A minor 400 km diversion to Northam gave me a chance to complete my COVID vaccination. Cheated for a section on the way back with a van ride to Merredin. Escaped a day of pouring rain in the process. A quick pedal connected the dots back at Bruce Rock.

My Thai host Au at Bruce Rock roadhouse started my day with a peaceful morning chat laced with a touch of Buddhist philosophy. The quote that stuck was along the lines of “you start each day with the past behind you, unchangeable not to be carried forward as a burden”. In effect a fresh life starting from today. Fittingly the day started in sunshine, down to a single layer for the first time on the journey.

I headed to back roads getting onto some dirt. Great to be on the road with no fixed destination in mind. Ride until there is just enough light left to put up the tent. The second day brought me out onto the Great Eastern Highway for a short haul to Southern Cross. I spotted a service track for the huge Kalgoorlie water pipe parallel to the Highway. Grateful not to have to verge dodge the road trains on the highway.

The Palace Hotel was a memory from a trip with Barb in 2014. Huge classic verandas and arches - expecting horses to be hitched along the rails. Serious calculations happened over a beer in the pub. What was my my water consumption over 3 days. Foolishly I assumed I would be able to complete the 380 kms of my waterless route trial in three days rather the more sensible 4 days I had planned.

I headed off with the 15 kgs extra load my calculations had decided. I thought the load was heavy before, this required some grunt. Day one added 12 extra kms trying to avoid too much west-wind pointing roads. I got chased by a local farmer on his quad bike. “Are you lost? Do you realise there is nothing much out there beyond Bullfinch”. I managed to convince him I was semi sane and carried on with him shaking his head.

The 100 rough kilometres on day one convinced me my 3 days estimate was impossible. On the second day I struck mud bogs right across the road. Just mud I thought. No, this is Australian red gritty clay mud. Within a few metres every Orafice on the bike was clogged with great balls of red. Within minutes what started as sloppy mud turned to mud bricks, solid immovable chunks of bike-stopping glug. I knew then riding would be impossible if real rain hit. Of course that night it did. I lay in my tent doing water calculations as the rain pelted and wind howled.
Next morning thankfully just the wind was left. By the time I had packed up the muddy slush had already dried to a rideable surface.

Then I reached the top corner, the road turned eastward and the wind was finally at my back. I had spotted Hospital Rocks as a possible water source but it proved even better. A mini Wave Rock minus the tourists. Scenic peace and enough water even to lash out and rinse my tooth brush. Australia has this habit of hiding special places to compensate the long hard kilometres in between.
Reaching civilisation at Menzies I discovered it consisted of a pub and a caravan park. The pub was closed for renovations but held a small store of supplies and at least takeaway beer.

Onto Leonora yesterday. What proved to be a dangerously late start from Menzies left me finishing riding in the dark. Last time. Despite my large flashing light it was no place to be with road trains on home straight.
​
White House pub was like the Wild West including delightful scantily clad bar maid. Friendly welcoming, cheap, good food, and a bed. What more could I ask? Well I got great generosity with my entire rest stay free. Thanks so much White House.
This is the last turnoff point to head east out of WA - just preparing my risk management plan for the permit to pass through the remote communities of the Great Central Road. Glad to find the authorities have common sense in their expectations of a slow slow cyclist and have extended the 3 day limit on the permit.here to edit.

Palace Hotel Southern Cross - an icon revisited

The turning point to ride with the wind - Bullfinch Evanston Road

My Private version of Wave Rock. Hospital Rock first water for 280km

The route north past Bullfinch

Breakfast cafe Hospital Rock

Water!!!

Menzies CBD. Pub and shop. Pub closed

Although it has taken over a thousand kilometres- finally body and mind are in sync. The ride is no longer a minute by minute check of the distance travelled. The thousand tweaks of load and balance have been made. Gear has been off loaded ahead to Alice Springs. As a friend from my Africa ride advised “bike touring requires head up enjoying the now”. The colourful flash of flocks of parakeets above or the gnarled old gum to the left - let the kilometres flow unnoticed.

From Albany the waves of South West storm fronts turned the Mundabiddi trail into a slow sludgy slog. Timetable dictated a change of plan. A quick race north to beat the storm fronts sweeping in. Through Mount Barker and the Stirling Range. Shelter for a night in the Borden travellers park bus shelter. Regroup at Lake Grace to get a replacement camera sent ahead (lost in a crash on the Munda Biddi trail). It also allowed booking a second Pfizer shot in the WA health system (with a minor 350km diversion back west).

Places like Pingarup and Kondinin provided shire-owned caravan parks all empty and ideal stops for a wet cyclist. Kulin provided quirky steel sculptures along the Tin Horse Highway. Great hospitality at Bruce Rock truck stop with the Arnold’s - Mavericks of the community but with peace of Thai buddism allowing the lady owner to balance her husbands “take no prisoners” approach to life.

The turn westward took the wind head on into the quaint historic town of York and today Northam - my vaccination site for Tuesday.

Tin Horse Highway sculptures

Bruce Rock Roadhouse. Peaceful Thai and full on Aussie hospitality

A day on slushy red dirt and the bike needed warm shelter. What mud?

Cycling companion leaves me at Shackleton store.

Local Shackleton artwork

Quairading was closest so I headed that way

Rare Aussie eucalypts against the next rain wave (OK not so rare)

On the road to Northam

Classic Aussie farmhouse

Safely in Albany despite the waves of COVID hitting Australia. Luck or foresight landed me in Albany - outside the Perth lockdown area. A moment of heart in mouth approaching the Police checkpoint on the outskirts of Perth - but saved by my G2G pass (one of the documents required for WA travel).

Tonight I am hoping for the Perth lockdown to be dropped as my planned path on the Mundabiddi Trail takes me back into the lockdown area. Today my bags were sent to friends at the end-point in Coffs Harbour - so its bike or nothing.

Albany holds a unique place in Anzac history as the fleet departure point for the WWI fleet. A huge convoy combining ships both from New Zealand and Australia.

Middleton Beach Albany and the great Australian south coast

The southern terminus of the Munda Biddi trail - my route back north towards Perth (COVID lockdowns permitting)

1062 kilometres of epic cyclic trail

Albany as well as being the gateway to the beautiful South-West coast - manages to retain some historic character in the town centre