Wednesday 30 September 2015

Part D - Slow, Sensational, Sight Seeing

26/09 - 29/09/15 Ceduna to Smoky Bay 45km


Ok, so we have had a lovely time relaxing and really not doing a great deal. We woke up early on the first morning to say good bye to Rob and Max, who were heading off to Streaky Bay. We did washing, shopping and walking around town. Ceduna is quite a clean, neat, tidy and picturesque little town.


That is a great way to clean the dirt out of your super light tent Max.


See ya round Rob, have a great day.


Max took that set up the whole length of the Mundabiddi.....lots of weight, but he's strong.



Looking south along the foreshore towards Thevernard.


This is the pub, very nice and massive.


Can you see anything Will? Just the beautiful clear water.


The next morning we woke early to farewell Ray, who was heading off to Adelaide. It was a little sad, all these good buys. Ray had resorted his gear, and sent his trailer and a whole lot of stuff home on a freight truck, so was feeling very excited about being light and super fast. We struggled to keep up before, now we would have no chance. You go Ray, have a great ride home.


Cheers Ray, good luck on your homeward journey.


That same day, Will did some maintenance on the bikes, and we took them for a ride along the coast to Thevernard and Pinky Point. Very nice little ride, taking us around the shoreline to Pinky Point. It has a great view of the port, silos and the workings going on. We continued around to the fish processing area and the boat ramp, where we had another great view with plenty of Pelicans and cormorants.


You messy git! But you have successfully shortened your chain. Good job!


What a nice surprise this pathway is. 


What a perfect bird bath. 


The ships are unloading gypsum. We don't really care, it's such a lovely day.


Pelican on guard. 


Who knew Ceduna was so nice?


Then it was back into town and the caravan park, where we relaxed and read our books. Basically, that is what we did for most of our last day, too, including a little bit more washing, shopping and walking around town. Later in the afternoon, another couple of cyclists we'd been following and emailing, arrived at the park. Bruce and Marg, are in their fifties, and have been cycling around Australia. They are amazing, and it was great to finally meet them. So we had a good chat, they went off to have a lovely shower and relax a bit, then we caught up for more of a chat in their cabin, before going to the pub for dinner together.


Bruce and Marg seeing us off, Marg had to go do a radio interview. Awesome.


It was a great stay, but we were also very keen to get riding again. So, Tuesday morning, we got busy loading our bikes, and said our final farewells to Jodie, the park owner who has been lovely, and to Bruce and Marg, who I'm sure will catch us along the Eyre Peninsula somewhere.

Rob and Max had stopped in a little place called Smoky Bay, only 45kms from Ceduna, and their photos looked really good, so that was our planned destination today. There was a slight head wind, but it was a nice ride for the first half, with lots of farmland, rolling hills, and lots of poor squishkabobs. We stopped for a banana and then continued. Occasionally we could see the ocean off to our right, and it was really nice. The wind picked up a bit, but we didn't mind, as we didn't have far to go, and it was nice not being in a rush.


We're on the Flinders Hwy, woo hoo!


Rolling hills, no shoulder and still the killer verge.


This shit is Banana's, B A N A N A S!


Yay, Kombi Van! Peace bro!


More rolling hills, squashed bobs, and a few very large squashed snakes. Fresh! Yukky yuk, yuk! Then as we were coming up to another one, I realised it was not actually dead, just still. Aaarrgghhh! But all is well, it didn't move, and we rolled safely past. We saw our very first Kombi van on the trip, heading to Ceduna, so we gave it a big wave, then we got stopped by a man in a landcruiser, who was one of the truck drivers who passed us multiple times across the Nullarbor and recognised us. We had a chat, and he wished he had a day off so he could take us fishing. We did too. Cheers mate, have a great night.


Welcome to Smoky Bay.


So we pedalled on into Smoky Bay, which is a lovely little fishing town, similar to Leeman and that area, with just a caravan park and general store. A very long jetty, and lovely bay. We parked at the beach area and ate our lunch, before checking in to the caravan park. Just as we were heading over there, we recognised a couple of guys walking down the road. Max and Rob had loved it here so much, they were still here. So we had a great afternoon chatting more, and sharing stories. We had some wine, some dinner, some chocolate and crashed into bed when it got too cold for me. 


Our spot right behind the camp kitchen.


Look at that water. Wow!


It may be difficult to leave this beach, it's getting warmer.


Max is catching up on his blogging - www.cycloaustralis.wordpress.com


Wind has picked up, getting cooler, Rob needs his legs back on!


We're all going to stay another day, then head to Streaky Bay. I am going to try and spot some seals.

Sunday 27 September 2015

Part C - For Ceduna, and Complete

25/09/15  Rest Area to Ceduna 47km


Ray sleeps like the dead, and is up well before the sun. By the time Will got up (still before the sun), he was almost packed and ready to go. I had a difficult sleep with my arm making it hard to get a comfy position, but I forced myself up and got organised. I wasn't able to do my usual jobs of rolling and packing our bedding, I couldn't put any pressure on things with my left arm, it was too painful. Still unable to straighten it, or bend it enough to even do my helmet up.

We had brekkie, got packed and took off, all very excited about our last day crossing The Nullarbor. A short ride, slight head wind, small hills, and at the end, a real town. With just a couple of short snack stops, and one photo opportunity Ray decided we needed. We were riding past a field, with the sun not far from the small hill top, and he reckons if Will and I walk/frolic towards the sun, it'd be a great picture. Huh, we're up for it, so we all scale the fence, and Will and I proceed to walk into the sun, holding hands. Very romantic, in our fluro gear, and Ray took his snaps. Well we hope he did, or he was just taking the piss and having a good chuckle behind us. 


Are you sure you took pictures Ray? Sure Jen, chill out.....he he he


The wind dropped right off, and we gained a hard compact verge, closer to Ceduna, where they are trying to widen the road. Yes, they are getting the message, probably via truck driver complaints, but I am a close second to them. 

It was actually a fantastic, glorious ride, and we came to the road works, we could see the ocean, and we were all on a high. As we road through the roadworks, after waiting our turn, we got to the other end to see a huge line of vehicles just waiting for us to come through....he he he, nice one after us giving way to them all they way across.


Waiting for our turn, let's hope he doesn't turn that water on full.


Cruising through the roadworks, check out the awesome new verge.


Flying towards Ceduna, we are so happy.


Around the last bend, then rolling down the little hill to the checkpoint, we were all laughing and singing and feeling like champions. An amazing feeling to have ridden that difficult mental trek. The checkpoint was a matter of " You guys got any fruit or stuff in those bags?" " Nah mate, we ate it 10 Kay's back!" "OK, you'll be right then.". A couple of quick pics, then straight into town. Yehaaaaa!


Woo hoo hoo.......yihaaaa!


Not quite the Mexican type boarder control, but a stop and an achievement.


Really not the best picture, but it is what it is.


We stopped at the bakery, for some lunch, a lovely salad sandwich, a cold drink, and a discussion on where to stay. A local elderly lady, butted into our conversation, then Will made the mistake of asking her questions about town and accomodation. Ray was quietly scanning his laptop and I was trying to be polite. So we definitely had to stay at Shelley Beach Caravan Park, it was awarded best Van Park last year, it's only about 1km out of town (3.5kms actually), and she was waiting to have her legs waxed, cause she was going for a big op in Adelaide tomorrow. It was that quick, from nice local, then BAM! Crazy old lady. Gave us a good laugh!

We decided on the Foreshore Caravan Park, 200mtrs away, because it was just there and a couple of other touring cyclists, Ray had met in Albany, were there and we wanted to catch up with them. As it was, one of them caught us at the bakery, and the other we passed at the park entrance. So we booked into a two room cabin, with Ray, and got sorted. It is a really great park, with nice ocean views, close to shops and pub, and one of the best camp kitchens I've seen. The owners are also very nice people.

After doing some shopping at the very well supplied Foodland, and getting some fresh local meat from the butcher, we joined the others at the camp kitchen. Rob is about 60, and has done lots of cycling and travelling, and was great to talk to, giving us lots of good tips on all sorts of aspects of touring. Max is a bit younger, we think early 50's, and is Australian, but has been living in Scandinavia above the arctic circle, for a long time. He is actually quite new to cycle touring, but sounds like he has done many other adventurous things.


Rob and Max only met in Albany, and are enjoying going slow. Loving the sights.


It was such an awesome day, and we are so happy to have completed one of the toughest rides around. We will enjoy Ceduna for a few days, clean and maintain and all that stuff, and say farewell to Ray on Sunday. It was a really special experience sharing a bit of Rays' tour, and it was a huge pleasure meeting him. Rob and Max are heading off tomorrow, and with any luck we'll see them again, as we are heading along the same route, and they are enjoying going slow and sight seeing.


The beautiful Ceduna foreshore.


Now for some slower, sight seeing and warmer weather.

Saturday 26 September 2015

All Aboard The Ray Train

24/09/15 Nundroo to Rest Area 106kms


Will and I woke up to the sounds of Ray loading up his bike and getting ready to hit the road. I looked out the window and noted there wasn't any wind. This was all we needed to get our lazy butts out and into action. This was all good until we got to the filling the water bottles bit. The water tasted like a salt lake. Yuk, even the coffee Will made me was undrinkable. So we'd got ready but now had to wait until the shop opened in an hours time, so we could buy water. Friggin hell, the wind will start then. We joked about stealing water from one of the many caravans parked up, but the an older man came out of the next room, drinking coffee and started chatting to Ray and I. Out of the blue, I asked him if he might have any water we could have so we could get going before the wind. We'll blow me down he said "no bloody worries cobba, I've got plenty. "

He was a prospector from Queensland, near to Rays' home town. So we all filled our bottles with enough water to get to Penong, had a look at some of the meteorite rocks he'd found, said a massive thank you, and hit the road. What a great guy. Thank you prospector man, good luck with your fishing.


Discussing meteor sightings across the Nullarbor......hmmmm, I'm not sure guys, really?



Ray had decided he would like to chug along with team Wiljen today, for a change, so it was a Will, me then Ray, to begin with, and we actually took off with pretty good speed. Will and Ray shared the lead, while I just enjoyed the ride. Right up until we had two vehicles coming from both directions, and definitely meeting right on us. We scattered like rats, and the killer verge snickered it's evil laugh of success, as my bike just slid sideways from underneath me, in the blink of an eye, I hit the ground like a tonne of bricks, right on my left elbow, and forearm. Ouch, ouch, ouch. It hurt a lot. "Oh you Fucking, stupid, shitty, piece of crap, road!" Ugh! " aaaaggghh, Fuuuuck!!!"
Will and Ray were at my side in seconds, helping me up and moving Betty away from the road. I was ok, but my left arm was super sore. I checked I could move everything, and after much more cursing of the deadly scree pile on the verge, we carried on.


All aboard the Ray train, at least you can't miss us.



Ray's gone all ninja.......keeps the flies and wind out of his face.



Ray's in his groove, and we push to keep up, he is a machine.



Slippery, hey? No kidding you jokers!



Ray somehow pushed us harder, not outwardly, he was very chilled and relaxed, but with him riding with us, we seemed to try harder, and in no time at all we came to the blue sign of happiness, telling us we only had 5 kays till Penong. Wow, that was quick. The wind didn't even seem that bad. May have been because I was drafting behind two big men.....cool. The Ray train was steaming along this Eyre Highway.


Can't believe we've got here already. This Ray train is a fast train.



We had a big rest at Penong, having lunch, chatting, and some small grocery shopping for one last day of riding tomorrow. While we were chilling, the bikers we saw at Nullarbor Roadhouse showed up, heading back to Perth. They were all looking a bit tired and worn out. Then we hit the road again, aiming for a rest area 25kms down the road. My arm had swollen quite a lot, and was difficult to bend and it hurt to put too much pressure on it. Hmmm, this could be difficult. Will asked if I wanted to stay here, but I said no, I could make 25 kays. After the first 3, I was regretting my decision, but it was too late, so just had to try find a position that didn't hurt too much, and keep going. The wind had really picked up, and I struggled to keep with the guys, and Will had to drop back to stay with me. Thank god for the guys, or I may not have managed to get through it. 



Nice little Penong rest. Shaded seating, fresh water, and a lovely sandwich.



The camp site was right on the road, with little shelter, but it was stiff bickies, I could go no further. So we made the most of it, and the guys got a fire sorted, we got tents up, cooked up all our fresh veg, noodles and enjoyed the satisfaction of getting this far. Thanks for getting me through the pain guys. Tomorrow we'll finish the job.



At least we have a nice bench to use, and a fire.








Saving Bobs

23/09/15 21kms East of Yalata to Nundroo 73km

We had made a plan to get up early, like super early, as the sun comes up, to get going before the wind started. Good plan, but the wind hadn't actually taken a break from yesterday, and was still blowing steadily from the south east. Doh! Never mind, we're up now, so we might as well take off and push out as many miles as we can before it really arcs up.


What's left of camp Wiljen, almost sorted.


First stop, the bin at the roadside rest area, and a great chat to a father and son (Ryan Thompson, remember that name, he'll be famous one day) , who are travelling to Bunbury for the world motor cross championships. They had a great van set up, and had done 1800kms in one go so far. Good luck guys, but we've got a wind and some hills to tackle. Cheers.

Out on the road, straight up a 2.5km long hill, in fourth gear........ho hum, ho hum, hmmmm, are we there yet? So this is how we went for the morning, rolling down, pushing up, and really enjoying the woodlands of the Yalata Aboriginal Reserve. 


Long slow rolling hills, lovely woodlands, and don't forget the blood thirsty verge.



We came to the actual Yalata settlement, which used to have a roadhouse and a caravan park, but it is no longer operational. There are some water tanks, and we thought we might be able to top up our water, but they had been made redundant. A couple of caravans were parked up having a break, and one of the old codgers called to us " Gee, you guys are doin' it tough today into these headwinds, we've got a tail wind, ha ha ha ha!", as he stood with his lovely mug of coffee. We politely replied that yes we are, and waved good bye as we pedalled off up the next hill, mumbling between us, " Ya bloody reckon? Cycling into this 25km/hr wind tough? What about offering us some water, or a nice cold drink? Bloody hell, tough, huh!"


The old Yalata Roadhouse. Wish it was still going, a cold drink would be nice about now.



As we weren't going at hyper spreed, we kept seeing all these poor squished Bobtail lizards on the killer verge, and we started to feel sad. Then we spotted one scurrying across the road, and we called out to him to hurry and don't stop. He made it into the shrubs on the other side, and we felt happier. Not long after that, another one was attempting to cross the road, and it wasn't off the pit of despair (verge) as we got to him. There was a truck coming behind us, and we knew if Bob kept going, he'd get the bleeding from the mouth syndrome (squished) like the others, so Will stopped with his front wheel blocking Bobs path, and guided him back to the bushes. Bob was very angry and tried to bite Yellow Dawg, but gave up and turned around, and sadly slumped back to his bush. We'd saved his life! I was really happy.


Yay, Bob, you've survived another close call. You lucky bugger!



The hills started to become flatter, and the trees more scarce, and then the appearance of farm land. This meant no wind break, and the wind had got stronger too. Bum, this was getting hard. If we didn't know Nundroo was less than 20 kays away, we'd have stopped and camped. But we pushed on struggling to maintain 10 kays an hour, until we finally got to the run down old roadhouse, caravan park, motel. 



Flatter roads, but more wind, ugh, and just look at that pile of death gravel....



Fields and windmills. Now they are working over time right now, just like us.



We were both super happy to get there, and although we didn't push out the hundred we had wanted to, we had done well. We booked a room, had an awesome shower, and went to get some dinner. As we came around the front , we spotted a familiar bike parked up. "Ray! Will, Ray has caught up to us!" And there he was when we went in the shop. Wow, he'd done in three days, what had taken us four. He is a machine. So we ate dinner and chatted, and found out more about his life and his adventure. He is a really nice guy, and has seen so much already. He booked a room too, and we'll all head off tomorrow to see how far we can get.



The poor old run down roadie. Nice dinner and great shower. Water was not drinkable.


It's not a tall Mr T, it's Ray Pokai who we met in Eucla. Legend.







The Return of The Hills

22/09/15 Nullarbor Roadhouse to 21kms East of Yalata 73km


What an amazing morning here on the Nullarbor Plain. I didn't really want to get up, I could have slept all day, but there was no wind yet, and we wanted brekkie. So dressed and sleepy, we opened the door to go out, and Wow! So beautiful. Too stupid to take a photo, but it was great. We had ourselves some bacon and eggs, and a very nice cup of real coffee, chatted to Lee, who had taken great care of us both last night and now, and returned to the room to pack and get going. Dingo (the manager of the roadhouse), had sold us a bag of veggies, and some hamburger buns, and we'd got some other goodies to last us to at least Penong, but hopefully Ceduna, so I tried to pack and balance my gear with it all.

We didn't do too well with leaving early, bloody SA time, but the wind had only just started to wake up. There were scattered showers about, and we got a few sprinkles on our ride across the last of the official plain. Then we entered the Yalata Aboriginal Reserve. This is where the Head of The Bight Whale Viewing is, but it is a 24km round trip and $15 each, so not this time. It is supposed to be pretty good.


These bikers were in the bar till late hitting it hard....bet they wish their bikes were quiet like ours.


Slowly after that turn off, some trees started to appear, and then some small hills, big enough for a little roll down the other side. Then the hills began to grow, and the scattered trees became pretty woodlands. It was slow going, with traffic catching us on the uphill, and many times we were forced off onto the deadly verge, slowing so much we had to engage the low gears just to maintain some momentum. Me getting back onto the road often involve a skid, fish tail or close call, followed by some kind of frightened whimper.


Starting to see some changes in the terrain. Nice.


By the time we stopped for lunch, the March flies had found us again, and so had the South Easterly. We'd only managed 40 kays again. So we parked up in a gravel pit, where they have stock piled the killer verge gravel, to top up the verge when it gets too safe. While we sat and made some tomato and cucumber rolls (thank you again Dingo), we were surrounded by a swarm of man eating Jamanji flies. We sprayed ourselves with our Bushmans, and they didn't seem too fussed. So we just smashed the little buggers and buried them in the gravel. This gave us enough time to flee.


Lunch stop, hiding from the wind.


And this was a small one......nasty little shit!


Moving away from the coast now, see you later sand dunes.



On and on the rolling hills went, they were long and continuous, and we went from 4th gear to 12th gear, 10kms/hr to 25kms/hr. Bloody wind, taking the fun out of our downhill rolls. We stopped for a toilet break after about 65kms, and found a spot on the opposite side of the road. Just as we were deploying the Minties, a pilot vehicle went past, lights flashing, and gave us a blast of the siren as well. Ooh, must be big, so we waited. One police escort car, lights flashing, then two massive Dump Truck trays taking up the width of the road. So glad we had taken a break and were not being chased down by that load.


Kids having a little cuddle while they wait.

Whoah, they are huge!


Glad we were off the road.



Excitement over, we were back to the hills, and battling the traffic. I am bloody over it. The trucks always catching us on an uphill, and the caravaners coming the other way. Slipping and sliding on the verge of vengeance, missing the white posts by a bees dick, and somehow not coming a cropper. South Australia, you need to spend the federal money you get for this road, on this bloody road!

Finally, Will tells me it is time to start looking for a camp spot. Hallelujah! I've had enough. Just then, we saw a sign for a rest area, we rounded a bend, yes there have been bends as well as hills today, and saw the turn in just before a massive long hill. Great, we don't have to do it......today! 


On the job, get to it Will.


We've ridden about 500mtrs into the bush, away from the caravans, and sorted out the tent, got a fire going, and just waiting for our dinner to cook, when we noticed a little visitor. Strutting right by us, within a metre, was a magpie. He waltzed in, picked up a piece of onion, ate it, sharpened and cleaned his beak, the waltzed back out again. No worries mate. Huh, so cool!


Our camp in the morning, Will got up, not me.


Another view, I'm still inside, snuggled up.



More Quangdongs.....a bit smaller than some.


Our little visitor. He was so confident.....



Another two or three days riding, and we'll be at Ceduna. That will be amazing.