Day 7 Timber Creek to Bush Camp (Saddle Creek rest area) 117 kms

Packing the car today we have found we are fitting everything quite a bit better. There is alot of luggage but we have a great system going now and packing is over quite quickly. John and Peter hang around and give us some assistance each morning which is much appreciated. This is our first bush camp for this leg and the brand new riders are anxious as to how the camping thing will work. Collis and I filled up with over 100 litres of water this morning and feel this should be plenty, depending on how hot it gets during the day. The water at Timber Creek is great to drink but holds alot of calcium in the water, which will not always quench your thirst and can have the opposite effect at times. It has been suggested to the riders that they have some bottled spring water also which will help counteract this effect.

 The terrain is constantly changing and today we are riding mainly through craggy escarpments and some absolutely stunning vistas. It has turned out quite a warm day but the wind is once again a tail wind. We are into camp by early afternoon and the rest area is already quite crowded. A few caravans leave after a short period and after watching the cyclists spread out across the camping areas. There are mostly vans but later on a few motorbikes came in and camped also. The rest area has a couple of fire places so this took the job of choosing a spot for dinner away from us plus we took over the sheltered eating area with all our bits and pieces

. Dinner tonight was pesto pasta with vegetables and a small amount of tuna followed by bread and butter pudding. Huge amounts were made and everything was consumed. Unfortunately I had bought some long life cream at Timber Creek and I was so excited to find some but when we opened it, it had curdled and it was a couple of months out of date. Next time I will check before paying. Really hot night tonight with only a minimal wind blowing. The caravaners quietened down early so we eventually fell off to sleep and had a very quiet night
.