Walkabout Day 4 - Brisbane - Augathella

My plan this morning is to reach Blackall, the midway point to Mount Isa. As I'm loading my bag onto the rack, I noticed that two bolts I forgot to tighten properly yesterday have disappeared... they must have vibrated loose and fallen out yesterday. Now the vibration of the rack makes a lot more sense. I dash down to the local hardware store and get some replacement bolts, which appear to do the job.

The ride out from Jo's was via Mount Glorious, which was superb, yet again. Further west I strike torrential downpours, which wasn't so fun but I ploughed on in my wet weather gear. It even hails at one point, I take shelter in a roadhouse until the hail passes then head back down into the storm.


At dusk, many wallabies come out by the roadside making me very jumpy. I am still some distance from Blackall but don't want to keep going at night, so I take a turnoff into a small town named Augathella. I see one person on the footpath as I ride slowly through town, other than that it is deserted, until I find the pub and get a room. In the pub as I have dinner, I chat with a couple of guys who are up from Tamworth today, who works in road building, and are off to Katherine to build a runway at the RAAF base there.

I soldered together two of the three joins in the harness yesterday, so of course the third broke today. That means no lighter socket, and no recharging gadgets until I can solder that one too...

I'm trying to use the satellite phone tonight for the first time with San, but it isn't working very well, hard to get through and the connection keeps dropping out.

I realise this trip is not going to be the deep introspective trip I had imagined, because I am moving too much. That is ok, I will have another trip where I spend 40 days and 40 nights in a log cabin in the wilderness, and I will enjoy this trip for what it is.

My feet have blisters even though the boots are not new... from the new position maybe. My butt and thighs are very tender, though my wrists and thumbs did ok today. The sorest thing is my ear holes, from wearing the silicon earplugs. I have switched to the foam ones now (thanks Michael) and they are much better.