KI BUG Ride, North Coast Caper Sunday 26.4.26

Sunday the 26th of April was a gorgeous Island autumn day and ideal for the Monthly KI Bicycle User Group (KIBUG) Ride. We all met near Wisanger Oval at a KIBUG members property on the North Coast road. The ride was a 35km circuit mainly on dirt roads and included an out and back to Boxing Bay using the newly ripped and rolled North Cape Road.

Nine local riders, 5 on e-bikes and 4 on manual, enjoyed the chat, scenery and weather along the way around. Rain was forecast but didn’t materialize. All headed back to the North Coast Road with riders commenting about the surprisingly good view of the pink salt lakes and sea glimpses from the rise on Boxer Road.

 We finished the day overlooking one of the beautiful and very pink salt lakes with a BBQ lunch, coffee, wine, nibbles and delicious homemade chocolate brownies and yummy chocolate coated fruit balls. Alongwith lots of chat it was a great way to end a morning of island cycling.       

Leader Wobbly Legs

Photo at Boxing Bay Beach: L to R Kenita Williamson, Paul Hepner, Wilma Oomen, Jenni Harris, David Creagh, Eric Baker, Ants Harris and Paull Marlow, Photo taken by Wobbly Legs aka Jane Evans

VALENTINES DAY 2026: Bike, Beach, BBQ

Valentine’s Day is for bike riders too, so 16 of us set off from Island Beach Cycling Headquarters

for a tour of some local coastal hot spots.

The first stop was Strawbridge Point to admire the view across the channel to picturesque

American River. Then it was on to Brown Beach either via Hog Bay Road, or for the more

adventurous, the bumpy and sandy Mad Mile Track. After more seaward gazing we set of for

Baudin Beach via a little known bush track to avoid some of the main road traffic.

A quick stop to look in the Artworks Gallery was followed by a tour of town and a stop for another

group photo. Here we were again able to appreciate another fine view and although there were no

red roses we could celebrate Valentine’s Day with plenty of chocolates.

Now the more serious riding began with a trek along the main road to Davies Road intersection.

Again a small hardy group took advantage of the off-road options, Mad Mile Track and the Old

Hog Bay Road.

The Davies Road and Cathers Road route took us along the edge of the Golf Course development

to intersect with the Cat Fence. Riding down along the Cat Fence was a bone shaking experience,

not to the liking of all riders. We followed the Fence to Pelican Lagoon, then took the track close

to the Lagoon. It’s a very interesting section to ride but can involve close encounters with the

local wildlife, no problems today though. Safely back on Hog Bay Road it was back to Island

Beach for a barbecue lunch, a swim for a few and ice creams for all.

The next ride is on Saturday March 14th starting at Vivonne Bay. Contact ride leader Steve on

0458596140 for more details.

Clunky Gears

JANUARY 2026 RIDE: PEDALING TO THE PROVIDORE

After the bicycle ride was cancelled on the 24th January, due to the extreme temperature, Saturday 31st looked good for a 37km ride. 16 riders met at Reeves Point bbq area to ride to the airport. These intrepid riders braved the unrelenting wind and rode along a variety of bike tracks and unsealed roads to the airport cafe.

Virginia Jones of Kangaroo Island Providore had prepared a delicious assortment of sweet and savoury dishes, which tempted us all. 

The wind did not abate on the return ride and everyone was pleased to relax and enjoy a bbq lunch, followed by the AGM.

Luckily the ride was completed before the rain started.

The next ride will be held on Saturday 14th February, Valentine’s Day at the Beach. We leave at 10am from 131 Du Couedic Drive Island Beach and ride to Pennington Bay via the cat fence. If you’re interested in joining this ride contact Graeme Casey on 043880351.

November 2025: KI BUG Invades McLaren Vale

In early November KI BUG took its annual off-Island ride to the Fleurieu Peninsula.  We based  ourselves in the McLaren Vale caravan park in cabins, campervans, caravans and tents for two days of exploring the region by bike. Was it the attraction of the scenic locale or the proximity of so many wineries that drew 20 cyclists on each of the rides?

A few had caught the morning ferry to the mainland timed to coincide with the start of the first day’s ride. Consequently it was a relaxed 10 minute cycle to the first stop for coffee and sustenance. Back on the bikes, replete with caffeine and sugar, we set forth on the Coast to Vines Rail Trail heading for the sea. We detoured off the trail into Moana and continued to Port Noarlunga along the scenic coastal path where we picked up another 2 cyclists, not complete strangers, but Martine’s sister and Paull’s mate. Lunch was at the bakery.

The return journey took us along the Onkaparinga River and through the pleasantly wooded Recreation Park. We eventually rejoined the Coast to Vines Trail near the old railway bridge and completed our cycling circuit back to McLaren Vale. Late afternoon we sat around in sunshine enjoying a few drinks before strolling to the pub for dinner.

Day two started with the threat of rain which fortunately didn’t eventuate, neither did the 25 degree temperature which was forecast. This time we headed east along the fairly new shared path to McLaren Flat. Then off in a southerly direction towards Willunga, with off course, a detour for coffee. Following this we cycled a series of back roads into the historic Willunga township for lunch. The early part of the ride was rather a zig-zag route but after lunch it was straight back to McLaren Vale on the Shiraz Trail assisted by a steadily strengthening tail wind. There was no sitting out enjoying the sunshine this evening instead we took shelter in the camp kitchen for food, drinks, spirited conversation and table tennis.

In the morning most departed early, some for the ferry home, others extending their time on the mainland.

If you’d like to join in the fun our next ride will be on Saturday December 13th. Ants is ride leader and can be contacted on 0456390656 for details.

Macgillivray Meander

MACGILLIVRAY MEANDER

Who would be silly enough to go for a 3 hour bike ride on Kangaroo Island in the middle of

winter? The answer is 8 hardy members of the KI Bicycle User Group.

The route was a leisurely 38 kilometre circuit starting from Emu Ridge Eucalyptus Distillery. And

we were fortunate that at 10 am on this particular Saturday morning the sun was shining weakly

enough to keep the temperature reasonably comfortable. Road conditions were pretty good

considering the amount of rain that had fallen in preceding days. After the obligatory safety

briefing and description of the route to follow we set off.

While most of the group were enjoying the great downhill run of South Coast Road our “tail-end-

Charlie” was further behind than usual, pulled up on the side of the road repairing a flat tyre. It

was a good opportunity for a group chat while we waited for him to rejoin us.

We continued along some quiet roads through picturesque countryside with many soggy

paddocks populated by water birds. Barretts Road was the most challenging with lots of potholes

and damp sections, but this was compensated by the good views of impressive Salt Lagoon.

As we entered the last kilometre of the route our luck with the weather changed, it bucketed

down! We had noticed the dark clouds approaching but thought we might just make it back to

Emu Ridge dry. However it was a soggy little group that wandered into the cafe for a pleasant

lunch.

The next ride is from Parndana on Sunday, August 11th, ride leader Jenni can be contacted on

0429877146 for more information. We’d love you to join us.

Clunky Gears

JULY 2021: The Penneshaw Push

You can get lucky sometimes.  After a week of wet, cold and windy conditions the weather turned on a beautiful mid-winter day for the July KI BUG (Bicycle User Group) ride.  A perfect start.

Fifteen cyclists gathered in Penneshaw at LLoyd Collins Memorial Reserve overlooking a calm and picturesque Hog Bay.  We had delayed the normal start time by 30 minutes in an attempt to avoid the ferry traffic on the hill on our way out of town.  This climb being the most daunting part of the day’s ride we were hoping for a relatively clear run.  However, in this we weren’t so lucky as the 10 o’clock ferry from Cape Jervis, with the very calm conditions, made quick time across the Passage arriving earlier than we expected.  We stayed in single file and kept closely to the left of the road so in the end there were no problems for either cyclists or motorists.  Those riders on e-bikes (about half of the group) made it easily to the top and had to wait a while to be joined by those struggling up using pedal-power alone.

Once turning onto Charing Cross Road we encountered very little traffic for the rest of the day.  The road was very good, especially considering the amount of rain there had been. The route took us out onto Cape Willoughby Road where we enjoyed a few kilometres of bitumen before back onto the dirt of Ians, Hungerford and Willson River Roads.  These roads offered good riding conditions even though some were a little bit sticky and had the odd pot-hole full of water.  It was a very pretty ride with the surrounding countryside looking lush and green.

Back at the intersection with Cape Willoughby Road we turned left onto the bitumen and enjoyed an exhilarating ride down the hill and back into Penneshaw.  It was a happy bunch or riders that enjoyed a fine lunch at the Penneshaw Hotel.

Our next ride is on August 15th, meeting at Duck Lagoon at 10 am.  If you would like to join us, Jane is the leader, she can be contacted on 0490539798.

Clunky Gears