Heading for the Hill!!

Wednesday 10 August 2017

Hennie and I headed out early, stocking up on coffee and clean water at the servo.  The first 5km was cycling along the Bruce Highway and although it was early, the trucks were already rattling past - only one decided I didn't need a metre space!  but soon I turned off to Mutarnee and immediately the peace and quiet settled my nerves!  Sugar cane fields on each side sweetened the air - birds fluttered above - yep, this is what cycle touring is all about!

After another few kms I arrived at the turn off to Paluma.  The road immediately shrank in width and tipped up...  ah well, I have been on this road so many times in the past - but never on 2 wheels.
As it was early, the road was all mine and although its a steady climb, it doesn't have any really steep, leg-busting climbs - just 19km of up!  My eye was on the rear-view mirror, ears twitching because the scariest bit is a sharp left bend - cars always cut close when swinging around, but luckily the speed on this range road is quite slow and I obviously lived to tell the tale...

But it's beautiful - the first half of the road wriggles through dry forest - with little gullies lined with darker green.  There weren't a lot of birds along this section and as its open, the sun was really giving me a taste of summer.  Eventually I arrived at Little Crystal Creek - a great place to stop and go for a walk along the creek, talk to the brush turkey and marvel at the beautiful bridge, all built by hand back in the depression in 1930's, by unemployed men.  I drank the remainder of the coffee, demolished a muesli bar and finished up with an apple - surely that's enough to get me up to the top of the range!

Little Crystal Creek bridge

The forest begins to thicken soon after and the air becomes decidedly cooler.  Tree ferns reach for the sky and the peep of the Eastern Robin makes me smile while I stand on the side of the road, gasping for breath and waiting for my heart rate to slow down.  I can do these rides, but they aren't easy and near the top I was stopping every 2 km just to recover.  I was relieved to arrive at Windy Corner - but I didn't remember that the village of Paluma was as far away as it was...at each corner I was expecting to be there - and eventually I was!

McClelland's Lookout!  Made it to Paluma

Water!!

My dream of Devonshire tea was dashed by the closed sign on Ivy Cottage.  Crikey!!  I had finished all my water and still had 20km of tough riding out to Hidden Valley.  Signs around the village warned about the unsafe drinking water - boil it blah blah!!  so I went back to the Rotunda to have a snack and consider how to get water and there - bless the Townsville City Council - they provide bottled water for visitors and residents!   1.5L bottle filled up my bottles with a little left over!  phew!

Star Valley - miles of unoccupied valleys - permanent water included
a hermit's dream!

So ever onwards to Hidden Valley.  As I remember it, the sealed road goes a bit on from the Paluma Dam turnoff, near Star Valley look out - was hoping the dirt road hadn't been recently graded and that it's not too corrugated!  A wistful gaze over the remote and isolated Star Valley and Hennie and I headed off into the sun.  Soon we were in the massive white gums, getting even more massive having been saved from the loggers of the past.  But the rolling sealed road continued and soon I was zooming down the hill at Blackfriars.  But there was a bit of water running across the floodway, causing me to slow down, so the climb up out of that gully wasn't aided by any speed gained...  this happened on several occasions, but the amazing thing was that the sealed road just kept on!  bonus!

can you see Hennie at the base?

Boronia I think!

40 years ago the party phone line was held up by these insulators

Dirt road appears

By the time I got to the lemon-scented gums region, the sealed road ended, but I knew it was only about another 5kms before I would get to the Hidden Valley cabins.  I caught a whiff of the scent, but its not quite hot enough to fill that gully with its scent.  Soon I was puffing up the steep driveway to the cabins - Made it - I was pretty pleased with myself.  The memories from 40 years ago came flooding back -  yep, this was definitely going to be a trip filled with nostalgia!
check out http://hiddenvalleycabins.com.au/  for info on the cabins

I eventually tracked down Bonnie (problems of sneaking up without a noisy motor!!) and signed in and got comfy in my little cosy and clean room.  a nice hot shower and a change of clothes helped me to become a bit normal and I joined the tour to check out the platypus, after a tour of the Solar setup that powers the Cabins.  interesting!  There was a tour group staying at the cabins, so we all piled into the mini bus and Ross drove us up the valley to old Garth's place to Running River.  (I was so sad to see the very old Hidden Valley pub had been demolished and even the old date palm tree was gone...  I guess 40 years is a long time ago).  We all sat quietly on the river bank and soon bubbles would be seen on the surface and an occasional platypus would bob up for a quick breath and then disappear again.  I caught a good look at one, resting on the surface, before it dived down again.  So cute!

Garth's old house

Platypus habitat

bubbles - its the closest I got to taking a photo

 As the sun was setting, we headed back to the cabins for a BBQ (or vegie burger!) with salads and a nice cold apple cider!  The tour group were an interesting mix, some really friendly, others totally snooty - so just normal...  so ended the first day of my nostalgic trip to Hidden Valley