Horizons Unlimited - The HUBB - Two Ferries and a Pie.

This ride report is from Jan 2008.

Quote:

At the moment I am half way through 2 weeks of Annual Leave. The kids are also on holidays. Most of this first week has been me taking Heather to work and back on the MuZ. Up and down James ruse Drive. Snore……… I need a ride. Even a small ride. But one out in the country side.

Lilly asked me at the start of the week if she and I could go for a ride. A long ride. I love it that the girls all like being on the bike. So how long would a ride be for her? At first I suggested Kiama and then up to Robertson to the Pie Shop. Lilly is a bit of a Pie connoisseur. I traced out the route with Google maps and it was a long round trip. Way too long for her. So I suggested we do 2 ferries, Sackville and Berowra Waters Ferries and then up to Pie in the Sky. Once at Pie in the Sky we will decide were to go from there. We would ride on Friday.

Here it is Friday. It is a beautiful summer’s day. The bike is packed. We are ready to ride. We head off at around 10am. Traffic is light heading north west. Soon we are through Windsor and turning off towards Sackville. But first I take a bit of a detour. I love old buildings from the convict times here. So we turn off and visit Ebenezer Church.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20002800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20003800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20008800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20006800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20010800.jpg

This is the oldest Church in Australia. Established in 1809. This is a beautiful sandstone building. It is still used for worship services. It has a grave yard that is rich in local history. Above the door to the church is a plaque listing the names of the men from the area that died in World War One. Even though there are only 20 names on the Honour Roll this still would have been a big loss for the area. Three familles lost 2 or more of their men. After reading through the grave stones it was time to mount up and head off back to our first ferry.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20011800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20012800.jpg

So far we have had the back roads to ourselves. At Sackville Ferry we queue up with several four wheel drives. Once on the other side of the river we over take the four wheels drives and scoot off away from them. The road from Sackville to the northern Road has some very nice sweepers but also some tight rough sections with gravel across the road in some of the corners.

All too soon we are in Glenorie and I am looking for Wylds Rd. This will take us to Acadia Road and down to Berowra Waters and the ferry there. Now the road is very tight and sign posted at 40k/h.

Lilly is handling the ride well. She is the perfect pillion. So much so that I don’t notice her in the corners. So she is really in tune with the bike.

We are again queued up in traffic for a ferry. Lilly tells me she has a cramp in her left knee. This is caused by the position of the panniers. They can’t be moved back at all. We cross the river on the ferry and stop so she stretch her legs. We are parked right in front of a Memorial dedicated to a Rex Jones who drowned here at the ferry in 1936. He must have been someone of importance in the area to have this stone laid for him.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20016800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20017800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20020800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20015800.jpg

It is getting hotter and we are close to Pie in the Sky. The road takes up from the Ferry via a narrow twisting road that has some wonderful views down into Berowra Waters.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20022800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20023800.jpg

Onto the Old Pacific Hwy and we are at Pie in the Sky. There are some bikes here. BMWs. Most have Ulysses stickers on them. Lilly orders a chicken and corn pie and I have my brought from home sandwiches.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20026800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20027800.jpg

So where should we go now that lunch is finished? I don’t want to go to Road Warriors. We are not ready to go home yet. So lets explore a bit. We head north for a few k’s and turn off to Brooklyn. This small village sits right on the water. It is your typical waterfront place. Many slipways for small boats. The businesses offer support to the boating community and the weekend fishermen. One Fish and Chip shop will have us come back to sample their food.

We sat in the shade for awhile eating a cold lemon Calipo each and watch the people go about their business. Lilly soon realised that this is where they took a ferry to Nelson Island for school camp last year.

It was time to head for home. Lilly was happy with the length of the ride so far. Not too short and not too long. So I had picked a good ride for us.

We headed back up onto the Freeway. This was a mistake. I can handle all the semis. I can handle the silly car drivers. It was the road works that made me turn off and get back onto the Old Pacific. I am glad we did as we took another detour. This time down through to Galston Gorge. Lots of hairpins as the road winds down to the bottom of the gorge. By now there are lots of cars about. We are technically back in suburbia.

We stop at the top of the gorge to have a look around. In the bushes are many spiders. Families of them. All inhabiting the same bushes.

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20029800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20031800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20033800.jpg

http://www.wargamer.com/Hosted/Close..._%20032800.jpg

Back on the road and the first hairpin I hear some very loud squeaking sounds coming from under the seat. Every bump brings a pig squeal from the rear shock mounts. I did grease them when I changed the rear shock. But it is very hot today and even more so down there next to the exhaust. We pull into a servo and buy a can of WD40. A few squirts and the squeal has gone. I know that this week coming I will have to drop the shock and re-grease the mounting points.

180kms and we are home. This was not a big adventure ride. It was not a ride to far flung places in Australia. It was a ride because my daughter asked me to take her on one. We had a ball today.