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Winter solstice commute, or at least, the closest I’ll get to one this year. Starts to get lighter next time May have caused a little consternation to a driver or two, I pushed ze button for ze crossing, I waited, I could just tell that the two drivers coming down Huntingdale Road were not the least bit interested in stopping for the orange … or even the red … light. So just as the lights went red I lurched the bike forward as though I was going to ride through the crossing, both cars shot…

What’s more fun than stopping on a #fixie while riding uphill to wait for a garbage truck on a narrow suburban street while it negotiates parked cars on either side? Stopping on a #fixie while riding uphill to wait for a garbage truck that’s stopping to wait for another garbage truck on a narrow suburban street while both of them negotiate parked cars on either side and each other Usual Friday morning shenanigans, the garbage truck commute

Strangely warm and a very blustery northerly blowing. There’s rain on the way but it’s not here yet. My goodness, how long is it since I rode the length of the Atherton Road bike lane … cannae remember. Still sucks, still too narrow, still too many close passes where central traffic islands mean that drivers do a hook-swerve into the bike lane, regardless of whether or not there’s a cyclist in it

After almost six months of no apparent action, perhaps something is happening at the Atkinson Road, Atherton Road intersection. All the underground services are marked up in different colour paint, maybe, just maybe, VicRoads is about to build the bike crossing to join the two halves of the north-south bike path Overcast, 19°C, Feels like 17°C, Humidity 73%, Wind 5m/s from N - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

The usual route home, with an alliterative title due to the strangely warm weather and wind Overcast, 18°C, Feels like 17°C, Humidity 77%, Wind 4m/s from N - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

A good ten degrees warmer than yesterday morning! Windy too Light drizzle, 15°C, Feels like 13°C, Humidity 89%, Wind 6m/s from N - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

Getting closer to the solstice, the sun is low and it’s getting dark earlier. Next week it’ll start to get light again, but until then it is into the gloom along the creek Mainly clear, 15°C, Feels like 15°C, Humidity 80%, Wind 2m/s from N - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

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Wow, what is this? After seven and a half years some way-finding signage has appeared on the Djerring Trail directing cyclists on how they must get from the south side of the rail line at Oakleigh station, walk through the pedestrian underpass, negotiate the commuter car park and et viola, re-enter the path at the far end of the carp ark. Astounding. Now if only the “continuous bike path” was both continuous and a bike path …

Off to the south-west in the general direction of the bay, exploring side streets and suburbs where some of the larger, wealthier and – in some cases – more interesting houses. Also appears to be the land of the CCTV camera, everywhere I looked houses had multiple cameras to ward off the evil spirits. Architecture and horticulture, houses and gardens, some interesting, some just large Sunday afternoon car wash time, lots of guys out making the car shiny for the new week, dog walking time too,…

The Saturday morning pre-breakfast ritual ride – off to the shops for fresh fish for dinner and to the bakery for bread for the weekend. Only one problem, my favourite bakery for over 20 years has closed, so a new loaf must be chosen Freshabake, I anoint thee … at least in the first instance, lets see how your pasta dura compares … Overcast, 16°C, Feels like 11°C, Humidity 70%, Wind 8m/s from N - by Klimat

A social beer after work with cow-orkers then a ride home after sunset. Now when did I last charge that headlight … ? Recently enough as it appears, both lights stayed on for the entire ride home I could suggest that some of the other cyclists on the shared paths adjust their lights though, I had to come to a complete halt with my arm up in front of my face at one point – completely blinded the oncoming rider’s high-pointing light, worse than half the cars I meet!

Sunny and cool, a bit damp in places. More and more rubbish dumped along the trail by the railway, I suspect the council is ignoring any rubbish reports, perhaps until the new financial year Impressed by the site chosen by a homeless gent for his tent, unlike the last few hidden away in the bushes or behind walls and mostly out of sight, he’d set up right in the middle of a park next to a playground at Clayton station!

Ignore the Klimat weather report below, there was a spectacularly clear, totally cloudless blue sky. No wind, a lovely wintery day Seizing the best part of the afternoon while WFH, off on the fixie for a loop around bits of Murrumbeena and Bentleigh East, the red bits of the #wandrer map had caught my eye and I’ll fill in a couple more – leaving the ugly hard bits of North Road for some other day.

No trains on the line, no bread in the house. Off to the shops and to take a sticky-beak at the large group of hi-vis clad rail workers recabling some important part of the – recently vandalised – rail infrastructure. Stupidly I tried to come home along Willesden Road and despite the level crossing operating, with bells and correctly closing gates and four staff on duty solely to guard the crossing, I found that crossing via the crossing was forbidden, it was “unsafe” and had not been…

Well that was a bit unexpected! Half terrifying, half hilarious. I’d made it all of two hundred metres from work up to the Uni exit at Bayview Avenue … and had to suddenly stop because there was a woman driving the wrong way around the multi-lane roundabout heading straight at me. Apparently we are not allowed to cast nasturtiums upon the driving skills of our overseas students, but sometimes as we watch the dazed and confused come to the end of a road and turn right to go the short way around…

Back to work, back to the daily grind … and that reminds me, I really must clean, adjust and lubricate the chain on the #fixie. Winter commuting is taking the expected toll Down the Djerring, up the streets, into the campus Clear sky, 12°C, Feels like 8°C, Humidity 69%, Wind 5m/s from NNE - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

Third day of a long weekend, third day in a row riding down the GOR to Wye River or Kennet River. A morning ride today, and with the rest of the family rather than afternoon alone. As usual we saw many more cyclists at this time of day, I rarely see any in the afternoons Lovely mist rising up from the breakers and drifting up the cliffs, morning sun and surfers at every break

Amazing surf all weekend, lots of people in the water at every break, and lots of cars parked along the points and car parks both for the surfing and the spectating. Mist rising from the waves making everything look wintery and atmospheric It seemed a little brighter today than yesterday, and I was feeling a little fitter so I kept on going down to Kennet River for a coffee, then turned for home.

Out for an after-lunch ride at 2 ㏘, only down as far as Wye River –although I stretched it out to the 20 ㎞ point at Birds Track before turning back – just seemed too gloomy, with the sun already behind the ridge & I didn’t want to go on to Kennett River. Damp air & cool, mostly sunny & clear, but lots of mist from the surf against the rocks.

Lots of washed around debris along the track after yesterday, slippery and muddy as alway through the tunnel under the freeway. The usual down-the-creek commute home after work Partly cloudy, 13°C, Feels like 11°C, Humidity 65%, Wind 4m/s from W - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

Whoa! 39 ㎜ of rain yesterday and overnight. The low-lying areas of the bike paths are … awash. The LXRA floods-by-design sections are … flooded. Amusingly, one of the plastic bollards that was put up to warn of a flooded section a year ago or so has been washed downstream by the rain. Perhaps one day they’ll fix the flooded-by-design sections Light drizzle, 11°C, Feels like 7°C, Humidity 80%, Wind 5m/s from WSW - by Klimat

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Beef Pho on a cold wet afternoon, an enjoyable, if all too short break from WFH The weather forecast looked rubbish, with up to 30㎜ of rain forecast for the afternoon, and my right calf has had a raging cramp for the past four days from digging wit’ shovel last Sunday, so sneaking in an acceptable if short ride was the way to go Light rain, 13°C, Feels like 10°C, Humidity 88%, Wind 6m/s from W - by Klimat

Well I’ll be! The shared path crossing traffic lights on Neerim Road have been commissioned. Let me see, they were installed in … January I think … so it’s only taken VicRoads four months to commission them Dodging rain, cautiously eyeing the very large very black clouds to my north and to my south, a judicious poking around in the Murrumbeena Auction house, then back home again. Woops, I took too long and missed a meeting!

Big improvement on the past few commutes, I even had a little late sunshine as I made my way down the creek. Warm and pleasant, I continued on my way to East Malvern and up through the parks to home Light rain, 13°C, Feels like 12°C, Humidity 88%, Wind 3m/s from NW - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

Same as the other days for the route, same as the other Tuesday’s for the traffic. Traffic is always at its densest on a Tuesday, lighter on Monday and lighter again on the Fridays. The Dandenong Road counter-flow bike lane is always blocked by queued up turning traffic on a Tuesday Overcast, 12°C, Feels like 8°C, Humidity 78%, Wind 7m/s from N - by Klimat Garmin / Strava / ridewithgps

A grab bag of winter commute clichés; cold, wet, dark, windy … at least I was heading home On the plus side, I love the solitude riding along under the wet gum trees, currawongs and ravens calling and swooping about in the gloom. There’s a sense of solidarity with the three other riders that pass, not a jogger or dog walker to be seen Light drizzle, 12°C, Feels like 8°C, Humidity 76%, Wind 8m/s from NNE - by Klimat

Definitely cold and feeling damp this morning, no rain, that’s being held in reserver for the ride home … apparently Nobody tried to drive into me, although there was the usual ineffectual apologetic wave from the driver stopped diagonally across the counter-flow bike lane. Sure would be nice if there was a bloody big yellow cross on the ground here, and a sign, perhaps something like “OI! DO NOT” Mainly clear, 8°C, Feels like 5°C, Humidity 82%, Wind 4m/s from N - by Klimat

Family duties over in Wheelers Hill so the plan was to ride over there for the 10㏂ start then later go off for an extra ride. I’d intended to ride via Scotchmans Creek Trail and Dandenong Creek Trail, but time intruded so it was straight down Wellington Road – although I did serendipitously find a vacant block that allows a shortcut into the suburb On leaving, and with a tummy full of soup, a leisurely ride up the creek to Jells Park and a meander around the ponds – dodging, of course, the dogs…