Day 4 – Climb every mountain..
Signature Tour 2014
Day 4 – From Adaminaby to Corryong
Total riding: 145km, ascent 3,000m
this was day 4,
The day began cold, dark and foggy as we dragged our tired bodies out of bed and rolled up to the Big Trout in downtown Adaminaby for another hearty breakfast and Sunrise cross. It was crisp and foggy but the iPhone promised a sunny day so despite rugging up with all available clothing I was optimistic of a great day ahead and was not disappointed.
Immediately out of town we began climbing and were soon peeling off the layers as the sunshine emerged and the temperatures rose rapidly (or was that just my body temp as we hit the big climbs off the day?)
Incredible scenery along the snowy mountains highway past Sawyers hut and Kiandra the worlds first alpine ski club in Australia formed in 1861.
We took a sharp left up towards Mount Selwyn and climbed some more. We followed our lead vehicle all the way to the top where many were suprised by the 10 lane highway until we told them it was the ski field car park! A comment from a passing hiker ‘enjoy the dirt road’ began to ring alarm bells and frantic checking of GPS and maps before we u turned, had a fun sprint race across the huge empty car park – too big a video opportunity to miss despite the already aching legs and a lot more climbing to come!
We rode back down to find the right road and climbed a few more hills passing at least two ‘Great Dividing Range’ signs at varying heights the highest I think being 1520m before several downs and ups all the way to Australia’s highest town Cabramurra where we presented to the entire school – all 7 pupils – apparently the numbers swell considerably during the winter months! After refreshments we set off again, singing ‘climb every mountain’ with gusto and improvised wording as we knocked off a few more hills & tried to watch the road ahead whilst being distracted by the stunning scenery – this is the top of the world. One lovely long descent to the Tooma dam was followed by the longest climb of the day 6km at 12% gradient which we wound up cursing the organisers who had picked the black uniform over white shirts today – the little things do make quite a difference when you’re only focused on the winding hills, sweating profusely and wondering which corner will reveal the summit. Cold cokes were a welcome reward at the top and my hill training paid off as I was up towards the front of the group ensuring a nice long rest waiting for the full team to arrive. Another great descent where I was just settling into my tuck position and trying not to think of the possible consequences of a lapse in concentration as the speedo nudged over 80kph we were abruptly directed right into a wooded clearing for a very welcome lunch as it was already close to 3 pm.
Lunch began with the rest of the descent but still a couple more testing climbs before we crossed the Victorian border, rolled into Corryong and jumped into the hotel pool to help recover the legs for another testing day tomorrow. All agreed it was another incredible day as we shower and race off to another community dinner.
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