Augusta

Perth To Cape Leeuwin, 6 day bicycle tour, 1984. This is the seventh of a series of retrospective bike stories, of rides taken before 1987. 1987 was the first ride to be fully documented in the current format, with distances, speeds, rest stops and so on, moreover written as soon after the event as possible.

In 1984 I had only visited Augusta twice, and on both occasions, in 1980 and 1981, I had had a hard time getting there. For 1984 I wanted to get there in good time without more than average effort.

Charles A. Pierce

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Margaret River to Augusta, day 3, Wednesday 28 November 1984. I had food bought at local shops for breakfast in bed. Then I got ready and set off, taking the direct route to Augusta because I had had two tours of Mammoth and Lake caves and wanted to get to Augusta in time to get around to Cape Leeuwin and the Flinders Bay beach on that same day.

There are only 43 km from Margaret river to Augusta. I can’t remember what the weather was like, but I don’t remember any difficulty. The new bike would have made it an easy run of not much more than two hours.

I arrived at Augusta in the middle of the day but there was no problem about checking in early.  ... Read more

Augusta to Margaret River, day 4, Thursday 29 November 1984. I decided to have another look at Jewel Cave, not having been there for four years, so I set off up the Bussell Highway then turned left into Caves Road.

After that enjoyable tour of Jewel Cave I went back to the Bussell Highway via Bushby Road and headed for Margaret River. I had booked a different place to stay for a change, there being more to choose from now. I found a motel on the other side of the highway, off Wallcliffe Road. This was quite fancy with its furnishings and linen and the rooms, besides opening onto the outside, had a back door opening to an internal passage where each room had a little table where guests could sit to eat a meal ordered from the motel’s restaurant.  ... Read more

Perth to Cape Leeuwin via Nannup, 6 day bicycle tour, 1981. This is the fifth of a series of retrospective bike stories, of rides taken before 1987. 1987 was the first ride to be fully documented in the current format, with distances, speeds, rest stops and so on, moreover written as soon after the event as possible.

The 1981 ride was the last of the five ‘classic’ rides, during which I learnt much, changed a lot and suffered a bit. There was at least one major trial in each of these first five rides. There was no ride in 1982 because I went on an overseas trip. After that I tried to extend and explore and improve. But there was more hardship ahead.  ... Read more

Nannup to Augusta, day 3, Wednesday 25 November 1981. I had breakfast in the old dining room. I paid my bill of $19.40 for dinner, bed and breakfast. Then I got ready and set off, on a day which was to resonate down through the years of bike riding ahead.

I had decided to take the Brockman Highway to Augusta, stopping at Alexandra Bridge for a swim in the river – a pleasant memory from 1980. I had never been over this country before in any vehicle and had no idea what to expect, except of course the stretch from Alexandra Bridge to Augusta which I had done in 1980. This day was to mark the end of my lack of attention to weather forecasts on these rides.  ... Read more

Augusta to Cape Leeuwin and Margaret River, day 4, Thursday 26 November 1981. As in 1980, I needed to visit Cape Leeuwin and have a swim at Flinders Bay, where two oceans meet.

I had an early breakfast so that I could leave most of the stuff in my room and get to the Cape, have a swim, come back and get ready and check out by 10 am. It was a nice sunny morning with a south-westerly which would help me up the Bussell Highway later. I assumed that the previous day could be put behind me and that things would go well from now on. I think I had some food in the room with me and ate it in bed before getting up.  … Read more

Perth to Cape Leeuwin via Dunsborough, 6 day bicycle tour, 1980.

This is the fourth of a series of retrospective bike stories, of rides taken before 1987. 1987 was the first ride to be fully documented in the current format, with distances, speeds, rest stops and so on, moreover written as soon after the event as possible.

Charles A. Pierce

Other Days on this Tour:

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Incoming search terms:

shortcut between busselton and kalgoorlie;shortcut to manjimup from bunbury;

Margaret River to Augusta, day 3, Wednesday 3 December 1980. I had breakfast in the old dining room again. Then I got ready and set off, taking the same route as in 1979 to reach Caves Road. I set off down Wallcliffe Road, turned left into Station Street, rode past the old train station and turned left into Clarke Street, then right into Boodjidup Road. This goes down at an angle until it joins Caves Road. I rode along Caves Road for about 9 km until I reached Mammoth Cave. I enjoyed the tour again, seeing more things on my second tour. Then I came up and set off for Lake Cave. I reached it in plenty of time for the next guided tour.  ... Read more

Augusta to Cape Leeuwin and Margaret River, day 4, Thursday 4 December 1980. After coming all this way and not getting much time in daylight in the area the previous afternoon, I needed to visit Cape Leeuwin and have a swim at Flinders Bay, where two oceans meet. I had an early breakfast so that I could leave most of the stuff in my room and get to the Cape, have a swim, come back and get ready and check out by 10 am.

I checked the map carefully then set off with a minimum of luggage in the backpack. I whooshed down into the town, then through it and along the coast road, passing through woodland and seeing many attractive beaches.  … Read more

Augusta is a town on the south-west coast of Western Australia, where the Blackwood River emerges into Flinders Bay. It is the nearest town to Cape Leeuwin, on the farthest south-west corner of the Australian continent. Augusta was a summer holiday town for many during most of the twentieth century, but late in the 1990s many people chose to retire to the region for the cooler weather.