Paul Sladen

As somebody born and raised in Britain, the vast bridge across over Sydney is an icon of Australia for me and it’s also possible to cycle over it!

Now, any sensible person would have done some research and found the cycle-track along the north side. ...I just started off in the Central Business District (an utterly boring name for the square bit with all the skyscapers). I worked my way along, past Circular Quay (not circular, but where all the passenger shuttle ferries dock) and gradually further up the embankment to bridge level.

From a distance you can see the groups of tourists as faint dots walking along the top of the giant metallic arches; cycling to the start of the bridge, I found the entrance where the climbers have their money extracted and are given the short training introduction. It is a small door set into the side of the bridge abutments (I think yellow in colour) and the gateway to their ascent to the top.

Eventually I found the large road heading in the correct direction and started cycling. The actual bridge is about 6 lanes of motorway, with a dual-track railway and I was cycling just next to this – like most ex-British colonies, Australia drives on the left! There’s very little that I could do, except to try to get up to highest speed possible and hope none of the lorries screaming past knocked me into the small chain-mail fence along the edge.

From that point, I only had 1 choice – to keep going! Half-way across I went over the peak of the bridge, crossing the centre-line and started to go down-hill then on, past the second massive bridge support (getting easier now), racing downwards and to the first turn-off (which I gladly took!) and a chance to breath again. At the far side I meet a couple who had seen me cycling over the bridge and they kindly pointed me towards the proper cycle-track for heading back again…

To say that I’ve done it is worth it and it’s the only time I visited the other side of the habour, but next time I’ll take cycle-track and admire the spectacular views from the top. Afterall, you are looking out, high-above the water with almost a perfect panaroma in all directions. This is what it is like to be in the middle of Sydney.