Mount Isa
Mt. Isa
The southerly wind which pounded us yesterday had swung around to be a north-westerly in the morning. It was just about 120km to Mount Isa so how bad, we’d had a few good days with the wind since leaving Atherton. There were a few bushfires burning in the hills on the way but nothing close to the road. They’d already burnt out a few days earlier.
Mt. Isa is a mining town with a McDonalds where I treated myself to a softserve cone for 50 cents – how great a deal is that. I loaded up with lots of fruit, the next town is Tennant Creek in the centre of the Norther Territories with just two fuel stops in between. Just as I was heading out og town to camp for the night I picked up my riding partner. I found a lovely spot with soft earth by the airport. It made a change being able to put pegs into the ground. Lately the ground has been as tough as concrete and my tent needs pegs to hold it up. When the ground is really hard I just sleep under the stars. Theres no risk of rain and its much nicer anyway.
I was still riding with Dai, but only for a few more days. We are going about the same pace in the same direction so its convenient to camp together. At the Stuart Highway he is heading south to Alice Springs and Uluru before swinging round north again. I’m just going to go toward Darwin direct after a food stop at Tennant Creek.
We don’t really ride together though, I’m a bit faster so I generally give him a headstart every morning. He is already lucky to have met me, one day in the bush his front brake cable snapped and he had no spare. I had a set so I sorted him out. As long as we are riding together I feel safer being behind him in case he has anymore problems. I have a few more spares than him and theres is no bike store just down the road if something goes wrong.