was for snow down to 1200m. Even if we survived the steep and narrow ride, the view would have been 360 degrees of thick fog. So on TB’s advice we headed for Dinner Plain for a coffee and then followed the High Plains Road down to Dargo. As we went past the Blue Rag turn off I breathed heavily on the inside of my visor and imagined I was enjoying the ‘view’ from Blue Rag. All but ran myself off the road, but I think I nailed the experience.
Fuelled up in Swifts Creek and then a short blast into the Little River Inn at Ensay. Can’t say enough about how good the Little River Inn was. The food was awesome and the beer cold enough to make a slushy. The bunkhouse promised more of the snore, but compared to Frank, these contenders were only amateurs. Anthony elected to sleep in his tent this night. Frank had left him a weary man.
Today I came to the realisation that I have been riding alone. I don’t mean without friends. I mean without a fellow rider who shares the joy of my trusty steed. As I surveyed the line up at Dinner Plain there were all manner of bikes who shared a common bond; Teneres, BMWs, Yamahas, Suzukis, KTMs, and so on. Surely amongst 50 bikes there must be another KLR? But no…it’s official. I’m riding a unicorn.
By Sunday morning we were well fed and well rested but there were subtle signs of agitation. Not of mutiny, just unspent energy. It was a bit like an ADD convention minus the Ritalin and so when Chicken made the announcement that the ‘special’ for the day was a swamp it was like waving a red rag in front of a bunch of Old Bulls. Game on. Maybe if Chicken had been on sweep duties that day he’d have tried to sound more convincing.
Off we went to tame the ‘special’ and we were so glad that we did. Fabs from Melbourne joined Anthony and I and we had an absolute ball. The first third was a mixture of clay and rock that lulled us all into a false sense of ‘special’ and we were starting to wonder about the basis of TB’s warning. Then we crossed the line and Fabs and I did our rendition of a synchronised slip and slide as we rode our backsides down a filthy clay hill. From the footprints and tracks we could tell that we were definitely not the only ones to fall victim to this descent. Regaining our composure we rode 300 metres to the base of an equally snotty uphill with no sign of a ‘chicken track’. No option but to try to climb one hill or the other!
Another bloke was rolling his Tenere down the hill for a second go having lost his chain on the first attempt. I had a crack at the climb only to fall off half way up and had to turn my unicorn around in the custard. Meanwhile, Anthony and Fabs both idled past me to the top of the hill just to rub it in. Bastards! Back at the bottom I’d given the Tenere a healthy head start before having a second crack at the hill. Second gear, a few more revs, jump the woop-de-doo whilst turning right, then bugger me, if that bloody Tenere isn’t laying across the track. Somehow I stayed on through the ruts and clay with both legs swinging wildly with only a can-can soundtrack missing from my special dance. With all hands on deck we manhandled the Tenere and my bike to the very top and I quietly thanked the Lord that today I wasn’t riding solo.
The rest of the ride featured lots more clay and I watched the Tenere in front of me go lock to lock down one particular hill. I have no idea how he stayed on. Although we’d had a ball, I was knackered and just a little relieved when we finally turned onto the tar and rolled into Buchan. The sweeps were to spend 3 hours getting the last of the riders through that snotty section and when we saw Moose later he assured us that he’d sleep well that night.
Fabs had always wanted to have a peek at MacKillops Bridge and so we let the sweeps know that we were detouring on our way back to Jindabyne. The ride down to the river is narrow but in good condition and we were blown away by the view and the river below. Back on track we watched Chicken orchestrate the piggy-back trailer arrangement needed when a wheel bearing failed on one of the trailers. We then rode into Jindabyne on sub tank and fumes to complete what had been a great day and overall a fantastic ride.
Anthony and Fabs were great blokes to ride with and on Monday I guided Fabs via Tom Groggin to a shortcut to Omeo. I do most of my riding alone back home, probably because I ride a unicorn, but it was such a great experience to ride with these guys and the group as a whole. Hats off to TB and the rest of the crew who did pre rides, sweeping duties, and drove support vehicles. For me, it was money well spent.
If you’ve never done something like this before and are contemplating the next RideADV trip, my suggestion is to get on board. They’ll even let you bring your unicorn!!!
Cheers, DaveThanks to Anthony who took most of these photos!
Great report there mate :woohoo:
Don’t stress I ride a KLR Too Dose the job.Mallee
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