An Indian Christmas
• 3-5 December, 2021 – Yea, Victoria
After weekends of rain, wind and freezing temperatures Mother Nature smiled upon us for the Yea Christmas Rally. Twenty or so bikes arrived for the weekend, including a few bikes out for their inaugural run – Conor Murphy with his 1935 Chief which he has been working on for a couple of years, Mick Dunne with his 1946 Chief and Maurice Dunston with his 1948 Chief.
For Saturday’s ride, Maurice led the way to Seymour on the Ghin Ghin Road into the Switzerland Ranges and we stopped for our first regroup at
Highlands. We stopped at JW Elliot Reserve in Seymour for morning tea and then rode back up to Highlands where we stopped for a regroup at the mini Stonehenge.
We continued on through to Caveat and Terrip Terrip and regrouped at Ruffy, then headed down Longwood/ Ruffy Road through Longwood and on to Euroa for lunch. Then it was back to the motel via the Merton Euroa Road and off to the Peppercorn Hotel in Yea for a fabulous meal. After dinner Maurice made a short speech and thanked everyone for coming. At the conclusion of his speech Kay Murphy surprised everyone in sharing a very heartfelt poem she had written entitled “When I ride my old Indian Bike.” Sunday’s first stop was ten minutes out of Yea at the historic Cheviot Rail Tunnel, a key feature of the Tallarook to Mansfield Rail line which operated between 1883 and 1978. We continued on through Murrindindi, riding through Flowerdale and arriving at Strath Creek for a picnic lunch. The final leg for the day was from Strath Creek to visit the Kerrisdale Mountain Railway and Museum where we were met by family members and grandchildren. We were given a tour of the various steam-powered engines that had been restored by the owners Andrew and Jennifer Forbes. We were treated to a 35 minute round train trip ride in open carriages along a rail line hugging the hillside, providing us with spectacular views along the King Parrot Creek Valley to the hamlet of Strath Creek.
To top off a fabulous day, Santa (Daryl Jenkins) arrived on his outfit dressed for the occasion. The grandchildren took their turns getting a gift from Santa and little Grace (first grandchild of Kay and Conor Murphy) celebrating her first Christmas, stole the show. Everyone wished each other a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year as we parted ways and headed off home.