Fahrradsozialismus

There’s a new bike shop in town, especially good news for those living in North Belconnen. I found it whilst going through allclassifieds, which incidentally is a good place to look for second-hand bicycles if you live in Canberra.

Nifty logo aside, I’ve dealt with Simon before who used to run the bike shop at Lyneham, he did a great job on one of my clunkers (before I started to tinker around myself) which was flatly rejected by another shop because it was “too old & not worth servicing”, I highly recommend his expertise & friendly service.

Website here.

Melba to Civic via Jamison. Obviously not the best commuting route if you live in Melba, but a great way for getting into Civic if you live on the Southern side of Lake Ginninderra. The route is quite scenic once outside of Cook, and convenient for shopping in Jamison.

Civic to Tuggeranong and Woden. The route takes you right pass Woden Plaza & Tuggeranong Hyperdome, and the cycle paths are quite good for either commuting or exercise. Lake Tuggeranong is small but quite beautiful. Taking the path along Erindale Drive instead of Lake Tuggeranong gives you some variation.

From Melba to Civic via Gungahlin, probably not the best commuter route to Civic if you live in Belconnen unless you feel like a bit of exercise, but it is a very pleasant ride with a gradient resembling the one through Bruce, though the distance is longer making the climbs easier. The cycle paths in these newer suburbs are wider & in better condition, and the ride along Gungahlin Drive is very scenic, with a long strech of well paved cyclepath for sprinting on. The route is also very good for commuting if you live in the Gungahlin area and want to get to either Belconnen or Civic on bike paths alone.

A short ride around Lake Ginninderra, not quite as scenic as Lake Burley Griffin, but a good start for some light exercise if you live in Belconnen. Also there are a few nice restaurants & cafés next to the lake.

Something actually useful for the first post, none of that self-indulgent, introspective, wise-cracking tripe you’d usually find in an initial post - there’ll be plenty of time for that later.

A few routes for getting around on a bike in Canberra, so far all the routes start in Belconnen, but I’ll be gradually adding more for the whole region. As these are mainly commuting routes, most are on shared cycle/walk paths, and are therefore suitable even for those just starting to commute without having to deal with traffic, especially during peak hour.

Routes from Melba to the City via Bruce, passing UC & AIS and directly under the new Gungahlin drive extension. This is one of the shorter routes into the City from Belconnen, but there is a bit of a climb coming back from O’Connor to Bruce, and segments of the path through O’Connor are really sidewalks. Kangaroos & bunny rabbits are common sights going passed the AIS.

Another way is going through Kaleen, again under the Gungahlin drive extension (though of course at a different point). The paths are much wider with fair streches of flats where you can get considerable speed. The gradient is also a bit smoother. It is however a bit longer.

Melba to Kippax. Smaller alternative (in the literal sense, they don’t have specialised goth/emo grocery) shopping centre to Belconnen Mall if you live in Northern Belconnen. The scenery is rather pleasant as the route goes along Ginninderra creek.

Melba to Belconnen Mall. Good for starter commuters, especially if you were catching buses from the suburbs.

The loop around Lake Burley Griffin from Civic, possibly the best scenic & leisure route in Canberra. Most of the touristy spots are either on the route or within a short distance from the path. A must for any cyclist visiting Canberra.