Western Loop
My last GT ride was in early July, the start of our Winter, when the weather is usually cooler, around 10*C / 50*F, and with only a few days of light rain. This makes for reasonable riding weather.
Unfortunately, this year we seem to have entered a "wet Winter cycle" with warm water temperatures in the Indian Ocean to the west of Oz, combined with warm water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean to the east of Oz.
The result is cold air temperatures combined with abnormally high rainfall.
Over the three months of June/July/August, we had more than our total annual rainfall, with only 20% of days being rain free.
This ongoing rain event has resulting in widespread flooding events and considerable road damage, and for me, no riding.
With the arrival of our Spring in September and the approaching end date of the Grand Tour of 30 September, I was becoming desperate for three consecutive days of sunshine with no rain.
Week 1 of Spring passed with a few days of rain, Week 2 passed again with a few days of rain, until finally, Week 3 was forecast for fine, warm weather.
I needed no further incentive to get on my bike and bag a few more bonus photos.
The route I had in mind was a 3-day loop, heading out along the Golden Hwy to Dubbo, before turning south to Cowra, then north-east to Bathurst. The homeward leg would be east back over the Blue Mountains to the Sydney basin and my home on the Northern Beaches.
Sometimes I enjoy riding on my own, but this time I thought it would be fun to have some friends along, so I made a couple of phone calls and arranged for Tim and Harry to join my ride.
On a Wednesday morning at around 07:00 am, we met at the 7-Eleven servo in Berowra before heading off along the M1 Motorway.
Well, that was the plan, but Rowan & Martin's "Fickle Finger of Fate" had other plans for Tim's bike refused to start.
As in the dreaded "click of death".
Now, some readers may recall that I wrote in my earlier North-West Ride blog about Harry also experiencing the "click of death".
You may also recall that my rule of thumb is that you should expect to get at least 3 years of reliable service out of a bike's battery, around 4 years, it is time to plan for a replacement and by 5 years, you are really "rolling the dice".
Tim's battery was over 5 years old, so perhaps he had rolled the dice once too often.
After some discussion, it was mutually agreed that Harry & I would head off on our meandering route, while Tim would stay and arrange for a replacement battery before heading directly to our overnight destination in Dubbo. (about 450 kms)
The ride up the M1 Motorway (my least favourite road) was actually not too bad this time. The traffic was light, the sun was shining, and we made good time up to Freeman's Waterhole for coffee and cake.
Suitably refreshed, Harry & I took the back road through Kurri before joining the Hunter Expressway, where we made good time to Denman for a leg-stretch and bio-break.
From Denman, we continued along the Golden Hwy to Merriwa and the first bonus photo of the ride, the Merriwa Sports Club.
By now, Mickey's little hand and his big hand were both pointing at 12 o'clock, so we parked our bikes outside the Bakery and enjoyed some meat pies for lunch.
If a hamburger defines America, a meat pie defines Oz. Every country bakery, and most city based bakeries as well, will have "made-on-premise" meat pies for sale.
They even have an annual Best Meat Pie contests, and the winning bakeries display their award certificates with pride.
A pie is about the size of your hand, with a short-crust pastry base and a puff-pasty top, filled with hot chunky beef swimming in a thick gooey gravy. Pure bliss.
The trick is to be able to eat your pie while holding it in one hand. If you know what you are doing, you will not lose a drop.
After enjoying our pies, we sat in the mid-day sunshine for an hour or so, solving the troubles of the world, before it was time to hit the road again.
Our next bonus stop at the Royal Hotel (est 1870) in the village of Cassilis (pop 278)
From there, we made our way along some enjoyable back-country roads that wound their way through the hills to the Coolah Valley Hotel (est 1920) in the small township of Coolah.
From Coolah, we travelled south down the Black Stump Way to Dunedoo and then on to our overnight accommodation in Dubbo.
As luck would have it, we checked into our motel just 5 minutes before he arrived.
It turns out that Battery World's Roadside Service did not have a suitable battery for Tim's BMW, so he contacted a nearby BMW dealership.
They did have a suitable battery but they insisted that the bike be transported by tow truck to their workshop as they didn't provide road-side service.
All the phone discussions took longer than originally planned, and poor old Tim rode the 460 km, stopping only once for fuel and a quick "splash & dash" bio-break.
Tim was hungry, thirsty and somewhat annoyed, so Harry and I took pity on him and dragged him off to the closest pub, where we bought him a few beers, followed by an excellent Thai dinner.
Thursday morning dawned bright and clear, so we headed down the Mitchell Hwy to the townships of Geurie and then onto Montefiores.
From here, we took the back road to the small village of Mumbil (pop 298), home to the Burrendong Hotel, before taking another enjoyable back road to Molong for a bonus photo of the Telegraph Hotel, and coffee and cake.
From Molong, we continued on our way to the Royal Hotel in Manildra and the Bowling Club in Cudal.
From Cudal, we made our way along the back roads that wind through the vast yellow & green canola crops to the Royal Hotel in Canowindra.
The Royal was built in 1910, but is located on the site of the old Robinson's Hotel, established in 1855.
Just around the corner from the Royal Hotel is the town Bakery, where we enjoyed another meat pie for lunch.
The next bonus location was the Gooloogong Hotel in Gooloogong.
I must admit to having enjoyed a cold beer on a hot summer afternoon on this veranda on previous rides, but we were tight on time on this ride, so it was just a quick photo before heading along Canola Way to Cowra and the old Australian Hotel (est 1846).
Cowra is a large, busy regional town of 8,254, supporting the many farms of the surrounding area.
It was also the location of a Japanese Prisoner of War Camp during WW2.
On 5 August 1944, some 545 Japanese POWs attempted a mass breakout from the camp.
This was later described as a "suicidal" effort, as there was no hope of escaping from the isolated area.
During the breakout and subsequent recapture of the prisoners, 4 Australian Army guards and 231 Japanese soldiers died, with a further 108 prisoners wounded.
The Japanese casualties were buried in Cowra in what has now become a specially created Japanese War Cemetery.
This close relationship between Japan and Cowra has resulted in the construction of an extensive Japanese Garden, the highlight of which is the annual Sakura Matsuri (cherry blossom festival).
The blossoms only last a week or two, but if luck is on your side, it is a wonderful sight.
From Cowra, we headed up the Mid Western Hwy to Lyndhurst, Mandurama and Millthorpe before heading to our overnight accommodation in Bathurst.
Friday morning was bright and clear, and surprisingly for Bathurst, not that cold.
As we had plenty of time available, we decided to enjoy a few laps around the world-famous Mount Panorama Circuit, located just out of town.
Mount Panorama is a 6.2 kilometre (3.9 mi) anti-clockwise circuit, with a steep "rise & fall" of 174 metres (571 ft). The circuit hosts three major motor-sport events each year.
The FIM GT3 Touring Car race is held in March, the Bathurst 12 Hour for Production Cars in February and the Bathurst 1000 for V8 Supercars in October.
The rest of the time, it is a public road with 2-way traffic and a heavily policed 60 kph speed limit.
Even so, it is always enjoyable to "cruise" around the circuit a few times, as it gives you true awareness of the track that is not conveyed over television.
Going up the Mountain through the Cutting is a very steep climb, while going down through the Esses & Dipper is equally as steep, but combined with tight corners.
How the racers do it at the speeds they achieve, is beyond me.
After our handful of laps, we headed back through Bathurst to the Great Western Hwy and onto the village of Wallerawang for a leg-stretch / bio-break.
The plan was to head towards a bonus location in Little Hartley, followed by another bonus in Mount Victoria, but the FFoF again had other ideas.
There was a new section of highway leading to Little Hartley, and I missed the new exit turn, so I had to let that bonus pass.
The large old hotel at Mount Victorian was easy enough to see, but there was no parking (street or otherwise) within 1/2 mile, so I gave up on that bonus as well.
From Mt Vic, we travelled across the Darling Causeway, named after an early State Governor, and then across the Blue Mountains plateau, before descending into Richmond and the Sydney Basin.
The Bells Line of Road used to be an enjoyable 2-lane road, winding its way through the trees, but now, with increased traffic, it is not that enjoyable.
From Richmond, it was an uneventful 90-minute ride playing "dodge-ems" with the large trucks on the M7/M2 on the way to my home.
As today's date is 27 September, this ride concludes my 2025 Grand Tour.
All that needs to be done now is to resize the bonus photos, fill in the photo log spreadsheet and email everything to the Rally Master for scoring.
In closing, just let me say "keep the rubber side down, the shiny side up, and may your lid never skid". Hopefully, I'll see you again in 2026.
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