Oodnadatta Over (Oodnadatta - Marla)

Day: 7

Distance Travelled: 208kms

Weather: Blazing blue sky, 24 degrees (at least!)

Today's Biggest Challenges: The serious ball-bearing-like gravel. Makes for a fun speedway but not much else. Mentally very challenging. Trying to miss the cows on the side of the road (yes you read that right, cows, not camels).

What I've learned from today: Sand is still yuck, marble rocks are scary, the dust is a PROPER red and green grass is the best invention since sliced bread.

Highlights of today: Decided to get up and pack up early so we could get to Marla asap and get out of the dirt and get clean. Had a great time chatting to some of the campers the day before about what Uluru was like for them when they went, where to stay, etc. A great time for camper fellowship and had a good chat with their kids about motorbikes (they were a bit starry-eyed at ours!). We bought a few things and I managed to bargain the lady at reception for some rain water to drink before heading off at about 9. Fuel was a bit cheaper at $1.87 p/L so we filled up ready for the final stage of the Oodnadatta track, said our goodbye’s to the Pink Roadhouse and we were on our way.

We had been told the night before by the campers that the road was very good on this side of Oodnadatta, however, we were to find out that ‘very good’ referred to driving in Hiluxes and not on motorbikes. Ball-bearing-like gravel, bull dust and some decent corrugations made for physically and psychologically trying times. While we could still do 90kmph most of the way it was mentally very taxing as the road could change at any time and required instant reactions to conditions at any second. Couple this with a bike that I didn’t quite know made it rather difficult to handle for long. We stopped after 70ish kms for a break, had a snack and watched the dozens of little finches fight over the branches of a dead tree across the river… a river with GREEN GRASS! A rarity since we entered South Australia last Thursday.

We continued on however my still-growing experience on dirt road and lingering sickness
meant that I became tired faster than Kristal and I had to stop and hand over to Stuart about 50kms out of Marla. Thus was the end of the Oodnadatta for me, after a successful 430kms in the dirt on the VStrom. I think I’ve learnt so much about dirt riding over the last four days, it’s been phenomenal. I figure dirt riding is kind of like parenting… there is a very fine line between going swimmingly and smashingly. You can’t force the bars, you must be very gentle, but you still have to guide them… if you force them it will let you down hard but if you don’t guide you’ll run off the road entirely, so it’s riding that fine line. The bike would often fishtail in the dust, which was terrifying at 90kmph on a 220+kg bike but somehow (no doubt thanks to the good suspension) would right itself almost entirely by itself (provided it wasn’t on the loose stuff for too long at a time). I think it has also done a lot for my road riding capabilities and endurance levels.

We arrived at Marla and kissed the tar, we were so keen! After getting out and hugs and photos and groans of stiffness we rolled into the roadhouse, filled up and set up camp. It was great to get some washing done, clean up the bike chains and lube the parts, dust everything off and have a nap. Everything was absolutely COVERED in a thick layer of dust and we picked up half the desert’s rocks in the back of the trailer, despite the tarp and net. So good to get rid of the dirt and camp on grass again.

Just had the best shower this whole trip… My hair was so matted I thought I’d have to chop pieces of it out but finally loosened it all up. After a delish dinner, more star gazing and a yarn we are off to bed. We’ve decided to ride to Alice tomorrow instead of Uluru as it gives us a chance to shop, have reception and rest before heading out to the Rock where we will want to spend a lot of time exploring. A long day in the saddle tomorrow but we are keen and happy to get back on the tar for a bit, leaving the dirt for the next keen motorcyclist. Till then, MMG

The Road to Oodnadatta: Rock Solid Instability (Coward Springs - Oodnadatta)

Day: 6

Distance Travelled: 279kms

Weather: Another bright, warm, sunny day with a grand total of zero clouds.

Today’s biggest challenges: SAND! SAND IS TERRIFYING! Riding on sand = fishtailing, and fishtailing on a bike has at least a 47.9% chance of ending in an accident (I’m not making up statistics at all, of course, just thought you should know! :P). Anyway, riding on sand made for lots of tension in trying to keep everything under control correctly. Also, corrugations hurt. Sometimes a lot.

What I’ve learned from today: Sand is scary. Scary sand. Just stay away.

Highlights of today: Lots of highlights! We got up to the beautiful sunrise at Coward Springs with a beautiful breeze blowing and probably 18 degrees. I went for a walk to the natural mineral spa just outside the camp site and soaked my feet (yay!). Went off to explore the ancient museum house (where you can find photographs, snake skins and camel skulls) before heading back for brekky before the long ride. We have well and truly got our packing pretty smooth now and I’m quite proud of our system! We can get up and get everything done: dressing, hygiene, brekky, packing, tents down, gear packed, trailer and car loaded and tied down and on bikes ready to leave in a relaxed two hours, so I think we are doing quite well, all things considered.

We left early to give ourselves plenty of time to deal with the road if it became as nasty as it was the day before, so Kristal and I left a bit before the car to get a head start. It didn’t turn out as violent as the day before and we managed quite well. I had a number of times where I nearly lost the front out on the sand (sand is honestly something else - you’ll know what I mean if you have ever hit it - instant loss of control) but otherwise a generally peaceful time. We smashed out a good 70kms before arriving at William Creek to fill up with fuel - now a whole $2 per litre! We met two other bikers there while we were waiting for the others to show up in the car, Will and Joe, who have been travelling around the world on their dirt bikes for the last few years. Had a good yarn about bikes and the places they had been and the places they were going… was good to meet fellow riders on the track! They had just done the Simpson desert and Mt Dare, so we may have to put that on the list for next time! :)

After a quick stop in at the pub full of stickers, signatures, business cards and cash from all over the world stuck up on the walls, we left for Oodnadatta, the famous township the track was named after. The track was pretty easy going and we could often do 95kmph for the next 80kms or so, so we made quite good time. I had another near miss on the sand again in a dry creek bed so we had a break and Stu gave me a little pep talk… every piece of road is a new piece of road, just keep going. Road became quite ‘Oodnadatta’ again (for meaning, see last blog) with ball-bearing-like stones everywhere so again, we had to take it easy. We eventually arrived at the famous disused rail bridge 70kms south of Oodnadatta. We had lunch in the shade while admiring the old architecture in such a deserted place. Climbed the bridge, took some snaps and had a look at the beautiful field of red-purple succulent flowers before continuing on to our famed destination. The road became smooth again here and we had an uneventful rest of the trip.

Finally, we arrived at the well-known Pink Roadhouse of Oodnadatta, set up camp at it’s caravan park down the back and decided to go for a rather well-deserved pub dinner. The ‘Oodna burger’ is quite something - perhaps one of the most packed burgers I’ve seen in my life - with everything on it possible. Definitely worth it for a whole $15. Come visit.

Another interesting thing I’ve noted is the rather large number of foreign people serving in the outback. There are numberless Irish and Canadians on working holidays at the roadhouses, pubs and garages… I think we met more of them than Aussies! Get to know them and their stories if you have a chance…. they are fascinating people!

Well, time for bed. Marla tomorrow and then finally, FINALLY the Rock the next day! Signing off for another night, MMG

The Air of Eyre (Brachina George, Flinders’ Ranges - Coward Springs)

Day: 5

Distance Travelled: 352kms

Weather: Blazing blue sky

Today's Biggest Challenges: The Oodnadatta track (remember what it means (see last blog)? Yep. It’s aptly named).

What I've learned from today: Sand is sill scary! Having a swap-out rider was DEFINITELY a good idea. Great to have people experienced with dirt riding to work with. More grippy tires would be helpful. And gosh, Australia is OLD!

Highlights of today: We woke up to a crystal clear day with our tents covered in ice from a chilly night in the gorge. I got up a bit earlier as I really wanted to climb the nearby hill and see the sun rise over Wilpena Pound 30kms away. It was certainly worth it! Easily one of the biggest highlights of this trip for me, the cliffs were blazing red directly facing East into the sunrise. I wish we could spend more time here but it’s time to move on.

Stuart and I hopped on the bikes for the first section of the day as Stuart was keen for some time in the Flinders. We started riding and were promptly surrounded by a mob of emus! We slowed to 20kmph and they ran with us along the road for some time before they regrouped by darting in front of us and disappearing into the scrub. It was amazing to see them up so close with their funny backward knees and their bouncing ball of feathers. We rode on through the gorge with rock strata either side of us, hundreds of millions of years old… it’s so difficult to fathom just how old they are… they were old when the dinosaurs roamed the earth! A truly awesome experience.

We finally popped out the other side and the first sight of the plains came into view - bare nothingness that will be our experience for the next week. One last 20km lot of dirt and we hit the Outback Highway.

Soon after I stopped along the way to take some pictures in one of the ruins on the plains. They are quite something - a fireplace in almost every room, very square rooms, fitting together like jigsaws; very simple and elegant and they speak of a time gone by on the wind-swept plains. Again I had many similar thoughts on our way to Orroroo - who lived here? What was it like? It’s quite something to experience.

We watched the ranges disappear behind us and the plains stretch out in front as we headed in to Leigh Creek for a refuel before heading to Farina to the underground bakery. Farina is an old town in the middle of nowhere surrounded by yellow/white dust in all directions. The town was abandoned many decades ago and they recently started rebuilding it in the last ten years as a historical project. Part of the restorations include the reopening of the underground bakery where we had an early lunch. The area is only an active town of volunteers for eight weeks of the year during the peak tourist season before it becomes a ghost town once more, the only remaining people being the nearby station owner. A fascinating town to look through and I’d love to come again after learning about more of the history. Unfortunately I tripped over running to catch up with the others and severely bruised my elbow somersaulting on the ground (I know I’m so talented, right!) so I couldn’t ride for the rest of the day and Stuart and Kristal took over while I caught up on some much-needed sleep.

We headed off to Marree to the famous Marree hotel where the Tom Kruse museum is (a different Tom Kruse… don’t ask me which movie he was in but ahh well) and had a short break in the heat. It is so dry here that, looking at the leaves on the gum trees, they were so covered in wax in its attempt to maintain water that they looked about as fake as MSG. We spent some time looking at the old railway before heading off to start the Oodnadatta Track.

The way was easy-going enough and was just bumpy dirt with some gravel and corrugations to start with. It was quite hot and there really was nothing out there. After about an hour and a half of travelling past hills and a field of random sculptures we arrived at Lake Eyre South for sunset. Wow, it is really something! The last half an hour I’d been watching the DeLorme tracker slowly register our sea level height drop slowly to below zero and start into the negatives, and now we ran down the hill to the salt flat to measure it again. It finally registered at -16 meters below sea level (I think a bit out but still close - you can just see it in the picture) and we just stood and drank in the view till sunset. You can just see the curve of the earth where the salt flat meets the horizon as the sun began to sink below the rim. The flat itself it composed of some sort of soft clay (which would just stick to your shoes really easily) with the crusted layer of white salt on top. It felt much like the beach and even the air itself tasted just like the seaside. A beautiful place to be and it was awesome to experience the silence and lack of light-pollution, as it is in the whole outback. We snapped some photos together and headed off for the last 37kms to Coward Springs.

Well! It turned out to be much more adventurous than we had originally planned! As it got dark our attention had turned to the potential for greater numbers of animals on the road, however, even from there an even greater problem was the inability to see anything. With the sunset light in our faces the ruts, corrugations and sand patches were impossible to see and the bikes began fishtailing everywhere. Luckily, our more talented dirt riders were on the bikes at the time to deal with it while I sat in the car looking after my arm. It was a really rough patch and was quite a nerve-wrecking 40 minutes however we made it out alright and arrived at Coward Springs safe and sound. We set up camp under a million stars while the riders went to chill out at the natural spa/mineral spring. We stayed up for some time just enjoying the night sky without any light pollution… I’ve never seen so many shooting starts as out here! Just another amazing night in this beautiful country. A hard road but so worth it.

Tomorrow we are off to the famous Oodnadatta hotel. Hopefully the road will be better than today and that I can learn quickly! Till then, take care, MMG

600 Million Years and Counting (Orroroo - Flinder’s Ranges)

 Day: 4

Distance Travelled: 232 kms

Weather: Half n’ half.

Today's Biggest Challenges: Pretty new to dirt! A number of new experiences but all good learnings.

What I've learned from today: Sand is scary! Need to be loose and relaxed on the dirt tracks, use less front brake and more rear.

Highlights of today: We rose to a clearing sky against the backdrop of the valley behind Orroroo. We met a family who had just come back from the Flinder’s at the campsite who told us about their experiences of the place and gave us a few tips on the best places to camp. I did a bit more shopping to make up for the fruit we lost and we headed off.

The first section up to the ranges was really beautiful. Yes it was stark and was really an area without many trees, however the rolling hills were beautiful against the morning sun and we took so many photos! We had to be really careful as there was heaps of road kill around so we took it easy. Super grateful to have stocked up on firewood this morning as it is certainly limited out here. The grassy plains and the grey-green hills against the blue sky is quite something to behold as the first blue of the Flinder’s comes into view on the horizon.

We arrived at Hawker, the last stop before we entered the ranges, fulled up, made some last phone calls before the reception goes out for the next several days and bought parks passes (something like $10 per day for entry per vehicle… could be different for the car, I can’t recall). Driving through the first section to Wilpena Pound was really something. The pound is straight ahead and we were flanked on both sides by the ranges with it’s plain in between. Something odd I noticed was random piles of what looked like yellow apples on the side of the road - they must be some sort of native bush going to seed in its fruit however it was just so random and for a while I thought it must have been tourists throwing out old bags of fruit! However, as they kept coming up at regular intervals I dismissed the thought.

We arrived at the Wilpena Pound info centre and went in to enquire about camping and the best spots. An aboriginal gentleman called Mick happened to be manning reception and he was such a character! Very kind, funny and helpful, he had our best interests at heart and went out of his way to help us find the best spot to camp, which we decided would be in the Brachina Gorge. We mentioned that we were heading out to Uluru along the Oodnadatta Track and he said ‘Oh yes! And you will want to stop at Marree to check out the hotel and Farina with the underground bakery and stay at Coward Springs…. oh, and you know what Oodnadatta means? It literally means ‘shitty road’, and you will find out why!’. He was so helpful we’ve decided to call him Mick the Legend. We said our goodbyes, had some lunch and headed for the scenic dirt drive through the gorges to Brachina.

The first section of the road after Wilpena was a new experience. I’ve had some dirt experience before but nothing too major (perhaps a few hundred kms, hence why I’ve wanted to include dirt in my trip because 1, it’s more physical, and 2, its a new skill to learn). After a while I unknowingly hit a sand patch and the whole bike felt like it had become possessed with the handlebars jumping left and right of their own accord…a pretty scary experience! The others later mentioned it was sand I had hit and I made a mental note to watch out for sand in the future.

After some time we made it up to Razorback lookout where we had a full view of Wilpena Pound. Gosh, it is gorgeous! The blue/green and red ridges jutting out of the earth like a series of knives with the winding dirt track below, the silence palpable and the hawks gliding on the wind… it is really a place that must be experienced. It is easy to understand how these places are sacred to the indigenous.

We slowly wound down the hills into the gully where we crossed a few creeks (more skills to learn!) and eventually made our wait to the final straight section heading north before the campsite. We made camp along the river in the Brachina Gorge where we had a full bush camp - even the toilets were too far away for comfort, so we just made do. It was incredible watching the sun set over the red ridges as we cooked our yummy chicken stir fry for dinner. Afterwards we made a camp fire and sat around sharing stories while I made damper. The gentle breeze, the cool air, the trickle of the river and the incredible number of shooting stars was something so special to experience as we munched on damper and drank tea under a million stars. Will easily be one of the most memorable experiences of this trip.

Tomorrow we head up to Marree and on to Coward Springs to try to make up a bit of the extra time we spent in the Flinders. I look forward to writing again and am keen to see what the dirt road brings! Till then, MMG

The World's End

Day: 3 - Mildura to Orroroo via the Barrier Highway

Distance Travelled: 455kms

Weather: Light rain in the morning, half cloud cover the rest of the day but cleared up later for a beaut sunset

Today's Biggest Challenges: The initial rain was a bit of a bother but it cleared. The wind created by the road trains was pretty intense and sometimes was a bit of a struggle to deal with… I don’t know, perhaps it’s something in the Victorian air XD

Highlights of today: Wow, so many! We left Mildura to a slight rain and so we were pretty much racing the rain for the first two hours - was kinda fun dodging it! Made for some spectacular views over the Murray-Sunset country. The first 60kms was a Dead. Straight. Road. - you often could see as far ahead as 12-15 kms - which is quite a bit when you think about it. Saw a few ‘flocks’ of emus - I have no idea what a group of emus is called (someone find out for me!) - but it’s great seeing them. We crossed the SA border and were promptly stopped by the ‘Fruit Police’ - South Australia’s great quarantine station. You have to hand over ALL fruit - even if it was bought within the exclusion zone - so we lost all the apples, bananas and tomatoes we had bought in Mildura :( Hoping to get more in the morning. Renmark was particularly nice, we had a brunchy sort of thing there; lots of rose gardens, a great cafe/bakery with amazing food (I think it’s called the patissiery but I could be wrong), and the nicest looking public toilets I’ve ever seen. From there we continued on and rode past the Big Orange, something that I actually mistook for a nuclear plant at first until I saw oranges everywhere. Another nice sight was the sheer amount of vineyards - hundreds of hectares worth, especially around Mildura and on the way to Morgan. Soooooooo many vineyards over South Australia.

We had lunch in Morgan on the Murray while watching the ferry cart cars across every ten minutes. Had fun looking at a 110 year old Indian motorcycle outside an engine museum while the owner had a giggle about our eyes goggling at how uncomfortable we would be on the rock-hard seat! Left a bit later and headed for Burra. MY GOODNESS. This road is one of the most beautiful. The plains are gorgeous in their barrenness and we (or at least I) couldn’t stop admiring them. We took a few photos next to the water pumps (so iconic for Australia) and headed for the hills of Burra. Had fun checking out the various road signs, one advertising a ‘stud merino competition’ and another taking you to the World’s End Highway before reaching Burra.

Burra is an old mining town from the mid-1800s with a mining stack built in 1857. Was nice to see some colonial history and we had a short break there while I trolled a bridge. Finally we continued on the Barrier Highway to Orroroo to camp for the night, trying to get ahead a bit to give us more time in the Flinder’s tomorrow. My goodness, this section of the Barrier is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. I think I’ve left a piece of myself there… the sheer plains dotted with colonial ruins and the sight of the hills hundreds of kms away was a stark but awe-inspiring sight… something about it silences a person… who were the people that lived there? What were their families like? Who were their friends? Why did they live there? What were their dreams, ambitions, hopes, desires? What hardships did they suffer? I asked myself these questions many times on the long stretches.

Well, I’m sitting here at the caravan park enjoying a fire and a gentle breeze. It’s much warmer than in NSW (still a crisp 5 degrees) but no dew tonight. I would HIGHLY recommend staying at this place again - a cute, quaint little place, beautiful views, peaceful solitude but still with facilities and comfy grass. Very friendly folk. I’ll be back.

I don’t know when I’ll get to post again as we are about to go out of range, however I’ll keep writing and updating where I can. Take care till then and let me know if you have any questions! Till next time (or Uluru), MMG

What I've learned from today: Zero, absolutely ZERO fruit can cross the border haha!

Hey Hay!

Day: 2

Distance Traveled: 468kms
 

Weather: A beautiful, cool, sunny day

Today's Biggest Challenges: Felt sick and tired today so was a bit challenging.

Highlights of today: Caught our first glimpses of nothingness today - the Hay plains. Once you leave Hay there is an hour or two that is just NOTHING in all directions. It's funny seeing the road trains on the horizon like tiny specs with the sky seemingly under them in mirage. 

We also saw a number of emus! Funny birds with their messy, matted wings, stalking around like so many dull peacocks. Beautiful sunset (and extra daylight!) at Mildura this evening. AMAZING facilities here! We even get an oven haha!

What I've learned from today: More long days to contend with! Once again confirmed that having a relief rider was a great idea. I swapped out after Balranald as I was pretty tired - the heat and the sun in the face was a bit of a problem today. It was cool but the sun was hot in some strange paradox which also brought along its own special brand of fatigue. Got unintentionally dive-bombed several times by birds and other wildlife along the way - mainly pink galahs, crows and smaller animals crossing... Stu even had a scare with a kangaroo - so had to watch out for those, however, otherwise was a generally long, boring day, but still a great day to be out riding! We were lucky with the weather being so good, we may even miss all the rain all together (but I won't speak too soon haha!) Due to rain here tomorrow (we won't be here of course) and due to rain at our next stop the day after (and again, we shall have already left, so winning!). We are spending the night at Mildura (VIC) before heading across the final stretch of North-Western Victoria to the South Australian border - and a new time zone! Half an hour back we shall be, this time tomorrow... I simply don't know how we are going to manage to adjust! Haha! We can feel the days getting longer on the sunset end already. Well, I need to head to bed before another long day in the saddle. Will write again tomorrow. :)

Into the West

Day: 1
Distance Traveled: 497kms (Haywards Bay to Narranderra via Wagga)
Weather: Cool/cold, fine and sunny but with large extended areas of fog
Today's Biggest Challenges: The cold!! Numb fingers and legs. Loooooots of 110 highway.
Highlights of today: The beautiful sunshiney start and afternoon, hot coffees, the delish dinner and beautiful campsite (Lake Talbot is a lovely place to relax); meeting Stuart's friends Robyn and Ross, and the general great fellowship. Great to be on the road again. :)
What I've learned from today: That highways are awful boring, very conducive to 'highway hypnosis' and that having a swap out ri-
der is a very good idea! Kristal was sick last night and couldn't ride today so Stuart and I were on the bikes the whole time. Was a great day but the fog around Yass was new to us and it was VERY cold compared to the rest of the day. We had to stop more than normal to compensate for the time it took to warm up again, however the fog was gone by the time we got to Wagga and the rest of the journey was much more bearable temperature wise. Definitely worth leaving early and arriving early like we did as heading west means that the sun is in our face by sunset, it gets quite cold, animals are more prolific and the time pressures aren't ideal.
Plans for tomorrow: Up early again and off to Mildura via Hay. Locals say good chance of
fog in the morning and very straight roads (might see some emus!). Weather forecast for Mildura: Partly cloudy, zero chance of rain, light winds, 3-17 degrees.

An Epic Adventure

My friends!

Tomorrow I leave on an epic adventure. One where I am sure to learn a lot, see a lot and ride a lot. Three weeks motorcycle riding to the red heart of this country.
Truthfully, I'm rather nervous, but I suppose that is the result of having a dream worth stretching oneself for; a dream that becomes reality tomorrow. 

Really, I shouldn't say, 'tomorrow', as the seed has been there for a year and has sprouted and grown and changed and matured and finally, finally flowers in one grand adventure.

I don't know what to expect, I don't know all the outcomes. I have never ventured much past the eastern states and it is often difficult to imagine there being much that exists past the Great Dividing Range. However, change is inevitable and change it will tomorrow. And here's to welcoming it with open arms. 

I will write again tomorrow so you can join in on our little party of five.

Take care,

MMG