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).

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 072 - Tennant Creek to Wycliffe Well

Day:  072

Date: Friday, 11 September 2020

Start:  Tennant Creek

Finish:  Wycliffe Well

Daily Kilometres:  133 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  7467

Weather:  Hot, sunny and windy

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Egg & lettuce sandwiches

  Lunch:  Toasted ham, cheese & tomato sandwiches

  Dinner:  Pizza/Hot dog & chips, ice-creams

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  None really

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We weren't planning to leave Tennant Creek very early, but as we were both awake soon after 4am, we decided we might as well get up and make the most of cooler and calmer conditions.  We weren't the only ones up early, and as we were loading our bikes outside our cabin and close to the chainlink fence surrounding the campground, a local out walking his dog, and possibly a little inebriated, greeted us very loudly and wished us well.

We rode out of the quiet town around 5am and headed south on a very flat and straight road.  There was hardly any other traffic, but we could see tail-lights of the couple of vehicles that passed for maybe ten minutes before they disappeared in the far distance.  By 5:30am, the sky was reddening to the east, and gradually dawn broke over the flat scrubby plains to both sides of us.  In contrast to most mornings, there was little wildlife evident, including birds.

The wind was absent and the flat road allowed us to maintain a good speed and we had covered 54km by the time we stopped for breakfast on the roadside at 7:30am.  As usual, the wind began picking up as the sun got higher, but mostly was from the east and across our path, and we rode another 35km before taking another break at a shaded picnic table in a highway rest area.

From there, we had an uphill ride, much of it into a stiff headwind, to the Devils Marbles Conservation Area in the Davenport Range, where we detoured from the Stuart Highway to pass through a series of large, often spherical, boulders, piled up like mounds of marbles.  It wasn't a large area, but contrasted starkly with the surrounding low hills.

Ten kilometres later, and back on the Stuart Highway, we reached the isolated Devils Marbles Hotel, formerly the Wauchope Hotel.  It was early, 11:45am, but we were ready for lunch, so ordered some toasted sandwiches and ate them in the air-conditioned pub watching the comings and goings of locals and travellers, including two police officers who we thought might have a bit of trouble with the annual physical.

We then cycled the remaining 17km to reach Wycliffe Well, our goal for the day, but the wind was gusty and occasionally against us, and the weather very warm, so it wasn't easy.  Wycliffe Well claims to be the UFO capital of Australia and the roadhouse has exploited that claim to the full, with murals, signage and alien figures everywhere.  There was some kind of celebration going on and the roadhouse was busy with a group of local aborigines enjoying lunch and a few drinks, but our room was available and we gratefully adjourned there to shower and rest up after our early start.

We later had dinner at the roadhouse, the only place with internet access, and also bought supplies for tomorrow, which will involve another early start ….. and therefore an early night.

Round Australia Bike Ride - Day 071 - Renner Springs to Tennant Creek

Day:  071

Date: Thursday, 10 September 2020

Start:  Renner Springs

Finish:  Tennant Creek

Daily Kilometres:  160 (click for Julie's Strava and photos)

Total Kilometres:  7334

Weather:  Hot, sunny and windy

Accommodation:  Cabin

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Trail mix, cheese & tomato sandwich

  Lunch:  Toasted ham, cheese & tomato sandwich/Toasted chicken, cheese & tomato sandwich

  Dinner:  Pizza, ice cream

Aches:  Nothing significant

Highlight:  In hot conditions in mid-morning, the same young Irish guy who stopped and gave us ice cold drinks yesterday, once again stopped and gave us ice cold drinks.  This time he was travelling in the opposite direction, back to Darwin from a job he had in Tennant Creek yesterday, and said he did a bit of cycling in Ireland and was full of admiration for what we were doing.

Lowlight:  The wind again.  I didn't think it was as bad today as in the previous three days, swinging to be more of a cross-wind for long periods from late morning.  But it wasn't "cross" enough for Julie, who reckoned it was still making life tough.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We had a long day in front of us, 160km to Tennant Creek, and uncertain of how unfavourable the wind would be, we left in the dark, soon after 5am.  As we walked from our room to the road, the Greyhound bus was just pulling out of the roadhouse on its way to Darwin from Alice Springs.  We've seen it an hour or two earlier each day as we've travelled south, but it will be too early for us tomorrow in Tennant Creek.

The sky was star-filled and the temperature mild as we pedalled south on the very quiet road in calm conditions.  We were intent on making as many kilometres as we could before the wind picked up and had covered 50km before stopping by the road for breakfast, having witnessed yet another fantastic bush dawn.  The Threeways Roadhouse was another 85km further on and we planned to have a late lunch there, so broke the remaining distance into three sections with breaks in between.

The countryside was undulating and scrubby with the road descending to cross dry creek beds and then gradually climbing back up onto the tablelands.  In some places there were rocky bluffs and escarpments and everywhere the soil and rocks were dark red in colour.  In late morning, what had been a mild headwind seemed to swing round to become a crosswind and our speed improved, though we still suffered whenever the road swung to the left (east).

We reached the Threeways roadhouse around 1:30pm and enjoyed our toasted sandwich lunch in air-conditioned comfort inside.  When we emerged for our last leg to Tennant Creek, the heat was palpable, and for the first ten kilometres the headwind returned, making the riding very difficult, but then the road began to swing more to the right and the wind was neutralised somewhat.  The last 5km into town involved à steady climb through a low gap in an arid range of hills, and we were very happy to finally roll into Tennant Creek at 3:30pm and check into our caravan park, selected because it is close to the temporary supermarket set up in a shed behind the adjacent roadhouse after the main supermarket in town burnt down recently.

After showers we went for a walk through the town, which was somewhat depressing.  Crime is obviously an issue, with many boarded up buildings and grim steel mesh protecting all operating businesses.  We think Thursday must be pay day, and there were queues outside of the pub with police checking the IDs of all seeking entry.  Many other locals were just lounging around in the street.  It is sad to see, and makes me realise what a fortunate life I have had, and how lucky I was to be born when and where I was.

After cooking frozen pizza for dinner in our cabin, we really enjoyed sharing a tub of ice cream.  We are both tired and dehydrated after our day's effort and are looking forward to a good night's sleep before battling the elements again tomorrow.