mst wrote:Any advice from some local cyclists?
The North Easter is definitely the most common wind along the coast. It's a sea breeze effect, and springs up after lunch, and usually relatively light (but as well know, there is no such thing as a light headwind). While this is the most common, it's not a guaranteed wind direction by any means. The NE'er is also usually associated with fine weather. Southerly winds can occur at any time of year, and are usually associated with miserable weather. They are usually much stronger, but not as common.
All of the possible routes are reasonably windy/hilly and sheltered with trees.
Also, regardless of route variant you take, you won't be spending much time right on the coast anyway. For me, I don't think wind should be a really big deciding factor in choosing trip direction.
If it were just wind, I'd probably go Brisbane to Sydney. Plus I think Sydney makes a more rewarding destination city, but that's just because I'm from there. And the last day into Sydney is really nice (last 30km excepted), but I never found an enjoyable way to ride into Brisbane.
But then there are other considerations. I try to minimise the number of flights I take at the beginning of a tour, and have all the tricky connections
and multiple handlings at the end of the trip. This is to minimise the risk of the bike being damaged *before* the trip. So depending on where I was flying in from, I'd consider starting in Sydney, leaving the connecting flight to
Brisbane for the return leg.