On the second day of solo camping, I woke up as the day broke. It was a cloudy and cool morning but it was set to morph into a warm, sunny afternoon. Today I would bike part of the Reisling trail. After a quick camp morning routine consisting of all the usual culprits – coffee, shower, day-dreaming, getting ready and of course sunscreen! – I headed off to hire a bike, helmet and a trail map at the camp reception. I hired the items for half a day because I only planned on doing about half of the 33km long trail with some stops in between and then returning back to my campsite.
I started from Auburn and cycled along the beautiful bitumen track. The entrance to the Riesling Trail had a beautiful archway and I came across a lovely dandelion wire sculpture along the trail. I love how it gave the illusion of a dandelion blowing in the wind. I don’t have any pictures of it but here’s a drawing of it the way I remember.
I cycled through some lush green vineyards, golden fields of tall grass and over and down rolling hills. The section of the trail that I covered, from Auburn to Penwortham was what Google Maps calls a ‘moderate hill’. All I remember, is I was huffing and puffing, trying to ride faster to get away from the flies and to feel the cool breeze (by now the sun was high in the sky), as the cyclists going in the opposite direction rolled cooly past me – one couple did stop to cheer me on as I battled to pedal up a small but steep hill – Thank you, kind strangers! That being said I quite enjoyed the challenge of doing this trail on a mountain bike as opposed to an electric bike.
I stopped for lunch and an ice-cold drink at The UPPside restaurant. After a break, I rode on a bit more and then decided to head back to camp as the temperature was only climbing. The ride back was brilliant! It was all downhill and I zoomed past while taking in the beautiful views and feeling the cool refreshing breeze. Back at the camp, I ended the night with leftovers from lunch, a cold shower and a walk around the campsite as the sun set.
I would most definitely bike the Riesling Trail again and I’ll probably cover the second portion between Barina and Sevenhill in my second attempt.