2020 Ulysses Odyssey

Red Dwarf & Red Devil at Castle Bay

As we found room for the last minute things in the loaded panniers I was reminded of our nights on the Nullarbor Plain, with the first signs of light appearing in the eastern sky and Red Devil (F650GS) and Red Dwarf (R1200GS) itching to be underway. As soon as we pulled out of the driveway I tuned into the commentary inside my head and it wasn't long before I heard a little voice say "beware of the extra weight when stopping."

Steve found a nice rest area on the edge of Waroona and we drank tea and ate fruit and felt happy to be on our way to the 2020 Ulysses Odyssey at Taunton Farm.

Wellington Dam

The bikes found their way to Wellington Dam, the temperature sitting hard on 15⁰C but it felt more like 10. Abseilers were spray cleaning the dam wall in preparation for mural artist, Guido Van Helten, to paint one of the most stunning murals we are ever likely to see. Then The Big Apple Bakery lured us to Donnybrook for a good pie and a cup of tea. Unfortunately our departure from Donnybrook was slightly delayed while we tried to wash the copious amounts of chicken satay out of the sleeve of Steve's clean jumper.

From Donnybrook we rode on through Nannup and then Mowen Road took us to Margaret River. The cops were waiting for us on the outskirts of town but we were behaving ourselves and just cruised on through the endless detours and we were setting up the tent at Taunton Farm by 2:30pm. By the time we had lived through the case of the missing hammer, and then the case of the missing shoe, we were ready for a beer so we joined a group of Ulysseans in the campers farm shed where we talked of past Odysseys and great bike roads before turning in for an early night.

Taunton Farm

The group ride on Saturday morning took us south along beautiful Caves Road to Augusta. Our speed was regulated by a succession of tin tops but it gave us time to enjoy the trees and the curves. We heard a rumour that they are planning to close parts of Caves Road. While I rode along I gave thanks that I have had the privilege of riding one of Western Australia's great motorcycle roads before they take it away from us.

Is this George or Malcolm?

The group ride continued on to Nannup while some folks stayed in Augusta and enjoyed fresh bronzie (Bronze Whaler shark) and chips overlooking the Hardy Inlet. Then we rode Caves Road once more before heading back to the farm for dinner. We dined under the stars while a good Margaret River band played into the night. We'd crashed by 9pm and didn't hear the band play their final set.

Taunton Farm is a great location for a getaway. I particularly enjoyed the farm animals, George and Malcolm Crackling (resident pigs), Rex (retired stallion), Peanuts (the biggest steer ever) and the peculiar looking Irish miniature donkey, who came with papers to prove his worth although questions have been asked by inquisitive farm quests.

We took the scenic route

On Sunday Steve tested his navigation skills while he found his way along some back roads to Dunsborough. We waddled out to the whale watching lookout at Cape Naturalist and were rewarded with a sighting of a Southern Right blowing in the distance. Steve wasn't done with the back roads and after lunch he found another set to take us back to the comfort of Taunton Farm.

We dined under the stars once more with the fire pit blazing. Many volunteers give their all to make events like our Western Australian Odyssey happen, thanks a million guys and gals for a really great weekend.

Pre-dawn at Taunton Farm

The ride following the Blackwood River along the Balingup Nannup Road was a treat on the way home. As we cruised through Waroona, I glanced across at the rest area where we had stopped for refreshments on the way down. Part of me wished I could turn the clock back to that moment when the weekend had only just begun; until next time.... 

Wildflower Country

 

Guilderton

It was 11⁰C when Devil (F650GS) and Dwarf (R1200GS) pulled out of our driveway on one of the last days of winter, on a four day getaway to ride Western Australia’s Wildflower Country. When you leave home at 7:30am on a weekday, the 90 kilometres of clogged freeway, through the city, is not an inviting proposition. We chose the scenic route, through Fremantle and along the coast road to Mullaloo. This alternative was busy too, and it was with some relief that we turned onto Burns Beach Road and escaped the roundabouts and coffee drinking pedestrians.

By 10:30am we were in Guilderton, at the mouth of the Moore River, digesting the empty car park and the $2 per hour parking fee. We chose the free space on the hill overlooking the Indian Ocean.

Lake Indoon

We were soon riding the Indian Ocean Drive again, cruising past the coastal townships in the cool, calm morning and admiring the shifting sands and the magnificent Indian Ocean along the way. We shared the highway with migrating bees, heading southwards. I bunkered down behind my wind shield but I couldn't avoid them all and by the time we arrived at Green Head I could hardly see through my visor.

We turned right onto the Coolimba Eneabba Road and I made a mental note of The Beekeepers Nature Reserve at the turnoff. The temperature rose quickly as we left the coast. I was relieved to stop at Lake Indoon as I had been keeping an eye on an insect that had found its way inside my helmet. In the early 1980's we had participated in sailing regattas on Lake Indoon. Now, in the late winter of 2020, the lake is just a shadow of her former self, the water level very low and health warnings and "no boating" signs everywhere.

Camping at Mingenew Springs

Three Springs was our fuel stop. Unmanned service stations are becoming more common and it took half an hour, and a visit to the council office, to find a fuel pump that was not out of order. Dwarf’s computer said 5km to empty.

By our riding curfew time of 4pm our tent was up and we were enjoying a beer at the welcoming Mingenew Spring Caravan Park. We impressed some of the other travellers with our homemade burger followed by chocolate cake and strawberries for dessert. We turned in for an early night, happy after a good day on the road.

Mingenew Hill

The following morning we scampered up Mingenew Hill and then undid all the hard work with a pie and a cake from the Mingenew Bakery. The bakery makes seriously good tucker and both the pie and the apple turnover were right up there with the best ever.

Coalseam Conservation Park

Ready for the run out to Coalseam Conservation Park, Steve placed the site map neatly in the map reader of his tank bag and then, in a senior moment, removed the tank bag, "for comforts sake," just before heading out on the road. The wildflowers were spectacular and at Miners Lookout we meandered through an enchanting meadow, with flowers as far as the eye could see. There are many places to stop in this park but by the end of the afternoon I found the locking and unlocking of the jackets and helmets rather tedious. One traveller said "why do you bother locking up?" I replied "we'd rather use our luck on rider safety than protecting our belongings."

We dined at the Commercial Hotel on the second night, a pre dinner drink beside a roaring fire and then a good measure of a well aged T Bone steak made for a very enjoyable evening.

Butterabby Graves

On day three we set off for a ride through wildflower country. We stopped at the Butterabby Graves, where five aboriginal men were hanged long ago. Fortunately we were left alone to lament what had taken place here at Butterabby; as we were leaving two caravans and two cars arrived.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church

In Mullewa we wandered up to Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. At one time her designer and builder, John Hawes, described this church as "feeble" ~ in size, maybe, but certainly not in grandeur. Only the pub served a sit down lunch on a Saturday in Mullewa so we hit the Wildflower Way and made our own tea and opened the "nut box" at the ruin of Tardum Hall. We were too late for a cake from the Wildflower Bakery in Morawa so we happily rode on back to Mingenew. The warm 29⁰C from a couple of days before had been replaced with a cool 18⁰C, a reminder that it was still winter.

Tardum Hall

It always feels good to be back on the open road and I was smiling all the while as we rode south from Mingenew along the Midlands Wildflower Route. We enjoyed the vintage cars in Carnamah and took some local advice and fuelled up in town instead of riding on to Coorow. The Drovers Inn welcomed us for lunch in Moora and then we rode on towards home. We enjoyed a quiet meander through the Chittering Valley before negotiating the Sunday city traffic. Suddenly we were home again and all we can think about is the next time we will ride the open road.

Canola fields