Motorcycle Camping in the Aussie Bush

A couple of weeks ago I went of on a weekend camping expedition with a bunch of guys from the Hills Ulysses motorcycle club in Sydney Australia.

It is Springtime here in Australia, and the area chosen was well off the beaten track. In fact it was on a bush track north of Lithgow in the NSW Blue Mountains and was only reacheable using four-wheel drive vehicles or off-road type motorcycles. (My own Honda ST-1100 is a road bike, so I threw my gear in the back of an old Toyota 'troopie' (Troop Carrier) and joined the winding procession of SUVs and three motorcycles.

Our site was on what was once a railway track leading to the Glowworm Caves. We got there by following the bush track from just next to the Zig Zag Railway at Lithgow. One of our motorbikes broke both its hard panniers bouncing and sliding down that muddy track, and one of our 4WDs got bogged in a mudhole and had to be pulled out. It wasn't an easy journey, that's for sure.

One of the places we visited on the way to our campsite was another campsite at Newnes. It would be far more comfortable there and easier to reach, even without an SUV or 4WD car. And it has toilets, too... what bliss!

Check it out on Google Maps or Google Earth for it is at S33 10.297, and E150 14.229.

Anyhow, all the guys had a great time. We finally got to our campsite and erected the tents. One of the guys, Gideon, had his tent up on top of his 4WD truck, and I slept out in my Hennessey Hammock. (Unfortunately I forgot to add extra insulation underneath, and I had a cold and uncomfortable night. I didn't want to go stumbling around in the dark looking for my gear in someone else's truck. But I should have. As I was I made-do with my raincoat underneath me). 

Another bike rider used a plastic tarp stretched between two trees and, amazingly to me, he was not attacked my mosquitoes. His biggest problem was pumping up his air mattress when one of the plugs was lost. Dramas, dramas.

We had plenty of collected wood for a camp fire, which we built underneath a large rock cave. It did get a bit smoky but it sure added to the atmosphere, and we couldn't help wondering about the native Aborigines who probably made use of the cave hundreds of years ago.

We had a great time sipping our beverages and chatting together around that smoky wood fire. It is funny how we males need to get out like this once in a while so we can be honest with each other and let our guard down for a few hours.

In the morning we all had a quick breakfast and took turns leaving camp for what the Brit soldiers call a 'shovel recce'. Then we broke camp and headed back towards Sydney and the everyday rat-race of modern living.