Crickets are chirping, the days now have a chilly edge to them and leaves are turning colour - Autumn is in the air. A perfect time to visit Melbourne's renown Dandenong Ranges. Always there on the Eastern horizon reliably providing us with television pictures since 1956 and much loved by Melbournites. We've had a few rides to the Dandys and we know them well but there are always new delights to discover and besides, how pleasant to be reacquainted with an old friend. The mix of native and exotic trees in Autumn colours provides stunning scenery.
This will be a leisurely ride undertaken in short stages. It has been held at this time for the past two years and is perfect for classic geared scooters. A comment on last year's ride: "Great day folks and wonderful to meet new riders. Still have that glorious 'classic' image of david riding infront of me turning a bend on a sunlit steaming road passing through a drift of tumbling autumnal leaves. Magic." So classic owners, de-coke your cylinder, adjust the tension of your cables, tighten your wheel rim nuts, practise your gear changes, put a new candle in your headlight and prepare your favourite aromatic two-stroke fuel mix. We want to see you all out and about.
Shortly after leaving Abbostford Convent, the ride begins with a grand parade of gleaming Vespas along the majestic tree-lined Mont Albert Road. Our route through the Hills looks like a drunken pretzel as we criss-cross the slopes of Mount Dandenong going as far southeast as Emerald. But all this meandering will take us along some of the most beautiful roads in the Ranges past villages nestled in the hills with quaint names such as Sassafras, Olinda, Kalorama, Monbulk, Kalista and Sherbrooke. We'll delve off the main tourist roads whenever possible and ride through forests of towering Mountain Ash and Stringybark, buzz past 1920s guest houses and gracious homes with European gardens and plunge into verdant fern gullies all the while breathing in the fresh eucalypt-scented mountain air exquisitely blended with a cheeky twist of two-stroke oil. Hairpin bends, steep hills and thrilling descents will make us feel alive and invigorated. We may even bump into Puffing Billy along the way.
We'll have that quintessential Dandenong Ranges refreshment - a Devonshire Tea - before a taking stroll through the beautiful gardens of Burnham Beeches. It's three-storey mansion is an Art Deco masterpiece designed in the 1930s for Alfred Nicholas the inventor of Asprin. We can discuss how the Streamlined Moderne style of that era influenced the lines of our Vespas as we admire the colours of the deciduous trees plantings. A late picnic lunch is planned at Emerald Lake around 1.45pm.
The ride totals about 154 kms. You should do that distance comfortably on a tank however, please arrive at the Abbotsford Convent with a full tank of fuel. Finding a petrol station in the hills is not an easy matter. If just one scooter needs fuel, it will mean a detour for us all and that will effect the flow of the ride. Petrol is available at Emerald after lunch.
Here is a link to the planned route on Motowhere and remember to pack that picnic lunch:
http://www.motowhere.com/maps/route/21663
- Apr 20, 2014 at 7:00pm to Apr 21, 2014 at 3:00am UTC+10
- Location: Abbotsford Convent to Dandenong Ranges
- Latest Activity: Jan 28, 2021
Comments
Thanks for your comments Anthony, Clare and Stefan and a thank you to all who participated in our intimate outing of just eleven riders. We hardly needed corners markers. A special thanks to Bob who took on Greg's usual task of tailman with very little notice. Autumn hadn't quite reached its full glory so perhaps I'll re-run the ride in a couple of weeks as a few people were not able to attend on the Easter Sunday. Once again, good fun, pretty scenery and great company.
Bob...i should have turned right when I left.....Suffice to say I eventually got home via Packenham lol!
thanks for another great ride David, and thank you everyone for your great company.
Enjoy the ride everyone, can't wait to get back on the vespa...
Not 100%, nothing serious... so please take lots of picks for me xxx
Welcome aboard Clare and Peter. See you in Mont Albert Road tomorrow morning.
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