2022 PLANNING IS DONE
2022 Ride is planned. Ride is called 2 Big Rivers Ride. Leg One starts in Adelaide and heads south to the mouth of the Murray River. Route then follows the Murray River to end at Wentworth on the Darling River just over the NSW border from Mildura. Leg Two begins in Wentworth and is mostly a dirt road trip following the Darling River to end at Bourke. Leg Three begins at Bourke and heads back to the sea ending at Port Macquarie.
Details are on the tab below this one. Get an itinerary here
Covid-19 Policy
Cycle Across Oz will continue to run their calendared events at the discretion of the
Ride Organisers, unless and until there is some government edict banning
sporting events of this nature. The rides will be run according to strict Covid-19 policies. You can find those policies in the following document. Following these policies will be a condition of entry to the ride
Download Covid-19 Policy
2022 - The Rivers Ride - Two Big Rivers
Cycle Australia - 2022 Tour - The Two Big Rivers Ride
'Cycle Across Oz' is the leading long distance cycle touring business in Australia.
The Murray River rides run by CycleAcrossOz have always been winners. The 2022 tour is the Two Rivers ride which will tour a slice of the Murray River from the mouth and then follow the Darling River to Bourke. The ride returns to the sea by tracking up tributaries of the Darling across the Great Divide and back to the sea ending at Port Macquarie where the Hastings River enters the sea. The tour is made up of 3 legs - the middle one is something different as it is mostly on gravel roads.
Set up in 2002, Cycle Across Oz has now run 15 cycle tours across and around Australia. These tours have included point to point tours covering pretty well every way across Australia and 2 major circumnavigations. 2018 saw a loop ride taking in the South Western corner of Western Australia over a 5 week period. 2019 was also a loop ride around Tasmania and 2021 was a loop around Victoria. The 2022 edition is point to point again crossing a big slice of South Eastern Australia.
The Murray River rides run by CycleAcrossOz have always been winners. The 2022 tour is the Two Rivers ride which will tour a slice of the Murray River from the mouth and then follow the Darling River to Bourke. The ride returns to the sea by tracking up tributaries of the Darling across the Great Divide and back to the sea ending at Port Macquarie where the Hastings River enters the sea. The tour is made up of 3 legs - the middle one is something different as it is mostly on gravel roads.
Set up in 2002, Cycle Across Oz has now run 15 cycle tours across and around Australia. These tours have included point to point tours covering pretty well every way across Australia and 2 major circumnavigations. 2018 saw a loop ride taking in the South Western corner of Western Australia over a 5 week period. 2019 was also a loop ride around Tasmania and 2021 was a loop around Victoria. The 2022 edition is point to point again crossing a big slice of South Eastern Australia.
Can I do it?
Any reasonably fit person can do these trips - whether you are 25 or 70 (the age ranges for previous trips). The Great Divide region is more hilly than other parts we have toured. So you will need to do more hill training and make sure your bicycle has good gearing to help you over the hills. You don't have to be super fit - just committed enough to ride 5 to 8 hours a day for at least 4 to 6 days consecutively and able to ride (or push) a few hills. Of course, making the ride as comfortable as you would like is your priority - increasing your mileage before the ride will help enormously. Doing some hill training is essential.
Every tour is a little different. The 2022 tour has one big difference - the middle leg is mostly gravel. Overall the tour has a number of short days especially on the gravel. In all, there are only 2 days with rides 100 kms and over (65 miles) and 3 days at 120 kms (75 miles) - one on the second leg and the others on the 3rd leg. There is not much climbing to do until the last leg with the crossing of the Great Divide.
Cycle Across Oz provides a unique opportunity to travel very cost effectively in Australia without risk and without losing that pioneering feeling. The trip is primarily a camping trip. We use 4 star caravan parks and farm stays wherever possible, which have good facilities for dealing with camp life. We are planning five cattle station stops right in the middle of Central New South Wales - all on the second leg. On many nights, you can choose to upgrade your own accommodation by staying in a cabin or motel room. You do need to be comfortable in a tent as on a few of the nights you have only the tent as an option.
Rather than provide all your food needs, we have had great success in leaving food under your control. We will be providing evening meals on specific nights along the way - 7 in all for the whole trip. There are a few breakfasts too. We also provide coffee and tea and biscuits and local treats for morning and afternoon breaks (when a ride includes an afternoon break). For the remainder of the time, you can then choose your own budget, your own styles of food and your own mix of eating out or eating in. Typically what riders have done is provide for breakfast in camp and lunch on the road and use local facilities (the pub or club or restaurant in town) for evening meals. The van does have cooking facilities and most caravan parks have too, making it possible to cook in camp should you so choose and whenever you choose.
What kind of bike?
You need to be comfortable on your bike. You need to be able to get over some hills. Because there are 500 kms of gravel roads on the 2nd leg, you will want a bike with wider tyres than a normal road bike. 28 mm is the suggested minimum. Elsewhere, road surfaces are good, meaning road bikes are workable for the first and third legs. There are some hills to climb on the last leg and some are pretty steep.
Make sure your bicycle has appropriate gearing, say 11:32/ 50:34 for a double chainring bicycle. A triple will work even better. On past trips, we have had a range of road bikes, more conventional touring bikes, hybrid bikes and mountain bikes. The unusual bike brigade has been represented by a Moulton, a Bike Friday and a Thorn tandem. Whatever you choose, your bike should be in good mechanical shape as there are long stretches between bike shops. You do need to be able to carry 2-3 litres water, provisions and spares for a day - no more than a pannier or handlebar bag will be needed.
Any reasonably fit person can do these trips - whether you are 25 or 70 (the age ranges for previous trips). The Great Divide region is more hilly than other parts we have toured. So you will need to do more hill training and make sure your bicycle has good gearing to help you over the hills. You don't have to be super fit - just committed enough to ride 5 to 8 hours a day for at least 4 to 6 days consecutively and able to ride (or push) a few hills. Of course, making the ride as comfortable as you would like is your priority - increasing your mileage before the ride will help enormously. Doing some hill training is essential.
Every tour is a little different. The 2022 tour has one big difference - the middle leg is mostly gravel. Overall the tour has a number of short days especially on the gravel. In all, there are only 2 days with rides 100 kms and over (65 miles) and 3 days at 120 kms (75 miles) - one on the second leg and the others on the 3rd leg. There is not much climbing to do until the last leg with the crossing of the Great Divide.
Cycle Across Oz provides a unique opportunity to travel very cost effectively in Australia without risk and without losing that pioneering feeling. The trip is primarily a camping trip. We use 4 star caravan parks and farm stays wherever possible, which have good facilities for dealing with camp life. We are planning five cattle station stops right in the middle of Central New South Wales - all on the second leg. On many nights, you can choose to upgrade your own accommodation by staying in a cabin or motel room. You do need to be comfortable in a tent as on a few of the nights you have only the tent as an option.
Rather than provide all your food needs, we have had great success in leaving food under your control. We will be providing evening meals on specific nights along the way - 7 in all for the whole trip. There are a few breakfasts too. We also provide coffee and tea and biscuits and local treats for morning and afternoon breaks (when a ride includes an afternoon break). For the remainder of the time, you can then choose your own budget, your own styles of food and your own mix of eating out or eating in. Typically what riders have done is provide for breakfast in camp and lunch on the road and use local facilities (the pub or club or restaurant in town) for evening meals. The van does have cooking facilities and most caravan parks have too, making it possible to cook in camp should you so choose and whenever you choose.
What kind of bike?
You need to be comfortable on your bike. You need to be able to get over some hills. Because there are 500 kms of gravel roads on the 2nd leg, you will want a bike with wider tyres than a normal road bike. 28 mm is the suggested minimum. Elsewhere, road surfaces are good, meaning road bikes are workable for the first and third legs. There are some hills to climb on the last leg and some are pretty steep.
Make sure your bicycle has appropriate gearing, say 11:32/ 50:34 for a double chainring bicycle. A triple will work even better. On past trips, we have had a range of road bikes, more conventional touring bikes, hybrid bikes and mountain bikes. The unusual bike brigade has been represented by a Moulton, a Bike Friday and a Thorn tandem. Whatever you choose, your bike should be in good mechanical shape as there are long stretches between bike shops. You do need to be able to carry 2-3 litres water, provisions and spares for a day - no more than a pannier or handlebar bag will be needed.