Planning a Perth-Albany-Perth ride.

[polishbiker]

Hi there,

Since i missed out on the PAP ride this year as i only found out about it 3 days before the start i planned my own trip.

Its pretty much the same route and distance with some light mods along the coast after Busselton.

I want to do it sometime in November if i can get the time of work.

Will be camping in designated camp sites.

I will be carrying my tent/sleeping bag and some other items, dont want to take too much, this would be a good test for the BOB trailer that arrived last week.

i Will be using my road bike, hopefully it will not mind having the trailer attached to it.

Details:
On-road.
Day1 Perth-Busselton 223km
Day2 Busselton-Pemberton 214km(along the coast)
Day3 Busselton-Albany 247km
Day4 Albany-Katanning 200km
Day5/6 Katanning-Perth 286km
Total:~1170

Let me know if you would be interested.

[polishbiker]

No interest?

I will be leaving this Friday and returning on a Thursday if everything goes as planned!

[casual_cyclist]

No interest?

I will be leaving this Friday and returning on a Thursday if everything goes as planned!

I wish! If I could get time of work I would. I think it will be a great ride. One day I will do it. Please let us know how it goes and any tips/tricks you pick up along the way would be much appreciated.

[Baalzamon]

Keep yourself well hydrated. It's going to be a hot trip for you.

[chuckchunder]

yep, i'd be coming too if not for pesky things like paying the bills......

having toured a bit down that way i feel compelled to echo stuart's comment re water. between pemberton and walpole the only place to get water is at Shannon River campsite. As i recall the last time i was there (2007, not on the PAP) the water was from a dam and a bit turbid. I'd go the other way through Northcliffe and fill up there too (there are potable taps opposite the shops along the railway), the cafe there did awesome hamburgers.

if you're following the PAP route between albany and Gnowangerup this section is pretty open ie wheat and/or canola paddocks all around, so pretty exposed on a hot day. you may be able to get water at the Kamballup store (if it's open, good hamburgers there too!) and water at the campsite tanks at the Stirling Range National Park - the signs say you must boil the tank water before use.

have a great time mate. i've toured with a BOB and reckon they're the ducks nuts, but just watch you don't take too much stuff just because it fits. every gram is sacred on those hills.

cheers

glen

PS photos or it didn't happen

[John Lewis]

Enjoy the ride.
I'll keep a look out for you in Albany.
phone 9842 1406 if you wish.

John Lewis

[Aushiker]

G'day

Enjoy the ride. I will be interested to see how you go doing those distances loaded ... not my idea of fun but each to their own

Andrew

[polishbiker]

Ok, i am back!!

For those into cycling here are some stats:

Day 1 - Perth-Busselton, difficult, 39 degrees day, 240km (stayed at PBF's house)
Day 2 - Busselton through Nannup (no civilization for 60km)/Pemberton(no civilization for 70km) and managed to do 80km of Pemberton to Walpol (camped in the bush)(no civilization for 120km), very difficult section, HILLY and warm, 220km.
Day 3 - Walpol/Denmark/Albany/Mt Barker, not too bad, hilly, windy and rainy, some road trains made it more interesting. Broke a spoke in Mt Barker and was in trouble, read on if you want to know the outcome , 200km
Day 4 - Albany to Mt Barker again, through some small towns up to Katanning, best section, quite flat and nice roads, lost another spoke in Katanning, 200km.
Day 5 - Katanning to Boddington, not too bad, warm day, road trains!! 170km without rear brake and 1 spoke.
Day 6 - Boddington to Perth, very warm, road to Armadale was hilly but after doing SO many hills i was actually enjoying the hills more and more, 130km, still without a rear brake and 1 spoke.

General suggestions for people that would like to do it:

I did it on my own, probably not the best idea.
Do more research, especially find out how far the petrol stations are from each other. On 1 section i ran out of water/food and it was a very hot day too.
Take a GPS or some kind of tracker so if oyu get lost in the middle of nowhere people know where you are, i didint have any.
Carry extra spokes/spoke tool.
Invest in a rear view mirrors so you can prepare yourself more when a road train approaches from behind, i did not have one, had 2 close calls.
Carry a LOT of water. I learnt this point after day 1 so loaded with more water/powerade/chocolate/jelly snakes.
Carry a proper map, i only took an excell spreadsheet print out with VERY basic directions.
Carry a debit/eftpos card, i forgot mine and was conctantly worried about not having enough money!
Do less km per day, ~200km of hard pedaling a day is a lot with a loaded bicycle, this trip was more of an endurance and pushing myself to the limits but next one i would do in more days.
Take a spare set of ass cheeks!

A BIG thanks to Scott (aka PBF) for helping me out in Busselton, offering me a warm bed, food and advices on my route, event lent me his camelback, good to know there are decent people out there.
Also a BIG thanks to Grant (Scott's friend)/Daniel for helping me out in Mt Barker where my bicycle was unrideable, also offered me a warm bed, food and transportation back to Albany to get my bicycle fixed, hence i had to cycle from Albany to Mt Barker twice

Total time spent:

Left Perth on Friday morning, got back to Perth around 11AM today (Wednesday).
Total kms = 1130.
Cycling per day = ~10hours
Bicycle = Surly CrossCheck
Actual route = Perth-Busselton-Nannup-Pemberton-Walpol-Denmark-Albany-Mt Barker-Albany-Mt Barker-Katanning-Boddington-Perth.

Next trip is in the making

Peace

[polishbiker]

& btw. i ended up taking Surly crosscheck with rear panniers instead of using the trailer for this trip

[Chef]

& btw. i ended up taking Surly crosscheck with rear panniers instead of using the trailer for this trip

Hope she treated you well - good to hear you had a safe trip

Cheers
Phil

[Uncle Just]

"Do less km per day, ~200km of hard pedaling a day is a lot with a loaded bicycle, this trip was more of an endurance and pushing myself to the limits but next one i would do in more days."

Good to know you made it safely and have already learned a few things to make your next outing more enjoyable.

[il padrone]

I find my touring day's distances range from 40-60kms when in very steep terrain, rugged roads or with frequent tourist diversions; through to 70-80kms for a typical day; right up to 120-130kms for days with very favourable conditions. For me, 200kms a day is not a tour, it's an Audax challenge ride. I probably carry more creature comforts on tour than you might have.

But good to know you made your goals for the ride. Well done

[casual_cyclist]

Do less km per day, ~200km of hard pedaling a day is a lot with a loaded bicycle, this trip was more of an endurance and pushing myself to the limits but next one i would do in more days.

Sometimes it is fun to push yourself to the limits. Doesn't mean you have to do it next time though. More relaxed rides can be fun too!

[polishbiker]

And here is myself & the bike

[custard]

Invest in a rear view mirrors so you can prepare yourself more when a road train approaches from behind, i did not have one, had 2 close calls.

Only 2?

Didn't happen to be white trucks with green writing on them did they?

Rode Perth to Bunbury about 10 years ago, taking about 3 days to do your first leg. 2 a day would be a conservative estimate.

[PBF]

And here is myself & the bike

Nice camelback

Just joined the forum and thought your sydney write up would be on here. Found this one too.

Nothing like your distances, but im doing a few more kms around busso at the moment..........hoping to build up from tiny rides to some longer ones.

[polishbiker]

Hey scott!

Yes, the camelback,forgot about that,when i get back.

That trip is so last year :p

Currently doing cairns-alice-darwin-broome-perth,in alice now

[paul flewitt]

Yeah, I'd be interested. I'm from the UK but am thinking about returning to Perth where I am a resident after doing something like this or the Nullabor...