Mawson trail - Day Five - Spalding to Wirrabara forest 7th May 2015

Had a great night sleep. After breakfast and a couple of coffees I hit the trail at 8am.

I spent much of the previous evening debating whether to ride the western section of the Bundaleer channels and risk punctures. I really wanted to ride the whole trail, but also didn't want to spend the day fixing flats!

I decided I would check it out and make up my mind then. Apprehensively I opened the first of many gates and started in. Felt like I was riding through a minefield and as I didn't know what the actual plant looked like I just tried to avoid everything!

I had luck with the left wheel track yesterday so took the left again. I stopped after five hundred metres and checked my tyres for thorns; continued to do this at random plus at every gate as I rode along! I knew I had around 9km of the channel section still to cover, so every metre traveled was a metre closer to freedom!

One of the many sheep grazing along the channel slipped on a steep embankment as I passed and it fell over with legs on the uphill side. It didn't think to roll over so its legs were on the downhill side so was stuck! I stopped and helped get her standing; hoping this good deed would appease the karma gods. Whether it was this or my lucky left wheel track, I got through to the other side unscathed!

After a short descent on tar, it was back onto good gravel roads that headed north towards the Never Never range.

The weather so far was looking good. The strong winds of the previous days were gone or I was possibly sheltered by the hills to my left.

The road finally turned west and up onto the Never Never range.

I stopped after a gate at the top and to eat some flat bread and cheese and noticed ominous clouds rolling in.

Sure enough it started to drizzle, then rain which followed me through most of the Bundaleer forest until I passed by the Jamestown golf course at its northern end.

One of the few locked gates on the Mawson trail. Glad I wasn't riding a loaded tourer!

The weather was looking okay again, though with the earlier rain the westerly had picked up.

Although slow I was still making progress into the wind, till approximately 20km from Laura the skies opened! I huddled in a small bus shelter through the worst of it and remounted after it eased. Unfortunately the next section comprised of the famed red clay and it was atrocious!

It constantly clogged up in the frame and forced me to a grinding halt numerous times. The mud was also as slippery as ice and I had a slow speed crash trying to make for the side of the road! With the road nearly impassable, I tried riding on the grassy verge. It was still slippery, but the grass allowed me to make some forward progress.

It took over a hour to suffer through 10km till the road surface improved. Once finally in Laura, I went straight into the bakery after I removed my mud caked shoes and headed for the pie warmer. No vegie options left again but there were some chicken pies. When asked asked whether I wanted either the onion and leek or the satay I said both given I was that hungry! Also ordered a coffee plus a chocolate macadamia slice for later.

I then restocked at the IGA a few doors down and was back on the bike. I had already ridden 80km, but if wanted to camp at Warren gorge north of Quorn tomorrow night I had to keep moving.

Forward via some great small tracks and into the Wirrabara forest as the light started to fade.

Due to the recent fires, the forestry service detoured us off into farmland with nowhere suitable for a stealth camp! So I fitted my lights once again and continued into the dark till rejoining the Wirrabara forest at its most northern tip. Now completely dark and drizzling again I veered off over the fence inside a Eucalyptus plantation to my right and set up camp 100 metres off the road.

Dinner of rice and tuna plus the macadamia slice from Laura and early to bed. I was about to doze off when I was surprised by a mouse that crawled into my tent through the partially open door. Not sure who was startled more, but after a few false starts the mouse made it back out of the tent and I fully zipped up the door and off to sleep.


Ride distance 115.49km

Elevation gain 1214m

Mawson trail - Day Four - Mt Bryan East to Spalding 6th May 2015

Woke at 6:30am and went outside to take photos in the early morning light.

The school sits right on the Goyders Line of Rainfall - a demarcation line mapped out by the surveyor George Goyder in 1865 marking up to where average rainfall was still suitable for cropping. North of the line he suggested would be only suited to light grazing and coincided with the southern boundary of saltbush country.

After the usual porridge and coffee, I rolled out at 9am.

After ascending Dares Hill summit early in the day the Mawson trail traveled west as it passed through the small town of Hallet towards Spalding.

 

 

The strong westerly that helped push me to Mt Bryan East last night was now a headwind again!

Approaching Netfield - restored birthplace of Polar explorer Sir Hubert Wilkins.

 With the wind, it took me 3 hours to travel the 38km to Hallett!

Stopped at the general store at noon and ended up ordering the big breakfast - fried onion and tomato, 3 fried eggs toast and coffee. Lovely lady running the shop; didn't look at me strange when I asked if I could swap out the sausages and bacon!

I knew the next stretch would be equally hard if not harder as it was all open fields ahead!

It was a steep and long climb over the Brown Hill range which is littered with wind turbines. The perfect location given the strong wind whipping over these hills.

Due to my slow progress, I decided I would stop early in Spalding.

The last stretch into town was along the eastern half of the Bundaleer channels.

I was dreading his 30km section of the Mawson trail, as it is renown for three corner jack puncturing many riders tyres! I stuck to the left wheel track, stopped and nervously checked for thorns and somehow made it unscathed into town.

With no campgrounds in town, I booked a room in the local pub. It was great value at only $45 for a clean bed and continental breakfast.


Ride distance 84.4km

Elevation gain 889m

Mawson trail - Day Three - Riverton to Mt Bryan East 5th May 2015

I had planned to camp the next night at the Mt Bryan East school house, a restored school building providing free accommodation for Heysen trail walkers and Mawson trail riders. Originally this day was going to be an already tough 115km from Auburn. Given I was still over 15km short of Auburn, this was going to be a very long day in the saddle! 

I woke at 6:20am and started packing immediately. The strong winds continued through the night, but the rain had held off. I'd nearly finished packing when the rain finally made good its threat. I grabbed everything and quickly moved into the covered BBQ area nearby to sit it out.

Drenching rain fell, so rather than the planned breakfast in Auburn, I cooked my porridge and brewed a coffee to wait it out.

Finally the rain cleared and sun returned teasing me out onto the road. I'd checked the radar and could see this wouldn't last but I had to get going. On the way to Auburn, I was forced three times to seek shelter from the passing heavy showers. A couple of times behind trees, the third in a hay shed!

About to get soaked!

Farmer driving by asked if I was okay as a stood in the lee of a tree

A short time later the sun was out again!

With the driving headwind and rain stops, it took me a couple of hours to ride just 18km to Auburn. I stopped at the Cog cafe in town for a large coffee and scone with jam to warm up. Sky was clear again, though wind still hadn't abated.

The next stretch was along the Riesling rail trail and exposed to the now cross winds. Given the easy gradients and good surface, I was able to ride resting my forearms on the handlebars and up my pace.

I blasted straight past Clare and took the right turn off the rail trail towards Burra. The hellish Westerly was now finally fully in my favour and helped push me along.

The surface was soft in places from the recent rains, but with the tailwind it didn't slow me down too much.

Looking back to where I'd come from.

On the next long descent, a couple of kangaroos were ahead. One jumped the fence, the second couldn't so bound in front of me at 44km/hr for a couple of kilometers!

Ever changing scenery and trail surfaces.

 

Towards Burra I could see dark clouds catching me from behind. Whilst on the outskirts rain again started to fall, right where the trail cruelly made us circle around town first!

I found a bakery still open. Unfortunately no vegie options left so I grabbed a chicken pie and chocolate milk. At least the rain eased and then stopped as I quickly ate.

I had done the sums and calculated if I got to Burra by 2pm, I'd have a shot at making the Mt Bryan East school house before dark and be back on my original schedule.

The rain may have passed, the the wind hadn't. Any of the many stretches of trail which turned back into the wind found me barely moving. On one steep downhill into the Westerly I only just managed to hold 15km/hr pedaling!

A short way out of town, I passed a sight any Midnight Oil fan would instantly recognise. Had to wait a little while for the light to improve before I was happy with my shot.

'Diesel and Dust'

Finally the track turned East. I needed to make up time as I only ended up leaving Burra at 2:40pm; not looking good for a daylight arrival!

The road climbed into the Sugarloaf range and changed from pasture to native grassland and then low scrub. It felt very remote, even though I'd only ridden 30km on from Burra.

 

I turned North into Dusthole creek road right as the sun dipped behind the North Lofty ranges to the West.

Got the head torch and light out after crossing the Dusthole creek ford... Definitely wasn't going to make it before dark now.

Finally made the Dares Hill Summit road intersection; this meant I only had a few more kilometers back into that Westerly wind to ride.

The Mt Bryan East school house was empty and so had it all to myself! I got the fire started, and had a quick pot of snack pasta pack as an entree. Ben's rice and tuna satchet as main and then hedgehog bought from Burra for desert.

Asleep exhausted at 9:30pm

 Ride distance 138.32km

Elevation gain 2114m