first tour sydney> adelaide in january

[ausvegguykk]

hey guys, i am hoping to do my first tour in january from sydney to adelaide, to be in adelaide by the start of the tour down under, and i have a few concerns
i have a bit of experience riding in hot weather, but not touring, january is probably one of the hottest times of year to ride across the state so..
one of my concerns is water, and shopping... how often would i pass a town or something where i can resupply? and how much water would you carry?
what would you use for shelter? i am looking into buying a goretex bivy bag of some sort

and also any other advice anyone has regarding route, or equipment would be appreciated

[Leaf T]

Hi ausvegguykk. I've not used a bivvy bag before but in summer a bivvy bag may be very hot. Also I like a tent with a mesh inner to keep mozzies and other biters away. I use a free standing tent- MSR hubba hubba but you might prefer a smaller one person tent. Marmot do a good one for less dollars and there are quite a few options especially if you're in the USA. Much cheaper than here too.

Do you have a rough route planned? Ridewithgps is very handy for that. Most people go along the coast to ride the Great Ocean Road to Melbourne and then along the east coast up to Sydney. In early Jan it will be busy due to summer holidays. You would have no problem finding supplies along this route though as long as you plan and carry say 3 litres of water.

This thread might be of interest viewtopic.php?f=2&t=87754
And this one https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/pag ... 32496&v=CU

[il padrone]

An inland route from Sydney to Adelaide in January would be 'a few sandwiches short of a picnic'. Most would not choose that sort of a tour to enjoy Australia in summer..... but I'm sure it has been done before.

Personally I would recommend flying (or train) to Melbourne ---> <train> ----> Geelong, then riding along the Great Ocean Road and the Princes Hwy to Adelaide. Riding E ---> W at that time of year you will be more likely to get SE winds (tailwinds).

[ausvegguykk]

i have not comitted to any route at the moment, the most direct route would be through the hay plains which would be a little toasty
a slightly cooler route would be through bendigo, but not sure how much better that would be

i have considered riding all the way along the coast, would take alot longer though.

i want to be there by i think january 14th for the tour down under, thats why i'm doing it in january, meeting a bunch of friends there and staying together

[il padrone]

Bendigo in January - very hot in January. Anywhere in SE Australia at this time of year you may well strike 40+ days for some days. The coast will be cooler though.

Geelong to Adelaide via the coast would make a nice cruisy two-three week ride; start just around Boxing Day. It may be busy with holiday traffic, but mostly only for the first 3-4 days.

[Warin]

Don't forget you will probably have;

• total fire ban days where you won't be able to cook.
  
  possibly bushfires that may impact your planned route.