30/10/21 On Ya Bike: Adelaide

Now that my bike is up and running we've started exploring Adelaide by bike, and seeing we're so close to the beach the coastal shared pathways are the obvious place to start.  

Yesterday we headed out through Port Adelaide and followed the Outer Harbour Greenway to Semaphore Beach.

Although it was a Friday night Semaphore was much less crowded than on Tuesday.  South Australians obviously grab whatever good weather they have and head to the beach, regardless of whether it's a week night or not.

 
There were a few hiccups in the beach-side path, and we walked the bikes for quite a while on an 'unofficial' path between the houses and the sea.  In transit I spoke to a lady in one of those houses, and she told me that the shared pathway was due to be built where we were walking.  She thought it was a great idea but she wasn't going to use it because she's scared of people on electric bikes. She prefers to ride her bike in Hervey Bay, Queensland, at least 2000km as the crow flies from Semaphore and a good deal further in driving time. I don't think she rides her bike very often.

We didn't travel very fast what with walking our bikes through sand, roots, and grass; the odd foray onto the beach; talking with old ladies; and stopping to watch the kite surfers at play on the glittering sea.

Kite surfer heading home for the day. 

By the time we got to Grange we had to turn around and head home again, but we walked out on the jetty before we left.  The jetty was deserted except for one fisherman who huddled at the very end, drinking hot thermos tea and not catching any fish.

There we were shivering on the end of the jetty and the surf club kiddies were out paddling in the waves with nary a wetsuit between them: just long sleeved rashies.  They breed them cold-resistant in South Australia.

Built in 1884, these are the only 3-storey Victorian terraces built on Australia's coastline (or so their information board claims) and that was at Grange, of all places.  There were plans for 24 of them, but only 8 ever got built.  I don't imagine if you owned one of these, that you would ever be allowed to paint it pink, or bright yellow, or anything like that.

The old flour mill from the bridge, coming back into Port Adelaide on the Outer Harbour Greenway.

We had such a good time riding to Grange that we went out on the shared pathway again today, heading north this time up the Lefevre Peninsula to the Outer Harbour.

At Semaphore Beach a banana was working hard entertaining a handful of children.  The day was bright, sunny, and cold: a few hardy souls were paddling. 

There was a party at the Yacht Club, with colourful bunting snapping in the breeze.  We considered crashing the party but thought that our daggy cycling ensemble might not meet the dress code.

Eventually we had gone as far as we could go so we stopped and took photos.  We couldn't linger to enjoy the view because the tide was turning and all the fishermen were arriving and waiting with barely concealed impatience for us to move our bicycles and get out of their way.

We parted ways at the Outer Harbour train station as I had to get home to find some information which one of the children had requested from their external memory bank (aka Mum).  Roger got to pedal back along the delightful foreshore while I caught the train back to Port, thereby discovering that there are 10 railway stations in the 10km between Outer Harbour and Port Adelaide, and the train stops at every single one of them.

I spent the 12 minute ride wondering if I could have covered the distance faster on a bicycle.  Then I got home and the dog was gratifyingly glad to see me, so I put the bicycle away until tomorrow.

I ran out of North.