Distance today 75km at 16km/hr average
Total distance 3788km. Donations $6162.09. Deserts 4/10. Days remaining 84
Note to new readers: I am travelling with my bike who’s name is Banjo. I often refer to ‘we’ meaning Banjo and I. ‘We’ have an amazing support team of family, friends, sponsors and folk we meet each day. But it’s still up to ‘us’ to face the challenge and tackle each day one peddle at a time.
It’s 730pm on Friday the 25 June 2021.
Happy full moon everyone. The night sky is clear and bright with his handsome face shining down on our camp here at Warburton Roadhouse. The campgrounds are inside a compound with full security so we’re safe and sound and been able to turn off and clean ourselves and the kit with peace of mind. The clothes are in the dryer, me and the boy are all squeaky clean, and I’ve been able to call the family and catch up on home stories. It’s the start of school holidays back in Brisbane and my family are relieved to enjoy some down time and special outings during the next two weeks. My love is with you darlings.
I woke this morning at our camp to a stunning sky of morning light and moonshine. The birds were waking up and singing their ‘hellos.’ What a beautiful way to start the day.
The dew overnight was heavy so it was a sloppy pack up camp with red dirt sticking to everything. We had time to unpack the gear and dry it out in the sunshine this afternoon so it’s all good as gold again. It was an uneventful night and I think I had my best sleep yet. So I was feeling all afresh to tackle the 75km into Warburton.
Early on in the ride I met a young group of environmental workers travelling to Wiluna for a field trip along the Canning Stock Route. They need to take samples of soils and flora for their studies and they were super interesting to talk to. They’ll be in Wiluna for a few days and it’s likely we will meet up again in their travels. We’re on a promise to share a dinner date if it works. Thanks to Emrys, Luke, Augie, Ashwin, Millie and Lily for our short time shared and all the best for your field trip. They sent us on our way with some chocolate and dried mango which I enjoyed over the breaks in our ride. They’re also keen to follow our story and share our challenge on their socials.
We had our first break in between red sand dunes which the road cut through.
Over the next kms we met Jacob and Mwana from McKay. They were also very keen to know more about our challenge and share it with their friends. They told me about a man who is currently doing a fundraising walk barefoot from Cairns to Sydney. I may have those cities wrong but regardless it’s an epic effort. Those poor feet oh my goodness!!!!
The desert country was showing off its unique beauty on a day that was clear albeit a bit windy and fresh. But the wind shifted to vary between a tail/side wind which made dealing with the corrugations heaps easier.
It was very satisfying to finally arrive in Warburton at 2pm with plenty of time for choirs and catch-up with family.
The amount of security was an eye opener with the campgrounds inside a locked compound
Rosemary and Tom from Victoria are camped next to us. They set out on a 1 year trip that has turned into 3 years. They reassess every year and have no plans of stopping any time soon. They’re loving life on the road and have rented out their house to fund their travels. They both enjoy mountain biking and have cycled a number of famous tracks in Australia including the Munda Biddi Trail. This track is a long-distance mostly off-road cycling trail in Western Australia. It runs for over 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from Mundaring to Albany. It sounds amazing and I hope to experience it one day. They’re on the look out for new bikes and we’re keen to check out Banjo and know more about fat tyre bikes. He loved the attention. At that stage he was a dirty boy with red mud everywhere so he was looking like a rugged desert adventurer 🤣
We’re mostly ready to head off in the morning for the next 3 days from Warburton to Tjukayirla. We will average 82km each day and all going well, will arrive Tjukayirla on Monday afternoon. Personal safety remains our first priority and we promise to keep ourselves safe and sound to share the next stage. Time for dinner and bed. Talk soon xx
The 10 desert challenge 