Rutherglen loops

We woke to a cold and foggy day so weren’t in any rush to leave.  We had a second coffee at Doc’s café just down the street, and voted it the best coffee of the trip.

It was marginally brighter as we cycled down the Main Street and took the rail trail to the Corowa Wetlands.  This turned out to be a rather large pond but was atmospheric in the morning mist.  

We crossed the Federation Bridge into Victoria to discover the Barassi Line – two sets of AFL goal posts, erected in 2005 to symbolise the nation’s growing connection to AFL.  Created as an imaginary boundary, north of this line rugby union and rugby league football codes supposedly dominate. 

The Grantham Bend trail offered good views of the Murray but became difficult to navigate after a few hundred metres so we decided to turn back.  Unfortunately, I had acquired another puncture - the thorn resistant tubes didn’t actually live up to their name.  

Delayed by the puncture repair, we took a more direct route to the De Bortoli Winery for lunch, skirting around Wahgunyah and passing a few wineries along the way.

Lunch was delicious and we lingered a while enjoying our barramundi and chicken dishes, accompanied by a glass of de Bortoli rosé.

Retracing our route, we picked up the trail around Lake Moodemere, a natural billabong that never dries out.  We spent the next 20 kilometres winding our way along bike trails and quiet tracks around the Lake and back along the Murray.

We crossed the John Foord bridge, named after one of the founding pioneers and headed back to our accommodation.  After a cup of tea, we walked to the nearby IGA, which was surprisingly well stocked, and picked up some pies for dinner.