August 17, 2025
Day 8: Yarri Hut to Nglang Boodja hut
We decided last night to split up today intentionally. The Munda biddi doesn’t have to go through collie, in fact you can cut 27 km off the trail and make an easy day to the next hut if you don’t go to collie, and more if you go via the roads.
Jimmy has worked in port hedland and mines in CQ and said he doesn’t need to go to another mining town. Noah’s hands and Sam’s back are hurting so they were keen for a shorter day on roads. Maggie and Ben decided to do a medium option and mostly do the trail but skip Collie. Joe and I decided to go in. I was curious to see collie and Joe wanted to buy more hummus.
Joe and I agreed we’d aim to leave at 7:30 and I thought I’d be smart and set my alarm for 6 cause it takes me 1.5 hours to get ready. But I accidentally used an alarm that was only scheduled on Friday so I didn’t wake up til 6;30 anyway. I’m blaming that for then being a bit scattered and leaving my kindle behind at the campsite but at least it wasn’t something more critical.
True to form I was not ready til 8. We left the others and rolled out but even before we reached the first road, I lost Joe so backtracked and found him tying his rack together with string and duct tape because the weld across the back had snapped. It seemed to work. Then I had to stop to take my jumper off, then there were trees across the track and we were not making rapid progress on our big day.
It was nice riding though, being a bit earlier there was more birdlife and I saw a kangaroo. There was a long stretch next to a river on an actual named road that was lovely. We made it out to the road to collie, which wasn’t very busy as we crossed a river on it and headed off into some more singletrack. There was a huge tree across the track that we pushed around on a fairly long detour, following some trail bike rider’s attempts I think.
The others carried their bikes over and disturbed a huge hive of bees but managed to escape unstung. Sam described it as crossing the river sticks.
Luckily the trail improved after that on formed roads, including a stretch on a reasonably good road under the transmission lines, leading to cross the Mornington road into collie again and then a smaller road which the boys would take as a shortcut and then a rail way line. Just after we crossed a little 6 car train hooted past.
We finally reached the trail turn off point to collie. As recently as 2022, when I bought my maps, Collie was an in and out detour but now they’ve made a trail coming out a different way. The trail going into collie went through some mountain bike trails that were not nearly as well established as dwellingup’s but did provide a lovely downhill run.
We saw three men out for a jaunt to Yarri hut overnight on their e bikes. One of them was carrying tiny panniers and a giant backpack which seemed very strange. We re-intersected with the Bibbulmun track on and off into collie.
There’s an aluminium refinery at worsley on the way in and it smelt a bit like the Gladstone train station but the trail delivered us through bush to the outskirts of collie. We thought the bike shop would be open til 1 so we hustled there to try and get Noah some brake pads but they are now shut sundays. So we went to barn-zees cafe which was bustling.
Then Joe went to do shopping while I updated this. He came out with so much food - his poor broken rack! Collie is quite big. I guess not compared to Gladstone but bigger than I was expecting. It seemed quite interesting, with some fancy cafes and an art gallery & studio and rows of workers cottages and a market in an old railway shed. Also estates of new houses and grumpy people driving cars.
The railway line goes straight through the middle of town so it seemed like there are two main streets, the one south of the line with the cafes and groceries and one north of the line with several old pubs and shops on one side and fast food restaurants on the other.
Unfortunately by now we had missed the opening hours of the coalfields museum but we went and had lunch overlooking it and some old train engines. One of which was involved in an accident in the Swan View tunnel which we rode through the first day in which the driver heroically got the train into reverse to get out of the tunnel after running into an errant hay bale and being unable to start before the crew were all overcome by fumes but was then killed in the resulting crash.
Eventually we rolled out a bit after 3. There was a paved bike path out to an outlying suburb about 6ks away which was unnervingly fast and then probably about the same distance of single track through the measly road shoulder forest. I appreciated not being on the highway, or having to ride 16k back the same track but it was not the best.
It reminded me a bit of Sustrans cycling routes in the UK which would be 80% great and then sometimes terrible make up patches. Joes bike slid out from under him on one corner but he ended up on his feet. Unfortunately I was in front so didn’t see it.
We crossed the top of a dam which was quite dry and then got into some hills on nicer trails into the national park but still in earshot of the road. At 4:30 we made it to the road into honeymoon pool, where we’d agreed to meet the others, so decided to take the road. We’d all agreed we’d do that rather than the technical section at the bottom but we cut off another descent too. The road was quite delightful, there were cars coming out of honeymoon pool but none going in. It was almost entirely downhill but the one small uphill was slow going.
We found the others getting charged after swimming. Maggie and Ben had only just arrived after taking the trail including the first descent which sounded hairy enough with smooth clay switchbacks that were almost impossible to stay upright on.
I jumped into the pool and short circuited my brain I reckon. I couldn’t think of anything except “get out this is dangerous”. Joe managed to stay in a bit longer.
The others had decided to push onto the hut rather than camp at the pool. I was keen to reach the hut but also tired. Joe, Sam and I rode out last and followed the right signs but they took us up a steep hill and then immediately down some overgrown switchbacks. Jimmy read the trail notes more closely and realised that if you rode a small way along a one way road the wrong way you avoided a hill and led the others through those no entry signs.
The actual hill we had to climb to the Nglang Boodja hut was much gentler. Joe and Sam nursed me up it. I was a bit sweary after taking us up the unnecessary hill. We arrived just on dark. The hut is another small one which a front porch.
This is the first hut I rode to from Bunbury in 2022 so I found my note in the log book and remembered that I was cold and bothered by people snoring last time so set up my tent up the hill on one of the campsites.
Today's ride: 77 km (48 miles)
Total: 387 km (240 miles)
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