April 25, 2024 to April 27, 2024
Goondiwindi
Thursday the 25th of April 2024
The dew has been quite heavy the last few mornings so, although we were treated to a beautiful cloud-driven sunrise, there was no direct sunlight to help dry the tent.
Eventually the tent was dry enough to pack away and we made our way slowly to Goondiwindi. Once again a bit of a headwind but it slowly shifted to the southwest and gave us a bit of relief rather than resistance. There was a lot of water around and this encouraged us to stop often to look for birds.
We reached the rather depressing town of Bongabilla where we joined the Newell Highway. The ten kilometers on the highway wasn't too bad at all. For the first time on this trip we enjoyed a good and consistent shoulder, at least two meters wide and a decent surface. The section on the highway was enlivened by our first sighting of a potentially lethal snake, a Red-bellied Black Snake (Pseudechis porphyriacus).
The snake sighting lifted us after passing through Bongabilla, a sad and somewhat distressing town that seems mired in poverty. Ten kilometers later just over the state border we reached Goondiwindi, its exact opposite. Prosperous and well maintained, Goondiwindi's wealth is apparently derived from the cotton growing industry. Bongabilla might lie just over the state border and barely ten kilometers away but it seems as if they are on different planets.
We checked out the first campground in Goondiwindi but it was very cramped and had no camp kitchen. We were keen to cook some decent food again so we headed to the next one, on the outskirts of town sandwiched between the Newell and Cunningham Highways. It's pretty expensive and a couple of kilometers from the grocery stores but it seemed our best bet. So we have checked in for three days to have a good rest. It often happens that after six to eight weeks on the road we need a longer break and it seems that we are at that point now.
Saturday the 26th of April 2024
First job today was to replace Leigh's broken slip-slops (flip-flops in Aussie lingo). So after breakfast we set off on the bicycles to town where, quite amazingly given that Leigh struggles to make a decision when buying clothes etc, she settled on a pair at the first shop we visited.
I have been trying, without any success, to find some rim tape. The tape on my bike's front rim needs replacing and the two punctures I have had were because of the rim or a spoke damaging the tube. So after the shoe shop we went to look for the only bicycle shop in Goondiwindi which operates out of a private home. Apparently the proprietor is a teacher and bicycles are a side hustle. Unfortunately it seemed that he had gone away for the Anzac Day long weekend so I will keep on risking another puncture.
The next best thing to do was to visit the town's Botanical Gardens. It seems as if it is in its infancy but the birding was OK.
To get back to town we took a cycle path along the McIntyre River that also had some nice birds and artwork.
Later in the afternoon I heard the sound of Afrikaans being spoken. It turned out to be a couple from Rustenburg who have lived Australia for nearly twenty years. The conversation at supper in the camp kitchen was subsequently mostly in Afrikaans, fuelled by a coupke of bottles of red wine.
Sunday the 27th of April 2024
I can admit to feeling bit fragile when we awoke this morning. Thankfully today was a true rest day, doing rest day stuff - laundry, a bit of bike maintenance and lots of coffee.
Tomorrow we head for Toobeah, just fifty kilometers west of Goondiwindi. From there we will head northwards again.
Today's ride: 80 km (50 miles)
Total: 2,158 km (1,340 miles)
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