Perth to Sydney – the slow way!

In 2000, I had an idea to bicycle from Oslo to Rome, but it wasn’t until the summer of 2010 that I finally did it. During the last few weeks of that trip, I was already thinking of possibilities for my next big bike trip. Olso-to-Rome was only about 1,600 miles of riding, so I wanted to do something bigger. I don’t know why, but Australia popped into my head – and it is certainly bigger than Europe! That was in 2010. It’s now 2016 and plans for Australia are now finally in place for a ride from Perth, on the west coast, to Sydney, on the east coast – from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

I have always biked solo, and there’s something to be said for that. Planning is easy, as you just simply go where you want, when you want. Want to do only 10 miles in a day? No problem – just do it. Want to do 100 miles the next? Sure, start pedaling. But solo biking can be a bit boring sometimes, so it’s nice to have a riding partner along.

So for this cross-Australia trip, there are two of us – myself and Mattie Schmidt. I’m Scott McGee and I live in Anchorage, Alaska. Mattie is from Moscow, Idaho. We’ve both kicked around the Juneau Icefield in Alaska as members of the Juneau Icefield Research Program. Mattie’s done some other interesting stuff including mushing dogs in Alaska. She currently works as a wilderness firefighter in Idaho and the western states.

Our trip officially begins on November 3, 2016 when we depart for Perth. Along the way we’ll visit Rottnest Island (home of the quokkas), see Wave Rock, pedal Australia’s longest straight road, cross the Nullarbor, ride The Ghan to Darwin, travel The Great Ocean Road, and finish at the famous Bondi Beach in Sydney (hopefully in time for the New Year’s Eve fireworks show!). So follow along and “ride” with us as we take the slow way across Australia.