I started a new position this year, at a different base. There is a large group of riders here who are keen to keep an active riding group going, and they had the first ride the other weekend. Got clearances from the other half (as the main surprise of the day!)

A rather eclectic group met up in the morning. We had my VFR, a KLR, 2 learners on ZZR250 each, a Tiger 1050, an FJR and a ZZR600. Later a Royal Enfield (imported from India) joined us. We headed north to hit a popular route over the Blue Mountains, the Bell's Line of Road. This stretches into the hinterlands west of Sydney and is a popular ride.

Royal Enfield (2009 model)

An uneventful cruise up the road very soon reminded me that it had been a long time since I done other than commute (I later worked out it has been almost 3 years since my last ride) So my butt was a bit sore, and I was very out of practice. If it had been a busy or nearly clogged multilane I probably would have shone, as that's the only riding I've been doing.

Stopped on Bells Line

We headed up Bell's Line towards Katomba, which takes up over the Blue Mountains and down the other side. After Katomba we headed for a small town called Tanara for lunch. This stretch of road was great. With the terrain just as rolling as before, but being farms instead of bush, we could actually see several corners ahead. So confidence and smiles increased. A few potholes didn't dampen our spirits. I had started to get back into the groove for riding so loosened up a lot as well.

We stopped at the Tanara pub for lunch, and we weren't disappointed. A great feed at a reasonable price. We were on a Saturday. On Sunday's you need to be there by 11 to get a seat!

Outside of Tanara Hotel

The back deck at Tanara

After lunch we headed for Oberon and eventually the Great Western Highway headed home. The leg from Tanara to Oberon was equally enjoyable.

We turned onto the Highway and headed home. The Great Western Highway used to be a reasonable road, however it's currently undergoing a lengthy program to add extra lanes and the like, so is about 2 hours of roadworks.

With a deadline approaching for hometime (Mrs was headed out this evening) I waved goodbye to my coworkers and headed straight home, only stopping for fuel.

Overall, about 5 hours of riding, nice weather (not the 40C that plagued us for the next week or more), nice lunch and good company. It was a really nice day.

Now two weeks later, we're all eyeing the weather report for tomorrow's ride, headed slightly up Bells line and then north (instead of south)

Cloudy. Areas of rain developing during the morning. Isolated thunderstorms. Winds N/NE averaging up to 20 km/h ahead of a S/SE change up to 30 km/h around dawn,

Sounds like a challenge to me .....