Roaming the Central Coast. 1....

Seeing as I basically now live on the Central Coast it is time for a Roaming of the Central Coast ride. Today the weather turned on a very hot and sunny day for us. No set route. Just go for a ride.

So we headed off to Somersby Falls first. Having never been there this was a real treat for me. Having Jan as my human GPS we could not get lost. This is her stomping ground. She has lived up here all her life.

You can tell we are still in the grip of a savage drought. The Falls are but a trickle. Jan said as a kid you could swim at the bottom of some of the falls. Not now. In places there are pools of black stagnant water. Yet the Falls themselves are still very pretty.










My poor riding legs are screaming after all the stairs we have descended and then climbed back up. It is stinking hot too in jeans and a leather vest. We have both been just riding in shirts. The sun has been frying our skin bright red. Before you scream at me as to why we are not wearing all the right gear let me just say that it was our decision to ride like this. We know the risks. So we head off to Peats Ridge for a drink at the Corrugated Cafe. It is called this because the walls are covered in Corrugated Iron. Cup of tea hits the spot. Where to next? Up north to Wollombi. As we are both really sun burnt now we decide to wear our jackets again.

We boom past Jerry's at Kulnura. No need to stop here we have not been back on the bike for long after the stop drinks stop at Peats Ridge.

The road to Wollombi can be narrow in places and as rough as a goat track. I am loving this ride. Jan is a super pillion. I have to check my mirrors to see if she is in fact on the bike. Yep she is just sitting there looking at the country side zip past.

The home of Dr Jurds Jungle Juice comes into view. The Wollombi Tavern. All we have is a soft drink. It is even hotter here. Down with the drink and back we head to Gosford retracing our steps.





We stop at Fernances Crossing culvert to take some photos. This was built in 1831. Off in th distance I can hear a very loud bike approaching at speed. Its a VTR 1000 that had been at Wollombi. He is hoofing it that's for sure. Knee down he flies past me. I just get a photo of him. I take some photos of the culvert and back comes the VTR the other way this time. His exhausts are booming.






Knee down he blasts back up the hill. As we mount up the leave he booms past again. Being 2 up there is no way I can catch him. Yet somehow I do and pass him without me knowing. I spy in the mirrors a bike headlamp coming up on me at a very fast rate of knots. This guy is flying. Waving him past us it’s the VTR again. How did he get behind me?? Stuffed if I know and care. Again his pipes sound awesome. I give him a knowing smile as he disappears into the distance.

All too soon our ride is at an end. We hit Gosford. Arrive home and dive into the very appreciated pool to cool off. What a great day. Great weather. Great ride.

{edit} Just as a way of comparison to show you how bad the drought is here, the below photo of Somersby Falls was taken in 1977 and came from Jan's photos. Then see the ones above that we took.