Renew – Out of perspective..Reminded by the rain

I’ve been spending too much time updating my status and checking my emails. Fuji reminded me this morning that I’ve spent more time on the computer than reading the bible. This morning’s rain came in a right time. It allows me to get myself away from the packing up and early morning rush. For once in 2 weeks, I’m going to take it slow. Perhaps the Lord allowed this morning’s rain to show me something else more important. Rain..whenever I think of the rain it always reminds me of God’s providence and covenant to his people. ” For as the rain comes down and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, that it may seed to the sower and bread to the eater. So shall My word that go forth from my mouth It shall not return to Me void. But it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing where I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-12 It brings comfort to my soul that what I read and enquire from His word will in one way or another nourish my inner being. Hope this passage reminded you of some precious experience you had with the Lord as it did to me. Shalom and thanks for the follow..

Warmest regards,
Joe~ the journeyman cyclist

Wet weather in Victoria – 2nd time Sleeping in a car shed

The sky was glommy all the way from mount gambier. Even as we  cross the border into Victoria, we can’t seem to get past the dark clouds. Before we knew it, it started to drizzle.. I was getting abit concern on whether we could reach Portland(VIC) in time. There were occasional roadtrains but overall, traffic was still ok..not busy. On average, 1 car go pass me every 10 minutes. My biggest concern was that it was getting late and we still had 50kms to cover. Mm..God certainly has His ways to keep me relaxed..was the first time a kangaroo got so close to me =D

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But thk God that we manage to find a place to rest for the night in Mt Richmond. Thanks Noel! The 2nd time we camp in a shed! =) Reminded me of the time I visited John and Burney =D. Ok I better get some rest soon…At least for today, this entry is up to date. Do keep a lookout for couple of more late posts (Kapunda to Adelaide) ..still waiting for the photos from Fuji to be uploaded b4 posting them up.  Stay warm ! Warmest regards, Joe~the journeyman cyclist

Cycling aross Oz – Spending time in Adelaide

The city’s just a gem to move around. The town centre is pretty much integrated and it doesn’t take long to go from one place to another. Eg. Chinatown to the main shopping street. Architecture wise, personally I felt it stands out from Perth. Most historical buildings were kept intact and well maintained. Very nice city =) BTE the tour down under was in town as well =)

The only thing that hindered me from visiting the city is the return trip back from it. Going from Blackwood is a breeze..it takes 5mins downhill but the return trip takes a 30 mins uphill climb. Then again, when you’re on a bike tour, you’ll grow to enjoy riding. So its no big issue. Looking back..I wished I could hv explore a little bit more..but I could only hv so much time =)

Cycling across Oz – Spending the night in a Factory in Meadows

After an enjoyable stay with Rob and Helen in Adelaide, we did Rob’s recommended route going through some small towns. Unfortunately, we couldn’t continue riding because of the bad weather.

Although it was downhills and a fair bit of climbs here and there, the weather was getting foggy. Humidity was pretty high, It felt like swimming through the fog. My glasses were all misty. Couldn’t really see what was in front of me and behind me. Being unsure of what’s ahead of us, we decided to call it quits for the day. Out of the blue, a man dressed in overalls approached me and asked me where was I heading to..His name was Gary. Gary took us in his warehouse in Meadows and offered us a place to sleep there. It was such a blessing! Here are some pictures we took in his workshop..Enjoy!

Cycling Across Australia, post dedicated to ~ A football fan and normal person living together with 3 of their lovely dogs in Blackwood~

Since arriving in Adelaide, we had the opportunity to stay in Rob and Helen’s place in Blackwood. Rob was Fuji’s warmshowers.org’s contact and it was very generous of him to share his place with us. But getting to blackwood was no easy task, not knowing the geography of the area didn’t help the situation. We ended up climbing up a very steep and windy route up into the hills. (Its twice as steep on some parts compared to horricks pass)  I even fell twice off my bike during the climb.

But it was all worth the effort when we got there =D Why? I’ll put it all in point form..There were simply too many to write about.

1. Helen and Rob were wonderful hosts and people
2. Helen and Rob were wonderful hosts and people
3. Helen and Rob were wonderful hosts and people (times 3!)
4. We had the opportunity to sleep in a historical caravan( We slept very well =)
5. The views from Blackwood were breathtaking
6. It only takes 15mins to get to the city(downhill)

Rob and Helen, it has been a out of the world experience staying with both of you. Through the conversations we had, the places you brought me to (Rob), the meals that you’ve prepared and shared together. The best thing is that it felt like being part your family. Rob, you have given me the opportunity to see a real Aussie handy man at work(He’s always fixing up stuff..always saying”there is always things to do..” =D). Helen, I’ve enjoyed the conversations( your knowledge of liquor, footy and bushfires) we shared and all the best for your PHD! Do send my regards, to Auntie Lyn and Uncle Warren. Both of you have made my trip real special!

Warmest regards, Joe the Journeyman Cyclist.

This post is dedicated to ~ A football fan and normal person living together with 3 of their lovely dogs in Blackwood~

Cycling Across Oz – Meeting a cycling Legend

Was such a blessing to received an email from John and Berny a day after I reach Clare. They are a couple whom I contacted through an online community of bike tourists. We were offered a place to stay in Kapunda. John and his wife Burny were very hospitable to us. John converted his garage into a bike tourist/camper’s dream with a toilet, shower room and a pantry area. Besides a place to sleep and shower, both of them even cooked us dinner. Lamb chops..Yum! Thank heaps John!

Through our conversation( and the countless medals we noticed John had on display in his garage) We found out that he was Australia’s cyclist of the year 2006 my bad 2003.. Incredible! We wished we could had stayed longer but we’ve to move on to other places. Remember if you drop by in Taiwan or Singapore do drop either of us an email, we’ll be more than happy to bring you around =). To the rest of you guys following me on my trip, thks for the company..I’ll try my best to keep my posts up to date.

With love,

Joe ~ the Journeyman cyclist

Cycling Across Australia – South Australia; Flinder’s Range to Clare Valley

Begin our journey with a beautiful sunrise. It was a strange feeling to cycle through so many towns as it usually takes at least 70kms to reach the next one. Apart from the rolling hills in the Flinder’s, there were seeps grazing and a few cyclists along the way.(They sure know where to go for a ride..so far this is the best leg of my trip) We stopped midway to buy lunch @ stonehut and icecream @ Laura.. Nice town and folks =) Things got abit busier once we enter the shire of Clare. In the Clare region, farmers were busy harvesting their crops. I’ve never seen so many tractors and locusts in my life. These little critters got into my helmet, my shirt and my pants. They were everywhere. Remember to turn on your wipers if any of you plan to visit the place soon. Cycling in the Clare region is no easy task, it was rolling hills and head winds all the way through. By the time we reached Clare Valley(Should be renamed as Clare hills) we were half dead. But it was all worth the effort. Celebrated Fuji’s birthday the next day and stayed in backpackers to give ourselves a treat.

Special thanks to Norm and Lyn Draper for your kind gift( the olive oil soaps) to me =)

Cycling Across Australia – Port Augusta, Horricks Pass and Riding into Beautiful Valley

Port Augusta –Finally the biggest town since Kalgoorlie. Augusta was a large town. We had a 30km straight downhill with tailwind after we got into the A1 highway. Although it saves us heaps of energy from pedalling, the traffic there had not been very kind to us. Going @ 40km/hr and with traffic constantly overtaking me with limited road shoulder..You can imagine roughly how daunting it was. By the time we reached the city Fuji was dead beat. So I cycled around town to look for a decent and cheap accommodation. We ended staying in Backpackers in the town centre. Though the Aircon broke, but I was still very glad and thankful to have a bed to sleep in and roof over my head. I’ve learnt that these things don’t come easy.

Port Augusta to  Wilmington (Beautiful Valley)-Rode through the salt lakes, but the lake smell funny ..like sewage. 20 kms of semi-paved road.

Will upload another video here(rabbit)

Found a blind rabbit there. Hard climb through Horricks pass. 15km of continuous climb. 500m above sea-level. During climbs, I am always reminded by Fuji’s mountain climbing philosophy,” Climbing mountains/hills is always fair.. cause there is always downhills after that.”

(video of climb coming soon)

We camped within the compound of a Church in town. Next day we’ve got to discover and witness why this town is affectionately known by its residents as “Beautiful Valley”

Cycling across Australia – The Highway Chapel in Ironknob

2/1/2011              Kimba, Iron Knob to Port Augusta – Met Truckies Ministry, had cookies, milk, fellowship.

Cycling into Iron knob I expected that traffic would be fairly busy with roadtrains loaded with iron ore. Surprisingly, the town was hardly awake. Besides a couple of tourist who stopped by for rest, there was practically no one in sight. Even the visitor’s centre and the road house were closed. Disappointed, both of us decided to go back to the highway to continue the journey. Who knows I came across a signboard saying “free coffee or tea” outside the local police station. Mmm.. this town’s sheriff must be extra friendly ..That’s where we met the trukies’ minister and his wife; Mr and Mrs Trotter. They’ve revamp the old police station in their base which they travel around the country to share the word of God on wheels. Below are the pictures we’ve took @ their place =)

You can read more about their ministry here We ended up spending half our day there. Had fellowship and tea. It so happenly was Sunday! Praise the Lord! (It actually rained, so pretty much both of us were stuck there and Fuji had an earful sharing from Brother Neil..haha.. it was certainly not coincidence we were there. =)

Cycling across Australia – Year 2011 Across the Central Wheatbelt

31/12/2010         Poochera to Wudianna – Linda the community librarian to let us in the library. Surf the net for free and learnt that in SA most libraries provide free internet access. She was kind enough to allow us into the facilities’s pantry.

The most important thing was the library was safe haven away from the unforgiving heat. Eventually, she had to shut the library but we took the opportunity to grab some photos with her before we let her go =D.

The plan was to camp behind the school, but Fuji decided to ride to the next town. For me, I eventually decided to give myself a treat on the last day of 2010. I ended up staying in Wudianna Motel.  Met Ashton and his Dad from Adelaide. I didn’t stayed for the countdown, but I bought a beer and a box of Timtams to celebrate the occasion

1/1/2011              Wudianna to Kimba pass 30km – Met up with Fuji again. Learnt that Fuji spent his last night of 2010 sleeping in a wheat-field. Was impressed. But I’ve guessed we both needed each of our own time to reflect and set resolutions for the brand new year. I was never a person who would seriously pen down my resolutions. This year’s different. There had been changes, major changes, there will be changes and more hills to climb, but like the physical hills and valleys that were before me, they were of distance memories. (Its just a pity that I still have to bear with the sores from climbing them)

I made an effort to think through my life. It is always difficult to pen down what I want to do. But someone once told me, I just have to ask myself what I don’t want to become and start from there. So this 2011, I don’t want to be a pessimistic person, I don’t want to spent my money unwisely, I don’t want to get into a …, I don’t want to hurt my people around me especially family. There are many more “I don’t want to be’s” =)

The 1st evening of 2011 finished off with a splendid sunset @ the campsite 30kms past Kimba. It was beautiful.

Happy to share these with you

Warmest regards,

Joe ~ the Journeyman Cyclist