Left Friday arvo and headed to the block for a change i wasn't driving Tim W was doing the honors and with Dev in the back it was all in the family:). Had the usual grouse burger at the Chesthunt General Store. Got to the start of the dirt and the road was in crap condition massive pot holes filled with water haven't seen it that bad for ages. Driving along we pulled up along side Doug & Rob. Doug's car had decided to hit the biggest hole and tore his ball joint out ,car was rooted tow job for sure.
Luckily for them Matt was there swapping trailers to accommodate his bike with Doug's trailer and we took a lot of there gear , all good.    
Arrived to find most people there about 20 all up had cans went to bed. Decided not to bring the bikes up this weekend nor Tim W. or Cam Dev took his. Just a nice kick back couple of days with some maintenance on the our Loop and the Enduro track which i might add came up a treat once we attacked with a chain saw and hedge trimmer. Cam decided to raise the grate on the fire in the shed to draw better. Tim D. lead a ride on Sat & Sun they were talking about Sat ride a lot before dinner so it must have been good. Sunday's ride went to Lake Cobbler we left before they got back. 
The weather was good sunshine at last and the block was in mint condition , oh did i mention deer hunters fricken every where, dogs howling in the early hours of the morning. Had a grouse weekend thanks Tim D. for organizing it. I hate leaving Abbeyard always looking forward to the next time which of course is Cup Day week end be there! A special mention to Matt Richmond , not only did he take Doug & Robs bikes to the block Friday night then go back and retrieve his trailer he left there , he also took them back to Benalla early Sunday morning so Doug could organise a tray truck for his car well done Matt.

I think that old ute of Dougie's is trying to tell him something !

Just about covered it all there Rod, well done. It was another celebration of Tim's birthday and he organized it well with the weather gods. I left home around 2 and it was a pretty uneventful drive to the block, but as Rod stated the Abbeyard Road had some pretty nasty pot holes so the last 20ks were traveled slowly. I passed Rob and asked if he needed help, but all good. Again, good on u Matt I'm sure they are in debt to you. I arrived at the block just after sunset and the fires were burning and the smell of beer was in the air. Settled in with my bag next to Willy and enjoyed the banter for the next few hours. Thanks to JD for cooking my dinner and serving it to me with salad, well done champ. Tim welcomed everyone and the festivities continued until the early morn. 7.30 comes around fast, Tim snored most of the night but I managed to get a few hours shut eye. Tim's famous egg and bacon Turkish rolls for breakfast was just what the doctor ordered. Lots of bacon, not a bacon hater in sight. Final call for riders and 12 gallant bike-men and one gallant bike-woman loaded up and prepared themselves for the "Tim's 60th bash". Tim asked for a tailman and due to the elongated pregnant pause, I reluctantly volunteered.
Typical of a high country ride (Tim can fill you in on the route) with lots of stops for panoramic views and Oooo's and Ahhh's. Had a puncture about 20 k's into the ride which took a while to fix, but thats the shit that happens. Dougies ass gas was severe. The group flowed quite well and we ended up where we tried to get to last year on the helipad, fantastic snow views out to Mt. Hotham and Feather Top. Think we interrupted a broke back mountain moment for a couple of locals here so a few pics and off we rode. Pace was getting up there and its the first time I have witnessed a high side pirouette with a 180 twist, well done Dave, excellent work. Plenty of up and down hills with a few river crossings, you can always tell when a river is deep, the other side is stacked with riders/4 X4 drivers and families/cows and the odd sheep watching as you pick your line. All good, sort of, you get another mention here Dave. Beautiful afternoon was bestowed upon us as we clocked up the k's and enjoyed the beautiful Victorian High Country in its splendor. Quick dash back to camp and the time was 3.40 and 108k's on my clock. Sun was a very relaxing 20 and warming. Showers and a few touch ups on the 449 and settled in for a few froffies. This is the part I enjoy equally as riding, getting to know the AMTRA family and their history. Hour by hour passed and then the smell hit, and hit hard. Tim's Weber and the roasts it contained. I couldn't control myself and had to have a closer look, magnificent. We had entree, West Meadows cray fish which went down a treat. The roast was served around 8 and all conversation ceased while we devoured the succulent offerings and at least 8 different veggies. Full as a fat mans undies we slowly departed to our nesting to recover from the days adventures and dream about how good the next day will be.
7.30, it was either the hounds from the next camp or someone snoring had us up ready to go. Ohhhno, more bacon and eggs, yum. Got away earlier and the trip was to Cobbler Lake and surrounds. 9 trusty souls headed out and the weather was glorious.  Willy was going to meet us there so Tim took us through the mini bike trail first and then headed to the upper trails. More typical High Country trails, which we love. and arrived at Cobbler then met by Willy on his GS1200. Fully loaded I might add. 
A 1k walk to a spectacular viewing platform and we were now intimate with nature. Back at the bikes we had a 35 k trip back home and the pace was set. About 7 k's out another flat but he decided to ride home and save some time, much appreciated. Did the mini track in reverse and had a blast. Back to camp around 2.30 and time to pack up.
What a frecken great weekend Tim. The people/ride/food/country/accom/banter first rate. Special mention goes to Matt Richmond for his help with Rob and Doug over the weekend and also your daughter Nicole for the huge effort she put in without a complaint. 
The trip home was as uneventiful as the trip there other than having a wider smile on the dial.

Cheers, till next time.
             

Good write up. Sounds like a great weekend.

Hey Tim D, Nicole and yourself did a sterling job with the food! The ride was a hoot and the tour of trails was awesome!  Thanks for an absolute cracker of a weekend again!! Really appreciated the efforts you guys went to once again, makes for a great weekend up the high country. My mates Dale and Dave were very happy they were part of it all and we all couldn't wipe the grin off our faces until it came to unloading at my joint.. Reality had set in by then!  Cheers mate! PS. Thanks for the write up Lefty Cracka!

From our Hotmail email.

Can you please post a big thank you to yourself Tim and Nicole for fantastic weekend for a new rider that was well out of this comfort zone everyone made me feel one of the group and espessily lefty I don't think I would have done the second day with his encouragement thank you David rowe

Had a great weekend with a ride in perfect conditions on Saturday.

One of the more eventful trips to Abbeyard, with a flat tyre on my trailer spotted at Donnybrook then see Doug and Rob with a sad look just at the start of the Abbeyard road. There were some big holes, and after hitting one or two I remembered Rob posting up that the road was in a rough state. Seems to have been too rough for Doug's ute and it dropped a ball joint out of the front wheel. After the required inappropriate jokes related to balls I took Doug back out onto the road towards Myrtleford to see if we could call out. Just after getting back on the sealed road we found ourselves staring at a 4x4 sideways on the wrong side of the road heading straight for us. Getting ready to ditch my car and trailer off the side the road the driver somehow managed to get back over and we got past clear. With sphincter back to normal we continued on, gun shy of every oncoming vehicle, and with no phone reception still at the dam decided we could swap trailers and sort out gear and just head up to the block.

Once back at Doug's ute we started to sort out bikes and gear when the Wainrights came past, who happily took a lot of gear on board to help out. With a now fully loaded car and trailer we headed up the road to Abbeyard. The road in was not getting any better and there were some huge potholes, however eventually we got there and unpacked. With the number of 4x4's we had seen I was getting a bit concerned about leaving the trailer out there, so Doug joined me and we went back and got it, which also gave the chance to get all the pot holes I had missed on the way in. After we got back to Abbeyard, again, we settled in for a few drinks and catch up with people there.

Breakfast in the morning was welcomed and then on to the bikes and ready to ride. It was a sensational day and we cruised up the valley and hit Schultz track which is always a bit challenging but was in great shape and a fun blast to the end. Here we found a Berg with a less than inflated sense of front tyre. No problems we thought, whip the wheel off and change tubes. That plan was going well until we found the spacer had stuck on the axle and it was going nowhere. A variety of bush hammers were found lying around on the ground and the tried and tested BTFOOI method was used until we got the wheel free. Tube changed and gassed it up, but still a bit flat, so thinking maybe pinched. But JD reckoned the gas had not been that enthusiastic so we got on the pump and sure enough we had some firmness in the tyre. Then it was a bit more bush mechanics and the axle was in and surprisingly to all even the nut back into the axle.

Back on track and it was over to the Buckland valley and across the river. All good except for the KLX which took a bit of a dip. Water out of the pipe and thinking it was a plug change they decided to try a push start. Well surprisingly it fired up, especially so for Dave who still had a handful of throttle on as the bike took off. Not to be beaten Dave held on and gave us all a good laugh, thanks Dave. We made our way over towards the helipad looking out over to Hotham, some bits of snow here and there but none to ride through. Some snacks and chat at the helipad, photos, then off again.

Over the next section I was able to follow Anna on the KTM Freeride, along with Hayden and Dale. The Freeride really did impress me, it wasn't troubled over the terrain and was getting ridden at quite a fair pace. I could catch and keep up but not really pass and leave behind. Not a race so dropped back a bit and just enjoyed the ride. Thinking Freeride type bikes are something a lot of us would enjoy.

We made our way along the ridges and then down Paddy's, which can be a bit steep in places but was in fine condition and all made it down. Across clear creek with minimal drama and then onto the last tracks towards Abbeyard. At one place Doug and Nic thought the track went straight ahead when there was a sneaky left there, no real drama and they picked themselves up and continued on. Across Camp Ck and the KLX went for another dip, but amazingly fired up straight away so we all cruised back into Abbeyard.

While the rest of us showered and hydrated Tim and Nicole got cooking. With an entree of BBQ Buffalo River Bugs (with a dash of grilled Haloumi added) it was then time for the roast meat, veg and gravy. Yum. Those that could also went for the apple pie and custard. A great meal to top off the day's great ride.

Next morning I headed off early with Doug and Rob, while others geared up and went out to Cobbler. Happy to report a less eventful return journey and left Doug and Rob in Benalla with plenty of time left in the day to retrieve the stricken ute.

Thanks to Tim and Nicole for putting on a great weekend ride.