Bikepacking Australia - Naracoorte-Robe-Mount Gambier

This trip is a follow up from our Sydney - Gold Coast bike packing trip.

Dean also rode 5 days from Melbourne to Naracoorte - which was really epic. Here are a few photos from his solo ride:

He was able to ride a fair bit faster without Kay.

With all our gear, Kay was maxing out at about 90km - our longest day together being around 95km. On his solo ride Dean's longest day was around 140km. 

After a couple months with family, it was time to head home. We needed to get our bikes to Mt Gambier to take the bus and then train to Avalon Airport - and we decided to work in another short bike trip and visit with some friends in Robe SA. 

DAY 1

Treated to a beautiful sunrise

Leaving our family's home in Naracoorte we rode backroads past vineyards and sheep farms until we reached Coonawarra. It was a shorter day of riding - and we were fighting a strong wind that day. 

At one point we had a fun roadblock - a herd of sheep moving from one paddock to another. We had to wait for the herd to pass completely before we continued on our way.

We were able to set up our tent in a park that had a public washroom, and a store and deli close by. Very convenient.

Small table at the deli - a lovely place for some dinner

Because of the wind we did not take many photos that day - but after setting up camp we were treated to a beautiful sunset.

DAY 2

Our family drove down to have breakfast with us in the morning, so we were a little later setting off.  

We rode from Coonawarra to Beachport on day 2, passing through Kangaroo Inn. 

Coonawarra Historic Train Station

From Coonawarra we stayed on the rail trail all the way to Penola.

Blue Tree on the Rail Trail between Coonawarra and Penola, South Australia

Approaching Penola along the bike path

We made a quick pit stop in Penola to pick up food and water for the day, before setting off along Clay Wells Road. 

This trip was more challenging than the east coast of Australia. This area of SA is mostly farmland. There were no stores along the way for restocking. 

We ran out of water and had to stop at the Kangaroo Inn Area School. We explained our situation to the office staff, and thankfully they were kind enough to let us into the staff room to fill up. 

We were so thirsty by that point we probably drank a litre each and refilled again before setting off. 

It was even a bit hot for the wildlife - this guy was chilling out by the side of the road. (He wasn't injured, we checked)

Once again, we had not booked any accommodations, since we never really know how far we will make it in a day. Just before leaving the school in Kangaroo Inn (where we had cell reception), we called ahead to the caravan park in Beachport and were able to book a tent site. 

Exploring roadside ruins at Kangaroo Inn.

We got to see an echidna!! Kay grew up in Australia and this was the first time she saw one in the wild. So cool! 

We arrived to Beachport before sunset. We were able to set up camp and get ourselves fed while we still had light. Setting up camp in the dark is never fun. 

Enjoying the sunset in Beachport

Beachport is a beautiful beach town. 

We stayed there for 2 nights at the Beachport Caravan Park. With most caravan parks in Australia, there was excellent amenities, including clean bathrooms and showers, and a kitchen block. 

Our family met us on our rest day and we explored the beaches. ABSOLUTELY STUNNING!!! 

Beachport has a great playground for the kids! 

DAY 3

We rode north to Robe, staying on the main road the whole day. 

It was a scorcher! 36 degrees celsius. We left early in the morning in hopes of beating the heat. 

Unfortunately it was also very windy - gusts of about 50kph, which slowed us down big time. 

Just a side note - we used the Alert SA app to keep us posted on fire danger.

With the heat we had to stop regularly to avoid heatstroke. It was hard to find shade - but each time there was a patch we stopped to "cool down." (Not that we cooled down much).

Once again we ran out of water - even though we started the day with ~3L each. We went to a farm to see if we could ask to fill up there. But no one was home. So we continued into Robe - which was only about another 45 minutes of riding. 

Thankfully the cleaner was at our Airbnb let us in early to get water. From there we rode into town and bought a couple electrolyte drinks. 

It was not a day for taking photos.... so we have none to share of this day. 

Kay's niece had just had her new baby though, and met us in Robe and we got to meet the new baby for the first time. We were hot and sweaty and a little gross... but we were still allowed baby cuddles. 

We had a couple nights in Robe with our friends - which gave us a rest after that super hot, windy day of riding.

Also Robe is yet another amazing place in Australia to visit. The beaches are gorgeous, the town is quaint, there's great food and drinks... basically it has it all. 

DAY 4

We had 2 days to get back to Mt Gambier, which was approximately 129km away. We rode until almost sunset, where we found a rest stop. 

It wasn’t much, just a pull off from the main road with picnic table. It got us away from the main road, which was nice. There were trucks passing all night, and being tucked away gave us a little more peace and privacy. 

It’s always fun to random camp. 

DAY 5 

Another day of riding past farms. Once again we ran out of water. We stopped at a farmhouse and the owner was kind enough to fill our bottles with cold filtered water. It was a treat! 

We made it into Millicent for lunch, stopping at McCourts Garden Centre and Cafe. Their coffee and sandwiches were so good. If you happen to be in Millicent, SA, definitely stop in for a treat. 

Beautifully decorated cafe

Outdoor eating area... we ate inside though. When you're outside all the time it's nice to just be inside.

As we approached Mt Gambier it got a bit more hilly. 

Approaching Mount Gambier

Mount Gambier is a historic town with some unique attractions, including a sunken garden. 

That night we stayed in a hotel and took our bikes apart ready for our big trip home to Canada. 

Taking the bikes apart

The following day we took the bus and train to get ourselves to Avalon. The train took us to the nearby town of Lara. 

It ended up being a hilarious story - classically Dean and Kay... We chose to fly out of Avalon rather than Melbourne to save like $40 each. But we didn't do enough research and it ended up being the airshow that week - so literally all accommodations in the area were booked up. The few that were available were close to $400 for the night. Since we needed to be at the airport super early for a 6am flight, it felt like a bit much to pay for such a short stay. So instead we got this genius idea to camp outside the airport - just on the side of the road outside of the airport grounds. 

First of all, to get a taxi/uber out there took hours. Our bikes were already all packed up so we could ride out. Finally we got a ride and convinced the guy to drop us off outside the airport. 

It wasn't exactly the ideal place to camp. We had tried to contact the airport earlier to see if we could stay there overnight. There was no information online that we could find, and we couldn't get through to anyone on the phone. 

Dean decided to walk into the airport to see if we could in fact stay in the airport. And the answer, thankfully, was yes. The staff were very good to us. They came and picked up our bikes and luggage, doing 2 trips to get us both to the airport with all our stuff. What a relief.

At the end of the night, the security staff showed us how to turn off the lights, etc. They locked the front doors at midnight, and we were alone in the airport from 12am-4am.

We took out our camping mats and sleeping bags and made ourselves at home. 

These photos were taken while we were waiting for the last flight to arrive:

Eventually we turned off the lights and had a restful few hours, thankful to not be in the tent.