Week 1 Observations: This was definitely a week of hardship and reality checks

Wow, what a week this has been and in so many ways, exactly as I imagined it would be while at the same time, not at all how I imagined. As I had hoped, this being my first big tour and I have realised that this is where I want to be.

Out on the road, seeing rough some nights and with comfort others. I love the feeling of accomplishment, the solitude, the anticipation of what may be just around the next corner or just over the next hill.

The big question is certainly “What does the day hold?”

But the hills and being overloaded have been the bummer and I know that I need to lighten the load so that the hills are not such a chore. I have only covered 324 kilometres this week and the daily average of 46 kilometres definitely needs to be increased.

At this rate, I won’t get home before I need to go back to work.

But then, is that really an incentive to pick up the pace I wonder?

My route has taken me from Canberra, through Bredbo, Cooma, Jindabyne, Tom Groggin and Scammell’s Lookout to finish near Colac Colac.

This has been a week of new smaller discoveries, one of the most often considered being that speed does count. With my carrying too much luggage (I was going to say weight but that may make me sound vain), I have found that the bike has very different handling properties as my momentum changes.

For instance, at: