8.09.2002
Mitchelton onwards
leaving bris vegas
Up around 6-ish to give the bathroom a last polish - had a shower the previous evening after tidying the garden so it was a bit dirty. The shower. Not the garden. The garden was spotless. Caught a 7:41 train from Mitchelton station. Change at Roma Street for the Gold Coast express. To Nerang. And the proper start of the ride.
Through Surfers, stopping for ten minutes to sit on the beach and speculate about what a nice place it would have been say, 100-, 150 years ago. Pre high-rise. Oh well. Must let the apartment-dwellers live somewhere nice too.
Asked directions of a couple of road cyclists after some wrong turns through Burleigh. Recommended a route with a steep bit of a climb to begin with - up to the border post at Tomewin Gap. The guy looked at me, my luggage and my rear cluster and said 'You'll make it'. He was right. But it was a bugger of a climb for the first day.
Lovely roll down the other side of the gap, and flat ride into Murwillumbah. Found camping ground, stretched, pitched tent, showered, hunted and gathered (at the RSL. Smorgasbord. Gesundheit.). End day one.