Riding a bike in this kind of company adds a new dimension to the word "respect".

We eventually strike Stanley and a quick visit to the information centre, enables me to send a quick E-mail. The volunteer in the centre was most helpful and provided us with plenty of information about local and regional sites based on her intimate knowledge of the area and surrounding communities.

Once we are booked into the caravan park we pay a quick visit to the local minimarket and purchase some snags, potatoes and peas for tea. While Liz cooks I make a quick visit to the local pub to grab a bottle of red. The price of Tasmanian wine is clearly over the top, so some good South Australian wine from the Barossa finds its way back to the tent.

We discuss our trip with a couple from Western Australia and share with them our plans for purchasing a new caravan which is being made in Western Australia. We both listen with interest to their stories about travelling around and can't help but turn a little green when they talk about what they've been doing in their early retirement.

We check our distance for the day and find that we have covered 77.3kms in 4 hours 37mins.at an average speed of 16.5kms per hour. Which is pretty good (for a couple of old !!!!!) by our reckoning. Once again the weather has been perfect, blue skies, white fluffy clouds and no head wind!

I woke up early and convinced Liz that at six o'clock in the morning we could get the washing done and dried before we left to explore Stanley. Trouble was we didn't bank on not having enough pegs to hang up the washing. With some innovative use of some string we get all the washing on the line and almost dry before it is packed and we set off to explore the Nut. It's quite and impressive piece of granite and the views are well worth the effort. We took the chair lift to the top as we didn't have a great deal of time to walk up as well as around it and still travel the 70 plus kms to Marrawah.

We stopped at the Nut Cafe and really made someone's day by expressing how much we enjoyed a particular ladies cake making efforts. (Belgian Apricot Cake). To say the cook was delighted was an understatement.

We left the Nut and made our way round the scenic route and went up a hill that almost had us walking I think that if Liz could have got her feet out of the clip-ons she would have walked.

It's 1230 by the time we set out for Marrawah but once again it's the most perfect weather for cycling. The ride to Smithton seemed to last forever but on reflection it wasn't that long. It's strange how on some days parts of a trip can appear to go on for ever while at other times the kms just fly by.

For afternoon tea we stop at lovely spot at the Broadmeadows turn off. Beautiful tall trees just beginning to shed their leaves for winter provide a patchy canopy of shade that protect us from the sun without blocking out all of it's warmth.

We are trying hard to get to Marrawah before night fall and the pace through the flat areas is taking it's toll.

We had been advised that the best place to shop was at the Reepa store on the Marrawah, Stanley road. Needing a few supplies we pulled up in a somewhat exhausted state. The sun had quite a lot of heat in it throughout the afternoon and the increasing level of hills meant we consumed all of our water by the time we arrived. What transpired next was amazing. After the usual where are you from, where are you going etc Liz mentioned how she was looking forward to a hot shower. The look on the 2 people present said it all "NO SHOWERS AT MARRAWAH' after a few seconds to digest this information one of the gentlemen offered us the use of his shack at Arthur River, all we had to do was peddle the extra 20kms. To say that we were surprised at the offer was an understatement. When we questioned him about his offer he said that when he had travelled overseas people had help him and he just saw this as an opportunity to help someone else. 

Given our mental and physical state 20kms was a significant ask. However, Liz accepted the offer provided she could purchase some sweets to boost our energy levels.  After a few directions, passing over the keys to his shack and the telephone (so we could ring him when we arrive), plus instructions on how to light the water heater and a purchase of high suger level sweets we were off.

Once underway to Arthur River we were greeted with a road under construction. Apparently the upgrade is creating conflict in the community as the supporters of the upgrade clash with those who wish to preserve the wilderness. For the most part the road is undulating but after a long days ride some of the inclines were starting to feel more like mountains, not mole hills.

By the time we reached Arthur River it was starting to get dark and first task on the agenda was to STOP. The downward slope into the township was quite steep and combined with a freshly watered surface stopping became quite a hazardous enterprise.

After a quick look around the shack it was all hands to the hot water service which refused to light. Standing around trying to get the heater to light enabled the local Mozzie population to attack with vengeance. However, spurred on by threats from Liz that if I didn't get the damn thing to light, she wouldn't be cooking, I eventually got it going. 

After the initial drama we eventually settled down to warm food, a great shower and bed. One of the many memorable moments we shared at Arthur River was lying in bed, rolled together in the centre (because of very soft springs) listening to the Possums, who obviously had purchased hobnailed boots from the local store scampering across the roof for most of the night.

Another day broke with the sunshine we were beginning to expect pouring through the windows. A quick trip down the street to check on Arthur River Cruises saw us spend a very memorable day on the River. Photo

The tour operator provided just the right balance of humour mixed with technical information which was clearly appreciated by everyone. His love of the river and the environment in which he lived, worked and played was obvious while he guided us through some of the spectacular rain forest. 

His knowledge of the flora and fauna was immense and we came away with a feeling of renewed respect for the power of the forest to renew and sustain itself. The conclusion of the cruise was a delightful Aussie barbecue.

Upon returning to the shack we became aware that mice were taking up residence in significant numbers. This caused us to thoroughly investigate our sleeping arrangements (to ensure we were sleeping alone) and to place all of our food on the table out of reach, or so we thought. Luckily for us the possums had the night off and we slept very well. When we started to make breakfast the next morning it was clear that an adventurous mouse had managed to climb up onto a chair where our bread was stored and eaten his way through the plastic bag to the bread itself and proceeded eat through quite a few slices.

The next few days would see us travelling the Western Explorer and we didn't know what to expect. With this in mind we stocked up on 9 litres of water and set off to our first destination Couta Rocks. This turned out to be only an hours ride from Arthur River and after a brief photo stop we moved onward and upward to the beginning of the Western Explorer.

The sign at the beginning of the road was enough to cause us some momentary pangs of well this it.