Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 051 - Mataranka

Day:  051

Date: Friday, 21 August 2020

Start:  Mataranka Homestead

Finish:  Mataranka Homestead

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

Total Kilometres:  5395

Weather:  Hot and sunny (record temperatures for this time of the year in the Top End)

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Ham, cheese & pickles sandwiches

  Lunch:  Ham, cheese, tomato & cucumber sandwiches

  Dinner:  Chicken parmigiana, salad & chips

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  We spent a very pleasant 30 minutes or so, at 4 Mile, a quiet spot on the edge of the translucent and inviting Roper River, watching nature at work.  The river flowed silently by, bordered by tall palm trees and other tropical vegetation.  Dragonflies and small insects darted about just above, or on the surface, while small birds swooped low over the river, and occasionally into it, catching the insects.  High in a tree, a pair of brilliantly white cockatoos surveyed the scene, while other, unseen, birds called exotically.  And, across the river and tethered to the bank, floated an open, presumably baited, crocodile trap, hinting at the possible presence of other living creatures.

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

After sleeping in, relatively, we left our motel room a little before 8am and set out on the River Walk in Elsey National Park along the banks of the Roper River itowards Mataranka Falls.  The full distance to the falls and back was more than 16km, so we were unsure whether we would go the whole way on what was already quite a warm day.  The path began by passing the nearby exotic thermal pools where people were already swimming/floating beneath the stately palms, including the caravaners who had offered us water and a shower a couple of nights ago.

Most of the walk was through quite dry woodland, but it was easy to see where the river flowed during The Wet.  We passed Rainbow Spring where warm water bubbled up from the artesian basin below, and also the peaceful Stevie's Hole where we stopped and ate our sandwich breakfast.  Further along, we reached 4 Mile where a seemingly little-used boat ramp led to the river and we took a very pleasant break (see above).  Although we could have continued on, we decided to turn back to the resort.  We both had tired legs and it was starting to get hot.  10km was enough.

Back at the resort, we took it easy for the rest of the day.  Julie made a few visits to the thermal pools while I did some more trip planning.  This included working out when we would be likely to reach the Western Australian border (2.5 weeks).  Presently, the border is closed to all but essential workers, and it seems unlikely we will get permission to enter, which will put an end to our Australian circumnavigation plans.  Nevertheless, I will put in a permit application in the next week and we'll see what happens.

If we can't get into WA, we'll head south to Adelaide and then follow the south coast eastwards to Victoria.  However, even that plan may be scuppered unless New South Wales opens its borders to Victoria, otherwise we'll have to spend two weeks in quarantine to get home.

After I joined Julie for her last trip to the thermal pools for the day, we had dinner at the resort cafe, which tonight had a singer going through a long list of country and rock classics (think Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, etc.), and some grey nomads dancing.  Once again, it was a beautiful balmy tropical evening for eating outside and a nice way to finish our stay here.

The resort buildings surround the original heritage-listed Mataranka Homestead, which was apparently used in the film based on the famous Australian book, We of the Never Never, which was written at nearby Elsey cattle station in the early 20th Century by Jeannie Gunn.  She was the first white woman to live in the area and I would love to have seen what life was like in those days around here.  Not easy, I'm sure.

Although the resort doesn't date back that far, it does feel a bit old and rundown, as does our motel room (Julie had a cockroach run up her leg while having a shower).  Regardless, the thermal pools and the Roper River are well worth a visit.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 050 - Daly Waters to Mataranka

Day:  050

Date: Thursday, 20 August 2020

Start:  Daly Waters

Finish:  Mataranka Homestead

Daily Kilometres:  177 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  5395

Weather:  Mild early then sunny and hot

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Ham, cheese & pickle sandwiches

  Lunch:  Corned beef & pickle sandwiches

  Dinner:  Chicken parmigiana, salad & chips

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  We began riding at 4:45am because we had many kilometres in front of us and a hot day was forecast.  It was exhilarating, cruising along in the dark beneath a brilliantly starry sky, the smells and sounds of the unseen bush beside us, and only two vehicles encountered in the first 40km.  This was despite now being on the Stuart Highway, the main route between Adelaide and Darwin.  As it gradually became light in the east, the savannah woodland turned from silhouette to dull orange, then muted greens and yellows before finally being fully illuminated by the sun.  A very special first few hours.

Lowlight:  In Mataranka in the early afternoon, many of the local indigenous population, predominantly youngish, were gathering and chatting in the park where we were having a break.  A number were heading for the nearby bush carrying cartons of beer.  I can't believe there are many employment opportunities locally, so it makes me sad to think about what the future holds for these people.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

Our goal for today was the Mataranka Homestead resort, 177km away, where we will have a day off tomorrow to visit some local attractions.  The resort, so far as we knew, has no store and is 9km from the very small town of Mataranka on a side road.  To avoid having to buy all of our meals and drinks at the resort's cafe and bar, which would likely be expensive, we wanted to buy some food and drink at the small supermarket in town before riding out to the resort.  According to Google, the supermarket would close at 5pm, so we needed to make sure we got there in plenty of time on a day forecast to be very hot.  All this long preamble is to explain why we decided to get up at 4am and be on the road by 4:45am this morning.  It would allow us to cover a good distance before the heat set in, and give us some buffer time to get to Mataranka before supermarket closing time.

It proved to be a good decision.  The early riding was enjoyable (see above) and we made good time.  We didn't take a break until we had covered 53km, when we stopped in a roadside rest area and had breakfast around 7am.  It was already warming up.  We decided to capitalise on our good start by riding the next 41km without a break to the hamlet of Larrimah, where we might, or might not, be able to get some morning tea.  We were in luck, and found Fran's Tea House, now run by her grandson, open for business.  Scones with fresh cream and jam were ordered and eaten with relish, along with the obligatory cold Diet Coke, before we set off into the heat, hoping to cover the remaining 75km to Mataranka in two hops.

After 39km, we found another conveniently-located highway rest stop for lunch and then rode the last undulating 36km to Mataranka under a withering sun, arriving around 1:30pm.  We celebrated our achievement by buying an ice-cream, along with a cold drink, in the supermarket and ate it on the grassy lawn in the park opposite near a giant termite mound.  

After our celebratory ice-cream, we bought food and drink to help keep our costs down while at the resort, loaded up our bikes and rode the 9km to the resort, arriving around 2:45pm.  We checked in, and Julie went for a swim in the nearby thermal pools, while I showered and did some chores.  Like most of the out-of-the-way places we have visited - roadhouses, resorts, stores, campgrounds - this resort seems to be staffed largely by efficient and friendly young foreign backpackers who must have decided to wait out the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.

Later, we went to the cafe and bought dinner, eating it in their large covered al fresco area, fans whirring above, on a beautiful balmy tropical evening, well-satisfied with our day's work and looking forward to tomorrow's activities and a day off cycling.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 049 - Bulwaddy to Daly Waters

Day:  049

Date: Wednesday, 19 August 2020

Start:  Bulwaddy Picnic/Camping Area

Finish:  Daly Waters

Daily Kilometres:  91 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  5218

Weather:  Cool early, then hot and sunny

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Muesli

  Lunch:  Corned beef & pickles sandwiches

  Dinner:  Rissoles, salad & chips, ice creams

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  None really.

Lowlight:  The last 50km for the day was mostly flat and directly into a moderate headwind that, though it may have taken the edge off the temperature, made cycling very hard work.  We were very happy to reach Daly Waters.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

Fortunately, our loud drunken fellow camper began losing steam around 9pm and we had a quiet restful night until our alarm went off at 5:30am.  We packed in the dark and began riding at 6:30am when it was just light enough to see without lights.  Having completed 181km of the 272km from Cape Crawford to Daly Waters yesterday, we only had 91km to ride today until we reached our booked motel room, so were looking forward to an easy day and an early stop.

For the first few hours, the riding was easy and the temperatures ideal, as we continued on through the savannah woodland, taking a break for breakfast 8am.  Around 9am, as the sun developed some heat, a westerly wind sprang up and the riding became much harder.  This was exacerbated by the very long straight stretches of road that allowed us to see many kilometres ahead.  As we crested each low ridge, more kilometres of straight road revealed themselves ahead leading up to the next low ridge, yet we never seemed to benefit from any downhill.

The kilometres dragged, but we still made reasonable time, and were very happy to reach the Hi-Way Inn at Daly Waters at noon.  Our room wasn't ready, but we were happy to buy drinks and sandwiches and have lunch on the roadhouse verandah watching the world go by and anticipating a recovery afternoon.

By the time we had finished lunch our room was ready and we spent a quiet afternoon enjoying the air-conditioning, and both feeling very tired after a long day yesterday and a hard morning today.  We had an excellent early dinner (the Grey Nomad's Special) in the roadhouse and went to bed early, planning a very early start tomorrow for a long hot day on the road north.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 048 - Cape Crawford to Bulwaddy

Day:  048

Date: Tuesday, 18 August 2020

Start:  Cape Crawford

Finish:  Bulwaddy Picnic/Camping Area

Daily Kilometres:  181 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  5127

Weather:  Cool early, then hot and sunny

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Ham, cheese & tomato sandwiches

  Lunch:  Ham, cheese & tomato sandwiches

  Dinner:  Soup, Macaroni cheese

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  At the end of a long hot day's ride, and finding the water tanks dry (not unexpectedly) at the picnic area where we were free camping along with a couple of other travellers, we were working out how much of the precious water we had carried all day we could afford to use for a wash.  Water was still needed for dinner and tomorrow as well.  As we were setting up our tent, a lady from a caravan parked some distance away, walked over and asked whether we needed any water and whether we would like to have a shower in their caravan.  We politely declined the shower, but accepted the offer of water and were given a bucketful which allowed us to have a much-needed refreshing wash.

Lowlight:  After our wash (see above), as we were preparing dinner, a 4WD with two young guys and a dog arrived where we were camping.  One got out, having a loud profane argument with the driver, and obviously inebriated, and then came over to have a slurred conversation with us while his mate set up camp nearby.  An hour later, as I write this we can still clearly hear him having a loud conversation with his mate.  Hope it's not going to be a noisy night.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We woke at 5:30am and stealthily packed, hoping not to disturb the motorcyclist camped close by.  Most of the time he was snoring, which was a good sign.  The sun was just rising as we left the roadhouse at 6:45am.  We had purchased drinks and sandwiches last night for today's ride as the roadhouse doesn't open until 8am and we didn't want to hang around until then.  Firstly, we had 181km to ride so wanted to get going as soon as possible, and secondly, it was going to be hot and it's best to make good use of the cooler early hours for riding.

We weren't sure of getting any food or water for the next 272km, so we were carrying enough food for two days plus 17 litres of water and soft drink, adding considerably to the weight of our bikes.  But the road was going to be sealed the whole way, and the hills looked to be gradual, so the weight was less of an issue than for other days.

It was very cool riding for the first hour, but we savoured it, knowing that the forecast high for the day was in the mid-thirties, Centigrade.  Apart from the better temperatures, the early morning riding is always the best.  There are more animals about, and the orange dawn light illuminates the trees and lanscape around and ahead of us.  Not to mention that we are fresh.

Today's ride emphasised yet again what a vast outback Australia has.  Apart from a couple of side roads leading to cattle stations, and a few roaming cattle early on, we were surrounded by savannah woodland all day.  It wasn't all the same.  Different trees predominated in different places, and occasionally, there were stretches of grassland.  From the top of a couple of rises, we could see the savannah woodland stretching as far as the eye could see.  Not only did we ride 181km today with almost unbroken outback bush on both sides of the road, but it was clear that we could venture many kilometres into the bush on either side of the road and it would be the same.  The vastness is awesome.

By coincidence, the day broke up nicely into sections defined by the 10-kilometre signs along the road giving the distance to the Stuart Highway, about 270km from Cape Crawford.  It was 40km to the first picnic area where we had breakfast admiring an impressive view over the savannah, and then it was almost 60km, with a break half-way, to the next picnic area where we stopped for lunch.  From there, we had almost exactly 80km to the Bulwaddy Picnic Area where we are now, which we broke into sections of 30km, 30km, 20km.  Thirty kilometres, or 90 minutes, continues to be our optimal riding distance, with breaks of 30 minutes in between.  Averaging 20kph, as we did when riding today, worked out very neatly.

Traffic was light, but there were a lot of road trains, particularly cattle trucks. The cattle trucks were mostly empty, so some station must have been moving a lot of cattle around.  The road was very narrow for much of the day, so we always got onto the rough gravel edge for road trains, and usually for other vehicles as well.  Even then, I almost got blown off my bike by one road train as it passed.

We arrived at the Bulwaddy Picnic Area at 5:45pm, tired but satisfied with a good day's effort in warm conditions, often with a headwind.  "Picnic Area", sounds a bit grand for where we are.  There are two concrete picnic tables and two water tanks, neither with any water.  Otherwise it is dry, dusty and scrubby with hard stony red earth.  Although maybe used for picnics, most of these double as unofficial free camping areas for travellers, which is great.  The downside is that you may end up sharing with people who cause you concern (see above).  The alternative is to find somewhere quiet off the road where nobody knows you are there.  Tonight, we were hoping, though not expecting, there might be water available (see above), so we took a chance.

Before going to bed, we spent some time admiring the awe-inspiring outback night sky.  The Milky Way was brilliantly visible, as were myriads of other stars.  Very special. 

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 047 - Borroloola to Cape Crawford

Day:  047

Date: Monday, 17 August 2020

Start:  Borroloola

Finish:  Cape Crawford

Daily Kilometres:  112 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  4946

Weather:  Mild to hot and sunny all day

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Ham salad sandwiches

  Lunch:  Silverside salad sandwiches 

  Dinner:  Fish, chips & salad/Chicken schnitzel, chips & salad

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  We stopped by the side of the road in the shade of a tree for our mid-morning break and compared it to our mid-morning break three days ago on the road from Hells Gate to Borroloola.  Then, we were hot, exhausted, caked in dust, drinking warm water and trying to eat glutinous trail mix (Smarties are not as robust as M&Ms), with many kilometres of rough dusty road in front of us.  Today, we were warm, fresh, clean, struggling to get the last of the not-quite-thawed flavoured milk out of the carton, snacking on still-cold chocolate, and more than half-way to our objective with a following wind and flattish road ahead.  It almost felt like we were cheating!

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

One chore I forgot on our day off yesterday, was to clean and reposition the cleats in our shoes, so we left Borroloola a little later than intended at 6:45am.  After the gravel, clay and dirt of last week, gunk had accumulated around the cleats, making them difficult to clip in and out, so it was worth spending the time, with the gunk now behind us, for a while at least.

It was magic riding on a sealed road again.  We could maintain a good speed and look around more, rather than struggling along focused on choosing the best line to ride on the rough surface.  The sun was rising behind us and there was very little traffic as we rode through the flat savannah woodland dotted with the ubiquitous termite mounds amidst the ubiquitous burnt undergrowth, the result of low-intensity fires common in the arid tropics of Australia.

After an hour or so, we crossed out of aboriginal land onto McArthur River Station land, a vast cattle station (7,000 square kilometres), through which we cycled for the next 100km, apart from some kilometres claimed by the massive McArthur River Mine (lead-zinc-silver).  We stopped for breakfast around 9am, having made good time on a beautiful morning and looking forward to an early finish to the day.

After breakfast, rocky outcrops, escarpments and low hills began to break up the flat savannah scenery, providing more interest and a few gradual climbs.  However, to our benefit, as our road direction swung more to the west, what had been a mild crosswind became a following wind.  Our average speed was about 23kph and we decided that we would only need one more break before our destination, Cape Crawford.  We had that break at 11am (see above), then had an easy run to the Heartbreak Hotel roadhouse at Cape Crawford which we reached at 1pm.

Although we only rode 112km today, it's 272km to the next roadhouse, so we will camp here (no cabins available) where we can get showers and food, and then camp by the road tomorrow night.  There's nothing here but the roadhouse and an airstrip, but it is pleasantly grassed and shady.  We ate our lunch on the broad roadhouse verandah before setting up our tent.  Julie then had a swim in the small pool while socialising with some other travellers while I returned to the verandah for a lazy afternoon.

The roadhouse kitchen reopened at 6pm, and we ate there as well as buying supplies for tomorrow's ride, and had an early night.  Camping by the road tomorrow night, so likely no internet access.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 046 - Borroloola

Day:  046

Date: Sunday, 16 August 2020

Start:  Borroloola

Finish:  Borroloola

Daily Kilometres:  0

Total Kilometres:  4834

Weather:  Warm to hot and sunny all day

Accommodation:  Cabin

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Porridge

  Lunch:  Chicken, cabana & chips

  Dinner:  Chicken parmigiana & vegetables, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  None really

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

It was a bit of a nothing day, but certainly welcomed by my fatigued body.  Just walking down to the service station 500m away last night was an effort.

Our day got off to a slow start before we decided to walk 1.5km up to the main part of the small town mid-morning, before the heat set in, to see what delights the "supermarkets" had in store, and to look around. Borroloola is primarily an aboriginal town, but also the home of the shire council.  The public facilities, such as the school, looked well cared for, but the dry dusty sun-baked laid-back feel of an outback town still shone through.  We spread our largesse around town by buying some food and other supplies in both of the small stores before walking back to our cabin under a bright hot sun.

Back at the cabin, Julie took care of our laundry and cleaning the dust off our bags (everything has ingrained red dust), while I did some trip planning and booking (yes, very traditional task allocation!).  I also spent some time cleaning out my handlebar bag, in which I store things for easy access during the day, because a motel cake of soap I had thrown in there had broken open and been pulverised into powder over the last three days, coating everything with a fine layer of soap.  At least it was easier to clean than the egg salad sandwich Julie had pulverised in her handlebar bag early in our trip.

For lunch, we walked down to the service station and bought some take-out, along with supplies for tomorrow's ride, and the afternoon was spent doing some more chores, catching up on correspondence and phone calls, repacking, and generally lazing around enjoying the air-conditioning.  The occupants of the other cabins, most of whom seem to be workers of some description or other, were doing the same thing, lounging around on their verandahs chatting or reading or using their laptops on their day off.

Dinner was a microwaved meal and then more laziness before an early night.  We are looking forward to riding on a sealed road tomorrow.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 045 - Robinson River to Borroloola

Day:  045

Date: Saturday, 15 August 2020

Start:  Robinson River Crossing

Finish:  Borroloola

Daily Kilometres:  108 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  4834

Weather:  Mild early then warm to hot and partly sunny

Accommodation:  Cabin

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Muesli

  Lunch:  Trail mix

  Dinner:  Pizza, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  Completing the 317km ride from Hells Gate Roadhouse to Borroloola.  We suspected it would be tough, but it was even tougher than anticipated.  Bikes, bodies and bags were all given a very good workout over three days by the rough road in very warm conditions.  Though we survived, and gained a great sense of satisfaction from the physical accomplishment and from experiencing such a remote part of Australia, not sure we would want to do it (by bike) again anytime soon.

Lowlight:  Knowing we had 108km to Borroloola, where showers, ice creams and cold drinks awaited us, and knowing we had only managed 94km yesterday, we were keen to make a good start.  However, almost as soon as we left camp we struck sand so deep we were pushing our bikes, and we continued to regularly hit similar patches of sand for the first 10km, severely denting our optimism.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We woke at 6am and were riding (I use the term loosely) by 7am with a brilliant dawn lighting the sky behind us.  We knew we had a challenging day ahead and were hoping for some early good fortune with the road conditions, but were soon disappointed (see above).

However, there was no alternative but to just keep riding as much as we could, and after 10km the road quality did improve, relatively.  Our pace picked up and we kept going, with almost zero traffic, until 9am when we stopped for breakfast by the road, with 27km done.  While we were eating, two 4WD vehicles towing camping trailers, and carrying three generations of a family from Port Macquarie, pulled up for a chat and to see if we needed anything.  They said they had been following our tyre tracks in the sand for two days and wondered who would be riding a bike on this road.  They kindly gave us some cold water to drink (the water in our bottles is always warm), and we wished each other well.

We caught them again at a creek crossing a few kilometres down the road where they had stopped to let the grandchildren have a play in the beautiful clear running water.  Larger lagoons were up and downstream, and I wouldn't have been keen to swim in them.  Crocodiles!  Other people were also stopped at the pretty creek and one told Julie that we were a topic of discussion amongst travellers on the track.  As we were leaving, the grandparents offered us a cold Tim Tam biscuit each, which was gratefully accepted.

At breakfast, I worked out that if we could manage at least 20 kilometres in each 90 minute spell of riding, we would get to Borroloola by 5pm, in time, hopefully, to find a cabin or motel room, though it was Saturday night in a remote country town and there had to be a good chance all accommodation was taken.  The average road conditions did gradually improve all day, but there were still frequent stretches of sand that required walking, and corrugations slowing progress.  It was also getting very hot, and we took the opportunity to have a splash at the next creek crossing, another beautiful spot, which coincided with a scheduled break.

As the day wore on, we seemed to be just staying in front of our schedule, though it required constant effort.  Nearer Borroloola, I turned on my mobile phone in the hope that as soon as we got reception I would be alerted by notifications, and that's what happened just before our last break at the top of a hill.  I called the caravan park in Borroloola and booked their sole remaining cabin for the night.  It was bigger than we need, and a bit pricey, but beggars can't be choosers.

Knowing we now had somewhere to stay, and with the help of a nice following wind and better road, the last hour flew by and soon after crossing the Macarthur River we were riding into Borroloola.  We stopped at the small service station on the way into town and bought some cold drinks which we took to the caravan park about 500m up the road and checked in around 4:30pm.  Some police were there for some reason, and one of them commented that they had seen us 150km back down the road yesterday.  He was impressed. 

Our cabin, which we have booked for two nights (a recovery day is warranted), is very nice and after showers we walked to a nearby cafe to order take-out pizza, and a small supermarket for some other supplies.  That makes it sound like a normal little town, but what we have seen so far is very dry, very spread out, and a bit rundown.  However, we are very happy to be here (see above).