Albany

I arrived by Rex airways mainly because I was flying into Perth and so why struggle with a bike box and 5 hours on a bus plus a trip to the city? The bike was well over the 15kg limit and so be prepared to fork out about $7 a kilo for any excess. The airline will organise a taxi but mention you need a station wagon or similar for the bike box.Expect $25 to $30 to your accommodation or you could set the bike up at the airport and ditch rhe box there.

At the main roundabout intersection, you will find Coles Supermarket, complete with reasonably priced energy gels and energy bars as well as dehydrated food. Passmore cycles is over the road and has anything you have forgotten or broken. This is a town of about 30,000 so anything strange will need to be ordered in and freight to Albany needs to be factored in.

Food options are best to avoid the foreshore. Go to the sports club or The Earl of Spencer Historic Inn – Bar & Restaurant which does large mb portions, Guinness on tap and Cafreys for your iron supplements.

If you have time, please check out the ANZAC area, The gap, (a fair ride out on Frenchman’s bay) and the exceedingly excellent Limeburners Distillery om Frenchman’s Bay Road but do this on your return leg!

The best cafe I found was just after the start at Vancover Street cafe. The ones around the start of the route are ok but you can do AND deserve better.

My last trip to Albany was in 1983 and it is a completely different town. Friendly, warm and welcoming and cars / trucks give you a very very reasonable distance when overtaking and allow you to dawdle up hills without pressure. Spend an extra day here rather than Perth.