Did ride day one of Great Cycle Challenge : October 1 2025

October time rolls around. Time for the Great Cycle Challenge for Kids Cancer. What does that mean? Simple really - I ride my bike for Kids Cancer research. Step one - get on the bike

My days of ride across the country challenges are past. What I really like to do is to ride to a point near the bush and walk to look for orchids. Picked a short route today on a safe roads to a slice of bush that might offer up orchids. The lack of safe roads around our new place bothers me. Picked this one to start

Pea flower

A flash of orange - maybe escaped from the houses above

Views across Gordon Creek

Walked a side track going out on a spit of land above the creek

Did find a bearded orchid - one seeded and on budding. Hard to ID but this is the orchid for the day. Always a win to find a new orchid on a track not walked before

The budding form

Stepped back photo

A nice tracking easily down a ridge line - peaceful albeit a bit short of orchids

As befits any Great Cycle Challenge ride in October - did get a magpie hit - in our own driveway

Got the first ride done - then time to pack and get ready for the drive down to South Coast. Gives me time to walk some more bush - my wife will catch a train this side

Drove to Heathcote - walked down to the river - view from the top - Woronora River below

Steep walk from that lookout to Pipeline Track below - have walked it before

Did find orchids alongside the trail - sun orchids - many seeded and none open

Enough detail in an out of focus photo to see no flowers open and some pollinated

The closest to opening of a sun orchid - guessing thelymitra pauciflora - I saw 100 plants like this. A bit late walk after 4 pm

Did get an orchid open - golden donkey orchid - diuris aurea

Lots of gymea lily growing along the gully - kids swimming down below

Plenty evidence of donkey orchids and sun orchids all along the side of the service road - at least yellow was openn
today

Double flower for golden donkey orchid

White Sydney boronia - not seen these much

Epacris longiflora looking a bit pale - normally a deepner crimson

Walked to the top of the rise on Pipeline Trail not far from where it joins Heathcote Rd

Heading back - drumsticks flower

Tiny leptospermum at half the size of a US penny

Found an upside down flower above the track giving open access for a photo from down below

Sun orchid clinging to life right on fire trail edge - quite a few like this all along the track

Deeper pink on upside down flower

A few donkey orchids under the pipeline on the way back. Chose to walk past rhe access track to check if there were sun orchids higher up in the sunny sections. There were donkey orchids

There was a reward for going higher - next orchid for the day - onion orchid - going to guess microtis parviflora - few flowers spread a bit wide

Close up of the ant - a known pollinator for this orchid

A few plants in frame

A new white flower for me

Location shot photo. Have walked this before now

Drank a beer in Engadine Tavern waiting for my wife catching a train from the city. My wife drove from the pick up to our house. Doubt I would have stayed awake - been a big steps day

Did cook dinner - homemade pizza with cycle art

Riding for Kids Cancer this month - donate here https://mclnks.com/kidscancerride

You can send HIVE - I will get the cash across - memo GCC2025 so I can pick it up

This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io

Cycling, Daily Activity, House Chores, Photowalking

Height 183.0 cm		Weight 90.0 kg		Body Fat %
Waist cm		Thighs cm		Chest cm