Main

NSW & QLD Loop - Day 6 - Inverell

Date:
By Officer Hardass
Category: Riding Solo
I wasn't far back inland but boy it was a chilly morning as compared to the coast.  It was also great to be inland again simply because riding country roads are better than coast roads.  When making my ride plan this morning I noticed a town called Texas, that I had no idea existed so I decided I had to check out this place.

From Casino I made my way to Tenterfield.  I absolutely love this stretch of road.  Lots of country scenery and farmland to look at.  Nothing better than a gently winding road and a great view.  Stopping at Tenterfield I got chatting to a backpacker who was making her way up to Darwin via inland NSW and QLD.  She was heading to Longreach and a few of the other towns I had been through.  It was funny to see someone heading where I had just been.  With a nice little chat out of the way it was time to press on to Texas.  The road to Texas was a little dryer than the previous but there was still some incredible road to ride along and some equally spectacular country scenery.

Arriving at Texas I found the only pub in town and made my way in for lunch.  I got the impression quickly that this was a one–horse town.  There was no one in the street as they were all at the pub.  Lots of guys in the TAB and a few couples sitting in the dinning room.  I parked at a bench and grabbed a burger, which turned out to be awesome.  I'm yet to have a bad pub feed on this trip!  After lunch I had a little walk around town and jumped back on the bike and made for Inverell.

Leaving Texas I thought I would just take the direct route through Ashford and have a slow, lazy afternoon at Inverell.  It was only a 130k stretch to Inverell that went by really quickly.  It's amazing how quickly the kilometres peel off when you're doing 120kph taking in the scenery.  Arriving at Inverell I made my way to the main street.  I knew where the pub was from previous trips so I stopped out the front and went to check in.  My room was only $30.00 a night so I wasn't expecting much but it was right across from the bathroom so that was perfect.  I had a quick tub, grabbed a beer and headed for the beer garden.

In the beer garden I found a gorgeous, little sunny spot and parked up.  Sunshine, cold beer, and a fine Cuban cigar was all that was required for a perfect afternoon.  I finished my cigar just as the sun fell behind the building next door so I got up and went for a walk around town.  I found a really nice walkway along the river and followed that all the way to the other end of town.  I spotted some random chickens along the way who seemed pretty excited that I approached them.  Now the sun was really getting low as was the temperature, so I made my way back to the pub to get warm.  The night was meant to fall below zero and at 6pm it was already 4 degrees.

Back at the pub I befriended some locals and had a few cheap punts on the doggies.  I ended up having dinner with these guys and chatting more.  Really friendly guys who lived at the pub.  After dinner I headed into the beer garden for a nightcap Cuban but ended up befriending more locals.  I ended up chatting with these new friends until about midnight.  We all huddled under a gas heater that was doing its best to keep the frost of everyone.  It was now only 2 degrees!  Soon after, last drinks were called so I said goodbye to my new friends and headed up to my room.

Now in my room, I was looking for a large blanket but I couldn't find a thing.  I searched the pub high and low but alas there was simply no blankets.  All I could do was get my thermals on and a couple of jackets, plus thick socks.  This was close to enough but it was still a bloody cold night!

Tomorrow I'm off to Nundle, and the greatest country pub I know.