You are currently viewing 8th Apr 2024: Mt Kembla, Cordeaux Heights Café and home via Mt Keira.

8th Apr 2024: Mt Kembla, Cordeaux Heights Café and home via Mt Keira.

The usual suspects rode out from Loftus Oval a bit after 0800 hrs heading south into an OK, but not overly trustworthy sky. Guess we were all a bit wary of further rain after a drenching over the weekend. The coast road was out of the question due to landslides, Audley Weir was still closed and Picton was underwater on Saturday so Whispers suggested an elevated alternative.

Whispers, Andy and Davo on Harleys, Perry on his Honda Shadow and Slim Jim on the Yamaha were made very wary of the tricky road surface with gravel traps all over the place. Even the OPH, which we all know pretty well, threw out a few smokies in unexpected sections. But no worries as we leaned into the Picton turnoff and then along Mt Kembla, with this road somewhat dodgy also.

It never ceases to amaze me how this little byway is only a decent fairway shot from the M1 Freeway. Bushland, semi- rural settlement and that really cool little village of miners’ cottages are only 10 minutes max from suburbia. After riding along these suburban streets for a while, towards Cordeaux Heights Café, that sense of déjà vu started to take over. It suddenly it struck me that that we would be stopping at Irvs’s Secret café!

Great venue for a good brunch cuppa and a yarn, obviously popular with the locals, which is always the best advertisement that a coffee shop could get. Be careful though, when we arrived, we were the only vehicles in the tight parking area. It would appear that if you don’t drive a big SUV or 4X4 down there then you are a nobody, so there were a few concerned faces on our table as these gargantuan did 5 point turns around our sleds.

Up a delightful and remarkably clean little twisty to the top of Mt Keira, back the way we came and see ya later sweet pertata at Heathcote. Great ride with a fine body of men, nice food, interesting scenery and a safe return. Can’t get a much better start to the week than this.

R.I.P. Irvs. Davo.