Back on the beat

Life for me over the past month has been full of new experiences and  mostly joyful interactions and opportunities to share with others and learn about myself in new ways.

It has been quite wonderful to connect with new people and to explore aspects of myself in a safe environment where people don't feel judged or devalued for who they are.

I have made some new friends and have been spending time with new people...

In the business of these social adventures I have tended to neglect my own personal solo adventures, rituals and times for quiet reflection.

This week I have tried to withdraw slightly from the social and just spend a little time alone, in my own space, without company.

Over the past few weeks I've had access to motorized transport which has allowed me to zoom around town at my leisure. I have enjoyed the idea of getting back on a motorcycle and hanging out with other riders. I was looking forward to the camaraderie and the mobility that a motorcycle would present, went to the local bike dealership and found the perfect  second hand bike at a price that was too good to be true! A Suzuki Intruder 250cc. In great condition! I planned to buy it but held back... I thought about the personal gains I had made through riding my bicycle, the solitary time, sweating it out on the paths and trails, the health benefits... and I sabotaged my chances of getting that motorcycle by waiting until the end of the day to pay my deposit. When I got to the shop it had been sold!

I can't believe I didn't buy this beautiful machine! It was in perfect condition!

 

Foregoing motorized transport has been a little inconvenient back on my bicycle and am sweating it out on the time consuming commute to work along the coastal trail. It eats up a fair bit of my time but I know it is healthy for me in the long run.

Just thought I'd share this stuff as a marker in time. No matter how much I value the company of others, I do not forget the importance of solitude.

Darkness and light

On the middle day of this working week I took my day off. I am employed to work four days per week but as life has it, I have often given up my day off 
A. because there is always some little thing that needs to be done.
B. I'm a freaking workaholic who doesn't know how to have fun or relax.
(Mostly 'B' I think)

On this day I did not go to my Job. On this day I tried to practice being a human with only one day. It was a long and full day.



Bäparu (funeral) It's been a sad time lately, too many funerals, too many Yolŋu family passed away. I have also lost close friends this year who I know I am grieving and finding it difficult to let go.
Before dawn I had to take Mirriku to the airport, over the past six months she has lost three siblings. This time a Yapa (sister). A lady who I call Yapa, who I first met 12 years ago who I respected and admired.  She was a precious wise woman who has contributed to her community all her life, I cannot mention her name or show a photo but my memory of her sits heavy. I know why bäparu (funeral ceremony) is so important for Yolŋu. Things must be done right.   

The weight of my thoughts sunk in my heart and even my legs felt heavy and unwilling to move.

Doubt: I wasn't sure exactly what I would do but I knew I must get out of the house and not go to work! There had been a full moon and the nights were getting hot, I don't think I got enough sleep last night. Take it easy, no hurry.

Visual splendor: I took the coast road again and soon found myself crossing the Rapid creek bridge. The tide was high; It's always nice here at high tide. I gazed down at the creek, the red sand, the aqua tinted depth of the creek was clear enough to see Longtoms swimming effortlessly against the outgoing current.

Aimless: With no plan I rode slowly toward the coffee joint I always go to for a caffeine charge. I took my coffee back to a shady spot near the mangroves and contemplated the meaning of life, death and whatever it is I am supposed to be doing with my time, energy and physical presence on this planet. At this point it seemed a pretty pathetic failure of an experiment and I was wondering if it might be time to consider taking finding the exit ramp. 

Feathers of a raptor for freedom and flight

Inspiration: I scanned my phone for some kind of inspiration, looking at social media usually confirms the worst of my doubts... Odd things can happen! Two notifications appeared with links to a couple of lifesavers. Just some reflective writing and images from a couple of creative people it didn't take much... "...Never forget babe, you are the creator of your life"

Contemplation: I sat another 10 minutes, sipping the coffee, listening to the quiet sound of ripples through the mangrove, the smell of hot wet sand and mud. Glancing at the tree above me birds were darting about extracting nectar from occasional inflorescence. Dry leaves for a mat. I had relaxed, I have become calm and centered in my space. My restlessness and distressed mind was calm.


Connection: Finishing my coffee I mounted the long beast of a bike that is my cruising machine. All is right with the universe. "I am one with the force, the force is with me". Right, off we go.


Purpose: Rolling slowly along the path, still not sure what I should do with my day I passed a car that was covered in dust. it bore the words rubbed into the dust of the windscreen. "Clean Me!" Well OK. That seems reasonable. So I went off to Dollars and Cents got a bucket and some cloths, filled the bucket at the servo and returned to start the cleaning. It turned out that I needed much more than one bucket of water to clean this filthy car. Not a single tap in the area had a handle on it. They were all 'vandal proofed'. 

Company: I made a trip to the hardware shop for a tap master key. On my way there I saw Trev. the Rubbish Warrior. We had a bit of a yarn, walked together for a while until we arrived at the bottle recycle depot, I left him there and went back to my work. 

 
Completion: It must have taken about 10 buckets of water and over a couple of hours from woe to go but I eventually completed the task. The car was clean(er). I felt an overwhelming desire to chuckle, and cycled on with a big grin on my face. I commit random acts of cleaning therefore I am.
(Maybe I should have left this story untold but it was a funny thing to do, it amused me and I felt like I'd left at least one part of the world a little better than I found it)

Exploring: I turned the rig around and headed back toward the coast. Tide was really far out. 'What next oh great Spirit?' I looked to the sea, there is a tiny island sand spit with mangroves and a puddle that is only accessible at times like this... OK. Next adventure.

After picking my way through the mud, hopping across rocks I arrived at sand spit island. It's a quiet little oasis usually submerged. When the tide is out it's like a private beach surrounded by a moat of, yes, 'mud and rock'. 

Giving and taking: Looking back toward the northern Suburbs I could see smoke rising. Another fire! A big one. By now the time was about 1:30. I blasted home full speed, had a shower, put on some fresh clothes and rode to the Blood bank where I gave up 902ml of amber plasma, chatted with the nurses, watched a comedic film then ate cake and biscuits in air conditioned comfort.  

I sat there in the bloodbank, feeling totally at ease with myself. 

Summary: It had been a long day, I had observed the capricious extremes of my fickle emotional stability so easily affected by environment and the chemical reactions of my biology. Cycling miles eases my restlessness, sitting purposefully doing nothing settles my mind, doings something I feel is useful helps me gain perspective between the irrational fluctuations of my monkey mind and the capacity of my body to manifest change in the material world around me.

Final Act: Riding home I noticed the giant smoke plume hadn't diminished. Like any thing of such a scale regardless of it's ferocity of the harm it threatens, its enormity has weight, gravity. It draws the curious toward it. I followed the plume to Northlakes and Marrara Golf Course and could see the flames licking at the fence, smoke and flames rising like a tsunami, Shiva dances over the canopy. The roaring thunder of dry fuel consumed by flame. Late dry season fires are a bitch! 

Thank you oh lord for this day, one day, just a day. My day on this earth, should it end now so be it.  
 

Morning coast ride

After quite a good weekend camping and generally being away from 'The World', the sham and whatnot, I found myself awake at 5:30am. 

For the past week I've been taking the company car home, so have missed my daily bicycle commute. 

After breakfast and coffee I still had about two hours before I was due at the office. Plenty of time for a lap of the Coastal track.

Entering the Muirhead Estate the air was relatively cool. I cycled east, directly toward the enormous blazing orange glow of the Sun as it breached the horizon, smoke haze defused the light allowing me to gaze directly into the broiling globe. It was as if I could actually sense it's mass levitating in the sky just out of reach. Before long the light became too intense and I had to shade my eyes and look away.

On a patch of unmolested native scrub I noticed the white flowers of a native Gardenia (megasperma?). I had once fallen in love with one of these and had tried to protect the plant only to see it crushed under tons of earth which had been piled up after local land developers had cleared the site. I spent 15 minutes just admiring the tree, it's form and habit are quite rugged but delicate, a bit like a sculpted frangipani tree with terminal leaves and bright sweet smelling flowers, the bark has a soft yellowish hue that makes it seem quite out of place in the Savannah woodland. 

Approaching Buffallo creek I passed an older man about to start a hike, possibly into town along the coastal path, he had a small pack and his woman was kissing him farewell. It touched me to see this tender moment, I smiled at them and the woman smiled back. With one look she slew the miserable cynic on my shoulder.

The beach was now in full light, I moved on from the WWII bunker, allowing some space between the hiker and myself. Mornings like this are for solitude, nobody wants to be crowded in such places. Timeless, open, free of obligation. Whatever demands they might wish to impart or impose are dead while the sleepers snooze.

Morning Glory (Ipomoea pes-caprae)

As I roll past a particularly lovely stand of Casuarina's I noticed a tight clump of Beach Morning Glory (Ipomoea pes-caprae). Every time I pass this way the beach lures me to stop and rest. it's at a spot just beyond the point at Lee Point facing North East. There is a good energy.

 

There is a Kingfisher in this image, too small to see

After cycling along the sadly denuded monsoon vine forest I took the mangrove trail toward Casuarina Beach, entering the mangroves from the dry and open savanna is like stepping into another dimension. The sound of a black butcher Bird rang out as soon as I crossed that line. The tide was coming in and I stopped to watch small fish swarming in the shallow stream under the bridge. A jewel of blue flashed by my face, I followed it's path as it landed on the areal roots of a mangrove further down the creek. It was an Azure Kingfisher! So happy to be here right now.

Time was ticking away so I took the Rockland's drive trail back past the hospital and on to Vanderlyn. 

I was cruising under the powerlines headed toward Hibiscus shops when I spotted a curious looking creature strutting across the grass towards me.

Chooky Coming back for another chat

I stopped and re-focused my eyes. A chook! A little red chicken was making it's way straight for me. I stood still and waited for her to arrive, thinking any movement would scare her off. No chance! She came straight up to me and started clucking and looking for food. Poor thing must have been lost. I had a brief chat with her to reassure her that she'd be OK so long as she stayed off the road. Meanwhile a jogger passed and had a bit of a chuckle at the affair. 

By now I knew I would need to keep moving if I wanted to be at work on time. Something deep inside me said.... Nothing... Absolutely nothing, the thought of work passed, the moment was just too perfect. I remained peacefully in the company of the chicken until she decided to continue her foraging, then I naturally continued my ride. Not thinking about work, not thinking about time, not imagining what I would should could or must do... Just rolling along as God intended.

O'Keefe Rail Trail on a winter day

I recently had the opportunity to ride the O'Keefe Rail Trail a 49km trail that follows the old rail line between Heathcote and Bendigo via Axedale.

See link for full details https://www.bendigotourism.com/images/Cycling/OKeefe%20Rail%20Trail.pdf

I had once owned some land at Heathcote but haven't been back there for about 20 years. Coincidentally I've been wanting to visit Bendigo for several years but have not had opportunity or a good enough reason to travel out there until now.

Some time last year I read about the opening of the O'Keefe Rail Trail on a Cycling blog. The pictures looked interesting and the distance seemed quite manageable. About 50km.

On Wednesday morning I put my bike in the back of my parents car and we all went for a drive to Heathcote, via Seymour. The country was absolutely beautiful, the sky was blue and the fields were a brilliant green. They'd had enough rain to really freshen up the place. Rain and heavy winds were forecast for later in the day but the the morning was magnificent.

 

We arrived in Heathcote fairly late in the morning and I headed off on the trail at 11am. My traveling companions drove on to Bendigo to do a bit of sight seeing, ride the tram and see some local attractions.

Here the track begins... Right in the centre of town. 

I hadn't really thought through the ride, the only reason for starting in Heathcote was so the rest of the family could drive through to Bendigo where there is more to occupy them while they wait for me to ride the trail. 

I didn't count on the fact that in winter the sun doesn't rise high above the horizon, which means that if you're heading in a northerly direction, the sun will always be in your eyes! 

I also hadn't considered the wind direction. It just happened that on the day I was riding most of the state of Victoria was expecting winds of up to 100kph!

At 11am the wind hadn't yet reached it's peak but the temperature was only around 9.C. The combination of cold wind and Sun in my eyes meant that I missed a lot of the view. My nose was dripping.

A very large roo, he aint moving for nobody.

All these negatives aside, the track was smooth and easy to follow, the sky was clear and, beside the odd kangaroo, I had the path all to my self for most of the journey.

There are a few sections, where the path combines with local roads, I needed to refer to google maps to be sure I was still on the right path, but most of the trail was very easy to follow.

Cattle Grid

Between Heathcote and Axedale there are a lot of cattle grids. I rode a flat barred road bike basically because it was the easiest thing to fit into the back of a car. The grids weren't a hindrance but I was worried the continual impact would damage my rims or flatten my tyres. 
Aside from cattle grids the track is smooth and can easily be ridden on most bikes, but if I were to do it again I'd choose a more robust bike with wider tyres.

Replica mile stones mark the length of the trail, distance from Melbourne in miles (not KM)

There was plenty of bird life along the way, of note were three separate White-winged Chough clans and a flock of about 30 Red-rumped Parrots.

 

Acacia baileyana - Cootamundra wattle. (Swaying in the breeze)

A wooded section

Although a lot of the land along the highway is cleared the rail trail passes through areas of state forest which contain reasonable stands of eucalypt and wattles.

Ubiquitous dead trees at lake view rest place

The map shows an interesting section where the trail passes over Lake Eppalock. Unfortunately this section of the lake was quite dry, only a depression in the ground and some distant puddles suggested the existence of a lake.

After crossing 'Lake' Eppalock the path makes its way to Knowsley State Forest, a reasonable stand of eaucalypts and yellow flowering acacia bushes I am not familiar with. It's good to see stands of woodland remaining in these areas, they don't seem to have a lot of species diversity but they must provide a haven for wildlife. Wood harvesting seems to be another function of the area. 

Before arriving in Axedale the path winds past the remains of an old building, I am not entirely sure of the story but the map indicates this as the site of the Quarry Hotel. There's an old stone wall and remains of orchard close to the river.
Looking down from the bridge over the Campaspe River I was surprised to see the water was so clear.
   

Campaspe River looking toward McIvor Highway bridge

Continuing from Axedale there was much greater presence of residential semi rural development. Much of the land was still wooded with native vegetation and a reasonable reserve had been left along the rail line which doubled as bicycle path and wildlife corridor. Nesting boxes had been installed on many of the larger trees. It was pleasant cycling through this section but I wondered how much land is sacrificed for so many people to live on their one or two achre blocks.

Bicycle repair station

Tyre pressure gauge for high pressure foot pump

Along this more heavily populated section of the trail there were more amenities. Although I didn't see a public toilet at any stage along the path they did have a water dispenser and an awesome do it yourself bicycle repair depot.

By the time I arrived on the outskirts of Bendigo the wind had picked up and the trail became less defined. A small hill greets the rider just before finally arriving in the town centre.

Bendigo Hothouse

All up I found this a very pleasant ride, two and a half hours of easy peddling stopping occasionally to take photos and smell the flowers. A fantastic way to arrive in the town of Bendigo.

What next?

As one who prefers to travel independently I am planning to catch the train to Castlemaine, cycling to Bendigo via Knowsley and Axedale then return to Melbourne on train from Bendigo.

   

Possible rout next time

Where is YOUR Head at?

Sometimes we can feel lost, alone, stumbling through a pointless existence, mindlessly dragging ourselves from one unsatisfying situation to the next. 
The sensation of separation from others or even the purpose of our own lives can become overwhelming. It is described as an 'illusion of separation' but the experience can feel very real.

However there are times, special times when intuition, perception, time and space conspire to slap that mistaken thought right out of our silly little monkey minds! 

#Synchronicity 

So the here's the story:

I'm riding home from Palmerston along the McMillans Rd cycle path (ok not really important where) and I'm listening to Bob Dylan singing 'Blowin' in the Wind' and I'm looking straight down at the path in front of me, and just, at the very moment Bob sings the lyrics, "...And how many times can a man turn his head..." And all I can see in front of me is THIS!

(Ammended 16/5/19 due to broken link)