Long Ride 2016 -- Day 5

April 12, 2016

Ceduna, SA to Border Village, SA - 550km (2,520km)

Day 5, the day we would hit the vastness of the Nullarbor Plain, one of the worlds most flattest and treeless places, and a highway right through the middle of it.

 

It seems to be a common theme with me, I drink the tap water only to discover it's not meant to be consumed.  The last time this happened it felt like I was playing Russian Roulette every time I got on the bike, I hope it wouldn't happen again ... I hate squatting on the side of the road and we were approaching an area where there is just no place to hide, none at all.

 

The ride started with a short 70km blast along the Eyre Highway to Penong.  This small town is reasonably new compared to many others in the area, being established in 1915 after the railway went through. 

 

Penong has a population of just 215, I actually think it has more windmills than people, and it's something they have made a tourist attraction of.

 

After a refuel, bikes and bodies (you'll be happy to know I've stayed healthy - I had a iced coffee and Snickers bar) we were back on the road.

 

Around 50 kilometres further down the Eyre Highway we came to a sign that pointed to Fowler's Bay, ignoring it we continued on until nature called on one of the riders and e stopped roadside.  A quick discussion decided that this was the turn off to the Great Australia Bight, so a few of us decided to turn around and go back.

 

We took to the dirt, although the road was more like a super highway and after 20 or so kilometres we reached the beautiful seaside town.  No, it wasn't the road to the Great Australian Bight, it didn't matter the detour was well worth it.

Fowler's Bay ... one of the prettiest Australian coastal towns

It also turned out that Matthew Flinders had landed at Fowler's Bay in 1802, I think Flinders is one of the unsung heroes of Australian exploration however, it turns out that the Dutch had actually charted the coastline in 1627 - that's a piece of history most Australians wouldn't know.

 

After a coffee and a quick bite we continued on the dirt, through a number of tidal salt marshes to a small town called Coorabie.  This too was picturesque but didn't have the same appeal as Fowler's Bay, it's pretty clear that this town won't survive.

 

From here we were back on the Eyre Highway and the start of what is said to be flat, lifeless and generally boring.

The Nullarbor Plain starts somewhere around Yalata, and yes it is flat and treeless but I wouldn't call it boring at all, if you keep your eyes (and mind) open you will see plenty of things, although I do think the signs proclaiming there to be camels is a little optimistic.

The Nullarbor is the worlds largest single exposure of limestone and is roughly 1,100km from end to end - tell me about it.

About 70km from Yalata is the Head of the Bight whale watching area.  Although it isn't whale watching season this place is still well worth a visit.  The scenery of what is said to be the worlds largest oceanic bay is spectacular, in many ways it puts things like the shipwreck coast in Victoria to shame.

We spent around an hour looking at views and then a kite that was using the thermals to hover above the cliffs and look for prey.  It was amazing how this bird could stay in the one place for such a long time without even moving it's wings, but now it was time to move on.



Head of the Bight, a spectacular piece of Australian coastline

Back on the highway it was around 200 kilometres to our overnight stop on the border of Western Australia, Border Village.

This bit of the ride was a little boring, pretty much dead straight and without much life, still it was a great chance to catch up on thoughts and have a chat with myself.

Border Village isn't really a village just a roadhouse on the border.  Accommodation is pretty basic, but after a long day of almost 9 hours on the bike, I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow.