My Proactive Life!

Winton to Augathella

Winton Sunrise

Daryl had the right idea today – he woke up early, and said ‘bugger trying to sleep anymore when this gorgeous day is waiting’, and started his ride at 5:30am! He got to see the sunrise (which I’ve been attempting to do each day, as well as catching the sunset pics from wherever we end up. You can see these in most of the folders I’ve created for each day of the ride.) We were underway by 7:30am on another long stretch to the next stop – Longreach.

Since we’d spent a sizable amount of time in Longreach last year, we stopped at the Qantas Founders Museum so Sharon could pop in and buy a couple of gifts. I hung around outside in the sunshine & shade taking some pics and keeping my fluids up. I also took the opportunity to line my bike up near the parked 747 and take some pics – some would say ‘you and that bloody bike’, or ‘taking pics of the bike again?’. That bike is a part of me, and I’m simply capturing it in as many places that have meaning to me along the way. It’s also one of the most distinctive bikes we had on the Black Dog Ride, so why wouldn’t you take pics of it?

Barcaldine

Drinking so much to keep my fluids up had the side effect of needing a loo break quite regularly (which I prefer to dehydration and sickness), and on the odd occasion the loo break turned into something interesting – check out this pic looking through one of the breezeblocks in the public toilet in Barcaldine (aka ‘Barcy’ to the locals)! After morning tea (coffee) for the gang, we headed off towards Blackall. I got to see this road in daylight this year, and I’m saddened to say that I can only remember this road for one main reason: roadkill. This stretch of road had the most roadkill that we’d seen that any other stretch of road on the trip so far. So much so, I called it the Roadkill Highway. The others commented that it was probably a goof thing I could not smell anything (due to my cold) as it was pretty stinky. That’s finding the positive in the negative!

Warning!

We fuelled the bikes and ourselves at Blackall, and bumped into Zephyr & Paige again. They were merrily plodding along a similar route to us, however we were travelling quicker and resting for longer which would see us cross paths a couple more times.

Tambo Teddies

Off to Tambo next, with another stop at the Tambo Teddies shop to see what was on offer. The weather was much better this year at Tambo (compared to the rain & drizzle we had all the way from Blackall through to Mitchell in 2010). Beautiful sunshine and blue skies greeted us this time! It’s a shame that there were hardly any ‘small’ teddies/animals for sale at the Tambo Teddies shop this year. The lady explained they just don’t have the time to make them! This was a disappointment as I didn’t want to buy 2 large teddies for the boys, and something small (like a mouse) would be easy to squeeze into the fairly packed luggage.

Ellangowan Hotel

We’d ridden off to our home for the night in Augathella after hearing from Daryl that he’d scored a house large enough himself & Dave, as well as the rest of us (Brady bunch). Because of Daryl’s early start, he’d arrived 3 hours before I showed up. An early start almost always means an early start at the pub at the end of the day ) Once the rest of the gang arrived, we made our way to the local Pub (the gorgeous Ellangowan Hotel, as seen in the pic). We had a few drinks and dinner and wandered back to the house for chatting and shenanigans…although most went straight to bed!. Augathella to Dalby tomorrow!

Riding time

Up bright and early for our trip out of Mt Isa towards Winton. The first stop was Cloncurry, after a great run of easy twisties which was a welcome relief from the long, straight roads we’d experienced from all the way back at Port Augusta!

Zephyr & Paige

Zephyr & Paige.Whilst at the service station, we met a couple who were on a riding trip from Darwin to the Hunter Valley – they were riding a Tenere, and from the look of it, there wasn’t a spare spot on the bike to store anything! They had a huge aluminium box on the back, as well as custom-made panniers, and sleeping gear strapped to the crash bars. Once they were on the bike there wasn’t much space at all – Paige had only been on the back of the bike for no more than 1 hour prior to their trip, and we’re sure this will be the last ‘big’ trip she undertakes! During the next couple of days we bumped into them at various stops along the way. Best of luck to you both on your journey

McKinlay

Since Three Ways, I had been taking cold & flu tablets to try and overcome my cough & stuffy/runny nose, but they hadn’t really done the trick. In Cloncurry, I was made to purchase stronger cold & flu tablets, as well as Senega & Ammonia (which Sharon called ‘Synagogue of Ammonia’). I could not taste anything so the taste was lost on me, but I have been told it tastes quite bad. After we scoffed a meat pie (a sloppy, scalding-hot abomination) we headed off to McKinley. A sense of dejavu came over me as I’d ordered the same lunch at the McKinley roadhouse that I had ordered last year – a burger with the lot

Winton

We’d been leap-frogging some of the other riders on the same route all day so we’d see the same people at the same stops. Kim had a particular dislike for Kev ‘The Garden Gnome’ from WA, and it seemed that everywhere we went…there he was! Kim took great enjoyment from passing him along the road or getting out of a stop before he did. Another stop at the Kynuna Roadhouse before heading off for the final stint into Winton.

Winton is one of my favourite towns that we visited. I’d happily come back here again, and bring the family so we can check out the Dinosaur attractions that Winton’s famed for.

Birthday!

Almost all of the riders were staying in the same caravan park and we’d decided to head to the Tattersalls (Tatts) Hotel for dinner. We’d also been informed that two of the crew shared a birthday, so it was a pseudo birthday dinner for Mick & Sharon. The publican was a wonderful host bringing out the port for us all to share to celebrate the occasion after I’d arranged a piece of chocolate cake for each of them – everyone joined in with the birthday song

Here comes the sun...

Three Ways, NT to Mt Isa, QLD

This journey was to take us along the Barkly Highway, which from memory was one of the most boring parts of our journey last year. The road is fairly straight, it’s hot (36C in 2010, 32C in 2011), and windy – there are no trees, bushes, hills or anything to stop the wind, so you end up being battered around for a few hours. The last fuel stop before the NT/QLD border is tshe Barkly Homestead, which is a great little place out in the middle of the Barkly Highway. If I’m ever out this way again, I’ll probably choose to stay here rather than at the Three Ways!

Where to?

Once we filled up and headed towards the Queensland border, James pulled over and decided to fill up from the jerry can in the car rather than risk running out somewhere along the ride. It’s one thing to run out of fuel if you’re the only person on the bike, but since Sharon is a pillion, there’s an extra person to think about, too. My bike’s been even more brilliant this trip fuel economy wise, as it’s been using 5.5L per 100km (or about 17km per litre), good enough for approx 260km per tank. So far, the largest fill I’ve done is 18L, meaning I could still travel for another 50-odd km! The longest part of the trip with no fuel was between the Barkly Homestead and Camooweal, the first town across the QLD border.

Barkly

We had a quick stop in Camooweal as we were running later than we wanted, and had to be in Mt Isa by 6pm before the Caravan Park closed. We made it as far as the next rest stop before needing to pull over and stave off the waves of tiredness. There are many ways in which riders will try and stave off tiredness: some of these methods work well, some do not, but the results will depend on each individual. James has been scoffing jelly snakes (which Sharon has been hand delivering to him whilst riding), whereas I’ve required a VRedBullMonsterMother energy hit sometime in the afternoon to help me get through. Fatigue is something to be managed by whichever means possible. Starting earlier in the day is usually the best method for not having to ride so much in the late afternoon/early evening. Unfortunately we’ve had many late starts on this trip, necessitating resorting to other means for energy…

The moment we reachd the outskirts of Mt Isa our phones went crazy with SMS messages and missed calls. I finally linked my phone to the headset on my helmet and made a call to the Caravan Park, then to the family, and held the conversation whilst trundling through Mt Isa to our destination! I have yet to master the making/taking calls hands-free so not likely to try it anytime soon.

Once we pitched the tents, it was time to head over to the Overlander Hotel for dinner – we came here last year and had a decent meal for $8 and gave it another go. None of our meals were good – the lamb roast looked less like ‘lamb roast’ and more like ‘chunks of old meat’ with some sad looking tinned/frozen veges. The crumbed barramundi looked like deep fried chicken, and the cannelloni was overcooked and had gone hard on the top. The dessert order took 6 goes to get it right, but at least they looked OK. A number of the other riders had gone to a pub for early birthday celebrations for Mick from Port Macquarie. We should have joined them, I think their meals were pretty good!

Sunrise

I departed Lasseters at 8am for an early start to the day, deciding to ride with Daryl & Dave as James had some personal business to do in Alice Springs. They eventually departed at 10am.

Although it was a long day, they always seem to go quickly when you get started early enough in the morning. We made our way to Ti-Tree for our first stop of the day where we caught up with Jim & Keith from WA (Jim’s leaving his bike in Brisbane to fly home, and Keith’s still on his trip and will continue all the way through to WA over the next couple of weeks).

Old boots

We stopped at Barrow Creek for a pit-stop and tried to find DazzaB’s $2 note stuck to the wall (with all manner of other memorabilia like student ID’s, licenses, currency, business cards and pictures). The place has a few relics hanging around such as a pair of old boots, an old driveway bell ringer and a PMG box.

Black Dog Aliens

The trip was fairly uneventful as there wasn’t much to see or stop for along the way. I didn’t stop at the same places as last year as I took enough pictures last year (see my Day 9 Pictures from the 2010 BlackDogRide). We then stopped at Wycliffe Well (the home of UFOs) for more pictures of funny aliens and interesting signs related to aliens The caravan park was deserted, with various statues of characters around the park, including the Hulk (who had me in a headlock) as well as aliens, monsters and Elvis!

VFR800

We wandered up to Tennant Creek where we hung out and chatted in Daryl & Dave’s motel room until James, Sharon & Kim arrived after their delayed start from Alice Springs (2 hours behind). We then scooted up to Three Ways to camp for the night. We met up with a bunch of other riders from the Port Macquarie region who we’d gotten to know well after the Black Dog Ride had finished, although we all left Hills Motorcycles together 8 days previously!

Tents!

As the Black Dog Ride was officially over, a number of people had departed Glen Helen early, whilst others took their time waking up/packing up and getting the day underway. After breakfast, I joined Jim & Chris in climbing up the rocks of Glen Helen. I’m not exactly sure what to call them, so hopefully the pictures will help explain where we went!

We had a good chat about depression and how it’s affected each of us – I don’t have it, but through the Black Dog Ride, and great people like Jeff Marsh, Jim Seymour and James Pralija, I’ve come to understand it more, and also understand how it has (and still does) affect their lives. It’s the personal conversations that are the most powerful way to understand and reduce the stigma of depression.

Glen Helen Gorge

Once we returned to terra firma, Jim went for a chilly swim whilst Chris & I dipped a foot (or 2) into the water. I headed back to the resort to catch up with the others who had a big sleep-in after a night of frivolity, chatting and shenanigans with Ash, the lovely lady who made the Black Dog Ride event at Glen Helen a success!

Time seemed to slip away today, until Sharon came over and advised that she’d just bought a helicopter ride for James & I! We had to wait a while before getting on board, and the pilot managed to get me to measure  something I’ve not measured for more than 6 months: my weight (which is used to help calculate take-off weight and such). In case you want to know, I am 81Kg There are some pics in the slideshow at the bottom of the post, and you can see a sneak preview video of the take-off and initial flight:

Brady Bunch

After that, time seemed to keep on slipping, to the point where we were packed and ready to go at 4pm! Still no swim for me in the Glen Helen water this time around, but another sunset ride (this time away from the sun) back to Alice to settle into Lasseters, grab a quick swim (I dived in, swam to the other end then got out quickly – the water was freezing!. We chose to eat at the Juicy Bar in the premises – it was a little chilly at night in the Juicy Bar, and we were well entertained by the wait staff and security trying to light the ‘Dalek’ heaters. In the end they managed to fire up 2 of the 7 heaters and left the rest in a huddle, forgotten and lonely (it does not do your customer service any good to tell patrons that no-one filled up the gas bottles).

There was a bushfire smell and smoke all over Alice Springs from controlled burning – I even snapped a pic or 2 – it looked spectacular but the smoke made for difficult breathing for most of the night.