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Journal: |
I woke soon after 3am and was on the road by 3:45am, feeling very
tired. Unfortunately, the southerly wind had got stronger
during the night and it was an effort to make reasonable speed.
Around 5:30am, as always seems to happen to me, I got very sleepy
but managed to keep myself going until the sun rose and my
motivation rose.
I reached Burke & Wills Roadhouse around
9am and enjoyed a hearty breakfast while watching their TV and the
passing clientele. It was turning into a sunny, warm and windy
day and I restocked with fluids and snacks as it was becoming
increasingly apparent to me that I wouldn’t reach Cloncurry (181km)
at an hour when I could buy food. I therefore needed enough to
get me to Mount Isa, the next town.
The afternoon turned
into a great trial. The road gradually climbed into higher
country capped with occasional rocky tors and the headwind became
ferocious. At times I could barely manage to keep my speed
above 10kph and I remember another time where I had to weave to
dodge tumbleweeds roaring down the road towards me. It was
very tiring riding, with no respite, and I began taking a break
every 20 kilometres to recover.
Around 6pm I reached to
isolated bush pub at Quamby and decided to stop for a meal and cold
drinks. It was a very authentic pub, with very few patrons
(who had a few jokes about the wind at my expense), and the barman
said I could camp in the grounds for free if I wanted. I
declined, saying I wanted to get at least to Cloncurry for the night
I ordered the only food on the menu, rissoles and vegetables, and
sat on the pub’s front verandah watching the sun set while it was
prepared.
I then continued riding southwards into the wind
towards Cloncurry, reaching the major road junction just to the west
of the town around 9:30pm, completely spent. It was too late
to bother with a motel, so I found a bare patch of ground near the
junction, spread out my swag and quickly went to sleep. I
should have the wind with me tomorrow as I head for Mount Isa, but
have 313km to Camooweal, my target town for the night and have to
make a call into the Post Office in Mount Isa to collect some things
Sharon has mailed, including a spare tyre. It could be a long
day.
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