Day 116: Esperance to Salmon Gums

September 20, 2022

Start: 6:30am
Distance: 111km
Ride time: 6:29hours
Average: 17km/hr
Max: 29km/hr
Finish: 2:40pm

It rained overnight. I started early as the wind wasn't ideal and I knew it would be a big day.

From Esperance I will head north for 2 days to Norseman. Norseman is the start of the Nullarbor and I will then head east for 1,100kms.

Today, the wind is mostly coming from the east at 30-50km/hr, a big crosswind.

I stopped at a lunch shop near the caravan park for a couple salad rolls to take with me. This place is open from 2am to 2pm. Mad hours.

Out of town, there was more canola and wheat.

This crop duster was doing laps across a canola field.

The field was on my left and the westerly wind was blowing directly to the road. I didn't want to die from whatever was coming out of the crop duster so I pedalled as quickly as I could.

There is a rail line that parallels the road.

This train was heading south to Esperance, loaded with some type of ore.

This is a dry swamp at the bottom of lots of wheat fields.

I saw another blue water tank. Notice my flags blowing fast in the crosswind.

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before. The R U OK? message is a suicide prevention charity. It is about starting a conversation with people who may be having a difficult time. You can learn more here.

People in rural areas are at a disadvantage compared to city folk. They don't have easy access to doctors and psychologists. I believe these campaigns can be a positive catalyst to let people know you care about them and to get help if needed.

I think it's soy beans? I ate a couple of seed pods and they tasted like snow peas. It was amazing to eat something green and fresh and crunchy. I should have picked a bunch but I didnt want to steal the farmer's crop.

These are two small wattle ground plants.

This says Heart of the mallee. Grass Patch. A lovely name for a town.

I wasn't expecting a town. It was very small. The tiny post office made coffee so I had one. It was poor yet it was nice to sit down for a while.

My legs became a little wobbly when I got back on my bike. The cross wind had been sapping my energy. I ate some more food and persevered.

After a long day, I made it to Salmon Gums. Another lovely town name. There is not much here. A small petrol station, a tiny shop with not much, a basic caravan park and a pub.

I paid for my campsite at the shop.

He said: "You must be Vince."

I said: "You must be Scott."

There aren't many bikes in these parts so you hear about other riders via other travellers or cycleblaze.

He is travelling from Perth to Sydney, mostly via the coastline. He is from Portland Oregon. I'd like to visit some day. It sounds like a bike friendly town.

Today's ride: 111 km (69 miles)
Total: 6,491 km (4,031 miles)

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