We did this tour in April.  We started this trip in Newcastle, but rode from the western side of the Blue Mountains, through to the horse breeding country of the Upper Hunter, past the massive landscape scars caused by open cut coal mining, over the hills to the tourist area of the Myall Lakes and Port Stephens, and then back to Newcastle.  It was through a variety of scenery, and it is a ride that I have been drawn back to do some sections a number of times.  I found all of it well worth repeating.

The roads were mainly bitumen, but there were three days that included good gravel roads.

Climate

The following climate statistics are for the weather station at Lithgow.  For more information on this location, including wind roses, go to "Climate Statistics for Australian Locations" on the Links page.  You can also obtain similar details from other locations enroute from that site.

Itinerary
Towns listed below that have distances marked ( ) are those where food/drink is expected/known and those marked [ ] are points of interest

We caught a CityRail train from Newcastle via Sydney to Lithgow, arriving mid afternoon.  Lithgow is also served by CountryLink rail services.  For rail timetables and domestic flights to Sydney, check the websites listed on Links.

When planning this route, I was advised to take the road through Portland to avoid the heavy traffic along the Great Western Highway that goes to the power stations and mines near Wallerawang.  Portland is a town with plenty of food and accommodation.

We rode to Cullen Bullen - a village with a pub and a takeaway/fuel stop.  The hours of remaining daylight had been a bit of a concern to make it that far, but it was not a problem.  We stayed overnight at the hospitable Royal Hotel - Mudgee Rd, Cullen Bullen - where the publican told us that we were able to get a meal, as long as we did not mind eating the same as they were!  A great and plentiful home cooked dinner.  We were given "the key" to the kitchen so that we could get our own breakfast the next morning.

The Gardens of Stone National Park offered some magnificent views along the road through to Capertee.  Both Capertee and Ilford are small villages, each with a roadhouse having limited supplies.  Kandos is a larger town with most services.  There is an off road cycleway between Kandos and Rylstone that runs beside the western side of the road.

Rylstone has a couple of pubs and supermarkets, a great bakery and the sleepy Rylstone Caravan Park on Carwell Street.  It was a short walk from there to the main part of town.  There is only limited supplies at Bylong, so it is best to get sufficient supplies at Rylstone to last through to Merriwa.

This was a lovely ride down to the Growee River Valley with its great panoramas.  As from early 2008, the road to Bylong is all bitumen.  Now Bylong is not a big place.  It consists of Bylong General Store (a store/fuel stop), a showground and community hall opposite the store, and scattered homesteads on properties.  We camped at the showground where there were tables and chairs under shelter, as well as tank water.  I had been told that the store does not open every day, so a phone call before you travel there is worthwhile, and they will be able to arrange for the toilets at the showground to be opened for your stay.

We continued on the gravel road from Bylong for about 35 kms.  The climb up Lee's Pinch had been a hard slog with an average gradient over 4% for 4.5kms, but with some sections needing the two foot gear.  The range was sandstone, and consequently parts of the road used some of the bedrock.  As it had been crushed by the traffic, it had turned to sand, so parts of the road needed some care, particularly where they were on downhill runs.  There was a good lookout at the top of Lee's Pinch where there were great views over the area that we had ridden.  There were some bushwalks there too.

We stayed at the caravan park on the western side of Merriwa, alongside the highway.  The town had a bakery, supermarket and pubs.  It was interesting to wander around the town.  There is an abandoned railway linking through to Sandy Hollow that lends itself to opening up as a rail trail.

The ride through to the horse country at Scone was a great day.  There were a number of hills to climb, but nothing that was too difficult.  The 5kms descent from the top of Owens Gap to the flat lands around Scone was well worth the effort.  There is an off road cycleway on the southern side of the road a few kilometres on the way into town.

Scone is a major regional town with all facilities, except a bike shop.  We stayed at the Scone Caravan Park - 1k N of PO.

We took the off road cycleway towards Satur and the horse studs along Dart Brook.  The road was flanked by horses and agricultural land, with some open cut mines being visible near Dartbrook.  We rode into Muswellbrook for a coffee.

From Muswellbrook to Denman, there was some mining traffic, but that gave way to agriculture and viticulture, as well as the occasional very long coal train.  Denman has pubs, supermarkets and takeaways.  We camped at Denman Van Village 700m S of PO.

The road to Bureen passes through mainly dairying properties and skirts the base of some ranges.  When passing through the bushy areas, we had a few kangaroos hop across the road in front of us.  Civilisation returned at Jerrys Plains, with its pub and coffee shop.  On another ride, a group of us stopped at the Old Post Office Coffee Shop for a large, late morning tea.  We rode about 5-10 kms towards Singleton, when one of our group realised that he had left his camera there.  He phoned them and asked that they post it home for him.  Instead of that, they drove out and met us on the side of the road, returning the camera to its grateful owner.  Since then, I've always stopped there on my way through.

At the 50km mark near Warkworth, for those interested, there is a turn left to the Hunter Valley Gliding Club.  It operates on weekends, public holidays and some week days.  Joy flights are available.

After the bridge at Warkworth crossing Wollombi Brook, take the turn at 53kms along Wallaby Scrub Road.  It is not as busy as the Golden Highway, and the scenery is more interesting.  7kms later, take the left turn onto the Putty Road.  This will take you past some of the large open cut coal mines in the area.  The road shoulder is variable all of the way into Singleton, and the traffic is fast flowing.

Singleton is a major regional town with all facilities, including a good bike shop, however, the main street is not bike friendly.  Accommodation can be at a premium if the power stations or mines in the area are undergoing a major maintenance shutdown.  After getting our supplies, we crossed the Hunter River on the New England Highway using the off road cycleway on the northern side of the bridge.  This took us nearly all of the way to our camp at Country Acres Caravan Park - Maison Dieu Rd - 2k N of PO.  It had a great camp kitchen with microwave and communal fridge.

There is a train service to Newcastle from Singleton.  Check the Hunter Line on the CityRail Links for the timetable.

This is by far the best direction to travel this road.  The climbs are more gentle this way.  The farmlands are flecked with bushlands.  The 6kms descent down Tangory Pass (34kms) is a hoot.  Between there and Gresford, the road crosses a laminated timber bridge.  It is interesting to take the road to the viewing point to have a look at its underside construction.

Gresford has a general store.

East Gresford is a village with supermarket, pub, bowling club and takeaway.  We camped at the showground near the bowling club.  Take the track east towards the river about 700m from the road to get close to the showers and toilets.  Meals are served at the pub and bowling club some nights.

The range between East Gresford and Dungog necessitated some bottom gear riding, but it provided some great views.  The 5kms descent towards Dungog made the climb worthwhile.  Dungog is a rural town with most facilities, including a good bakery.  If time is at a premium, there are a number of CityRail and CountryLink train services that travel to Newcastle/Sydney from Dungog.

Stroud is a small town with a pub and general store.  We camped at the showground on the way into the town.  The town has an annual show around Easter sometime, so it may be wise to phone the local library beforehand to book, just in case.

The Bucketts Way from Stroud to Booral is not a wide road, and it can be busy with fast flowing traffic.  Booral has a small store/fuel stop.  At Booral, the road used to be the Pacific Highway through to Bulahdelah.  It climbs its way through bushlands over the range to mixed farming as it approaches Bulahdelah.  Bulahdelah is a busy little town, with supermarkets, a pub and a good bakery.  Before taking the road to Bombah Point, it is worthwhile checking with the local Visitor Information Centre to ensure that the Bombah Point ferry is operational.  It is taken out of service for a few days/weeks maintenance every few years.  We just happened to go there once when it was out of action.  It is best to get supplies at Bulahdelah as there is very little at Bombah Point, and what is there can be expensive.

There is about 10kms of gravel between Bulahdelah and Bombah Point.  We camped at Myall Shores EcoTourism Resort on the western side of Bombah Point.  It had a small general store, restaurant and bar.  If you would like to get an early start the next day, I suggest that you ride on to Mungo Brush as the ferry's first morning trip is not until 8am.  There is no potable water between Bombah Point and Hawks Nest, so if you decide to ride on to Mungo Brush, you will need to take water.  The bush camps through to Hawks Nest are in the National Park and have eco-toilets.

The ferry from Tea Gardens operates a number of daily trips to Nelson Bay.  Usually the Resort will be able to provide you with a timetable, or phone Port Stephens Ferry Service from the White Pages (Links).

To catch the first Tea Gardens/Nelson Bay ferry, it is wise to also catch the first Bombah Point ferry.  The road is good and easy riding, but at the time that we travelled, the time safety margin for repairing a puncture or two, cut it very fine to catch the Tea Gardens ferry.

Once you get to Nelson Bay, follow the beachside cycleway to Corlette and then join the road to Salamander Bay before joining the main road to Newcastle.  The road shoulders on the main road are variable, and the traffic is fast and heavy with little regard for cyclists, hence the reason for avoiding as much of it as possible.  At 45kms, take the right turn and enjoy the comparative quiet along Marsh Road at Bobs Farm for 8kms.  A reviver at the bakery at Salt Ash is worthwhile.  The road shoulder improves significantly from there on.  At 64kms, take the right turn along the quiet road to Fullerton Cove for 5kms before rejoining the drag strip.  At the park on the left at 75kms on the outskirts of Stockton, take the left turn and follow the beach front around past the caravan park, then have a ride to the end of the northern breakwall to have a great view of Newcastle.  From there, follow the harbourside cycleway around to the ferry to cross the harbour to Newcastle.

Newcastle services for CityRail, CountryLink and domestic airlines can be found using the Links page information.