DAY 241: Day off Walker Creek (Litchfield NP)

Sat 21st June 2008
Sunny, 30 deg C
Elevation of destination 99 m
Distance to date 14377 km (8986 miles)

Awoke to the cascading falls on a cloudy morning. I slept without the outer cover so had a nice breeze all night - unusual because the wind normally falls at night. I was just about warm enough in the silk liner. After breakfast I got cracking with bike matters - primarily sorting out the slow puncture from yesterday. I removed the tube after marking tube and tyre so I could see exactly where the puncture occured on the tyre, so as to see if something was still stuck in there. Using a calm pool down at the river to test for leaks I found a very small hole in the tube, but was unable to find anything still in the tyre at that point that might have caused it, however I went right around the tyre, inside and out, to see if there was anything else stuck in that might cause a problem later but I found nothing. The original tube that went down yesterday also had a small hole right on top of a previous patch - weird - so I patched the 2 tubes and also checked my 2 other spare tubes - and 1 of these had a large rip (?) so I will dump it. The other spare tube is fine, so I still have 2 spares, which will do.
I also set to to clean all the red hard-baked clay off the bike, picked up from the wet road yesterday, and gave the chain another good lube with the White Lightning ‘self-cleaning’ lubricant that I paid a hefty $16 (7 pounds) for in Darwin last week.
Bike stuff complete, I had a peanut butter and jam sarnie for lunch then set to to clean all the panniers, which were quite grubby. There is a kind of slatted table about 2m square at the campsite which is ideal for working on, and sitting on too, although I put the Thermarest chair down first, which is very comfortable.
I went to explore up the track after this, and very much enjoyed the beautiful walk - up and down little granite rises and winding around and above the edge of the river - Pandanus and other tropical trees all around. There are several places where you can swim in the river, but I waited until I reached the 8th and last campsite at the end of the path to see which was the best - it was the last one, where there was 2m deep water for 25m or so, where the river was a good 5m wide. It’s easy to get down into the water too on the smooth rocks. The water feels very warm; wonderful, and although I felt a little cool on coming out, the sun was out by this time, and I was warm again in seconds. Last night whilst I was dangling my feet in the river something nipped me - little shrimps as it happened - only about 40mm long. The information sign here says this might happen but assures that ”....it’s just some small creature who thinks you’re detritus - welcome to the community....” - cute.
I saw only about 6 other folk whilst walking and swimming but there were about 8 young English tourists larking around at the waterfall near my camp. I walked towards them to get back to the tent and it seemed as if they weren’t even aware that I was camping there - it’s that secluded.
I went for a late swim as the light started to fade, and as I came out spotted a large lizard lay on a rock (pic) - about 600mm (2’) long. I carefully moved close to get a pic without disturbing it.
I have been trying to charge my mobile phone up using the 2 solar panels I brought, to no avail. I paid £70 each for there 2 and the very few times I’ve tried to use them they’ve let me down - I might as well send them home again and cut my weight down. I can usually find a 240v outlet to plug in my AA/AAA 15 minute battery charger.
As I was cooking dinner I heard a loud crashing over the noise of the waterfall, and next minute a large dog ran into the camp and stopped a few yards away. He was quite big, around a Doberman size with tan colouring, and he stood eyeing me, panting from his run. Was he running to the smell of food cooking? Pets are not allowed in the NP at all, and it was clear to me that this was a feral dog. Next minute another, identical dog ran in too; they looked like siblings. I was somewhat taken aback, as I have heard stories about how such wild dogs can hunt in packs, and how they have threatened humans. My reaction was to pick up a stick and stand to my full height, shouting loudly - this seemed to work and they backed off, loped away, and in fact I never saw them again thankfully. I erected the outer tent, just to give me a feeling of greater security. Maybe the fire had a deterrent effect too?
It was very windy and the wind turned so that the smoke and sparks kept blowing in my face, so I retired to the teny earlier than last night.

DAY 240: Humptydoo to Walker Creek (Litchfield NP)

Fri 20th June 2008
94 km @ 14.0 km/hr
Sunny, 33 deg C
Elevation of destination 99 m
Distance to date 14377 km (8986 miles)

After last night’s song and dance I slept poorly, but got up just before dawn to hopefully avoid embarassing any early joggers that might come this way, and as the sun came up I was sat at the picnic table at the side of the loch watching the Egret’s coming and going, and the ducks browsing on the submerged weed. The sprinklers only stayed on for about 90 minutes and were quiet by midnight.
A nice early start then; away by 0815. I never saw a soul come into the lagoon park where I was. There was a bit of a headwind once back on the Stuart Highway, and I stopped for an iced coffee at the first Servo, and was also tempted by a home-made steak and bacon pie - which was delicious; all lean chunks of meat.
After 18km I took the right turn onto the pleasantly quiet and scenic Cox Peninsular Road and rode 24km, via the small settlement of Berry Springs, to the left turn onto the Litchfield Park Road. This is gravel for 43km, and my hopes that it would be in good condition were initially met since workmen were converting the first 9km to paved (tarmac). There was only 3km tarred, in the middle of this stretch, but the other 6km were good and flat, however there were 2 short sections being wetted and rolled and the claggy clay flew up and stuck everywhere that the mudguards didn’t prevent access to - so some cleaning will be called for asap. My new chain looks brown with clay dust too. This 43km road is quite pretty; mostly rolling Savannah and Pandanus forest around a twisty road, but once past the first 9km I was too busy watching the road in front of me to take much notice. It was 34km of almost continuous corrugations, with a few longish flat strips where I could get some speed up, however I was caught napping a few times when the flat, hard road became thick bulldust, and on one of these I lost control and fell off. It got worse - I punctured (rear of course) about 24km in, and had to find a shady bit to do the necessary. Maddeningly, despite me checking the tyre inside and out for splinters / the cause of the puncture, and having checked all my 3 spare tubes a few days ago, within 15 minutes of retsarting the tyre was flat again! I can’t understand why, unless there is a tiny splinter there that I couldn’t see. Anyway I got away with re-pumping every 15 minutes or so until the end of the day, about 2 hours later.
It was a relief to get back on tarmac again, and the last 10km of gravel had been a nightmare with continuous deep corrugations and deep sand patches thrown in at random.
I finally reached the NP boundary, then Walker Creek, which was one of several options for camping in this part of Litchfield NP. The information board showed 8 campsites spaced along the creek for 2km upstram; the first one was at 600m, so I thought I’d ride up and have a look, however there were some large steps and no way could I even push the fully-laden bike up them, and I left the bike and walked up to have a look at the first site at least. Well, Site 1 was vacant, and utterly gorgeous! The camping area was set some 50m on the other side of the river, which is about 4 or 5m wide, and access is across the flat rocks forming the top of a 4m-high waterfall. Needless to say I went back for the bags and even though it took a while, it was well worth it. I only saw 1 other couple on the path so I have the place virtually to myself - the self-contained camping area is virtually unseen from the path so it’s quite private. It should be $2.50 a night to camp but there are no special envelopes so I guess the NP folk are not bothering charging.
I quickly set up, then got the billy on, then went to sit in my ‘private’ waterfall for a while cooling off. There are swimming holes further up I think, and the river is deep enough to swim in just 100m upstream from me, so I’ll check that out tomorrow. I’ll definitely be staying at least another night! This is the best camping site so far on this trip.
There’s also a good fireplace and lots of wood to collect everywhere, so I got a good fire going at dusk, which was nice and cheery. I felt so content and relaxed I actually sat by the fire until well after 11. Before that I cooked pasta and salami and had about 4 mugs of tea. The ranger passed with his family early in the evening and seemed fairly impressed that I’d dragged all my gear and bike up the path to this site - well, it was definitefly worth the effort.
I feel asleep later than usual to the noise from the falls, which cancels just about everything else out - not that there’s much else to keep me awake - certainly no humans for several km anyway.

DAY 239: Darwin to Humptydoo

Thurs 19th June 2008
32km @ 15.2 km/hr
Sunny, 32 deg C
Elevation of destination 25 m
Distance to date 14283 km (8927 miles)

I stole another lie-in again and after breakfast packed everything up, which seemed to take ages. I was finally away around 10 for the 2-hour ride to Kingsley’s. There’s a bike path for the first 15km, mostly on the old disused railway line, which veers away from the Stuart Highway for a few km and is very pleasant and peaceful.
I was a little nervous about the botched up chain that I broke last night, and it was indeed sounding pretty rough, but it held up alright and got me to my destination. Kingsley was having lunch as I arrived so duly pointed to the food in the fridge and told me to help myself. Unfortunately I won’t be staying here tonight so will seek an alternative. After a good feed and blather I borrowed his chain whip and removed the rear sprocket fairly easily, followed by the chainring, and a few minutes later after fitting the new chain had a gleaming new transmission that will hopefully take me all the way back to Perth again. I also have a 2nd new chain that I will swop in in a few weeks time so that both chains, and hopefully sprocket and chainrings, wear more evenly and slowly.
Late in the afternoon I rode over to McMinn’s Lagoon, just down the road, which is a very pleasant 1km square billabong with plenty of birds around - all the usual candidates from what I could see. It was peaceful, and seemed a long way from the city.
I have been a bit stressed out with St Kilda Cycles and their failure to deal with my order properly, but at least I wasn’t stuck at some roadhouse far into the Outback waiting for my parcel - I have thoroughly enjoyed what this little city has to offer and have taken full advantage of it, though at a monetary cost! And I noted that I did originally forsee a long stay here, and am roughly still on ‘schedule’. I’d say that for most tastes Darwin would be somewhere to linger for a while to explore both city and surrounding area.
After another good dinner chez Kingsley I hit the road for my nocturnal base - just 5 minutes away at McMinn’s Loch - where better to see the dawn birds than right on their doorstep. There are no signs saying not to camp, and no-one will be any the wiser anyway as I will leave no trace of my presence. I didn’t bother unpacking much since I didn’t have to cook, and just had a read. Around 2230 I heard a strange noise like water running - and on going over to look I realised it was indeed water running, from a sprinkler - the type that slowly turns around in a big arc. It was well away from the tent so I didn’t worry, however half an hour later another dozen of the things started going; including one within range of my tent! And before I could do anything about it the water was squirting inside the tent since I hadn’t bothered fitting the outer, waterproof part. I then spent a few hilarious minutes dragging the tent around to where I thought it would stay dry, but it took some doing. All by moonlight so luckily I could at least see what was going on better around me.
The excitement finally subsided and I was able to dry the inside of the tent out a bit, though my silk liner that I’ve slept in lately was a bit on the damp side - luckily it’s warm at night so it’ll be OK. Not surprisingly I had trouble getting to sleep after that, plus I had a mozzie in the tent that kept buzzing around my ears and kept disturbing me - no way could I catch it (and dispatch humanely by squashing it). it’s a bit disconcerting when you squash one and get a streak of blood - I always wonder whose blood it is!

DAY 238: Day 9 off in Darwin

Weds 18th June 2008
Sunny, 31 deg C
Elevation of destination 37 m
Distance to date 14251 km (8907 miles)
Same procedure - lie-in, breakfast, cycle to post office, and whooppee - the parcel has arrived. I opened it tentatively - will it be third time lucky? And yes, it looks like the right one this time, phew....
I went to celebrate with bacon and egg sandwich, latte, and almond croissant. In the knowledge that I’ll be departing Darwin tomorrow I sat in the cafe for a couple of hours to finish Cloudstreet, then took it to the Book Exchange in the Mall to choose another Tim Winton - Shallows. Hope it’s as good as Cloudstreet; it was excellent.
It was also opportune to do a big food shop while in a big town, as it’s so much cheaper compared to smaller places.
Once back at camp I had a go at changing the transmission, but the tricky part of removing the rear sprocket using only the old chain instead of a proper chain whip was beyond me. The old chain broke before the sprocket loosened and I then had to repair it as best I could, and ring up Kingsley (the Warmshowers host I stayed with last week) to see if he would be around tomorrow morning, whereupon I could borrow his chain whip to complete the overhaul. Luckily he will be there, so hopefully the repaired chain will last for the 35km or so to his house.
Had another good blather with Chris about cycling in the Outback - he has a lot of knowledge about survival skills as well as bicycle stuff - such as which foods are edible.

DAY 237: Day 8 off in Darwin

17th June 2008
Sunny, 31 deg C
Elevation of destination 37 m
Distance to date 14251 km (8907 miles)
Not much to report today but a fairly relaxing day apart from disappointment in not receiving my parcel today. I telephoned St Kilda Cycles and got the parcel tracking number from them - twice, since they gave me the wrong no.the first time - I’ve lost rack of the cost in money and time just to buy a few bicycle parts; you’d think it was rocket science.
I am enjoying the pleasures and treats of Darwin, but you can have too much of a good thing....I’m ready for off now.

DAY 236: Day 7 off in Darwin

16th June 2008
22 km @ 14.0 km/hr
Sunny, 31 deg C
Elevation of destination 37 m
Distance to date 14251 km (8907 miles)
After another extended breakfast I washed my sleeping bag in the machine (long overdue!), then went to upload to the blog and do some e-mailing, before going into town for lunch. The parcel hadn’t arrived yet so I’ll have to spend yet another night in Darwin and try again tomorrow.
I lazed about in a shady spot in the Esplanade gardens reading for most of the afternoon and moved over to Mindil Beach around 5 for more of the same and to watch a glorious sunset over the sea. It’s the colour of the sky after the sun has gone down that is so beautiful - the orange and pink slowly spreads wider and wider for about an hour, beofre slowly dimming into darkness.
I chatted with my tent neighbour, Chris, for a while on my return - he is working just up the road and is staying here whilst trying to buy a house - and he has done a lot of bicycle touring around Australia, including Cape York and the Gibb River Road. I was interested to hear some of his observations about off-road riding, which in comparison I don’t have that much experience of.

DAY 235: Day 6 off in Darwin

15th June 2008

20 km @ 14.0 km/hr

Sunny, 31 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14229 km (8893 miles)

Up as usual at around 0830 and after breakfast decided to change the oil in the Rohloff gearbox and turn the tyres around to get more even wear. No snags with the oil change - and unlike last time I changed the oil (in Melbourne) there was some old oil left in the hub - almost nothing came out last time, due to the oil leaking out at the start of this trip. Well, the gearbox doesn’t seem to have suffered as a consequence, it’s still changing smoothly and not slipping out of gear or anything at all. I swopped the rear and front tyres over and gave them a good examination for embedded objects - and duly found a small steel splinter well stuck into the front tyre but clearly it hadn’t gone all the way though, so I carefully removed it. Whilst I was at it I checked the trueness of the wheels, and it’s testament to Thorn’s wheel-building expertise that they are still running very true after over 15000 km, mostly with heavy load. The chain is in a sorry state, and very dirty, but no point in cleaning it when I am (hopefully!) so close to fitting a new one, once I get the new chainring.

Around noon I ambled into town and straight into Monty’s on the Mall for another delicious sandwich - ingredients as fresh and tasty as the first two, and after a long stay rode over to the Esplanade to type this stuff up on a shady seat overlooking the blue sea. Although there are lots of tourists in Darwin it doesn’t feel overcrowded ever - there are plenty of open spaces to accomodate all. I wandered off for my regular afternoon B&R Ice cream sundae but came back to read some more and watch a friendly game of 7-a-side rugby on the green. Lazy days, a far cry from pedalling 120km under load....

I hung around for sunset over the bay then headed back to camp for dinner.

DAY 234: Day 5 off in Darwin

14th June 2008

36 km @ 14.0 km/hr

Sunny, 31 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14209 km (8881 miles)

The weekend comes around again and I’ll be spending it here in Darwin as I await my parcel. The post office isn't open again until Monday. I would probably have been moving on by now if it wasn’t for this, but it is a very nice place to be stuck - plenty to see and do, and good cycleways to get around on. All this pleasure is hitting my budget hard though, and I’ll no doubt bust it again this month. I could get used to this climate I think - at least now, in the ‘winter’, where it rarely drops below 30 deg C during the day. It has been a bit cooler at night recently thankfully, however if I lived here I’d have a fan going at night which would make it more acceptable.

Today I sought out a few places I haven’t been to yet - first off, the Charles Darwin National Park. This is only 3km from the Leprechaun Caravan Park, and comprises a few hundred Ha of thinnish forest and coastal mangrove swamps. You don’t get to see the latter, unfortunately, as the tracks don’t go that far, and the forested area isn’t very interesting; no wildlife or birds were seen. There is a nice view across the bay to the city, but little else to persuade me to linga longa.

From here I headed towards the city on the southern highway, which runs parallel to the Stuart Highway via Fisherman’s Wharf. There were hundreds of trawlers moored here indicative of the importance of the fishing industry to Darwin, and it’s also a centre for private yachts. I had been told of an excellent fish and chip shop here so as it was lunchtime it seemed a good time to try it out, so I ordered Barramundi and chips. As usual there was enough for at least 3 starving people, and I probably managed to devour around 80% of that so I did pretty well. The fish was straight off the boat, never been frozen, and you could tell that. Reminded me of the superb fish and chips at Kinlochbervie Fisherman’s Mission in N.Scotland, which I’ve been enjoying for the past 12 years when working out there.

I was looking for somewhere to sit / lie down for a while and have a read after the large lunch, and found some shady rocks at the front of the Deckchair Cinema down on the foreshore. However as I got comfy on the big rock-armour boulders the novel, that I just started yesterday (Cloudstreet, Australian classic by Tim Winton) fell from my grip and dropped between the rocks. It was some way down and out of reach, and I was starting to think I would have to abandon it until eventually I managed to lift it up a little with a couple of sticks so I could just get my fingertips on it. Anyone watching me probably wondered what the hell I was doing. I decided to go for an ice cream instead at Baskin-Robbins - I just can’t resist that place!

Whilst down at the shore I noted that there was a decent film on at the Deckchair cinema tonight - Brick Lane - and having read the novel I knew it was a good story (of Bangladeshi woman trapped in a miserable relationship with older man after arranged marriage), so after riding back to camp for shower and change I returned for the 1930 showing. It’s very pleasant watching the film unbder the moon and stars - and cooler and more airy - although I had to put plenty of mozzie repellent on to ward off the usual sporadic evening attacks. I get bitten at least 6 times every night no matter what I do. Occasional white streaks across the screen indicated other, larger, flying insects, as well as the odd bird and bat looking at what was going on. Curry dinner was being served from 1830, and it looked good too, but I was still quite full from the massive lunch so just contented myself with a couple of beers and bags of crisps. The deckchairs are pretty comfortable but most patrons took one of the available cushions to lean back against. The film was pretty good, and I enjoyed the whole experience. It would have been nice with someone to go with, but I got to chat a little to the ladies sat next to me. I have had little social contact since staying with Kingsley actually; the Warmshowers hosts I had planned to stay with here in the city were away at the weekend and I didn't make contact with them until very recently, and it was hardly worth me moving so close to leaving Darwin.

Afterwards I saw very little traffic on the easy ride home, which took only 15 minutes or so. I enjoy riding at night; no wind, just warm air slipping past and the usual night sounds and rustlings from unseen fauna.

I’ve pretty much done Darwin to death now I think, so will spend the next couple of days doing some bike maintenance and just resting and reading.

DAY 233: Day 4 off in Darwin

13th June 2008

24 km @ 15.0 km/hr

Sunny, 32 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14173 km (8858 miles)

Usual relaxed start to the day and a ride down to upload at the Book Exchange, however my card reader refused to power up when connected. It has been a bit iffy for a few weeks but has eventually worked, but not today. I was able to use the SD port integral to the PC I was using, but I’ll have to replace the reader, and might as well do it whilst in Darwin where such an item is easily available.

Whereupon I cycled up to an electronics shop I was at yesterday and bought a universal card reader for $20. Afterwards I rode around for a while and finished up in the city again and back to the cafe where I had the nice sandwich on Tuesday, Monty’s on the Mall - and it was just as good today. Such a lovely spot for eating too, in the middle of the Mall where there’s lots going on - the cafe always seems to be playing Bee Gees music (what’s wrong with that?) but today a small group of Aboriginal men were making tribal music in competition. And there are a couple of Chinese masseurs offering their services, and plenty of takers too - I may try this before I leave, it looks so relaxing. And just people watching is always interesting, so it was a pleasant couple of hours alternating between these distractions and the Telegraph Weekly (and eating). It might not sound very exciting but it’s one of my favourite pastimes.

I checked at the PO but the chainring from St Kilda Cycles hasn’t arrived yet, and when I phoned up to inquire Vince wasn’t in today and no-one else knew whether it had been posted or not. No change there then, those people don’t seem to talk to each other; remind me NEVER to deal with them again.

Back to the internet place to check out the card reader, and it was fine, and I chose a novel while I was there - Cloudstreet by Tim Winton - a recommended Australian classic.

Where’s the day gone? Didn't take any pics today, unusually.

DAY 232: Day 3 off in Darwin

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12th June 2008

39 km @ 16.0 km/hr

Sunny, 32 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14149 km (8843 miles)

I’m starting to get used to these lie-ins, governed only by the sun hitting the tent at 0830 and threatening to boil me alive. I did some bike maintenance; checking soundness of inner tubes and fitting new bar bag mainly, then headed off on Bagot Road for a tour around the northern suburbs, taking in Nightcliff, Alawa and Tiwi (for example), ending in the Casuarina Coastal Reserve. This is a well-preserved area alongside a beautiful white sandy coastline, unsurprisingly fringed with Casuarina (She-Oak) trees, ending in a nudist beach. I fancied an hours’ sunbathing to even out my tan so duly joined the dozen or so well-spaced out over 40’s and quickly threw off the 2 pieces of clothing I had on. The sea is very shallow here and very clear, so any crocs would show up rather easily (one was reported near here the other day), and I’m certain the risk of deadly Box Jellyfish is minimal this time of year. Anyway, I didn’t present the available 100% of my (contrasting brown and white) skin for more than a few minutes, just in case, and that was enough to become deliciously cool for a while under the blazing sun.

I lingered thus for nearly 2 hours and as my white parts are now all pink, guess that was enough for 1 day, anyway I was HUNGRY. I had arrived here completely on good cycleways, and from the Reserve on this was to continue. The 2-way, 4 metre-wide track was in excellent condition and it was sheer pleasure to glide along through rows of shady palms, wind assisted and hardly pedalling. It winds around the coast for some 7 or 8 km through pleasant residential avenues without ever crossing a road, before turning inland for a while at Nightcliff’s Dick Ward Road, to avoid the swampy mangrove no-go area north of the city. Darwin is great for cyclists, and traffic is pretty considerate too. I stopped at Fannie Bay, where there’s a superb bakery with all kinds of unusual cakes beautiful to starving cyclists, and I tried 2 thereof whilst talking with a middle-aged Aboriginal guy, well, I wasn’t sure of everything he said, but did my best to respond half-intelligently.

From here I popped into the Art Gallery again for the loo (not having seen one for several hours, unusually), and remembered that there is a meeting here tonight about NT’s response to Australia’s climate change proposals - in fact starting in half an hour’s time - and although I was wanting also to drop in at the famous Thursday night Mindil Beach Market just down the road, the latter was on until 10 so I’d still have time for that.

I was handed a large volume detailing NT’s position on CC and joined 20 other locals for a good and lively discussion. I was interested to learn that NT is, Per Capita, the worst of the Australian States regarding carbon footprint; moreover Australia is Per Capita the worst-performing country in the world! The reason for NT’s poor record appears to be mainly due to the high numbers of (windy) cattle in the state, plus the high usage of air-conditioning in the home. Unfortunately after Cyclone Tracey devastated Darwin in 1974 the city was rebuilt very solidly using concrete techniques, abandoning the previous airy but structurally vulnerable buildings. Little natural ventilation = hotter homes and more need for cooling; the temperature rarely falls below 30 deg C here all the year round.

I left the meeting around 7 as it was starting to get a bit drawn out by the usual sceptics, and was surprised to see caterers laying out a spread of food for the attendees after the meeting. I couldn’t resist a nibble here and there before departing....

......for Mindil Beach, where thousands of people were bumping into each other as they scoured the scores of food stalls for the tastiest treat - and there were plenty! I eventually settled for garlic battered squid and a King Prawn satay, washed down by a tropical smoothie. To be honest it was heavy going fighting your way about, and although there were plenty of craft stalls to look at, I’d mostly seen it all before. I was also twitchy about leaving the bike alone for long even though it was near a few police cars, and had to keep checking it. I was recognised whilst walking around by the couple I met at the rest area on the Arnhem Highway a few days ago - the guy was originally from Perth - which was pretty observant of him given the size of the milling mob.

I left soon after 8 and although I wasn’t sure how easy it would be to get back to the Leprechaun Caravan Park, it’s testament to my intense exploration of Darwin and it's relatively small size that within 5 minutes I was in familiar territory on the Stuart Highway, and ‘home’ 10 muntes after that.

I wore the new Netti baggy cycling shorts today, having dumped the 2 pairs of lycra shorts this morning, and first experience is that they’re not quite as comfy, but it’s early to be sure yet - how will they stand up to 5 or 6 hours in the saddle? We’ll see.

DAY 231: Day 2 off in Darwin

11th June 2008

29 km @ 15.0 km/hr

Sunny, 32 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14110 km (8819 miles)

Another peaceful night, although very warm again - night minimum temperature is around 23 at the moment, slightly more than the average winter minimum here. It’s hard for me to get to sleep, feeling so warm, and I usually resort to sleeping naked and rubbing myself down with a wet flannel a few times.

I was on another shopping quest this morning and was fairly successful, actually managing to get an identical replacement for my Topeak bar bag with broken zip - all the more pleasing since it took a lot of shopping around when planning the trip to get a bag that fit between the inboard bar ends I’ve fitted, and few other models would have done. This was bought at K9 Bikes in Coconut Grove, where I also found a pair of Netti baggy shorts with decent-quality insert; this to replace the shredded Assos shorts, and now also the ‘new’ Santini padded shorts I bought in Warnambool only 5 months ago, which are starting to shred too - poor value for the $90 I paid methinks - I wouldn’t but Santini again. Since I would be down to 1 pair of cycling shorts I also bought a pair of padded ‘knicks’ that I can wear under the non-cycling baggy shorts I already have. So that was $200 blown rather quickly, however I did get a discount without asking. I was also eying a pair of Lake touring shoes to replace the Shimano sandals which are looking the worse for wear, and although I was offered 25% discount I am concerned these closed-in shoes won’t have the ventilation that the sandals have, so I’m thinking about it.

Just up the road I finally found a camping shop, where I bought 2 new Sea to Summit 4 litre water bags to replace the leaking ones. Something sharp appears to have stuck in these and punctured them.

That’s my gear requirements more or less met, and I hauled these back to camp before riding out again to Fannie Bay and the Darwin Museum. I needed a coffee and cake and tried the restaurant there but they didn’t seem to have much to choose from and it all looked a bit formal, so I delayed sustenance for a while. The museum is very interesting, with sections on the 1974 cyclone which flattened the town; a large collection of hand-built wooden boats from Australia and surrounding Oceanic countries, indigenous art and artefacts, geological records etc. The latter spelt out how humans first arrived in Australia some 60,000 years ago i.e. from SE Asia at a time when sea levels were much lower and many land bridges were evident. Going even further back, I read that humans in the form of Homo Erectus probably initially left Africa 140,000 years ago and gradually migrated this way. OK, lesson over....

....and to more mundane but nevertheless essential issues, eating. I was spoilt for choice with all the cafes in Darwin, but McDonald’s have a nice terrace to sit and watch the world go by at, so was my choice. I plunged for a chicken cutlet with salsa sauce and went large with fries and coke - and it was very nice for $9 or so. As were the beautiful slim women of this town ambling past (or are they tourists?) - like me, suitably scantily clad on this hot afternoon lol. I deliberately didn’t have pudding at M’s, and after a little more shopping went to the next street where Baskin-Robbin’s served me with the biggest and most luscious Triple-Scoop Sundae smothered with cream and thick chocolate sauce ever! The hard part was choosing which 3 flavours of ice cream to have from the 30 or so available, but typically chocalate, caramel and crunchy honeycomb won the day.

So 3000 calories on I went gently exploring again, spending a little time in and around the modern and airy Lady of the Sea Catholic Cathedral before ambling back to camp along the wonderful tree-lined cycle path that borders the Stuart Highway. After just 2 days I feel I’m getting to know Darwin very well - it’s not that big and I must have been up most principal roads by now.

Unsurprisingly I wasn’t that hungry tonight so just snacked a little and read the Telegraph Weekly. Poor Gordon; what a rough time he’s having! This CP is right next to the Darwin Airport / RAF Base, and there’s been much noise from military aircraft again tonight, however this has been stopping before 10 (to allow crew to catch the last hour in the bar).

DAY 230: Day 1 off in Darwin

10th June 2008

25 km @ 14.5 km/hr

Sunny intervals, 30 deg C

Elevation of destination 37 m

Distance to date 14081 km (8801 miles)

Last night was good and quiet once the jets stopped taking off from the RAAF base next door eventually, so I had a good sleep, but still lay in luxuriously until 0830. First job was to do some washing, then 2 hours in the internet place (the Book Exchange, only $2.80/hr - cheapest ever apart from library freebies.). The owner told me he had a Dutch couple in last week who had just cycled around Australia, which sounded like the same couple I met in Dunsborough, Western Australia, last October, and indeed his name was Egbert so it was them! We appear to have been within a few days of each other for the past few months (depending on routes taken) but never met again. I knew they started and were due to finish in Darwin, and it seems they finished early and decided to go to Bali or somewhere similar for a while. I’ll get their website address next time I’m in the internet place since the owner has it. Anyway I had to post 8 days diary in that session; there has been no opportunity to update for the past week. Northern Australia is a bit of an internet desert I'm afraid.

Afterwards I headed into the city along a good cycle track, and had lunch at an open-air cafe in The Mall - the best lunch I’ve had for ages; chicken, bacon, avocado and lettuce on a fresh rustic toasted roll - mmmmm! It was large and pretty filling, but I still managed a large equally fresh chocolate chip muffin afterwards.

For the rest of the afternoon I did some shopping and explored as far as Fannie Bay and Mindil Beach, getting back to camp just as it was getting dark. I like the feel of this place - not too big, not too small.