Sunset and sunrise are the best times of day in the outback. The colours are mesmerising—every one slightly different and unique, reflecting the differences in landscape. I’m going to have a hard time not recording every sun picture. Here is a summary of Part 1 of our trip extending from Wagga up the Matilda Way to Karumba and then the NT border.
Slow Down Country About
After a bit of a false start attempting to make a quick run to town, we discover nothing is really to be done quickly in the country. Ducking into a local pharmacy, a 10-minute wait turns into 25 before the bustling pharmacist informs me it’s going to be a bit longer. She has to pop out for a while. What do pharmacists do between handing a prescription and getting it off a nearby shelf? It’s a mystery. Well, we need to hang out for 9 days until we clear our self-isolation, so we get to see a bit more of the eastern outback.
Mt Isa
Mt Isa could be easy to dislike with its towering smokestack and open-cut mine. Still, it is strangely mesmerising. Miles and I finally crack out the bikes for an epic ride down the river, returning in the dark alongside locals enjoying the creek on dirt bikes.
Our little caravan of courage feels dispirited by the NT border lockout after already turning back from SA. So we decide to pull up an extra day and find a waterhole for a swim. What follows is an unexpected and epic 4WD trip; Brett takes a wrong turn and heads up the advanced track with 50-65 degree hill climbs.
We rendezvous at a hilltop, making a rocky scramble over to a peaceful billabong with redgums and little pools revealing a large pool. On the cliffs surrounding the pool are paintings from local tribes. The water is chilled by the rock but feels lovely in the heat.
The chilly dive refreshes our brains. We have a newfound hope. If we make it a few more days, we can make a run at the NT border maybe just in time to make our Uluru booking and pick up the trip as planned.
“So… is it on, again. Yeah! RockAround21 is back on!”
Karumba
To fill the time during our self-isolation, we decide to make a run for the Gulf of Carpentaria, that big chunk out of the top of Australia. It’s rich fishing grounds and famous for sunsets. We crack out the bikes, explore the little town and treat ourselves to the magnificent sunset over the water. Brett braves crocs and bush tracks but returns with only the knowledge that he has fished the Gulf.
The Burke and Wills Roadhouse is the first of many remote roadhouses that we will come to appreciate as the trip goes on. Outback roadhouses are like supply dumps crossed with social centres. They provide fuel, food, mail, campsites and pretty much everything else the community of travellers needs. They also seem to be magnets for odd folk with lots of stories.
