andy jennings

Ground Effect  : Thermos + Berglar I tour in Australia in the winter quite a bit, with some long tours. It doesn't get super cold, but it can be challenging. When it hovers around 0 centigrade (32 F) and it is blowing a cold wind, and it is raining, then the effective temperature can get towards the -5C or even lower. You want good gear to keep warm and to be comfortable. I have had the Thermos for a few years, and recently I actually wore out my old jersey and replaced it with the Berglar. When it's extremely cold I wear a synthetic thermal, with the Thermos over that, then the Berglar. On top of that I have a Netti rain jacket that I wear even when it's not raining. Four layers? Yes. Layers are good. When I start for the day, I will take a few kilometres to warm up. Then I will start taking off layers. On a typical cold day when I'm in motion I will finally have the thermal and the Berglar. The Thermos is a wind blocking undergarment. It's specifically ...

I've posted about how I plan short trips in my home region. I'm fortunate that Vline   allows bikes on trains, so I can get to the start easily and return the same way. Unfortunately this is not the case in any other states in Australia. Having said that you have to be careful in picking which services to take. You can't book ahead. One very important page you should check is the  "service changes"  page: when they work on the tracks (mostly in winter, but not always) they substitute buses for trains, and the buses won't take your bicycle. Most of these rides are based around  rail trails  - Victoria has lots of them. I have mapped each of these tours, so you can see how it plays out in detail, right down to the lunch stop and the camping location. Some of you may be able to travel up to double the pace, but you get the idea. Great Victorian Rail Trail Track My Tour track  The Google Map display allows you to see the path I took, at least rou...