The road was like a lifeless pitch after lunch on the second day.
Straight drive
It offered no surprises: gun-barrel straight.
Straight drive
The longest straight stretch of road in Australia.
Straight drive
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Caiguna to Balladonia
Straight drive
At the famous Nullarbor Roadhouse is this old fashioned bowser and petrol station. It’s not the actual petrol pump; it’s within a fenced off area for tourists to take a photo. It’s the equivalent of all Australians telling Americans that we all ride kangaroos.
What were the skies like when you were young?
They went on forever
And the skies always had little fluffy clouds in them and, er
They were long and clear and
There were lots of stars at night
And, er, when it would rain it would all turn, it, they were beautiful
The most beautiful skies, as a matter of fact
Uh, the sunsets were
Purple and red and yellow and on fire
And the clouds would catch the colors everywhere
That’s unique, ’cause I used to look at them all the time when I was little…
With a bed of stone and sand, the ephemeral creeks of this area still support large trees and unique ecosystems. When they are not carrying water, the trees along the banks provide shade; an important commodity in its own right.
Driving north towards Outback South Australia and Ilkara-Flinders Ranges National Park. The park’s mountains have been looming over the horizon for the last 100km, slowly revealing their shape and structure. At first a dark hued haze on the horizon before the orange folds and laminations of the rock were close enough to catch my attention, like I knew they would.
Within the park, the Ediacaran Golden Spike has been carefully placed here to mark a visible change in Earth geological epochs. The dramatic change in the colour of the strata from dark brown to a pale yellow is significant in ways an appreciate but am not expert.
Driving Goyder Highway on the wrong side of the Surveyor General’s line…
…but on the other side of the line, you don’t always breathe diesel and dust.
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Ochre cloud
Overhead
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DURING DUST STORMS
TURN ON LIGHTS
REDUCE SPEED
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Dusty drizzle
Decelerate
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A cold front and associated trough. That means rain is imminent, probably tomorrow, on the first day of my tour.
My pre-booked campsite at Mamanga has already been cancelled by NPWS; pre-empting flooding, mitigating risks. The forecast is for “4-15mm”; so it’s not a deluge but enough to put a dampener on things. I’ll be on a wet pitch; a green top. Patience, son. Keep your eye on the ball. Play it under your nose.
The first ball of a five match Test Series sets the tone for the 25 days of cricket that will follow. Steve Harmison knows about that. I am excited to hold a ticket to see the first ball on the first day of the first test in this year’s Ashes series, in Perth.
So, as I prepare for my personal test of endurance, navigation and Temu-bushman skills, I contemplate how tomorrow, the first day, will set the tone of my 50 day trek across this nation?