Day 37 - Nitmiluk National Park to Edith Falls - 92kms
I was away very early this morning at 6am. It was still dark so I had my lights on. I got to Katherine by 7.30am and took the bike path over the old rail bridge. The path continued for five or so kilometres before rejoining the main highway.
There were a few undulating hills today. The turnoff to Edith Falls is about 40kms north of Katherine. It was then another 20km until I got to the falls. Leaving early ensured i got here before 11am. It meant I didn't have to cycle during the heat of the day and the campground fills up quickly. To camp here costs $10. I found a nice shady spot to pitch my tent. There is also a kiosk which does drinks and burgers which were pretty yummy. After feeding myself I went for a walk to the upper falls. It was about a 2.5km circuit walk. It took about 40 minutes to get to the upper falls. It was very pretty. I had a swim here under the waterfall. So refreshing. I spent about a hour in the pool before continuing my walk back down to the campsite. When I got back to camp it was warm. So for the remainder of the afternoon I swam in the pool near the campsite and read my book under some shady trees. Edith Falls is a very relaxing spot to get out of the heat of the sun. |
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Day 38 - Edith Falls to Pine Creek - 67kms
When I was packing up to leave a guy who had saw me out near Lawn Hill came over to say "hi". We both had came the same route across and agreed that sometimes the dirt roads were pretty average!
I was away just after 7am. I had to follow the road I came in for the first 20km. I then rejoined the Stuart Highway. There were a convoy of charity cars heading north. So a little bit busier than normal. But the drivers were generally good. It was surprisingly overcast this morning. This helped keep the temperature down a few degrees. As I was riding along a car pulled up in front of me. It was a teacher I had met at Roper Bar. He and is colleagues were showing science projects to indigenous kids in the bush. He was heading back to Darwin to catch his flight to Alice Springs. A couple more kilometres later I met a touring cyclist from Germany heading south. He is spending two years on the road and had cycled from Germany to Australia. In Australia he was heading for the Tanami Track and then along the Oodnadatta Track where he'd join the Mawson Trail to Adelaide. Around 11.30am I arrived a Pine Creek. It is a small town with a couple of pubs/caravan parks. This is my destination for the day. It is certainly nice to have the cycling done nice and early each day. As it keeps me out of the heat and I can enjoy a bit of time in the pool. Later on during the day I found out there was a rodeo in town in the evening. So off I went to the rodeo. It was certainly a different way to spend your Friday night. There was plenty of bull riding, lassoing the bulls and racing horses. During one of the bull rides the bull somehow managed to jump the fence and made his bid for freedom. Sadly, for the bull, they caught him. I didn't get to bed until 11pm, so will see what time I get up tomorrow. |
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Day 39 - Pine Creek to Burrell Creek - 101kms
I was surprised that I was still able to get up by 5am this morning. Which meant, as usual, I could be riding by around 6.30am. Yesterday was unusually overcast, but today looks like the blue sky is back.
My first destination for the day was Hayes Creek. Which is about 55kms away. I had a slight tailwind and was able to get there before 10am. I stopped here for second breakfast. They also have a nice looking campground with a couple of pools. As it was still very early I decided to ride on. About 5kms after Hayes Creek I had a choice. Continue on the Stuart Highway and go to Adelaide River or take the scenic route along Dorat Road. The scenic route is around an extra 15km cycling. I picked the scenic route, as I was hoping to get away from the traffic for the rest of the day. I was not disappointed with my choice. Straight away the road felt a lot quieter. I only saw the odd car every 15 minutes or so. No road trains and hardly any caravans. It was so much more relaxing. As it was getting near to lunchtime it began to warm up. I found a nice spot to have lunch at Burrell Creek. I decided to stop here, as I wanted one last night bush camp on my own before I head into Litchfield National Park. It was nice to have a quieter camp spot. It was a shame there wasn't much water in the creek, as a cooling paddle would had been nice. Tomorrow I will pass through Adelaide River and then onto Bachelor. Tomorrow it will be just three more nights until I get to Darwin. |
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