Forage abundance

Mobile again.

Last year I was given the news that I would have the opportunity to travel to Geelong to assist with a work conference. I couldn't believe my luck. My family all live in Melbourne, I could spend a couple of days with them  before heading to Geelong.

Whenever I am in Melbourne and don't have the responsibility of managing travel for a family, bicycle is my preferred mode of transport.
Melbourne is a treasure trove of old neighborhoods, lanes and parklands that are really great to explore on a bike. 

$20 bike + $10 backpack (1960s vintage) preparing for commute

As an affirmation of my freedom I always prefer to leave the airport on foot or by bicycle. Several times I have acclimatized to the Melbourne environment by walking from the airport to my sister's place in Kialba, once I tried walking to my parents place but I have to admit my fitness wasn't quite up to scratch and the detours I'd taken added too many foot miles to my trip so I bailed with only a few km to go.

Melb Airport - Fawkner - Watsonia

This time I took an old bike with me and cycled the Western Ring Road, the same path I'd tried walking a couple of years earlier. Riding was infinitely easier and sections which were previously under construction are now open.

 

After putting the bike together the hardest part of the journey is actually finding a way out of the madness that is the airport carpark and associated roads! While a lot of Melbourne infrastructure is fairly bicycle friendly, the Airport is definitely not!

Although exiting the airport is a bit of tenuous task, once on the ring road the ride becomes much simpler and far more enjoyable.

An example of how cycle paths can be incorporated into existing infrastructure 

Cycling to me is not about sport or fitness, it's just something I do for the sheer joy of it! Basically I get a buzz out of moving in that elusive space between traffic and pedestrian, somewhere in the grey area where registration and insurance don't yet venture, where money does not determine your mobility and alternate routes are the norm!

I love the freedom of being able to explore at a leisurely pace while traveling, virtually free, a journey that would cost me over $50 in a taxi or over $20 on the stupid airport shuttle that would only dump me at a train station where I'd still have to travel back out to where I needed to be.

My favorite part about this ride is the abundance of food that grows along land connected to the ring road. Both wild edible weeds and garden plants that overhang the fences.

Fennel

Scottish thistle (terrible weed but pretty and edible)

Blackberries are spreading again, yes they  are invasive, if kept trimmed they provide good tucker

 

Plums overhanging fence

Opportunistic gardens. I have no qualms about taking fruit that overhangs fences but chose not to touch these gardens as they were very well cared for and obviously of higher value to the owner.

There are so many treasures and so much beauty in the smallest of things. If you travel by bicycle, with your eyes and heart open, chances are you will discover treasures that only a cyclist can know.

At this time of year there's a lot of fruit to be found, much of it is still ripening but I was fortunate to find enough ripened fruit to have a reasonable feed. 
By the time I reached my destination I had a belly full of fruit, both wild and domestic! 
Blessed is the life of a Gleaner and a forager.

Gleeners Paradise

Yes for just a few days of the year Darwin becomes a Gleaner's Paradise!
Due to the fact that we are in a Cyclone prone part of the world our local council has deemed it necessary for the sake of public safety to have a special garbage pickup day.
They encourage everyone to clean up their yards and throw all their unwanted junk onto the nature strip. Anything that could become a projectile in a Cyclone should be tossed out if it is not needed.

So for a couple of days at this time of the year you can wander down almost any street and find all kinds of useful things that other people no longer want! Old bikes appear on just about every pile! This year there were heaps of washing machines too and I noticed quite a few gas BBQs.

A lot of stuff is actually junk but in a country like Australia where we have access to tons of really cheep consumer items you can find all sorts of gear that really only needs a bit of TLC and it is perfectly useful! There is also a plethora of stuff that would appeal to artists or those who like to invent things.

I am currently trying to create an extendable aluminium frame for my Xtracycle. I found a few useful pieces but not enough to start putting anything together. Although I am a hoarder of bike parts (Which has saved me a fortune in new gear) I only bothered to collect a couple of pieces that suited my immediate needs. One of which was a complete bike that only needed a bit of dust wiped off and some air in the virtually new tires!

Living in this country I doubt I would ever need to buy anything new. I even managed to score a perfectly good door handle to replace the one in our bedroom that I had to brutally remove when it refused to be unlocked after an hour of twisting, banging, scratching and screaming!

I love fixing up old stuff! I love getting things I would never buy new just so I can check out how they feel or how they work! I guess I just love Gleaning!


If you dig gleaning check out The Gleaners and I by Agnes Varda. (I fell in love with her style)
http://www.abc.net.au/arts/film/stories/s424327.htm