Saturday 12 November
Timber Creek - Warmun
I left Timber Creek at 0900 at 32℃. The sky was bright and clear and the scenery was terrific. I rode a steep hill to the top of the local lookout and saw a phenomenal landscape: multi-coloured rocks, escarpments, rivers and mountains.
Once I returned to the highway I rode numerous bends and hills all the while surrounded by extraordinary views.
I had lunch in the resort and filled with petrol @ $2.45 a litre, quite expensive I thought and there was a sign on the pump apologising for the high price but explaining that there was additional cost in transporting it to such a remote location. (I subsequently discovered that petrol in Western Australia appears to be more expensive than elsewhere anyway.) I rented a cabin in the Warmun Roadhouse and whilst there I met an Army helicopter pilot, Matt, who had bought a second hand Honda Monkeybike in Perth and was riding it back to Darwin. He had constructed a tray/rack on which he had loaded a jerry can of petrol and his swag/kit. Apparently, when he started out he didn’t have the jerry can but instead had a coke bottle full of petrol hanging from his neck (Monkeybikes have a very small petrol tank). When he left Perth he also had a surfboard and surf kayak attached to each side of the bike, both of which he had subsequently disposed of. Needless to say the rear suspension was bottomed out before he climbed onboard. I quizzed him on the route he had taken because I would be doing it in the opposite direction. He gave me advice, particularly concerning security from indigenous miscreants on the stretch between Warmun and Broome. In the event I found his warnings overly cautious. As we were talking outside our adjacent cabins two indigenous youths without helmets on a small motorcycle circled the car park in front of the accommodation which prompted him to question the security of our bikes overnight. Paradoxically, he locked himself out of his cabin and as the owner couldn’t find a duplicate key, Matt remembered that he had been unable to secure the bathroom window from the inside and so, with the help of the owner’s stepladder, Matt removed the flyscreen and managed to gain entry through the small window.
505 kms travelled.
Sunday 13 November
Warmun - Fitzroy Crossing
I had a disturbed night’s sleep and was up at 0530. I departed at 0645 at 34℃. I had to turn back after about 6 kms as I had forgotten to drop off the room key! Matt was about to leave so said farewell. The terrain soon changed to savannah with occasional rocky outcrops, but the road was undulating with long straight sections.
On reaching Hall’s Creek I wasn’t stoned by local indigenous youths and the servo was open and dispensing fuel. The day before Matt had told me of youths throwing stones at passing traffic and that the servo was closed because of vandalism.
AHe had told me similar stories of Fitzroy Crossing and had recommended staying in the Crossing Inn which was 2 kms out of town and therefore more secure and as a result I had booked a budget cabin at the exorbitant price of $200. On arrival, after filling the tank at the local servo, I discovered that they did not serve food on a Sunday and that the bar would not be opening “because there are not that many people booked in and it's not worth opening”!!!! On top of that the room was abysmal being well used, smelling of cigarette smoke, with a decrepit chest of drawers with half the drawer handles missing, and laminate peeling off the walls. I returned to the servo to buy supplies for evening sustenance. I went for a walk to the river disturbing numerous wallabies on the way.
Overall, the day had been good for spotting wildlife - wallabies, brumbies (wild horses) and dingoes.
445 kms travelled.3
Monday 14 November
Fitzroy Crossing - Cable Beach (Broome)
Up early after a good night’s sleep despite abysmal accommodation. I left at 0700 @ 33℃. I had a pretty unremarkable ride along quiet roads for the most part. It’s still the Savannah Way following the Great Northern Highway.
It is interesting how many single lane bridges there are on this highway. I saw quite a large burn alerted by smoke rising in the distance. The temperature reached 39℃ at one stage but as I reached within 20 kms of Broome the temperature gradually dropped to 32/33℃. I rode around Broome before heading to Cable Beach, just a few kilometres away from the centre. I had discovered an apartment to let in the Blue Seas Resort in a complex with a swimming pool just outside the front door. A bonus was that it was on the ground floor and only metres from where I was able to park the bike. I rode to a supermarket to buy supplies and on return swam in the pool. I ate in and watched a movie.
I had decided to take a break in Broome and booked the apartment for a week. It’s now the off season so prices are affordable, in this case just over £500 for the week.
430 kms travelled.
Tuesday 15 November
Cable Beach
When I unloaded the bike on arrival at Cable Beach I noticed that part of the rear rack had fractured. I had purchased a 5ltr water container to replace the punctured bladder and on the journey from Darwin it had shifted and the whole weight was concentrated on one small corner, hence the fracture. I rode to a welding company (thanks Google) near the port and I was told that it could be welded. The rack and pannier rails needed to be removed and while they offered to lend me tools I decided to return to use my own (having carried them for so long their use would go some way to justifying the aggro). Rack removed and pannier rails refitted I returned to the workshop/yard (where their normal work was large industrial fabrication) and the work was done by James. The boss declined payment saying he thought I was crazy undertaking such a ride. His parents were from Belfast and we had a chat about his experiences some years before when he visited the UK. I gave James $20 for his efforts and left satisfied. I went to the local hospital to enquire about a Covid booster as they became available at home just after I left and there had been a spike in cases in Australia in recent weeks. I was directed to a vaccination centre in a shopping mall in town but on arrival discovered it was being dismantled having just ceased operating. I was given the number of the clinic in town which had taken over the task and I phoned and made an appointment for the following day. I returned to my accommodation, reinstalled the rack and pannier rails, typed some of this blog, went for a swim and had the most delicious braised cow cheeks for dinner in the Divers, the local pub/bistro.
Wednesday 16 November
Cable Beach
To Broome Health Centre for Covid vaccination. Had coffee at Cable Beach general store and booked a Sunset Camel Ride. I took a long walk along the fabulous beach and although there were large gaps between bathers I suddenly realised that I was the only one clothed. It appears that the area north of The Rocks is well known for nudist bathing. I turned about and on return observed more of the same, albeit from a distance.
I found the seating on the camel a little uncomfortable with my legs spread widely apart stretching the inside of my thighs. I guess so many weeks straddling the narrow bike seat might have reduced my flexibility. Or I am just getting old! Interestingly, the camels are caught in the wild and are trained over a period of 18 months for the role. As one of the handlers said, “Why breed them when there are tens of thousands of them running wild.” In fact there is a healthy industry exporting live camels from Australia to the Middle East, and Saudi Arabia in particular. I ate in the apartment following a refreshing swim.
Thursday 17 November
Cable Beach
I had signed up for a tour to the Willie Creek Pearl Farm. I was collected from my accommodation at 1010 for the bus ride to the farm, a distance of 30 kms, the final 13 of which was on a very corrugated and sandy unsealed road and a salt pan. There were only 5 of us on the bus and we had an interesting dialogue with the driver who, it turned out, had worked at most of the facets of the industry. We received a most comprehensive explanation of each stage of the process by a worker at the farm and I began to appreciate how labour intensive is pearl production. It was fascinating to see the delicate operation of inserting a ‘seed’ (actually made from Mississippi shells: don’t ask how that was discovered to be the ideal medium) to the regular raising at sea of the shells for cleaning over the two years it takes for the pearl to be formed. There is an edible byproduct called pearl meat which sells at $160 a kilo. We had been given a sample oyster at the beginning which one of the party had been carrying, including on the boat trip around the estuary/lagoon, and the idea was to open it and retrieve the pearl from within. Needless to say Murphy’s Law was in operation and there was no pearl inside!
Light refreshments were provided and I was back in Cable Beach by 1600 to enjoy a refreshing swim in the pool and a chilled evening.
Friday 18 November
Cable Beach
I bussed into town and had a good walkabout. I looked around the quirky outdoor cinema which has been a feature of the town for many years.
Interestingly, whereas in other towns I have visited the shopping areas have wide sun shade canopies spanning the pavement, in Broome they are narrow covering only the immediate frontage of shops. It is clear that the town’s existence is due to the pearling industry, both the earlier oyster shells used in the production of buttons etc and latterly the cultivation of pearls. The original jetty has been reconstructed but is now surrounded by mangrove swamp but which in its heyday was cleared to permit pearling luggers to unload their catch as illustrated by the adjacent photos.
I bought a map of Western Australia and some cycling shorts in an attempt to ease bum ache. In the bike shop I was served by a young fellow who was working for several months to fund continuation of his Australia tour in a 4 x 4. He was from Noosa in Queensland and had sold his “beloved Himalayan” to finance the trip. Yet another loyal Himmy (ex)owner. I had a tasty lunch in a Vietnamese restaurant and caught the 1602 bus back to Cable Beach. As elsewhere in the north I noticed that in the park in the centre of town there were groups of indigenous people gathered sitting on the ground in the shade of the park trees.
Saturday 19 November
Cable Beach
I rode into Broome to visit the well publicised weekly market.
The stalls sold mainly items of craft, jewellery and clothing together with a few street food outlets. I rode around the town and the beach area and spent two hours in the very interesting museum. Following a tapas lunch I rode to Garthaeume Beach to see the archaeological dinosaurs’ prints in the rocks. I used the ramp to the beach used by 4x4s and whilst able to traverse a rocky area I came to an abrupt stop when I encountered deep soft sand. With the back wheel spinning and with me paddling I eventually managed to extricate myself and regained terra firma. Never did get to see the dinosaur footprints and I appreciate the benefits of 4x4 vehicles in some situations! Returned to the apartment, continued typing the blog, went for a swim and enjoyed a chilli for dinner.
Sunday 19 November
Cable Beach
Typical Sunday routine. Lazy start, domestic chores in the morning and walk to the pub for lunch. After lunch I walked a long way on the beach in the opposite direction to Wednesday (no nudists today).
On return to the apartment I dozed on the sofa in front of the television. As it became cooler I prepared for the next day’s departure, checked tyre pressures and greased the chain.
Monday 21 November
Broome - Pardoo
I left at 0920 @ 32℃, overcast but a pleasant temperature. I headed to Roebuck and then joined the Great Northern Highway to head south. The scenery was pretty unremarkable being very flat and covered in scrub but with several obvious flood plains along the way. There were two very long stretches of roadworks which entailed waiting stationery for lengthy periods awaiting an escort vehicle.
Parking areas were unsealed with red sand/dust underfoot. I met a strange chap at one rest area. As I arrived I noticed him lying down on top of one of the picnic tables under a sun canopy with his motorcycle parked alongside. I parked a short distance away and he walked over to speak to me. He was of a similar age to me I suspect and looked slightly dishevelled. He said that he was from Broome, and was experimenting with travelling light in anticipation of riding to Melbourne, some 5,453 kms, to visit his son. He said that he was planning to stay at this rest area for a couple of days and had just water and half a dozen muesli bars for sustenance. He then proceeded to tell me the story of his life, all pretty fanciful, before insisting that I look at his motorcycle, a dilapidated and corroded old Honda Shadow. I managed to extricate myself and continued with a following wind which did wonders for fuel consumption, for a change. I had been racing before rain clouds all day and as the forecast was for high winds and rain overnight I opted for a cabin at the Pardoo Roadhouse. It felt very remote, which it is of course, and everything was stained by the red dust which seemed to be swirling around continually, understandably given the wind at the time.
454 kms travelled.
Tuesday 22 November
Pardoo - Marble Bar
I was up at 0630 after a good night’s sleep despite the noise from the very strong wind created in the trees and creaking of the cabin structure. I filled the tank at the roadhouse and was seduced by a bacon and egg roll and coffee and eventually left at 0845 @ 32℃. The first 60 kms was pretty flat but this changed to a series of rocky outcrops and hills. I turned off the Great Northern Highway and immediately encountered numerous 60 metres long road trains hauling iron ore from mines to Port Hedland. Again the terrain was pretty flat, this time for 80 kms before I encountered a series of ranges which were very scenic with different coloured rock and gentle curves in the road, which suits road trains I guess. Most of the other traffic, although sparse, appeared to be connected to the mining industry.
I was riding into a strong headwind but I was taking it easy, in terms of speed anyway. I reached the small township of Marble Bar with around 410 residents, rode up and down the main street and decided to stay in the caravan park. Although still windy no rain was forecast so I opted to camp for a charge of $14.
I was the only visitor, there being two permanent caravan renters. I had a long conversation with the site owner who told me that the town population fluctuated depending on the time of the month. When the indigenous population received their monthly allowance many travelled to Port Hedland and only return to Marble Bar when they are low on funds. I telephoned several places in Port Hedland to enquire about a replacement rear tyre for the bike but with no joy. One place recommended a Honda dealership in a town called Karratha, 230kms from Port Hedland and 429kms from Marble Bar. I telephoned Northwest Honda and was told they could order a tyre of the right size and that it might be available form fitting on the Thursday as an order was about to be placed and express delivery could be used (an additional $25 I discovered subsequently). I asked them to go ahead. I walked to the general store to buy makings for supper and on the way saw a Christmas tree being installed and decorated outside the village hall. The first seasonal sign seen, discounting the normal very early supermarket promotions.
I went to the apparently famous pub, the Iron Clad Hotel, and had an interesting conversation with a couple of old fellas who were complaining about wasted spending of public money. I had passed a sign pointing to the Sporting Complex on the outskirts of town which apparently is an old racecourse and a disused sports field. Apparently the local authority had recently spent $80K on toilet facilities there when the racecourse is used for only one day a year! A middle aged woman came in and it transpired that she was a geologist who was visiting for a short time to work with a gold mine. One of the old codgers said that he and two chums had been out in the bush the weekend before prospecting for gold. However, they had found nothing, chiefly because they had spent more time drinking beer than prospecting but that they had enjoyed a great weekend anyway. She said that prospecting for gold was a very common pastime locally and that she followed a television series called Aussie Gold Hunters which I had watched in the UK. Food in the hotel that night was a BBQ, cook your own because the landlady was on her own and couldn’t be bothered to cook, although she would provide some salad. One local customer came and left saying she could do that at home! A local woman had started the day before serving food from a van in the evening in the adjacent car park so I had a look and came away with a very tasty lasagne and salad. No cooking of the earlier purchased (tinned and dried) supplies.
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