Day 4 - Innot Hot Springs to Undara lava tubes - 115kms
Last night, after dinner, I had another dip in the pools before bedtime! It is was an effort to leave the pools this morning, but I was on the road by 8am. The weather was a little misty to start with. I stopped in Mount Garnet for an early second breakfast. And what a breakfast, it was huge.
As I continued the sun started to come out and I had a gentle tailwind. There wasn't much traffic, mainly just grey nomads waving and taking a picture of me from their vans! The scenery became a lot more scrubby. I went past swathes of grevillea which were in flower. I stopped a couple of times to stretch, drink and eat. I got to my destination at around 4.15pm. I am staying at Undara, which is where the volcanic lava tubes are located. I was hoping to go on an early morning tour tomorrow but they were already booked out. So I am going on the 1pm tour. This will give me a little time tomorrow to do a couple of walks. Tonight will be the first night camping. Will be eating at the bar instead of cooking. Today has been a long day riding, but the weather was great. It will also mean I will have a shorter ride tomorrow. |
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Day 5 - Rest day at Undara
After dinner last night it was great to sit outside my tent and watch the stars. It was such a nice evening, especially now the rain has gone.
I had a great sleep last night. I have decided to have a rest day here today. This morning, after breakfast, I went for a couple of walks. The first one took me to Atkinson's Lookout. It was about 20 minute walk to the lookout. I had a great view south to an area called The Granites.
Instead of returning the same way I followed the path to The Bluff. Which was about 30 minutes away. The weather was great. Once I was at the top of The Bluff I was treated to more great views. The view this time was of the wooded lava plains and to some of the volcanoes in the area. I continued down to the track near the swamp. Here I was able to see some kangaroos before heading back to the lodge. In all, the walk took a couple of hours and was lush with wildlife.
I grabbed some lunch back at the campsite before joining the 1pm tour to the lava tunnels. The tour was full (42 people in all) so we split up into two groups. The lava tunnels are in total around 100km long. It was pretty cool to be walking through these massive tunnels which were formed by red hot lava. The tour guide was very informative and pointed out the geology of the area. It was great that the group was split in two, as the tour felt nice and small.
After the lava tunnel tour I decided to enjoy the pool and relax for the remainder of the day. I've really enjoyed my time here. From what used to be an old cattle station they have done a nice job to become a very friendly tourist destination. Tomorrow I'm back on the bike and heading towards Mount Surprise.
I had a great sleep last night. I have decided to have a rest day here today. This morning, after breakfast, I went for a couple of walks. The first one took me to Atkinson's Lookout. It was about 20 minute walk to the lookout. I had a great view south to an area called The Granites.
Instead of returning the same way I followed the path to The Bluff. Which was about 30 minutes away. The weather was great. Once I was at the top of The Bluff I was treated to more great views. The view this time was of the wooded lava plains and to some of the volcanoes in the area. I continued down to the track near the swamp. Here I was able to see some kangaroos before heading back to the lodge. In all, the walk took a couple of hours and was lush with wildlife.
I grabbed some lunch back at the campsite before joining the 1pm tour to the lava tunnels. The tour was full (42 people in all) so we split up into two groups. The lava tunnels are in total around 100km long. It was pretty cool to be walking through these massive tunnels which were formed by red hot lava. The tour guide was very informative and pointed out the geology of the area. It was great that the group was split in two, as the tour felt nice and small.
After the lava tunnel tour I decided to enjoy the pool and relax for the remainder of the day. I've really enjoyed my time here. From what used to be an old cattle station they have done a nice job to become a very friendly tourist destination. Tomorrow I'm back on the bike and heading towards Mount Surprise.
Day 6 -Undara to Georgetown - 145kms
This morning I was away at 7.30am. It is very overcast but once I was on the main road I had a nice tailwind. Thanks to the breeze I got to Mount Surprise at 10am. Ended up having breakfast with a guy I met at the campsite the previous evening. After breakfast I was moving again at 11am. I was going to take the dirt road down to Einasleigh, but I was advised it is pretty muddy down there due to the rain we have been having. So instead I stayed on the main road to Georgetown.
I was playing dodge the showers during the day. Sky was sometimes very grey. I stopped for lunch next to the river at Einasliegh Bridge. It was a great little spot to hang out for a while whilst I enjoyed my lunch. After lunch I continued my ride. I was hoping to stop at a creek about 15kms from Georgetown. As I got to the creek the dark clouds rolled in and dumped a ton of rain. It didn't look like it was going to clear so I decided I would push on to Georgetown and grab a room at the caravan park. I got to Georgetown around 4.30pm. Georgetown is a small place with a population of 250. Has three servos and only one pub. I went to the pub for my evening feed. For a Monday night the locals were pretty lively. Maybe it was because of the full moon! The weather certainty could had been a little dryer today. At least I had a nice tailwind which helped me a lot to get to my destination today. Tomorrow the kms should be a lot less. |
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