Look Who's Torquing: April 2017

When I think of diversity in nature, a road trip from Marrakesh to the Sahara Desert springs to mind. In a little over 500km, 8-9 hours of driving due to road conditions, you go from bustling metropolis, pass through snow covered mountains in the High Atlas and finish up surrounded by sand dunes as far as the eye can see before sundown. Previously I’d thought this only to exist in Morocco. Maybe it’s because I’m a Queenslander, but the past week and 1500km trip exploring Victoria has taught me it’s available right here in Australia.

The sun cracked through the clouds over Phillip Island on the first day.

Departing from Ballarat on Monday, we made a beeline for Phillip Island. Sticking to the main highways and stopping only briefly in Melbourne for coffee, the otherwise bleary day shone light on the island at dusk; a sign of the good weather to come. A morning stroll to the lookout at Berrys Beach was the perfect way to capitalise on the return of blue skies.

Views over Berrys Beach on Phillip Island

Next up was an obligatory stop at the Moto Grand Prix Circuit. With limited time to spare we skipped the History of Motorsport where they have 24 grand prix winning motorcycles on display as well as a plethora of other machines, articles and images dating back to the first ever GP held in Australia in 1928. Taking a moment instead to enjoy watching cars out on a track day; most amusingly a Mazda 3 whipping round amongst the more typical Porsche and Lotus variants.

Mercedes-McLaren SLR 722 Trophy on display at the Phillip Island GP Circuit

Then it was back on the bike, heading as far south as you can go on mainland Australia to Wilsons Promontory. This little corner of the country offers motorcycling at its finest. With undisturbed nature protected by the national park and well-kept tarmac ribboning through, it feels reminiscent of a scene from Jurassic Park. Rugged granite mountains dwarf its beautiful coastline, with easy walking trails offering up some extraordinary views. Also worth a look are the sand dunes at Darby Beach as well as Big Drift near the entrance to the Prom if you really want the desert experience. We stayed in the campgrounds at Tidal River. The site cost $62/night which is steep if you’re travelling alone but mighty reasonable if you take up to seven friends with to share the space.

Campsite at Tidal River in Wilsons Promontory National Park

The next leg of the journey was up to Omeo, a town nestled between the Alpine & Kosciuszko National Parks. On the way a chance stop in Yarram turned into a great chat with Andrew ‘Puds’ Barker, the owner of Puds Four Parts who specialise in parts and restorations for Honda SOHC models. While an array of classic Honda’s were extremely enticing, it was his Harris Mag 2 which really caught my eye. When Andrew bought the bike it was one of only 6 Harris’ variants in the country. The brand is Harris Performance Products, consisting of two English brothers who design, develop and manufacture racing motorcycle chassis’ and components as well as the odd limited-run machine. The Mag 2 is from 1984 and uses the engine and some running gear from the Suzuki Katana 1000 of the time. Andrew knows of only one other Mag 2 in Australia, so it’s an extremely rare machine!

An extremely rare motorcycle, the Harris Mag 2

By the fourth night we’d reached Omeo and stayed at the art deco Golden Age Motel. It was a lovely old pub that served up a cracking meal to go down with the cold beer. Nice not to be in the tent as the following morning it was just 3 degrees! Fortunately it didn’t take long for the temps to reach double digits once more and by midday we’d reached Mt. Hotham. This is where the Great Alpine Road, named so as it’s considered the equivalent of the world famous Great Ocean Road, reaches its highest point of 1845m, just 16m shy of the mountains peak.

Immense luxury after tent living!

This is the location of Australia's highest year round accessible sealed road.

The views up there were sensational, the roads soaring along the ridgeline before carving their way down to Harrietsville on the route north. It was the finest riding I’m yet to experience and I was chuffed with how nimble and punchy my Honda VFR800 felt with a pillion and loaded camping gear through such urgent changes of direction. It was exceptionally good fun and the road towards Mt. Beauty was equally engaging. From there we needed to start heading west, quoting ‘The Castle’, “we’re going to Bonnie Doon,” as Lake Eildon would be our stop for the final night.

A quiet estuary off Lake Eildon, in a locale made famous in 'The Castle', Bonnie Doon

One last surprise was in store as we ventured back towards Ballarat. While having a quick photo stop at lookout near Strath Creek, some fellow riders told of a bike event on just a little way up the road. Turns out it was the Broadford Bike Bonanza, an event I’d always wanted to attend! A lovely gentleman let us through the gates for a quick coffee and it was long enough to ensure a return trip for the whole weekend in years to come. With motocross, road racing and eye-candy from every era and style of bike, it’s a very well put together event with some amazing volunteers helping it all happen.

Broadford's Bike Bonanza lives up to the name!

So there you go, it’s not necessary to go to Morocco to get such variety in a short trip. From Melbourne to Australia’s highest road is less than 400km! If you have as little as even one or two more nights to spare, a stop in Wilsons Prom will reward you immensely.

Words and Pictures by Paul Joshua