Gawler Wheelers-ROUTE30-Gawler-Sampson Flat-Upper Hermitage-Houghton-Upper Hermitage-OTH-Gawler-EXTREME HILLS

Event Details

Time: June 2, 2012 from 7:30am to 11:30am
Location: Gawler SA (It's not that far!)
Website or Map: http://www.bikemap.net/route/…
Phone: 0437 810 085
Event Type: gawler_wheelers, gw_route30, gw_group_ride, gw_extreme_hills
Organised By: Frank (GW)
Latest Activity: Feb 26

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Event Description

Event Date : 02-Jun-2012

Start/Finish Gawler Park Homemaker Centre (located here with info here) 485 Main North Rd Evanston, SA, 5116

Info Distance : Approx 66 km Duration : 3 to 4 Hours Elevation : Extreme Hills Surface : Bitumen Suitability : Hill climbers Ride Style : Social ride (not training ride) Pace (ave) : 25 to 30 km/h Attendance : Please RSVP Departure : 7:30am sharp (be there by at least 7:10am for ride briefing) Route Map : Refer 'COMMENT WALL' below GPS : ROUTE30.GPX - ROUTE30.KML

Note This event will be run concurrently on the same day at the same time with another Gawler Wheelers event.

Ride Details: An extreme hill climbers ride starting in Gawler and finishing in Gawler.

The Gawler-One Tree Hill Rd begins the route after a short deviation through Gawler South. The entire length of the Gawler Scenic Route is ridden, until a right turn at the Humbug Scrub cross roads continues the ride through Sampson Flat along One Tree Hill Rd.

A left turn onto Seaview Rd followed by a another left turn onto Range Rd North continues the climbing through Upper Hermitage, eventually meeting up with North East Rd, which is ridden for a short distance before entering Houghton via Houghton Hollow Rd. After a short break in Houghton the route follows the Lower North East Rd south until a right turn onto Range Rd South, which returns back to Range Rd North.

The return journey to Gawler starts with Range Rd North followed by Seaview Rd and One Tree Hill Rd continuing the route onwards through Sampson Flat until a left turn onto Crosshill Rd leads to the township of One Tree Hill.

The visit to One Tree Hill is only fleeting as a right turn onto Cornishmans Hill Rd starts the climbing again, eventually reaching The Gawler-One Tree Hill Rd via a short section of Uley Rd. A left turn onto Alexander Ave begins the final downhill run into Gawler which completes the ride.

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Comment by Craig on May 28, 2012 at 22:25: After the GS3 this should be a breeze lol

Comment by Nick on May 28, 2012 at 20:41: Hey John, bugger changing cranks and cluster - that's hard work and you may as well buy another bike!

Love your description of Snake Gully. I've only thought of it as a narrow road, steep on either side with blind corners that encourage drivers to cut corners more often than not. Yours is much more colourful and a tad scary too!

Comment by Carl Neadley on May 28, 2012 at 17:47: Intend riding with Gully Grinders on Sunday morning and their proposed route also includes Snake Gully. Will be taking the flat option this Saturday.

Comment by john mills on May 27, 2012 at 22:01: Thanks Nick. Hmmm? Its a quandry. Don't know all the implications really. Hopefully once fitted they won't need to be swapped over each time I change routes from flat to hilly. And if they do, hopefully its not more than a ten or twenty minute job to do so.

And standing in the stirrups going at walking pace, up that Snake Gully climb, gives plenty of time to take in the wonderful scenery. Firstly there was this beautiful narrow strip of winding bitumen, with a few blind corners. It seemed to attract a flock of young teenagers trying to prove that their 'sports cars', late models and clapped out early models, could rocket up/down faster than the rest. It gave me a real adrenalin rush when they pulled over the double lines to overtake just before the corners.

Mind you, it was an even greater rush speeding down the hill on the way home! I sat right in the middle of the lane to make sure I didn't end up kissing the rock wall on the left, and every now and then a car pulled out from behind and 'rolled the dice' as it tried to get passed me before the next corner. Fantastic fun!

But on the left there were other distractions. The steel safety barrier, for all the high speed cars that misjudged the bends, had a lovely sharp razor edge along its entire length up the climb. Each time I felt I was losing balance I wondered whether it would be best to fall left on to this 'safety' barrier, or right onto the drag strip.

To help me decide there was a double barbed wire topped fence about two feet behind the barrier. So as my legs got sliced by that razor edge I could get some nice matching gouges across my neck and face.

And if that was not enough, just in case I slipped through the fence, there was a near vertical drop of a hundred feet or so, overgrown with scotch thistles to tumble through on the way to the bottom. I suppose that's where there would be a tangle of venemous snakes waiting for anything that 'dropped in for lunch'.

Talk about 'mind games'!!

Yes, Snake Gully is a real bastard. Thanks Nick. Now if its about 3 degrees, windy and rainy next Saturday, it could be a nice little challenge.

Could be a few SG nightmares in my dreaming tonight!

Might be having a few nightmares tonight.

Comment by Nick on May 27, 2012 at 20:04: Just got back from my Bastards Anonymous meeting to be told there's no chance of recovery!

John, I run a compact crank with an 11-25 rear cluster. I would recommend visiting your LBS for some advice re cranks/cluster to find out what would best suit you.

Comment by terry heney on May 27, 2012 at 19:47: No John go blame yourself for wanting to go do part of it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...forget the compacts and toughen up hehehehehe... buy me a set while your at it :)

Comment by john mills on May 27, 2012 at 19:24: So I can blame Nick for my very sore legs tonight? Since I missed out on the ride yesterday, car hunting, I thought I would do a test run out through some of this route this arvo. Didn't start at Gawler. Just went up Yorketown Road, and joined the route proper up past One Tree Hill. Snake Gully! Had to stand on the pedals just about the whole way up. And it's a bit longer than Cornishman's Hill! Continued up to Hermitage and a bit further and thought I would turn back to get home with still a bit of daylight left. Actually, on the way home, didn't quite make it coming up from the bridge at the bottom of Snake Gully. Had to get off and walk the last 50metres or so, before the sharp left turn at the top of that steep little climb. Maybe the legs were just plain tuckered out by that stage.

So I am still trying to decide whether to take it on next Saturday. The thought of spending about $150 to get a set of compacts did cross my mind! And I suppose a new cluster on the back wheel, with a larger sprocket.

I wonder if all that are doing this route will have compacts?