I've done it quite a few times, generally take 2 days for the trip, although have done it in 1 long one once, holding a Fastback Commando at an indicated 90 mph through a long summer day and into the night. It only drank a pint of oil and needed the chain adjusted once during the day.

Which bike? Well I'm skint after putting a new fuel pump in my wifes ute, and the Vic bagger needs 2 new tyres and a couple of days cutting the led tail light open and resoldering some connections to about half the diodes before I'd roll it over the border into Oz's police state, the Sportster needs one new tyre and a set of lifters dropped in, but the Vic High Ball has 2 new tyres and will be ready to roll after an oil and filter change and a general sit and look.

Out of the way spot just north of Goulburn - not far off the Hume. Map coordinates (-34.7214131, 149.8288426)

Plenty of dry firewood. Freight trains a bit noisy though.

Give me a yell if you are stuck for anything in Melbourne and I'll do what I can.

Stuart, thanks for the info about the campsite, looks a great spot, but I'll be running the Newell, aiming to be around Dubbo the first night. Love running the Newell, some mates find it boring but not me. As pure a riding experience as it gets, a road, low key scenery to drift through, a big motor on song. Those who dont like it maybe should buy Ducatis. The Sporty loves it, it's crazy high gearing (one year only export 1200, 21:40, US models that year had 21:48) makes sense, rolling at 120 to 130, 160 to go past double Bs. With the 10 litre tank you get to stop and buy fuel in tiny little places that every one else rolls past. But it's staying in the shed this time.

Still got some surviving family there, will stay at my sisters at Sunbury at first. The black sheep of the family is back.

Might even try to visit the memorial in an empty paddock at the site of the Sunbury Rock festival, remember some things with a smile before pointing it north and pulling the trigger.

And safety? it pretty much reinforces that you never know what's gonna happen each day once you get out of bed.

Too early in the morning for me when I made this suggestion :-)

I'd be coming down the Newell too...

Ride safe. 

Been a good ride, just a bugga of a reason. Only wildlife I saw was a mob of speckled pigs, and one of black goats, both in the Pilliga Scrub about 3 pm. Lot of roadworks on the Newell after Moree, times when you should be doing 60 kph for 10 kms. First big ride I've done on this bike, loving it. Vic's have a very different feeling motor to a Harley big twin, feel like a cammed Sporty with lighter flywheels, which can get exciting when you come up behind a road train at 120 and wring it out to speeds I shouldn't mention. Do that with 12" hangers on 4" risers and you know you're pushing a blunt object through the air.

With my son in law, I keep wondering what's gonna happen with the artwork. He had a full body suit, including some traditional work done in Japan. Dunno if I feel comfortable asking my daughter that.

Melbourne tomorrow.

Sorry 'bout son-in-law, life does suck sometimes, feel for ya daughter, she has a fucken hard road to go down, I wish her strength and perseverance. Good luck man.

Made rhe trip down and back with only one interaction with the coppers that I know of. South of Moree on day 1, limit of 110, probably about 15 over that, highway patrol going north gave me a couple of seconds of the flashing red and blue and kept going. I took that as a polite request to go a bit slower while on their patch, so I gave them an appreciative wave and slowed down a bit. Haven't gone to the post office to see if any official envelopes have arrived yet. Took some time out while down there to visit the Sunbury Rock concerts site, sat looking at the Billy Thorpe monument and out over to the site, dredging up blurred memories from the sludge at the bottom of my brain of the 2 times I went. And yes, sex and drugs and rock and roll and alcohol and what passed for fast motorcycles at the time were involved.

Took 3 days for the return trip, but spent half a day visiting a mate up in the high country whose wife died of cancer early in the year. I introduced them when we were all about 19.

Got home before dark on the 3rd day, after having to slow down on the ugly surface of the Moonie Highway once back north of the border.

Bike didn't miss a beat, didn't use any oil, took about a mm of tread depth off the back tyre centreline. 3624 kms all up.

A good trip, bad reason for it.

Shit, now the dogs are howling. I though about taking a couple of tinnies there, so if I heard a ghostly voice saying crack your cans, I could do it.

Any one from around Coona that can help with this?

You maybe right, He may have been a bookie.