Days 21,22, 23 & 24 Bourke, Barringun, Cunnamulla

Day 21 Cobar to Bush Camp 50 km from Bourke 110 km

A very cold night in the cabin. The heating unit was very noisy so I turned it off but then it was colder than my tent would have been.

I was out of bed at 6:00 am and packing my panniers until 7:15 am. I rolled out of the caravan park down to the Cobar Hot Bake cafe.  Coffee and a brekky wrap set me up for an early start. 

I also purchased 2 rounds of sandwiches to take away. While I was finishing my coffee I chatted with a bloke who is in Cobar volunteering for something to do with the Anglican Church. 

We talked about the feral goats of which there are tens of thousands in the area between Broken Hill, Cobar and Bourke.

Two years ago the abattoir at Bourke was being reopened to process goats however the price of goat has fallen back since then. 

Landholders around here are very happy to have the goats around and I have seen signs indicating that everything on a property including the goats belong to them.

It reminded me of an event I think of as the “night of 400 goats”. Two years ago paddling down the Darling River I pulled up on the bank and set camp at a spot I thought was a pretty good campsite. The goats thought the same and that night my tent was surrounded by goats doing what goats do.

Shane has been working on “Nuggets” a show on Stan

I get a message from Shane S who I met at Wilcannia. he was travelling to Cameron’s Corner with his mate Nick. They have been working in television production support but have the week off. 

Unfortunately the rain means the roads beyond Tibooburra are closed. I also heard on the news that the Birdsville Festival has been affected by rain. My decision to stay on the bitumen has been validated.

After breakfast I make a quick visit to the grocery store to buy soap. It is not easy to buy a single bar of soap as it mostly comes in multiples. 

Finally on the road at 8:30 am I was able to chat to Lisa as I started up the Mitchell Highway. Although it was still chilly the sun was starting to make its presence felt. I was feeling great and powering along. Of course the southerly wind was giving me some assistance.

By 10:00 am I had covered 40 km of my targeted 95 km. I was aiming for Curraweena Rest Stop. All morning I was going between 20 and 25 kph. When I stopped for lunch just after 12:00 I had covered 80 km and started to think about going all the way to Bourke. 

I passed Curraweena and decided to keep going as it was really just a truck stop. There was an area at the back where I could have camped but it was very damp. I decided to keep going until 3:00 pm.

Favourite bush camp so far

Note the flag showing the wind assistance

Just before 3:00 I saw a turn off to the Gundabooka National Park. The sign showed the park was 3 km down the road but it didn’t show how far to the camping ground so I found a spot off the road after 500 metres. 

I could have kept going however arriving in Bourke after dark without having accommodation booked didn’t seem like a good idea. 

Day 22 Bush Camp 50 km from Bourke to Bush Camp 40 km past Bourke

Lying in my sleeping bag awake at 6:00 I am anxious to get going. I pack up in the tent and then get out and stoke the fire into life. Coffee and muesli go down pretty quickly and I think I will be ready to get on the bike by 8:00 am.

It was a milder night so the dew on my tent hasn’t frozen. I hate packing up a wet tent so I drape it on the nearby fence. At 8:20 I give up and pack it away. I’m only 50 km from Bourke and I am planning to have 2nd breakfast there.

The wind is helping again. I sit around 20 kph for a long time. About 15 km out of Bourke my phone pings indicating I am once again in mobile range. I ring Lisa who is working and we chat while I continue pedalling. 

I ring Charli to wish her Happy Birthday for tomorrow. She is in Springvale taking blood as part of her study placement. She is having issues with getting consent from non English speaking patients. Later I remember I was born at Springvale Hospital. It was probably all English speaking back then.

I arrive in Bourke. It is just as I remember it from previous visits. The Darling River looks pretty good here although nothing like my last 2 visits when it was in flood.

A couple wander over to tell me they have passed me on the road a couple of times. They ask where I am staying and I say I am thinking of staying out at Kidmans Camp at North Bourke. The woman thinks it is Bush Poetry night at Kidmans tonight. I say “the boy stood on the burning deck….” She says probably not that poem.

I go to the supermarket thinking I have to cater for the next 3 days until Cunnamulla. I get the usual stuff, it is great to get some fresh fruit.

I ride out to the Back O’Bourke Centre. I get a map that shows the road to Cunnamulla. There is a small town Engonnia about 100 km away and a Roadhouse further on. This section is going to be easier that I expected. 

The cafe at the Tourism Office is closed which is disappointing as I was planning to have lunch there. Woman on the desk suggests there is food across the river at the road junction. 

I know the place it is next to the pub on the corner. When I get there the shop is closed so I go into the pub and order the lunchtime special, a steak sandwich with chips and gravy.

I decide not to stop at Kidmans I have been here before and there is nothing new to interest me. With wind assistance I can get to Cunnamulla on Saturday if I push on.

I ride past Kidmans remembering that was where I launched my kayak onto the Darling 2 years. The river was lapping at the back door of the camp then and I had to paddle a kilometre to find the main channel. Today the river was nowhere near the campground.

Darling from the bridge at North Bourke

I head up the “Matilda Way”, a new road for me. The landscape is different to the other side of the river. There is long grass and lots of fat sheep. For the first time I see some beef cattle and there are no goats. 

About 3:15 pm I find campsite just off the road. There is a slight shower of rain as I am setting up camp but it disappears as quick as it arrived. Plenty of light fire wood around but no heavier pieces. It seems very mild so the fire will be entertainment rather than heating.

I bought some lamb chops to cook for dinner. They sizzle in the pan as the sun sets on another day. A road train goes by, I reflect on my good fortune.

Day 22 Charli’s Birthday- Bush Camp to Barringun  93 km

Pretty good night  - the road was very quiet. At 6:30 am I decided to get up even though it was still dark. The fire was dead. I grabbed some kindling and got it going again. Not really required as it was quite a mild night but it has become part of the morning ritual.

Muesli and coffee again. I enjoyed sitting and watching the sunrise before getting on with the day. I was quite efficient packing and was pushing the bike out to the road at 8:30 am.

The wind started up early and aided me for the first 30 km. Lots of grey nomads passing me. They come in waves, 1st wave arrived about 9:00 am and 2nd wave 30 minutes later. You can work out who the early risers are. Each wave left Bourke around the same time.

As I got closer to Engonnia the wind became a crosswind and slowed me down. I stopped to search the food bag for a snack. I find and eat an orange. Back on the bike I am suddenly pedalling harder. 

Engonnia appears, there is not much there. The Oasis Hotel is the only commercial place. It is both pub and store. I order a chicken roll and a pie with a can of elixir. The chicken roll and pie arrive on a plate. Both were frozen stock made barely edible in the microwave oven. I chat with Lisa as there is mobile coverage.

It is only 12:15 pm and I am back on the bike. The road bends around and I have the wind behind me for the next 37 km to Barringun Roadhouse. There is even less here than at Engonnia.

Bush Tucker Inn - Barringun Roadhouse

I am only 120 km to Cunnamulla. It is just after 2:00 pm and could keep going which would make arriving in Cunnamulla tomorrow possible. My legs are tired though and if I stop here I can have a shower and have a meal in the roadhouse tonight.

I opt to stay and pay $5 for the camp fee. I set up camp and have a shower and put on fresh clothes. I feel renewed. 

Later I walk 1 km up the road to QLD border. After 3 weeks it feels like I am making real progress. I am around half way if I take the most direct route. That involves some more compromises to the original plan. 

Some grey nomads arrive to stay the night. Road trains come and go. I go to Roadhouse for dinner. Shearers, kids and dogs in the dining room. The Crusties must be eating in their vans or plan to come later. 

The shearers are talking about goats. Apparently they are multiplying faster than the locals can shoot them. The market for them isn’t there at the moment so the numbers are out of control.

After the shearers leave I am the only one left in the Dining Room apart from the manager and her Mum (assumption). They mention they haven’t seen “Thelma and Louise” this afternoon. I realise they are referring to the 2 black cows that were wandering around the campground earlier. “Oh shit why didn’t someone mention it”.

They race off and jump in 2 utes and drive around looking for the cows in the dark. I go back to my tent. About 45 minutes lates I hear the cows being herded back into their paddock.

Day 23 Barringun to Rest Stop 32 km from Cunnamulla

When I wake at 6:30:am it is starting to get light. It was a very mild night and the breeze kept the tent dry. I was feeling good thinking that with wind assistance I might actually get to Cunnamulla.

I was on the bike at 7:50 am the earliest start of the trip so far. To begin with the wind was helpful and the first 30 km took 90 minutes.

After that the road swung east into the wind and it became a slog. For a while I was going 10 kph. At 11:00 am I decided to have an early lunch. I just need a break from pushing into the wind.

I find a spot in some trees out of the wind and set up my chair and stove. Soup and coffee and a podcast until 12:30.

Back on the road the road swings northward and the wind goes back to neutral. A Z car goes by and pulls off the road about 500 metres ahead. A bloke gets out with a big butterfly net and was wanders around sweeping the net above clumps of grass and then examining the contents. 

I’m intrigued so I park the bike and wander over. Haikou Wang works for the Australian Plaque Locust Commission as Forecasting and Information Officer. He is driving around Queensland monitoring locust populations. He was very friendly and gave me his card in case I see locusts on my trip.

After that interaction my afternoon got easier. The road went more downwind and I was able to make reasonable speed. The terrain changes from sweeping grasslands  to a more treed landscape. There are lots of very healthy looking cattle around.

Just after 90 km I come across a rest stop that isn’t on the map. There is only 30 km left to Cunnamulla but the road has swung into the wind. I’m reluctant to push on so I look around and find a camping spot near the rest stop.

The wind continues to blow strongly as I set up camp. A few grey nomad vans arrive in the rest stop for night. Not much firewood around so any campfire will be small.

Day 24 Cunnamulla 33km

Another mild night. It was quiet until 3:00 am when a truck pulled up nearby . The truck noise didn’t bother me but the driver was standing outside engaging in a loud conversation with a companion. It sounded like they were standing next to my tent although they were 50 metres away. After 15 minutes they drove off.

The wind calmed down overnight but picked up again as the sun rose. With only 30 km to Cunnamulla I cruised along until my phone peeped to say I was back in mobile range.

I rang Lisa and chatted for about 10 km. 

I passed some emus which reminded that I had heard a conversation on the ABC about how fast emus can run. Apparently one researcher had reported that they can run 26 kph. His paper was cited by another researcher in the US who mixed up the kph with mph and this was then converted to 44 kph. Another correspondent supported the 44 kph report from his experience in the field.

I can confirm emus can run 26 kph because I have been outpaced by them more than once on this trip. I doubt I will get to test the 44 kph benchmark though.

The Cunnamulla Fella - something to do with a Stan Coster song sung by Slim Dusty

About 5 km out of Cunnamulla the road turns downwind and I fly into town. I visit the Tourist Bureau to get a map and discuss options. I am advised to seek shelter as they are expecting serious rain. A local outside tells me he doesn’t think it will rain but the atmosphere is definitely different to the last few days.

I got on the Internet and booked a motel room as all the cabins at the caravan park were booked up. With check in at 2:00 pm I had a couple of hours to wait. All the shops in town were closing at 12:00 noon.

I ride around town. It doesn’t take long. Near the water tower I chat with John from the Apollo Bay. We chat about the Otways and Johanna. He has been a surfer and scuba diver down there in the past. It nice to talk about familiar places.

I ride along a track beside the river. As impressive as the river looks next to town it is only because of a weir nearby. Further upstream it is just a series of waterholes. 

A local pulls alongside for a chat. He asks the standard questions, trucks & grey nomads. He gets the standard answers, trucks are great they steer well clear of me on the road, grey nomads are mostly good. 

He says the nomads towing big vans should get a special license. He mentions the way they park around town. I have seen some very special parking so I agree with him.

I check into the motel. It is small room with single bed but it is all I need.

The Wifi doesn’t seem to be working. I am here for 2 nights to have a rest and avoid predicted severe weather. It might be along 36 hours in Cunnamulla.