Battle of the wind

Date: 06-04-2010 - 07-04-2010
Day 59-60: Port Augusta, SA
Distance cycled: 98km

Last night in Orroroo was one of the scariest moments being in a tent. While lying restlessly in our tent (which was located under a tree and next to a stretch of metal fence), we could see (even with our eyes shut) the lightning lit up the surrounding darkness and hear the thunder roar through the silence of the night around 1am. The next morning, Orroroo and neighbouring town, Peterborough still suffered blackout.

Looking at the clouds (that are definitely rain clouds!) in the morning, we had slight hesitations but were still determined to move on. The lady at the caravan park was very familiar with the road towards Port Augusta and her description of the terrain was exactly what it was: as envisioned by Lukas, there will be a ‘donut’ of a hill (don’t ask why a ‘donut’) immediately leaving Orroroo, then it will be flat until Wilmington where the climb of Horrocks Pass begins. So we know what’s ahead of us and we decided to pack and go while the clouds held in. Graham and Carmel waved us goodbye in the morning!

In Wilmington, we met 3 cyclists doing the Mawson Trail which is an off-road mountain bike route that stretches for about 900km along the Flinders Ranges. Just as it was for them, they were also the first cyclists we saw on the road. When asked if they have attempted the Horrocks Pass, one of them said, “Yes! It’s 50% downhill! ;)”. Time to fuel up for the climb! Without much of a wait, Sue ordered a Veggie burger (Sue usually doesn’t eat burgers!) and Lukas indecisively (and with peer pressure) decided on a Schnitzel burger with the Lot (bacon and egg).

It was actually more than 50% downhill on the way out of the Pass as we rolled for 10km into the National (No. 1) Highway. It began with a winding rollercoaster of a ride with fairly steep ups and downs that went on for less than 5km. We both were prepared for another experience similar to Macquarie Pass and walk up the steep hills if necessary. It turned out to be nothing like that and we (still with some huffs and puffs) conquered the ‘uphill’ bit. In the meantime, the wind seemed to have picked up. As we were descending the Horrocks Pass, we were almost swept off the road a couple of times and the wind decelerated us by up to 4km/h!

We were forewarned about the traffic into Port Augusta along the National Highway, especially during this Easter holiday period. That was the main reason we avoided going to Port Broughton and Port Pirie in the hope to get round the Flinder Ranges from the south initially. Our alternative route now (via inland instead of along the coast) still entailed us to ride along the main highway for 22km to get to Port Augusta.

We fought headwind with speed of at least 30km/h most of the 20km! Since there is little (or none) shoulder, we also pulled over when road trains (large trucks with at least 2 carriages) or simply large trucks approached us on our side or when we think traffic will meet on both sides of the road. Nonetheless, Sue still thinks the wind was the toughest challenge!

Km by km, we made it to Port Augusta. The tourist park we arrived at was full for the night with 3 buses-load of school kids camping but the nice lady at the reception managed to squeeze us in. Thank you! We wasted no time to set up and clean up before heading out to shop for food. A simple question of “What’s for dinner?” got Lukas another free hot meal complimentary of the chef for one of the schoolies groups. Sue wondered what shall be her reward for staying loyal to vegetarianism that will come to a 10-year anniversary by the end of this year. A hot meal would be good! ;p

We decided to take a day off to run some errands and replenish some supplies (including new thorn resistant bike tubes) at this last large town (or city?) in SA of population about 15,000. The bikeshop (that also used to sell firearms prior to the changes in the gun ownership laws in Australia) owner took time to share some interesting stories and showed us what types of thorns on the road to watch out for before letting us sign his guestbook of travellers from around the world riding push-bikes across Australia.

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera - Morgan - Burra - Orroroo - Port Augusta

Update

Currently located: Ceduna, SA
Next destination: Penong, SA (75km away)
Next town: Norseman, WA (1,222km away)
Total distance cycled: 2,344km

In a few days, we will cross the Nullarbor. Internet and mobile phone services will be very limited (or none). We hope to keep you posted as soon as we could. The blog entries until Ceduna will be updated then too.

Thank you all for staying tune! ;=)

lukas and sue

Orroroo, what a neat little town!

Date: 05-04-2010
Day 58: Orroroo, SA

It was Easter Monday. Most shops were closed if not open for a limited period of time. After a good night’s sleep at one of the best lawn (it was like 5cms thick!) that we have had for a tent site, we looked forward to feed our appetite. Since we were famished and could wait no longer for shops to open, we ate what we had for breakfast. At lunch, we spoilt ourselves at Maggie’s Rendezvous. This time Lukas had a ‘real’ protein bomb: a roo burger with the lot (bacon and egg)! Lunch was great. The owner (Maggie?) was such a nice lady that she offered to thaw a loaf of bread for us when we told her the bakery was out of bread! That was before she knew we have no car to drive to the next town.

We read about Magnetic Hill which “is a well-known tourist attraction because of its ability to make vehicles appear to roll uphill”. It would be something we definitely will do if we came with our car. Then again, we would not have discovered this charming town if we were to drive across Australia. Another attraction near town was the over 500 years old giant gum tree. The trunk is as tall as 6m before there is a fork.

Sitting in the TV/laundry room and being sheltered from the rain outside, we are still motivated to brave the Horrocks Pass over the Flinders Range and arrive at Port Augusta tomorrow. Since it was still Easter, we missed the opening hours of the supermarket and neglected to stock up for dinner and food for the ride ahead.

As we were about to prepare our protein shake for dinner, Graham and Carmel kindly invited us to join them for dinner with steak, pasta and bread. Lukas found the generous offer too hard to resist while Sue joined the party for tea and dessert later. Graham and Carmel drove from Sydney via Broken Hill heading towards Craddock where they will go off road with their 4WD. When they shared that they work in North Sydney and used to live on the same street as we did before we left Sydney, we found out how small the world really is!

Thanks for a pleasant evening (and pictures in the morning) and we hope you get to turn your 3kg flour into fresh bread during your adventure into the outback, Carmel and Graham!

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera - Morgan - Burra - Orroroo

2 flats, hills and headwinds, after headwinds!

Date: 04-04-2010
Day 57: Orroroo, SA
Distance cycled: 127km

We found that the weather forecast of mild northeast wind was ‘slightly’ inaccurate.

We started the morning from Burra cycling into Halett about 30km away with some strong headwinds. On the way, we saw a family Easter-egg-hunting that reminded Lukas of Easter with his family when he was a little boy. Those Easter eggs were yummy! ;=)

We stopped several times to pump up Sue’s rear tyre until we made it to Halett. After breakfast, we decided to fix the (first) flat in Halett. It went well. Just 5km out of Halett, the tyre we fixed started to lose air. As Sue pumped it up, the metal valve broke. We knew the drill and (frustrated but still patiently) fixed the second flat. We wondered if Sue was really THAT strong or if the manufacturing of the bike tube was sub-standard.

Not long after we hit the road again, we were forced off it by a truck approaching us from behind. The car coming from the opposite direction slowed down and pulled as far off the side of the road to give way to the truck and 2 bikes. The truck, refusing to make way or slow down, blew his horn at us and we had to pull off the road onto the unpaved gravel ‘shoulder’. Considering how many lives that he is putting at risk, what could be so important that he cannot spare seconds or minutes to lawfully yield to rightful road users?

Despite some setbacks, we quickly gained momentum and motivation to make our destination. We took a lunch break at Terowie where coincidently was the meeting place for a family reunion of 150. We were told that Terowie was a formerly bustling town where 2 different railway tracks used to meet. This was the point where passengers and goods were transferred from one train to the other to continue with their journey. Now that the tracks were no longer used, many businesses closed down and it has become a quiet little settlement.

It was about 23km from Terowie to Peterborough. Most of the way, it felt like the hills stretch to the end of the horizon. Ironically, we took this 18km longer route towards Port Augusta because we were told at the Burra Visitors Centre that it would be a flatter (hence easier) terrain than alternative routes. There was a continuous 4km climb in the heat of the mid-day sun before we rolled into Peterborough in the next 10km (guess it’s not that bad). In Peterborough, we were finally able to recharge with good meals and determined to take on the last 35km to Orroroo despite the option to stay in Peterborough and call it a day.

For reasons we cannot explain ourselves, it was a short 2-hours ride to Orroroo. We were racing (not intentionally) at speed up to 30km/h against headwinds at times. Even a bloke from the caravan park later mentioned that we were riding at a pretty good speed when he drove past us.

Orroroo is a neat little town. We decided to take a break, especially since we were told that there would be even more (and tougher) hills to climb on the way to Port Augusta before we hit the meandering descent that was the only other thing (besides level terrain) mentioned at the Burra Visitors Centre. We knew they (the flat and then downhill) sound too good to be true.

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera - Morgan - Burra - Orroroo

Are we there yet?

Date: 03-04-2010
Day 56: Burra, SA
Distance cycled: 87km

Several days ago, Sue’s rear tyre was low on air. Every morning, Lukas would pump it up and it held for the rest of the day.We assumed it was because of the vast temperature difference (up to 30°C) during the day and close to 10°C in the evening).

It was the same ritual this morning but Lukas also pumped up the front tyre which was noticeably low in air. Unfortunately, today it did not hold. It was a day of stop-n-go to repeatedly put air into Sue’s tyres. Without having to fix any flat, we arrived in Burra… eventually. Apart from the pumping exercises, we also hit more headwind (than we would like). It felt like ages to get to Burra.

The green marker noted that it is 5km to Burra. After 3kms, it was still 4km to Burra. Argh~

We made it to Burra around 1pm at yet another crowded caravan park. Due to the Easter break, shops trading hours are until 3pm. We quickly set up and freshened up before we rushed to town for lunch. Polly’s Tearoom offered some uniquely tasty and well-presented sandwiches. Yum! Then, we both enjoyed a walk through this beautiful town of population just below 1,000.

 

Before lunch, we did take notice of a cyclist taking off from Burra. At Polly’s, we saw his partner drove off with a spare bike on top of the car. We thought how different it must be to cycle with a support crew in trail.

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera - Morgan - Burra

Party at the caravan park!

Date: 02-04-2010
Day 55: Morgan, SA
Distance cycled: 100km

It was not long after dusk when we saw our first (living) kangaroos hopping across the road. We were told at the Mildura Visitors Centre that there are always at least 2 of them. So we were wary as we past and saw them hop away.

We went by the Overland Corner where we were informed in Renmark that there is free camping. We considered camping there (instead of in Barmera) but decided against it because we were unsure if there were amenities (the sign that we saw as we passed said there are). At a lookout later, we realised how high we were overlooking the region.

It was a smooth ride. We both felt that we were able to go much faster with less weight in tow. (Duh!) We arrived in Morgan by 12:30pm and were thankful that a bakery was opened on Easter Saturday. Not only was it open, we could see how it is quite popular with its homemade pies and pasties. We did not want to miss out! With a happy belly, we found the caravan park to settle for the night. It was one of the most overcrowded caravan parks that we have seen so far. Regardless, we were simply relieved to have secured one of 2 camp sites left at the park. It was all dirt and no shade. No complaints (just observations of the deviations from our expectations) ;p

Since it was boiling in our tent, we escaped to the park next to Murray River and lazed on the green grassy lawn. The bank of the river was flocked with people cheering on those who were water-skiing, jet-skiing etc in their flash speedboats.

At the Riverview Café where we had an early dinner, Sue pointed out that the café includes in their brochure that “river view is free”. That put a big smile on Lukas’s face since he deems that the word ‘free’ is being used too loosely these days. An example we find most appropriate, mobile phone plans often offer ‘free’ minutes when in fact you paid for them. How can something be ‘free’ when you have to pay for it? One large pizza later, we took an easy digestive walk to explore the town of population 350 that swells to over 5,000 during holiday season. Impressive!

In the evening when everyone returned hauling their boats, the caravan park appeared to be one big party with music of one louder than another. We also discovered that we were rather ‘cosy’ with our new neighbour, our tents not more than inches away from each other. It was very much in contrast to the secluded Lake Bonney the night before.

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera - Morgan

A day off… but not really

Date: 01-04-2010
Day 54: Barmera, SA
Distance cycled: 45km

We were only able to get one night at the campground. So we had to look for an alternative accommodation the next day. Initially, we planned to take a day off and explore Renmark but we were told at the Visitors Centre that due to Easter most places to stay are booked. We moved on heading towards Berri.

We checked out the Berri Direct Centre. A brochure we picked up in Renmark promised a video demonstration about the manufacturing of juice. But when we got there, we were told that they have not had such tours for years. We moved on towards Barmera in search of a stop for the night. Many places either had no vacancies or were unsuitable for us.

Eventually we arrived in Barmera, a beautiful little town by Lake Bonney. We found a caravan park situated by the lake to camp. Lake Shed and Eco Park is in development by Daryl who took over the property merely 12 months ago. Besides sharing the process and plans of refurbishing this park, Daryl also showed us the collection of pictures that he captured in this area alone. The pictures include many stunning views of the sunset and the storm that came through some time ago. A walk along the beach (yes! Beach by a lake!) of Lake Bonney with an unforgettable sunset concluded our day. Clocking 45km was not bad for a day we actually wanted to take off. ;=)

Destinations: [NSW] North Sydney - Heathcote - Coledale - Wollongong - Robertson - Moss Vale - Goulburn - Queanbeyan - Yass - Gundagai - Wagga Wagga - Narrandera - Darlington Point - Hay - Maude - Balranald - Euston - [VIC] Mildura - [SA] Renmark - Barmera