Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 079 - Ormiston Gorge to Mereenie Loop

Day:  079

Date:  Friday, 18 September 2020

Start:  Ormiston Gorge

Finish:  127km east of Kings Canyon Resort

Daily Kilometres:  111 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  8131

Weather:  Cool and overcast early, then sunny, warm and windy

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Muesli

  Lunch:  Trail mix

  Dinner:  Spaghetti bolognaise

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  After a brutal afternoon, enjoying dinner in the lea of our tent as the sun set, listening to Julie's music.

Lowlight:  It must be a few days since I promised not to complain about the wind for a few days!  The wind brought an early end to our day today.  For most of the afternoon we had been cycling west along the Mereenie Loop, a very rough gravel road which would have been hard enough on its own, but we had to deal with a strong north-westerly that blew across the scrubby plains, raising dust and sandblasting every now and then.  After about 20km, the road entered a valley which we hoped might offer more protection, but it soon swung north-west and we were riding directly into a dust storm.  We were barely moving forward and I was having great difficulty seeing because of the dust going into my eyes (and contact lenses).  It was soon after 4pm, and although we had hoped to ride for another hour, it seemed a fruitless and painful endeavour.  We found a clump of trees just off the road that offered a little protection, and after I managed, with Julie's help, to remove my dust-filled and very painful contact lenses, we set up the tent and camped for the night.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

It was a wild night, with the wind howling and occasionally rain beating down on the tent.  It didn't seem like a good day to be tackling the Mereenie Loop, 140km of rough gravel road that we had to use to get to Kings Canyon, our next stop.  Our alarm was set for 5:15am, but when the time came, I suggested we stay at Ormiston Gorge for another day, do one of the longer walks, and hope the weather was better tomorrow.  However, after lying fitfully in bed for 45 minutes with the wind abating, we changed our minds, packed up and began riding at 7am.  There was a mild headwind, but it wasn't too bad, and we enjoyed the sunrise, especially as it lit up the massive Mt Sonder, the end of the Larapinta hiking trail that we had been paralleling.

The ride became even more enjoyable as the road swung to the south and we got some tailwind support from the steady north-westerly. The road climbed gradually up to Tylers Pass where we detoured up to the lookout which gave a fantastic view to the south, including the awesome Gosses Bluff, looking very much like the splash from a crashing comet, which is exactly what it is (140m years ago).

We then had a nice descent and made good time to the point where we turned west on Larapinta Drive which became a rough gravel road, also known as the Mereenie Loop.  The road passes through aboriginal land, and we are supposed to have a permit to cross and camp, but when I asked for the permit at the Alice Springs Tourist Information Office, they said they could only issue the permit for cars and that I would have to go to the Central Lands Council, several kilometres away, for a cycling/camping permit.  I didn't bother, and as we began riding along the road today, there were no signs requiring a permit.  If we get stopped, we will happily pay.

The riding became tough, not only because of the rough, gradually climbing, road, but also because we were now riding into the strong north-westerly wind.  We also realised that our app, Maps.Me, had misled us about the distance to Kings Canyon, and that it was 45km further than expected.  Bummer!  Despite these setbacks, we just got on with it, and travelled along barely making 10kph much of the time.  Amusement was provided by two passing rented campervans, the occupants of which both asked whether the road was like this all the way to Kings Canyon, to which I replied yes.  They continued on, very slowly, but I doubt they had read the fine print on their rental contract, because I'm sure they were not supposed to be on the Mereenie Loop.

Some more amusement was provided by discovering a dead camel behind us after we stopped for a break, but the wind was so strong, we couldn't smell it anyway.  After 25km of difficult riding, the road turned northwest, and life became even more difficult (see above).  Eventually, we gave up and stopped early, leaving us about 127km to go tomorrow, which should be OK if the wind drops, but not if it continues to blow.  We started out today carrying 17+ litres of water, and still have 8+ litres left, as well as sufficient food for several days, so not making it to Kings Canyon tomorrow night won't be a disaster, but we would really like to get there.

After we set up camp, first having to remove copious amounts of old camel dung from the area (they obviously like to shelter in this clump of trees from the wind and sun as well), the wind continued to blow and everything now has a fine layer of dust on it.  But we are comfy and will have an early night and an early start tomorrow.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 078 - Ellery Creek to Ormiston Gorge

Day:  078

Date:  Thursday, 17 September 2020

Start:  Ellery Creek Big Hole

Finish:  Ormiston Gorge

Daily Kilometres:  53 (click for Julie's Strava and photos and here and here for our walks)

Total Kilometres:  8020

Weather:  Very warm, windy and mostly overcast

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Muesli

  Lunch:  Trail mix

  Dinner:  Moroccan Lamb/Beef stroganoff

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  Meeting another long distance cyclist, a European, pedalling in the opposite direction in mid-morning.  I suspect he wasn't covering the daily distances we are, but he was clearly experienced, and told us about water availability (or lack of it) up ahead.

Lowlight:  The flies are really bad.  Constantly in your face and many of our fellow campers, like us, are wearing headnets for some protection.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We left the campsite at 7am and rode 15km, including some unsealed road and corrugations, to the Serpentine Gorge parking area and ate our breakfast on a bench there before walking into the gorge.  We first hiked steeply up to a lookout that gave great views along the winding gorge with its sheer orange rock walls, and also the Larapinta valley, along which we have been riding, to the south.  The folds in the landscape and exposed rock strata, shaped by long past geological forces are visible wherever you look.  Awesome.

We descended back to the mouth of the gorge and walked up it to a small pool, all that remained after a long dry period.  It didn't look very inviting, but the setting was beautiful at the base of the sheer gorge walls.  After returning to our bikes, we set out to ride the 39km to our next stop, Ormiston Gorge, where we planned to have a look and walk before continuing on another 40km to our final destination for the day, Redbank Gorge.  However, on our way to Ormiston Gorge we met a cyclist coming the other way (see above) who warned us about a lack of water on our planned route for the next few days, and also the difficulty of getting water at Redbank Gorge, which I was already a little concerned about.  We rode on another 5km and took a break at a spectacular lookout while we reconsidered our plans.

We decided to make it a short day and camp at Ormiston Gorge, which we knew had water, and to bypass Redbank Gorge, and abandon our plans to have a day off there tomorrow to climb Mt Sonder.  That climb will be another item for our ever-accumulating bucket list.

We reached Ormiston Gorge around 12:30pm after a strenuous ride along the undulating, but incredibly scenic, road in gusty winds.  There is a forecast weather change coming through, and it feels like it.  There may even be some rare and locally-welcome rain, but not much, apparently.  On arrival, we were both pooped, and spent some time having lunch on a sheltered picnic bench in the campground before picking a site and erecting our tent.

After changing, we set out on the 2.5km Ghost Gum walk which climbed up high to a bluff on the gorge wall and gave superb views down to the swimming hole, up the spectacular gorge and out into the valley to the south.  More stunning cliffs and mountain ranges in every direction, and at the base of the gorge, a sandy dry river bed dotted with elegant and timeless ghost gums, conjuring up memories of Albert Namatjira paintings.

The loop walk returned via the sandy and boulder-strewn base of the gorge and past the very inviting swimming hole where we had a refreshing dip.  We then walked back to the campground and caught up on some chores, including filling all of our water bottles (18+ litres) in anticipation of the two waterless days of riding coming up.

The campground was quite full by the time we prepared our early dinner, and we chatted with some of the other campers as they prepared their meals on the provided gas cookers/barbecues.  It actually started spitting with rain during dinner and there were some very big wind gusts.  We're wondering what tomorrow will bring.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 077 - Alice Springs to Ellery Creek

Day:  077

Date:  Wednesday, 16 September 2020

Start:  Alice Springs

Finish:  Ellery Creek Big Hole

Daily Kilometres:  124 (click for Julie's Strava and photos, and here and here for our walks)

Total Kilometres:  7967

Weather:  Very warm, mostly overcast and breezy

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Ham salad subs

  Lunch:  Ham salad sandwich/Chicken salad sandwich

  Dinner:  Lamb fettucine/Moroccan lamb

Aches:  Julie has a cut knee (see below)

Highlight:  Our early morning ride along the 20km bike path from Alice Springs to Simpsons Gap was superb.  The path followed a winding and undulating route that was exhilarating to ride and passed through almost park-like desert country with red soil, rocky outcrops, spindly trees and ghost gums.  This was all against a backdrop of the craggy red/orange bluffs and mountains of the West MacDonnell Range illuminated by the sun rising behind us.

Lowlight:  Julie had a nasty fall when she got a foot caught as we were setting off after an afternoon break and fell heavily on her right knee on the rough bitumen road with the weight of the fully-loaded bike on top of her.  Ouch!

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We left Alice at 6:30am, pedalling west out of town as the early commuters were heading the other direction.  At the edge of town, near the Desert Park where we attended the Parrtjima Festival last night, the bike path we had been following headed away from the road and through the desert to Simpsons Gap in what turned out to be an awesome ride (see above).

Simpsons Gap was a sheer-sided cleft in the high mountain range with a beautiful pool at the base.  We parked and locked our bikes and took the short return walk to the pool which was at the end of the sandy dry river bed.

Back on our bikes, we rode 40km further west to Standley Chasm, another narrow cleft in the mountain range.  This was on property owned by the local aborigines and there was a small charge to walk into the chasm, as well as a nice cafe at the entrance.  On arrival we bought a cold drink and ice-cream, which we consumed on the cafe's verandah, and our entrance tickets for the short walk.  The chasm was awesome with towering red rock cliffs dominating the shaded dry narrow gap.  Clouds had moved in, confounding a number of people, including a film crew, waiting to photograph the chasm when it was illuminated by the sun.  We also waited for a little while, but the sun seemed unlikely to break through and we returned to the cafe, where we bought and ate an early lunch, knowing this will be the last shop we see for four days.

We left Standley Chasm at 12:30pm for our final destination for the day, Ellery Creek Big Hole, 60km away.  It was another beautiful ride through desert country on a quiet road with mountains on both sides, and despite some undulations and occasional headwinds was easy riding.  We reached the National Park campground a little before 4pm and put up our tent in the middle of a circle of other car campers.  There were a few benches to make our life easier, and a few of our fellow campers have since wandered over to chat to us about our ride.

Before dinner, we walked the short distance to the Big Hole, which was an attractive large pool in another cleft in the mountains.  I took the opportunity for a full-immersion swim, though the water was cold, to wash off the day's dust and sweat, while Julie ventured in a little way.  We finished dinner while it was still light and then adjourned to our tent as darkness set in for an early night after an excellent day.  No internet access tonight, and uncertain access for the next week, so not sure when this and the next few blog updates will get posted.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 076 - Alice Springs

Day:  076

Date:  Tuesday, 15 September 2020

Start:  Alice Springs

Finish:  Alice Springs

Daily Kilometres:  0 (click here for Julie's Strava and photos of our walk)

Total Kilometres:  7843

Weather:  Very warm, sunny and breezy

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Eggs Benedict, bacon & hash browns

  Lunch:  Chicken salad rolls

  Dinner:  Mexicana schnitzel, salad & chips/House special schnitzel, salad & chips, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant 

Highlight:  The Parrtjima Festival indigenous-themed sound and light show at the Alice Springs Desert Park was superb and busy on a balmy evening.  Apart from some brilliantly-lit standing exhibits, the main show, during which lasers were used to light up the bush and high mountain backdrop, was spectacular.  They told a story of the land and seasons from the indigenous perspective accompanied by low-key commentary and appropriate music.  We heard the festival, which had been postponed from earlier in the year because of COVID-19, wasn't as big this year, so maybe we'll have to come back.

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

The day started lazily, with breakfast at the motel cafe at 8:30am, after which we set out to walk to the old telegraph station via Anzac Hill.  It was another beautiful morning and after a short climb to the top of Anzac Hill we had exceptional 360° views over the city and out to its surrounding mountains.

We then descended to the Riverside Walk, a shared cycle/pedestrian path, and followed that north alongside the dry Todd River through beautiful desert country.  The muted greens of the tree foliage contrasted with the pure white of the ghost gum trunks, the orange reds of the soil and boulders, the clear blue skies, and occasionally the yellows of blossoms.  After a detour via the Bradshaw Walk through rocky terrain, we reached the historic Telegraph Station, the oldest structure in central Australia, dating from the mid-1870s.  It is located next to the original "Alice Spring" and was a critical part of the telegraph line built at that time to link Adelaide to Darwin, and from there, to the rest of the world.  It was an incredible engineering feat, given that the first explorer, Stuart, only made the journey for the first time less than 10 years earlier.

The historic buildings were well preserved and labelled, and although the site was officially closed today for some maintenance work, one of the rangers offered to let us inside the main buildings to look around.  We were the only visitors to the site and enjoyed our leisurely look around the very interesting buildings and displays.

By the time we walked back into town, it was lunchtime and we ate at a bakery in the Todd Mall before picking up some supplies for tomorrow and returning to our motel for an easy afternoon.

After taking advantage of the Tuesday night schnitzel specials at the motel's tavern, we walked to Todd Mall and caught a shuttle bus 8km out to the spectacular Parrtjima Festival at the Alice Springs Desert Park.  It was well worth the visit (see above), even though we had been keen for an early night.  We happened to catch the same shuttle bus to and from the park as an English couple who had migrated to Australia in the 1970s ("Ten Pound Poms") and had lived in Alice Springs for 43 years.  We had a nice chat, and they confirmed our impression that it was a good place to live.  We were back at the motel by 8pm, so still got our early night.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 075 - Alice Springs

Day:  075

Date: Monday, 14 September 2020

Start:  Alice Springs

Finish:  Alice Springs

Daily Kilometres:  0

Total Kilometres:  7843

Weather:  Warm, sunny and breezy

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Scrambled eggs on toast & hash browns

  Lunch:  Chicken & bacon melt sub

  Dinner:  Nachos, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  Lazy day in Alice Springs attending to chores under no time pressure

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We had a slow start to the day and breakfasted in a cafe attached to the motel (using the $20 voucher that came with our room) before setting out to walk around town to tick off a number of shopping needs that have accumulated over the last month - second handlebar bag for Julie so more weight can be carried on the front of her bike, new headphones for Julie, new radio for Dave, new bike shorts for Julie (ordered and express mailed from Brisbane), new water bottles for Dave, five days food to see us through the next section, and so on.

Walking around town to find these things was a good orientation for Julie, who hasn't been to Alice Springs before.  The warm sunny weather showed off the attractive desert town at its best with its well-cared for parks and streetscapes, and red rocky outcrops and hills nearby.

After lunch at a nearby Subway, we finished our shopping in the early afternoon and returned to our room where we sorted and repacked gear and food.  Dinner followed later, at the attached tavern again, and then we took a short walk down to, and along, the Todd Mall, one of the venues lit up for the Parrtjima Festival which is on for ten days.  It was pretty, but not well-attended.  There's another venue at the Desert Park, 8km out of town, and we might try to get out there tomorrow night.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 074 - Ti-Tree to Alice Springs

Day:  074

Date: Sunday, 13 September 2020

Start:  Ti-Tree

Finish:  Alice Springs

Daily Kilometres:  194 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  7843

Weather:  Cool early, then windy, sunny and very warm

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Toasted egg & bacon sandwiches

  Lunch:  Ham, tomato & pickle sandwich/Beef, tomato & pickle sandwich

  Dinner:  Pizza, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  Thanks to our long and arduous day (see below), we got to enjoy the last 20km into Alice Springs through the MacDonnell Ranges by the light of the setting sun which bathed the bush, boulders and spectacular bluffs in a soft orange light.

Lowlight:  I promise this will be the last complaint about the wind (for a while, at least).  Today, we had headwinds for pretty much the whole 194km, starting with a headbreeze for the first three hours, and building to an official 20-30kph headwind for the last 100km.  Gusts brought us almost to a standstill and the roaring in our ears never let up.  For the whole day, we were using three to four gears lower, and working harder, than for calm conditions.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

Our goal today was Alice Springs, 195km away, and the forecast was for strengthening headwinds.  We were both a bit apprehensive, but decided against an even earlier start than usual and left Ti-Tree 4:45am (early enough!).  Our plan was to ride non-stop to the Aileron Roadhouse, 60km away, and get breakfast and supplies for the day there, since there were no other shops en route to Alice Springs.  It was quite cool when we set off and we were both wearing our jackets for the first time in many weeks.  Sadly, there was also a slight headwind, so we didn't get the fast start we were hoping for, but still made reasonable time.

The Aileron Roadhouse has an adjacent indigenous art gallery, and the roadhouse was dominated by two huge and impressive aboriginal figures, one atop the mountain behind.  We bought some toasted sandwiches for breakfast which we ate in the dining room of the very quiet roadhouse, as well as sandwiches for lunch later and some cold drinks.  By the time we left at 8:30am, it had warmed up to T-shirt temperature, and we were conscious that we still had 135km to go in the freshening wind.

A sign told us there was a highway rest area in 39km, so we decided to aim for that for our morning break.  It was hard work, on a road that had very long flat stretches and was becoming busy with Sunday traffic in addition to the usual caravans/campers and road trains.  The scenery was predominantly arid woodland cattle and camel grazing country (we saw a few of the latter), and side roads led to cattle stations and aboriginal communities.

After a welcome break at the rest area, the wind really began to dominate our day, and we just plugged away, each in our own little roaring wind worlds, trying to get the job done.  It wasn't much fun, but every adventure (or, for that matter, every venture) that is worthwhile entails some drudgery, and we knew we would gain satisfaction from enduring and overcoming the elements, along with other delights in the days ahead.

Our lunch stop was under a shady tree by the roadside, and then it was more hard work in some very open flat grazing country that offered zero protection from the wind.  We took our final break in another highway rest area, which also marked the Tropic of Capricorn, thus ending our time in the tropics.  From there, we had just 32km to go, but the wind was still fierce and our progress was slow.  One minor highlight was passing the highest point on the Stuart Highway between Darwin and Adelaide, meaning that we were going to be trending downhill from that point into Alice Springs.

There was a descent, through the picturesque MacDonnell Ranges in the late afternoon sun (see above), but the wind didn't allow us to do much freewheeling.  However, we did make a few photo stops to enjoy the scenery, and then we were in the northern part of the very pretty Alice Springs.  We reached our motel in the city centre at 5:30pm, ending a very long and tiring day, and checked in.  After showers, we did a little shopping at the nearby supermarket, then had dinner ($10 pizza night!) at the motel's tavern.

We now have two days off in Alice Springs during which we will relax, attend to a few chores, and prepare for the next leg of our journey.  Given we couldn't get into Western Australia, and thus have some extra time, we are going to do a loop into the desert west of here, following the Red Centre Way to Uluru (Ayers Rock).  This will require some logistics planning since there are few resupply options for the nine-day loop.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 073 - Wycliffe Well to Ti-Tree

Day:  073

Date: Saturday, 12 September 2020

Start:  Wycliffe Well

Finish:  Ti-Tree

Daily Kilometres:  182 (click for Julie's  Strava  and  photos)

Total Kilometres:  7649

Weather:  Hot, sunny and breezy

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Bread & jam/Bread & peanut butter

  Lunch:  Pastie, bread & tuna/Sausage roll, bread & peanut butter

  Dinner:  Fish, salad & chips/Hamburger & chips, cheesecake.

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  For some reason, I had not factored the Barrow Creek Roadhouse into today's logistics planning, and we carried supplies for the whole day to be self-sufficient.  But, after seeing it appear on a few signposts, we became hopeful it might be open, and it was.  We arrived at the old atmospheric roadhouse/pub, adjacent to the historic telegraph station, at 10am, and had a second breakfast (or early lunch) and some cold drinks, sitting at a bench on their verandah, admiring the spectacular desert scenery and chatting with other travellers.

Lowlight:  Both of us take pictures while we are riding, Julie with her phone and me with my camera.  Today, for the first time on the trip, while I was readying my camera for a shot, I managed to drop it.  It bounced and rolled a few times, but seems to have survived.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

With 182km on the agenda, and uncertain wind conditions, we got up at 4am and left the motel at 4:45am.  We were a bit worried that we might be locked in, as like many caravan parks, they locked their gates at night.  Usually there's a passcode or similar, but Wycliffe Well wasn't that sophisticated.  One of the two friendly and very hard-working young south Asian guys running the place assured me he would open the gate in time for our very early departure and, sure enough, it was ajar and unlocked so not a problem.

We had left early to take advantage of the usual cool and calm pre-dawn conditions but, although coolness was delivered, there was a slight headwind that made pedalling an effort.  As Julie said, it felt like someone had their hand lightly on our brakes for two and a half hours.  The road was also very gradually uphill, so that didn't help, and we had to work to maintain a 20kph average.  For our first break, we aimed for a rest area 50km from our motel and reached there about 7:30am, which was a good result.

While we were eating breakfast, the wind seemed to strengthen a little and swing round to be more easterly which, since we were cycling in a generally south-south-west direction, was good news, and so it proved.  The cycling became easier and faster and we made good time through the arid country, including up several low ranges of hills.  Around us were attractive red escarpments and bluffs, adding interest between the long flat straight stretches that made up much of our day.  This was the area made famous by the murder of British tourist, Peter Falconio, and the attempted abduction of his girlfriend, Joanne Lees, who hid in the roadside scrub to evade her attacker.

We reached the Barrow Creek Roadhouse/Pub at 10am, having covered half our distance for the day, and celebrated with a cold drink and snack (see above).  From there, we continued to gently climb through the dry hills and then crossed more flat scrubby country where a sign informed us that we were now in the Central Desert.

For most of the day, we were passing through cattle station country, though we only saw a few cattle.  Occasionally, there were side roads leading to cattle stations, some more than a hundred kilometres away, while other side roads led to aboriginal communities, often with restricted access.  Apart from galahs early on, we didn't see any wildlife, and Julie commented that we didn't see any roadkill all day either.

Our afternoon seemed to pass fairly quickly, though the last 10km of any section always seems to drag.  The wind shifted around a bit, and sometimes was against and sometimes in favour of us.  We were happy to reach the small aboriginal settlement of Ti-Tree around 3:30pm, after a big kilometre day, and checked into the roadhouse/motel.  We later had dinner at the roadhouse, and with another long day scheduled tomorrow, went to bed early (again).