When I opened my eyes and looked out of the bedroom window on Monday morning I suddenly realised I’ve been taking a great view for granted for the last 4 weeks, and that I won’t be seeing it for much longer. I’ve put a photo below. I was making tea, so after deciding on chicken rogan josh I went into town to get the bits. On the Honda. In 28 degree heat, bright sunshine, good roads and little traffic. Believe me I was making the most of it! After lunch I did a few small bits

Thursday dawned bright and sunny, which was good as I’d arranged to meet Kerry for lunch. The Council offices in Mossman are just across the road from Woolworths, which I took a picture of just for the older readers. We went to a local café which does Thai food, and it was very good. Cooked fresh and as mild or hot as you want, and at a really good price. Kerry brought half of hers away as there was enough for 2 lunches and they are happy to let you have a takeaway box. I thi

I woke up on Monday morning to the sun streaming through the window, and it stayed that way right up until the point I put my bike jacket on and stepped outside. Then the heavens opened, so I went back inside and had some breakfast. While I was eating the rain stopped, and when I went out on the bike after about half an hour the roads were already starting to dry. I went into town for a few bits for tea, and picked up another present for home. Later did a bit of minor work o

Rain on Saturday morning meant we left the bikes at home and went in the truck to The Australian Armour and Artillery Museum in Cairns. This is the largest museum of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, having over 230–240 military vehicles and artillery pieces dating from the 1800s to the present day with more than 190–200 exhibits actively shown on the floor, while others are in transit or undergoing restoration. There is no climbing in or on the vehicles, and as a result t

On Monday Conor’s Ranger was picked up to be taken to Cairns. After we’d stopped one diesel leak it highlighted another smaller one, and as these things only ever get worse it’s gone to have the injectors replaced. That leaves us with Kerry’s car and 2 bikes, so although any camping is off the table for the moment, we’ll manage day to day. After breakfast and a bit of housekeeping – ironing, tidying up my beard – I first checked they were in, and then went round to Andrew and

Three short videos that Conor took on Saturday showing me riding the bike through vastly different scenery on our trip to the markets and back. Mareeba, our destination, is in the Atherton Tablelands, a massive food-producing region with nearly 2,000 farms growing bananas, mangoes, avocados, corn, citrus, and macadamia nuts, and also renowned for coffee plantations (such as Skybury in Mareeba) and local distilleries. I haven't visited a coffee plantation yet... We started ri

Mareeba Market On Thursday I fitted my camera mount and Beeline to the Honda and hoped to check them both out before we headed to the market in Mareeba on Saturday. I was after some good footage and a record of the route to share later. On Friday I checked the camera and Beeline out when I went to fuel the Honda up, and both appeared to be working well. However I didn’t check available free space on the camera memory card, and ran out on the way to Mareeba. I was also unab

Wednesday began quietly, with my dirty clothes pile reminding me that I’d been away for a week so it was time to put a wash on. No problem with getting it dry afterwards. We were due to go to Charles and Debs later, as it was their turn to host ‘Wine Wednesday’, where a few neighbours take turns to host an evening get-together with drink and nibbles, so I fired up the Honda and headed for Port Douglas to see what I could find to take. The first thing I discovered, before any

At some point over the weekend the truck developed a diesel leak. We smelt it on the way home and once back found the cause easily enough, which was a hole in one of the common rail injector pipes on the top of the engine. On the plus side the engine block was probably the cleanest Conor’s ever seen it due to diesel being sprayed all over it for a sustained period. However, even though diesel and petrol are significantly cheaper here than at home (@£1.50 for diesel and £1.30

Friday was a bit of a chillout day. I didn’t do much other than get my clothes and things ready to take for the weekend camping, then take the bike into town and pick up a few bits from the supermarket. In the evening we went to Sea Bean, a tapas restaurant I’ve been to before, then home and a quick whisky before turning in to be ready for an 8 o’clock start in the morning. We set off only 10 minutes later than intended, and headed for the first stop, Mareeba, where we got f

I woke on my first morning in Australia to a sound that was both familiar and at the same time out of place here. Rain. It didn’t last long, though, before the sun came out and the ground started to dry. Then it started again, and this time it really came down. The good news is that after today the weather’s getting drier and warmer, although to be fair it’s tee shirt temperature now. Overall very reminiscent of a Manchester summer in fact. It’s fair to say that a bike ride w

Today’s the day! After all the waiting I’m finally heading back to Oz. Packing’s all done apart from toiletries and pills, so if it isn’t in the case now I’ll see it again in 5 weeks. I regularly get up at daft o’clock when going to work, but it’s definitely easier when there’s something to look forward to other than 8 hours as a wage slave. I can also have a sleep on the plane, something that tends to be frowned upon at work! I managed to drop my car off in the yard at work

In a few days’ time I’ll be making my way back to Australia. It’s almost two years since I left there but I remember it well and can’t wait to see it again. Some things have changed since my last visit. Kerry and Conor have a dog, Murphy, who arrived shortly after I left last time, and I have a motorbike, a Honda VFR750 which turned up not long after Murphy and with a lot of help from Kerry and Conor. Photos of both are below. The bike came from Milla Milla, which I visited o

Firstly, a massive thank-you to Kerry and Conor for doing so much to help make October such an awesome month for me. Without my blog I wouldn’t have remembered everything, but in a good way just because I did so much while I was there. I wouldn’t have had it any other way though. Burt Munro (The World’s Fastest Indian) is famously quoted as saying “You live more in five minutes flat out on a fast motorcycle than most people live in a lifetime”. As a biker I get that, but I re

Thursday dawned bright and sunny for my last full day in Australia. Which felt right, given the weather I’ve enjoyed for the last four...

Tuesday morning, and once again rain and wet tarmac in the Sunshine State! Undaunted we headed off to the Tablelands in the ute to start...

On Saturday morning we washed and showered, broke camp, had a coffee and were on the road for eight o’clock, heading for Cooktown. A...

Friday morning at 7.30 we set off heading North towards the Cape York Peninsula. We turned off the Captain Cook Highway before Mossman,...

I saw this morning that the price of gold reached a record high, apparently due to geo-political uncertainty with the situation in the...