I try to travel is much that can and so far I’ve done well, I’ve been to 8 out of 10 of the major cities with just Perth and Canberra to go. I’ve been to many more towns and cities though, not just whilst on my Australian road trip either; I’ve made separate trips to quite a few other places including Alice Springs, Hervey Bay and more recently, Yamba.
By and large though, I do concede that I see most of my life in Australia through ‘Brisbane’ eyes.
So, with that in mind, I’m starting a new little mini-series on Fridays called ‘Cycling in …’ and today I’m starting in Adelaide.
Cycling in Adelaide
Adelaide is almost certainly the best place to start, not just because it begins with ‘A’ but because it is probably the cycling capital of Australia. Each year in January Adelaide hosts the Santos ‘Tour Down Under’ which this year saw cyclists travel through 52 towns in the area during the one-week event.
It’s a long race, sometimes made to feel even longer by the midsummer temperatures that can hit around 40°C.
But not everyone cycling in Adelaide is taking part in that race and for those who cycle for fun, it’s a great way to see the city and its surrounds. Thanks to the wonder of YouTube we are going to take a look around as well.
First up though, the news. Some new bike lanes have been introduced in Adelaide and not everybody is happy on account that two car lines have been removed in order to accommodate the bikes. What is very interesting in this news clip though is just how many people choose to cycle to work…
Okay, time for a couple of bike tours around Adelaide, starting with the Mike Turtur Bikeway which runs from Glenelg to the city…
Now let’s escape from the city and head for them thar hills. Adelaide Hills. This is a great video made even better by excellent music from Dick Dale…
We’ll be back on our bike next week.
The Mrs and I moved from Adelaide in 2011 to a sleepy hollow about an hours drive away. Though still within reach if our tummies need a decent restaurant or want to catch a pub gig. Adelaide is a wonderful city. It’s like a big country town, people are super friendly, just like I remember Brisbane and Perth in the 90’s. It’s also know as the “City of Churches”. Unlike the Melbourne or Sydney, Adelaide tends to be a very family orientated place. Even the local beaches are clean and one can throw a line from many of its local piers and catch fish.
Cheers
Dave
Hi Dave
That’s something that stood out for me as well when I visited Adelaide for a week a few years ago, the people were just so super friendly. I really enjoyed my time there, if I were ever to consider moving away from Brisbane, Adelaide would be on my shortlist.
Cheers, Bob
Where I live in the UK I tend to get pretty annoyed at how some people on bikes behave. I know that the vast majority are good, but there are a lot that really tar all cyclists with a bad name. I’ve nearly been hit a fair number of times (on the pavement), whilst my son’s pushchair has actually been hit (nothing serious apart from a jolt, the offender sped off without checking to see if he was alright). Cyclists don’t tend to stop at red lights and seem to behave as if zebra crossings don’t apply to them, weaving through groups of young children on their way to school (again, these are all ones I’ve seen).
Having said that, roads are a lot more crowded nowadays and sometimes people do seem genuinely aggressive towards cyclists. Plus the road network and cycling provision doesn’t exactly mesh (there are cycle lanes near me that are probably less than 5 metres in length).
I grew up in a small “God’s Waiting Room” seaside town and used to cycle regularly as a kid, with no problems. Now I’m not sure I’d dare it.
I’m afraid we appear to have similar problems here, quite a bit of road rage is directed at cyclists, rightly or wrongly. One or two roads seem to be hotspots for this, on the plus side though, we have quite a few cycling lanes that run along the side of the river and are completely separate from the main roads.
But for those cyclists who do take to the road, yes, it can be quite dangerous these days.