This ride was held on Easter Sunday. As a number of members expressed their disappointment that they couldn't attend, we propose to re-run the ride again for those interested. Autumn came a bit late this year and the colours hadn't quite reached their peak at Easter. So hopefully there will still be some colour on the day as the mix of native and deciduous trees in the Dandys always provides glorious scenery at this time of year.
This is a leisurely ride undertaken in short stages and is perfect for classic geared scooters. So classic Vespa owners, we want to see you all out and about. The ride begins with a grand parade 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 (Tracy test drove the scones last time and confirmed that they are great) followed by a an optional stroll through the beautiful gardens of Burnham Beeches with it's three-storey mansion is an Art Deco mansion. 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. The ride is subject to having favourable weather.
Comments
Hi David & company I'm sorry to say I can't make tomorrow , sorry its late notice , please take lots of lovely photos & enjoy your ride !!
Carl.
everyone.
At least you can join us for some of the ride Alan, looking forward to meeting you....
Cannot make thee ride itself, but planning on breakfast at the convent and the start of the ride back out east to my place. Would have loved to have joined it, but will be packing for the trip to Europe that night.
If you wish to join us en route, here is a very rough schedule of suitable places to wait our arrival, but please let us know beforehand:
9:00 am sharp - depart Abbotsford Convent
9:15 am - Red Brick Cafe, Mont Albert Road, Surrey Hills (pick-up point #1)
9:30am - Crn Canterbury and Bayswater Rds (pick-up point #2)
9:40 am - The Chocolate Dragonfly Cafe, Mountain Highway, The Basin (pick-up point #3)
10:50 am - Kalorama ( 10 minutes to enjoy view )
11:20 am - Kallista Tea Rooms, Monbulk Road, Kallista (30 minutes for Devonshire Tea)
12 noon - Alfred Nicholas Gardens (Optional 50 minutes to explore the gardens)
1:45 pm - Emerald Lake (1 hour for a picnic lunch)
4:15 pm - Mailing Road, Canterbury (optional farewell coffee stop)
Hey Tracy, good to have you on board again. There should be more autumn colour this time around and so far, the weather forecast is looking great - 20 degrees and sunny. I'll make sure I have a scone this time. Welcome John and Jenny. We'll meet you at the corner of Canterbury and Bayswater Roads. There is a little side road parking spot just past Domino's Pizza on the southeast corner. 9.30am sounds about right.
Should be a good ride next week..
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