Day 8 Saddle Creek to Lake Argyle 90 kms

Roger was up early and ready to get going along with Fliss and Ben. Roger feels we may have a westerly wind today which would make it a head wind. I hope he is wrong as this would be a bit of a shock to them all when we have had so many tailwinds this trip.
Packing up was quick again this morning and Collis had time to chat with the caravaners. One old guy had chopped our wood for us last night as he carried a chainsaw with him. I had offered to buy Collis a small one for this trip but he said there was no room- I'm sure we could have found room as it did make the wood collection task so much easier. The wind is quite strong today and it is a tail wind- yes!

Short day although we have to cross the border into Western Australia and the fruit police are pretty strict so morning tea was mainly fruit with some fruit cake and the riders trying to finish off their own supplies as well. We all hate handing over food to be thrown out. At the border we pulled over and got all the riders to carry their own food boxes across so that we would not have to sit there for an hour or more while they went through everything we had on board. This worked quite well and a few only lost their honey supplies. We thought if the honey was unopened then we wouldn't have to hand it over- Wrong! They found a clove of garlic in our box which I had forgotten about.

The scenery today is just spectacular. It is so hard to describe and impossible to capture it's magnificence on film. A very special part of the world. A pleasure to cycle as mostly downhill until we turn onto the road to Lake Argyle then..... The wind direction was no longer behind them and was mostly into their faces or across them. The scenery got even better with a change to the flora from boab & gum trees to ferns and grevillea in flower.

Frequent views of the lake kept teasing us and then after lots of downhills they hit a couple of steep up hills which most found a bit of a challenge at the end of the day. Lake Argyle Resort is a bit of paradise in a very arid area. Up till now we have had green nearly all the way across the top end but just in the last couple of days we have noticed that it has become very brown and much dryer around this area. Their wet season was apparently non existent and most rivers are empty. We heard today that Broome has had 4 days of torrential rain and all dirt roads into the area are closed. The bitumen roads we are taking are still open at this time. Hopefully this means things may green up slightly by the time we get there. The resort has an infinity pool with a spectacular view over the lake. The water is very cold. The restaurant has a small menu with some things reasonably priced and then others quite expensive. You are a captive audience here as there is nothing else around. The staff are lovely and everyone very helpful. Dinner was good and live music tonight and he could sing. Very enjoyable. Probably one too many scotches but did control myself a little. Nice cooling breeze tonight and Jacquei had gone to bed at 6.30 (WA time) but the rest of us were trying to remain awake until after 8.30 pm if possible. Rest day tomorrow.

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
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Day 6 Victoria River to Timber Creek 90 kms

We missed out on talking to the aboriginal kids except for an informal chat in the campsite. They were exceptionally well behaved kids and after listening to the instructions by the teachers when getting them ready in the morning, I thought I should use the same tactics for the riders. The kids were particularly taken with Fliss and she was late getting out of camp because of their attention.
Everyone in great spirits today knowing they survived the longest riding day in the whole trip and have all pulled up feeling pretty good. Some hung around in camp talking with the kids but some just wanted to get under way and on the road. The weather is perfect again although it did warm up before the end of the day. There are alot of clouds around and it looks like it could rain but it is doubtful at this time of year. The Gods have been good again today with tail winds.

We changed our choice of caravan parks today as we had been trying to contact the Wirib CP for months but the phone would just ring out so we thought it was closed. When we arrived we chatted with the new managers and decided it was a better choice even though they were having troubles with their electricity and we may have to have cold showers. Everyone was in by lunchtime and some went for a swim, some went for a meal and everyone just mostly sat around or did chores.

At 5 pm the other caravan park had the feeding of the crocodiles and Woody was chosen to feed some. Collis and a few of the riders went down to the local sporting oval to watch the kids from Pidgeon Hole and hoping to have some photos taken with them but the sports were over before they got there and they had gone back to Timber Creek. Apparently our group of kids won the sports day.
We ate "al la camp food" tonight with a mixture of vegies in 90 second brown rice with tin chicken. Yum yum. Filled the spot anyway.

A couple of us decided to check for crocs in the river near our tents. We saw 3 sets of eyes swimming close to the shore which appeared to be tiny fresh water crocs, maybe babies. I called Collis down to have a look and he walked up to the waters edge, when I all of a sudden spot 2 eyes just under the water about 3 feet in front of Collis staring straight at him. He wouldn't believe they were eyes (as they did look a little like rocks) but then they slowly started to move around in the water. I made a couple of visits down to the river after that just to check where he was sitting until eventually he had disappeared and was probably sitting on the bank watching me so I thought best to leave him or her alone. This was a nice spot although the food in town was limited and not the greatest.

Day 5 Katherine to Victoria River 193 kms

Late start today but we still managed to reach most of them by morning tea. There was a bit of an upset this morning which had been coming for quite awhile. One of the riders was not happy with the tour. The whole issue came to a head this morning with Cycle Across Oz having to request her to leave the tour. The rider has decided to continue to use our itinerary and continue on her own. We wish her well and hope she completes her challenge safely. The rider had her own support vehicle.

Today is the longest day for the whole ride. The weather has been kind to them today. They have tail winds and cooler weather. They have been very lucky with the weather at most times throughout the first half around Australia. Collis has done well with his research. The group are now working well together and enjoying the constantly changing scenery. We informed the group of the departure of the other rider and our reasons why we had to ask her to leave and they are prepared to continue enjoying the ride. Collis and I felt alot better when we were supported by the group as a whole. The group seemed to take a big breath and got back down to the business of enjoying the riding and the journey.

 Lunch and afternoon tea today were both on the side of the road and there was an extra long gap between the front runners and the tail enders.

A few of the riders went through without any support from us today and were a little exhausted by the time they got into camp. Peter S arrived at Victoria River by 1.15 pm having ridden 193 kms unsupported. Roger was in by 2.15 pm unsupported and drinking water from the water tanks at the rest areas. Roger is quite experienced with this area and can usually judge when the water is safe to drink or not- we don't recommend this to inexperienced riders. All riders were in camp by 5 pm.
There was an aboriginal primary school from a place called Pidgeon Hole staying at the roadhouse and Collis spoke with the teachers to see if the kids wanted to have a chat with the riders. They were thrilled with the idea and it was arranged for the morning.

Dinner at the roadhouse tonight and it was very nice - I had chicken Kiev. Early to bed again tonight.

Day 4 Katherine Rest Day 0 kms

Up early this morning with a bit of a hangover from all the celebrations last night for Melanie's 40 th birthday. I think it was probably due to the mixing of the beer, champagne and wine. It was a really good night last night. The food was good and the drink was a real release (didn't realise just how stressful things can get in a matter of just days) and the company was fantastic. Most of the riders joined us at some stage (although some just won't join in). Someone kept saying it was an ugly birthday cake but it went with the princess theme and the cake was pretty moist. What can you do in the outback- not much choice.

The girls and I are off to Katherine Gorge this morning after we have a McDonalds breakfast. Left camp around 7 am - so much for a sleep in. We arrived at the Gorge with a half hour to go before the 9 am cruise and we were lucky enough to get the last 3 tickets for the 2 hour cruise. Jacquei doesn't like crowds or tours very much so she gave up her ticket. Fortunately 15 people did not turn up for the cruise so Jacquei was able to get on after all. She is glad she did in the end and as the cruise was 15 short so the crowds didn't worry her.
Peter, John, Jan and Ellen arrived just after us and they had to take the 4 hour tour- turns out it was worth the extra expense as you got a much more thorough tour.  Maybe the 2 hour, 2 gorge cruise was a bit short as those 2 hours just flew. Right at the end we got to see a couple of fresh water crocodiles. The tour guide was excellent.

Katherine doesn't have many eating places so when we got back into town we struggled to find somewhere half decent for lunch. Jacquei and I ate wraps at the coffee club and Annie & Melanie ate at Red Rooster.
While we were shopping at Woolworth's we ran into Collis' cousin Ray Ivey and his wife Chris. They are traveling around Oz for 12 months and are on their way to Darwin. Did the big shop today for our first bush camp on this leg, it isn't for a few days so it will have to be vegetarian.

I got back to Manbulloh caravan park and organized to take a few people down to the hot springs and again it was the usual ones who were wanting to join me. It was lovely but we only had a short period as Collis had organized another whip cracking competition for 5 pm.
When we got back Collis was sitting up in camp chatting with his cousin. Such a small world. The whip cracking was pretty good but not a huge response from some of the riders but some of the other campers got involved and we had a hard time picking a winner as 3 of them were quite expert at it. We were given a few lessons and Peter J picked it up quickly. I think I just got worse at it.

Dinner in camp tonight although I wasn't all that hungry after 2 biggish meals throughout the day.

Day 3 Emerald Springs to Katherine 133 kms

Princesses birthday today - Melanie turns 40. We had a lovely breakfast with Melanie, Annie, Peter and Jacquei.

Emerald Springs food is fantastic with 3 poached eggs, 2 tomatoes and I'm not too sure how many slices of toast. I could only eat half of mine so Collis once again got 1.5 meals. Melanie had an egg & bacon roll with a candle in it plus they brought out a box of chocolates and a chocolate muffin with another candle in it so she got to make lots of wishes.We also got her a card which sang "Happy Birthday Princess" along with a tiara for her helmet, a 'fly net' cap with princess Melanie in puff paint and some cosmetics to pamper herself with. What a spoilt princess!!!

Packing the car up was a bit disorganized today as we were still in birthday mode but we did eventually get everything into the trailer and truck. Morning tea was at the 50 km mark with lunch at Edith River ( or the turn off to Edith Falls). The riders have had a head wind for most of the day with the wind starting at 9 am and not really dropping off until after 3 pm. Most of the riders struggled but they all made it in with some detours on the way.

Peter went into Edith Falls which added approximately 40 kms to his day. We ran over a black snake which I hope didn't flick up into the underside of the car and it may visit us in the middle of the night. We found Mark photographing a couple of black cockatoos with the yellow in their tails.

We had a lovely dinner tonight with the girls (Melanie birthday girl, Jacquei & Annie), John and Mark joined us as well- all riders were invited to join the party and some came across to wish her best wishes but others chose not to participate. We really enjoyed the cold meats, cheeses and salad. Annie & Jacquei bought her a nice bottle of Mumm French champagne and we got a bottle of white wine to go along with it. I bought her a princess birthday cake too and the night was very enjoyable.

Day 2 Adelaide River to Emerald Springs 94 kms

Shocking nights sleep due to all sorts of reasons with the main reason being the aftermath of the races. The police presence this morning is quite obvious in the Main Street with lots of cars pulled over and it looks like they have been confiscated or held because there was no-one to drive them home. Lots of young people wandering around in a daze or still rolling with a can of something in their hands. Young girl in the camp site next to ours was dead to the world, still in her party dress from the day before. The Adelaide Cup seems as if it is a big go around these parts and best to be avoided if we ever do this ride again.
All riders were up bright and early this morning including Joan; who I think may have been the first up today as she definitely did not want to sleep in again this morning. We really didn't keep our voices or noise down as most of the other campers had still not gone to bed as yet. All riders had left camp by 7.30 am and this included Mark. Martin & Debra and Joan were some of the first to leave as they are still finding their legs and their fitness levels in the group.

It looks like it may be a tough ride today even though it will be a beautiful road to ride. Quite a few of the riders went in to Robins Falls for a look and a couple had a swim there as well. Jan fell off her bike on the way out when she skidded into some gravel. Lucky Chris was there to help her out with cleaning the grazes. Woody had 2 more punctures today. He got a new tyre the other day but thought it was all clear until he found a small wire sticking out after the second puncture. Then we were all sitting around at morning tea when there was a very loud bang (sounded like a gunshot) and turned out Annies' back wheel had blown- huge hole in the tyre which actually blew a quarter of the tyre off the wheel. Took about 8 people to change the tyre.

No lunch stop today although most of the riders stopped at Hayes Creek for a drink and a bite to eat. All riders were in by 3.30 today and it had turned out to be a really tough day. They had head winds for most of the day and lots of hills to climb with a high "jump up" before morning tea. The new riders have done really well to finish the day without any complaints.
Collis & I had decided to take a donger tonight as they are really well priced, lovely and clean and have an ensuite attached. The owners are just lovely people who can't do enough for you. They asked us if they could take a photo of our group to put it on their face book site. Most riders agreed to participate.

It is Melanie's 40th birthday tomorrow so Collis & I decided to shout her an upgrade tonight so that she will be refreshed and ready to go tomorrow. She struggled a bit today after morning tea so we thought this may help her get through a day which may end up pretty tough as well. Dinner in the roadhouse tonight after the briefing. The food here is fantastic and reasonably priced. Early to bed tonight after the shocker last night, I hope I don't scratch all night again. Big day tomorrow; I was going to ride but have heard that there may be strong head winds and a longer distance so I think I will stick to the car (sorry Mel).