Bandicoot Bike Tours

Another start bright and early...730AM has been the magic time on this leg of the adventure. We were picked up in the lobby by Dave, the owner of Bandicoot Bicycle Adventures. There were only going to be 3 of us today and we had to pick the other person up on our way. When we got him, I was surprised and intimidated at the same time. Alan was a 65 year old man but he was dressed in cycling gear. I, on the other hand, have not been on a bike for almost 10 years and was a little nervous about getting back on one.

We took an 1.5 hour drive up the mountains to the Tablelands. It’s called that because even though you are at the top of the mountains, it’s very flat and you could see miles ahead of you. Earlier this year, a cyclone came through that area and downed some older trees. They said the rainforests used to be full canopies so the sun could barely come through, but now it looked more like sparse forest. This is a problem because weeds can now grow from the sun.

Our first ride was to Lake Eachem. I was in major trouble. We barely went up a hill and my thighs were giving out in the first 5 minutes. This was going to be an all day activity! The last dive on the Reef killed me when I tried to swim against the current and I was paying for it today. I was really beginning to regret it since we didn’t really have a day of rest since Green Island. Dave gave us some pineapple and water and I grubbed because we didn’t wake up early enough to get breakfast.

Then he put us in the van to drive us to our next starting point. From there we rode to a Giant Fig Tree that they estimate to be around 500 years old. It’s interesting because it’s actually considered a parasite. A tree may fall, then its roots start growing above ground, attaches to the trunk of another tree, then it forms into a Fig Tree.

Then it was time for lunch. We realized that whenever you go on organized activities where lunch is provided, it’s usually a cheeseburger. But we didn’t mind because the cheeseburgers in Australia were delicious.

After lunch we did 3 separate rides to some waterfalls. This was my favorite part of the trip. The first was to Millaa Millaa Falls, where people can actually swim towards the Falls and sit right under it. The water was FREEZING!!! I could barely get half my body in the water. And since you all know how great a swimmer I am, I decided not to swim towards the Falls.

Then we went to Ellinjaa Falls. People used to be able to swim here as well but the cyclone downed some trees in the water. Zillie Falls, was beautiful. He took us to the top of the Falls versus the bottom. It was such a gorgeous perspective.

The whole time we were on our rides, the only time I saw Alan was at the beginning of the ride when we’re taking off and at the end, when he’s waiting for me. He even sped off ahead of Rich! He was amazing! I hope I’m that healthy when I get to be his age.

The last couple of rides I could have done without. He saved the hardest rides for last. They were really hilly. It didn’t help that the weather was sweltering hot. It felt like the Philippines with the humidity. After trying really hard, I just couldn’t do it and he had to pick me up in the van. Rich, on the other hand, kept on going, even with his injured ankle. At the very end of the ride, it became way too hard for both Alan and Rich since it was too hot!

We stopped off in a little town called Malanda, where Dave picked up some cake for afternoon tea. He gave us a choice on whether we wanted to do one more ride or not. The very last ride was another hilly ride back to Lake Eacham where we had the pineapple at the beginning of the day. Rich and I passed but Alan did it.

We ended up hanging out there for a while and took a dip in the Lake. It’s actually a volcano crater. After that hot ride, it was so refreshing. In total, we did about 14 miles. Not bad for novice bike riders. My regrets from the beginning of the day went away. It was great riding at fast speeds and having some time to just think.

We decided to treat ourselves to a feast that night for dinner. We ended up going to a Greek restaurant and ordered their feast for 2. We thought for sure that we wouldn’t be able to eat it all but we did!!!! It was delicious!

Before we went back to hit the sack, we visited an Aboriginal Gallery. I wanted to take back some canvas paintings and even a didgeridoo but didn’t have the funds.

We had such a great time. This was an amazing day!

BTW, you'll see Rich and me making the peace sign a lot in our pictures. It kinda became a running joke because all the Japanese tourists were doing that so we started to also.

PICS: Palm Cove Day 3