A collection of long distance ride reports by Melvyn Yap
Day 70: No Whales? No Worries!
May 24th, 2011
Nullarbor to 60km east of WA border
Distance: 132km
Total distance: 3824km
Took off from the Nullarbor Roadhouse with the hope of seeing some whales today and a strawberry milkshake on my left hand. Milkshake was crap, I didn’t get to see any whales, and it drizzled this morning. But not all was bad. I had an awesome smooth and flat road beneath my wheels the entire day. The treeless plain continues for about a couple of hours before a few trees emerged but it was still largely scrubs. I can never understand why drivers think that Nullarbor is all dull and nothing much to see. I found the exact opposite. The landscape changes significantly in my day to day ride and the view just gets better and better as I progressed deeper into the Nullarbor.
The backpackers where I stayed at the Nullarbor roadhouse. Basically just a small room with a bed and a light switch, not even an AC outletLoaded all 10 litres of water onto my trike, this is truly an ultimate touring machineThe only whale I saw todayUpping my energy level for another 100km+ day rideForget about the whales, watching these beasts was equally just as exciting!Whoa... truly an amazing piece of engineeringTook off my shoe cover as it interfered with my fresh wound. All prepared for some funky tan lines afterwardsIn a vast open plain stood a lonesome treeOh, hello again!This flock of birds were behaving strangely. They stood/sat on the road while facing south and kept moving forward whenever I came close to them. This went on for about 500m. These water tanks can be found at a few rest stops, but it says there drink at your own riskDue to rain in the recent months, Nullarbor was all lush green, not quite the arid land I imaginedRoyal Flying Doctor Service emergency landing areaI'm 99% sure that the camel sign was stolen
About 60km of riding, the road brought me to about 500m from the edge of the flat plain. Where the land meets the Great Australian Bight was a 200km long stretch of 100m high limestone cliff. If you think the cliffs at GOR is great, this will instantly kill you. I know my jaw dropped as I walked towards the edge of one of the several lookouts. The 100m drop from the flat plain to the sea was just mind blowing.
One of the turn off to view the Great Australia BightWhere the open plain meets the Great Australian Bight, an awesomely jaw-dropping view!Keeping a safe distance from the edge, note the strong windMore awesome views!I put off the thought of camping here. I could easily end up like the guy there when I come out from my tent to take a loo in the darkness
For the rest of the day, I plugged in my iPod and happily rode along the highway knowing the fact that I was riding about 500-1000m from the awesome cliff. I had crosswind from the ocean (southerly) almost the entire ride and an overcast sky that gave me a good shade throughout.
Singing out loud makes riding even more enjoyable!Sunset today 🙂
I wasn’t trying to make it to the border today, so I found myself a nice camping spot about 200m off the highway and 60km before the border and settled down. Built a campfire and had a nice hot meal of noodle and canned veggies. The sunset today was beautiful! Overall, I had a very enjoyable day. Cycle touring as how it should be. Looking forward to more great riding and bush camping in my remaining ride here in Nullarbor.
About 250m off the highway lies a great campsite, complete with campfire pit and hidden from the highway trafficSuccess in building a campfire! With a little blessing from methylated spirit that is!Errr.. perhaps a little too successful? Not only I was at risk of causing a bushfire and put in jail but also at risk of turning my worldly possessions into ashesAdded a second layer of rocks around the fire to block out the wind. Problem solved!Instant noodle cooked in canned meal? Ingenius!Made a honey drink from the remaining honey I had, otherwise it'll be confiscated by the border guards tomorrowMost of my 10 litres of water stored in this container, feels awesome to solve problems all on my own XD
