Hi friends and family!
(Note: this newsletter doesn’t have new photos since I’m in remote Australia now and the photos are too many MB to send. Sorry! For now, check Instagram for some new photos. Handle is below. Thanks!)
We made it to the 401.5 mile-mark to Top Springs in the Northern Territory! This feels like such a milestone for us! After leaving Katherine, we had eight full days on the road without resupply, except at a cattle station to refill some water on day three, no buildings to take shade under or around. Mentally, I’d say I’m a totally different woman now compared to who I was during the first week of the journey. I feel like I now let the wind blow through me rather than ruminate on the hard parts and let them ruin me. I’ve never been the sort to care about things outside of my control, but on this trip, especially during the first week of having intense reality checks, I let it all get to me. I have shifted now, and all it took was a conversation with a mentor and deciding, on my own, to put my head on straight again. I now consider each day a triumph and give myself permission to celebrate that. And let me tell you – giving myself credit for what I’ve done each day really, really, really matters; I’m learning that to be proud of myself each minute is neither undeserved nor unearned, but rather, it is what I need to do to get me through to the southern coast. I need to celebrate me. In fact, that’s what this whole darn thing is about – giving to myself, fulfilling a dream, and cultivating a better Katie.
I decided on day 1 not to consider the trip as a whole; I figured thinking about how many more miles I have to run to Alice Springs (halfway point) or to Adelaide would just get to me and I’d feel overwhelmed. Instead, this is what I’ve done every day: I think about each mile, each step, each minute. I allow myself to feel proud of having covered a day on my own two feet. I feel excruciating challenge most days, but then an immense amount of relief, contentment and gratitude getting to the end of each day, sitting down for a camp meal prepared by my husband, and feeling the breeze cool my body off. Some days, when we’ve had some extra water, we’ve even taken billy baths – dunking a bandana in a cup of water and having a proper scrub – and it feels like a luxury. I then go to bed knowing that I’ve done my duty for the day and used my own devices to get through it. Some days are amazing – my body feels energized and I can just run forever. Those days are rare though. Most days there’s always some kind of hurdle to overcome. But between all this – the joy, the hardship, the wishing it was over, the never wanting it to end – life goes on.
There have been so many highs of this trip, namely meeting locals and other travelers. We spent three days on the Victoria Highway heading west from Katherine and met a couple of tremendously inspirational folks. Our favorite by far was the Swag Family; Nicola, 35, and Andrew, 40, are bike touring the perimeter of Australia and also Tasmania for one year on tandems with their three year-old son Wilfie and five year-old daughter Hopie. We shared a solid few hours with them on the side of the road swapping stories and getting to know each other. The next day we had a picnic lunch with them under a tree. They are all about adventure learning and sharing the wonder of the natural world. They will return home broke but they don’t care; to live their dreams and adventure regularly with their kids is a non-negotiable. They must, and they will. Life is full of wonder, and they simply must go find out, as a family. How lucky those kids are to have this experience! We are totally inspired by them and want to share what they are up to with everyone we know. Check out their site here:
www.swagfamily.com.au
Now it’s time for some locals. After turning off the Victoria Highway (“the Vic”) and also having had some awesome conversations with retired folks caravaning around the country, we turned onto the Buntine Highway and began to head south again. We were blessed with cooler temperatures and a cool breeze, albeit a headwind. We counted about 10-15 vehicles a day – not much at all and even a significant decrease from the Vic (which also seemed low-traffic). This is where Bob comes in. Bob, we think in his 50s, originally from Britain, is now an Aussie and has a heart for travel as well. He drove one of the many trucks servicing the roadwork vehicles on the Buntine, and his job was to travel back and forth across 70 km a day refueling these vehicles. As such, he would pass us at least three times a day. At first, he stopped to just inquire about our trip and what the heck we were doing out here. Super inquisitive and absolutely supportive. He told us about his dream to motorcycle through southeast Asia, and how he lives on a boat so that he can roam freely. Without us asking for anything, he took it upon himself to bring us food every day – first fruit and yogurt, then half a roasted chicken, eggs and more fruit, and last two bags of ice! This guy seriously had our back and became a real friend. Can you believe it?! Again and again, whenever someone has given us the shirt off his/her back, or at least stopped to say hello, all we can think is, “Awww, shucks, we want to be that giving to others!” People are incredible. We love you, Bob!
We are in Top Springs now, not a town but rather a motel and pub at the crossroads of two highways, one of them dirt. In other words, “highway” is an overstatement 🙂 The motel has a rich history of servicing nearby cattle station workers, “truckies” hauling cattle (each truck pulls three to four double-decker lengths of 60 cattle each!), and the occasional tourist stopping in for a night’s stay, a steak meal, or a cold drink. We are truly in the middle of nowhere. Leaving here, the road turns to dirt and we begin the most desolate leg of the trip – 30 days across the Tanami Desert into Alice Springs, a city of 20K people and our halfway mark! Over the next month, we will pass through two aboriginal communities – we will speak with kids at a school in one and visit an aboriginal art center in the other. This is Henley’s toughest leg as he will be carrying massive amounts of food and water much of the time, and we will have to see how the loaded bike + trailer setup does on corrugated dirt roads. By the way, we have a few safety nets, so don’t worry 🙂 Personally, I predict this leg will be tough as all get-out, but I’m prepared for the dirt to seep deep into my skin, into my nostrils, and under my nails. I’m mentally ready to just keep going. I have no choice but to let the wind blow through me.
In summary, “we’ll be right” (an Aussie saying).
Till next time…perhaps in 30 days when we arrive in Alice?!
Instagram is the best way to get more updates between now and then. I just posted several posts there today. See handles below.
Thank you for reading!!!!
Love,
Katie
