Heading east with the masterchefs!

Well, the heavens opened up around 2am this morning and it has been wet and raining all day. I set off at about 7am from Norseman and the first two hours were particularly awful with teeming rain and wind. On the upside the wet weather meant that there weren’t many caravans and other vehicles out on the road so the traffic was light and the conditions were good for cycling.

For the first time in the journey to date , I started travelling east after reaching the most south western point yesterday at Norseman. It was a really hilly ride today though which made it difficult to get into a rhythm, the heart rate would go up on the uphill and slow right down on the way down only to go straight back up again. Not much wildlife around either, we only saw one dingo for the whole 190km.

The scenery continues to be fantastic, I was riding through another national park today so there were lots of gum trees and the occasional lake that had filled up with all the rain but would normally be dry.

Not sure why but I was feeling a bit sick for the last 40km but we arrived in Balladonia around 1.30pm and I’m feeling much better now that I have had something to eat.

With all this miserable weather it’s lucky that I have my gourmet meals to look forward to which are being whipped up by the Masterchefs! Last night KT cooked up a delicious Syrian Chicken Curry which received a perfect 10/10 from me! Tonight Petah is preparing an Asian cabbage salad with toasted almonds and crunchy noodles served with teriyaki chicken, followed by fresh fruit cake and custard for dessert… YUM!

It will be another 190km day to reach to Cocklebiddy tomorrow so looking forward to a good rest tonight. Unfortunately we have no reception at Balladonia so there are no new photos and videos, hopefully we will get reception in Cocklebiddy tomorrow.

Craig

First day out for the 3B support crew

As I left Kalgoorlie at 6am this morning there was a tear in the eyes of the remaining support crew who had to return home on an 8am flight after spending 14 days on the journey. They all agreed that the trip was better than they thought and had experienced something special. Thanks again guys.

My new crew started with a picture perfect day as the sun starting showing its brilliance about 15 kilometres out of Kalgoorlie. Today was a 187km ride through Kambalda and then onto the Esperance Highway and south to Norseman. The traffic this morning was worse than peak hour in Sydney. We thought the mine changeover of shifts was at 6am, but it appears they all leave town at that time to get to the nickel and gold mines near Kambalda. After passing this town the traffic eased and I made my way south along the Esperance Highway which had gentle undulations and long straights. The landscape changed to thick gum tree forests where it appeared someone had varnished the trunks of all the trees. Instead of looking like a ghost gum, each tree had a beautiful vanish glow to the trunk and glossy leaves.

As we came within 50km’s of Norseman the scenery changed with large open areas of dried lake beds. Some of the lakes still had minimal amounts of water and others were just sand flats. The contrast in the landscape is amazing and again your head is crossing from one side of the road to the other.

We arrived in Norseman just after lunchtime after a six hour cycle and have been welcomed by the Gateway Caravan Park. Tonight will be the first one out for the new support crew and the “Masterchefs” are already preparing the menu to try and out do the previous male dominated support crews.

Again, thanks to Kalgoorlie for all the support and coverage (we made the back sports page two days in a row and the donations have been coming in).

Craig

Changing scenery

 

Nearing Norseman

First day out for the 3B support crew