Second Leg - Jindabyne to Lakes Entrance

Day 4 dawned bright and sunny, and we readied ourselves to leave the confines of society and embrace nature. Chubb had a flat tire. Despite this minor setback we took to the moutainous road of Barry Way. It was this day, during this leg we realised our worst enemy. While people of the city feasted on breakfast, we swallowed mouthfuls of flies. They swarmed us in droves, attacking whilst we were at our most vulnerable, slowly peddling up the torturous hills. But our spirits were still high.

Before the sun had reached its zenith we found the dirt. Chub on his smooth, thin tyres knew no fear, speeding down hills at hair raising pace. The amazing run was ended however when he recieved four simultaneous pinch punctures, leaving him with eight new holes in his already brutilised tube.

Chubb and his holy tube, count the patches.

We reached an the top of an amazing hill before a seven kilometre downhill sprint. In this photo you can just make out the road in the distance. The hill was so steep we were on that path within a couple of minutesWe lunched on Jacob's Creek eating a delectable assortment of tuna, vitawheat, brad and lollies (lolly sandwiches aren't as tasty as they sound). By now the sun had started to beat down on us, and we soldiered on, following the snowy river to our campsite at Willis, literally a stone's throw from the NSW/Victorian border. Here's our first view of the legendary river. Willis was a sensational campsite, Chris and Chubb were the first to arrive and cool off in the icy waters of the Snowy Mountains.Day 4 added 67km to our now 247km trip tally.

Day 5 found me straddling the border before heading up some nasty hills in the direction Gilantipy.

Straddling the Border.

A family of emus crossed my path, but I wasn't quick enough with the camera. On the way we stopped a place called Seldom Seen, a very small petrol station where the owner collects - well we'll call them antiques. Julia was lucky enough to see a chicken crossing the road, but we didn't know why. By now we had returned to bituman and just as rain started to kick in we came across our potential accomodation - Karoonda Park. Karoonda Park is a camp for school, we cajoled our way into a cabin for the night, but the highlight (of the entire trip) was when the camp owners learnt we were skilled in the art of science presentations we were offered free dinner for one show. Quickly pooling our collective Science Circus might together we quickly developed a show involving sending Chubb to the Moon, and scabbing props from the camp was easy (thankyou Questacon).

Chubb (wearing the helmet) preparing to be sent to the moon. Chris is teaching the kids about sound - in space no one can hear you scream.

They liked our show so much we got free brekkie too!

By the end of day 5 we had covered 306 km after an easy 58km day.

On Day 6 we left Karoonda Park celebrities and headed towards Buchan. The day itself was uneventful, however we passed a welcoming green sign, letting us know that we where within 400 kms of our destination.

Chubb, Jules, Chris and Danene delighted to see our progress in sign form

Buchan was the nicest town we visited. Our campsite at the Buchan caves was as fine as fine could be.

Chubb, Jules and Chris enjoying the arvo We toured the caves that afternoon and witnessed the spectacular formations inside. This cave is known as Font of the Gods. A photo similiar to this one can be found in most places of business in Buchan.

I then took a scenic bushrun to build up my appetite at the local pub. This unfortunate town had a popluation in the low hundreds, but were preparing for the GreatVictorian Bike Ride to arrive, some 1500 cyclist to boost their population for a night.

41km for the day. Cumulative total: 350km

On Day 7 we headed for Lakes Entrance, passing through Nowa Nowa and visiting the ancient trestle bridge on the way.

Emily dances with the Devil by crossing onto the forbidden side of the fence.

Day 7 was a remarkable day as the curse of the flat tyre was visited upon myself and not Chubb. 1500 metres before our meeting point at Lakes my tyre ruthlessly gave in. However I pumped it up and quickly finished before it went flat again. We once again tried to sneak a few of us into a cabin to decrease costs, but alas we were caught and had to pay for five residents instead of two (there were six of us so we're still winners). After traversing 55 km to Lakes Entrance we notched up the 405th km of our trip.

Day 8 was our second rest day. We slept in and played mini golf.

Chris dreams of being Tiger Woods.

It was a tight competition with everyone getting at least one hole in one. In the end I was able to snatch victory by five strokes.

Here I am King of the Castle. My hole in one on this hole (hole 16) pretty much secured my first place finish.

The team of Golfing Hopefuls - for 18 holes we were bitterest enemies, but our bikes will always make us friends.

We finished our day by buying a Oh Brother where art thou for $3 on video and watching that before dinner and bed.