My Hitchhiker

I had forgotten how persistent the flies are in this part of the world. Big buzzy ones aren’t too bad. You can see them and hear them and ultimately swat them. The Bush Flies are the worst. They swarm all over you, squeeze in through a crack in the screen and fill the car the minute you open a door. However, with windows down and the air conditioner on full blast, they will blow away as you drive off.

Sometimes, though, you get one who defies the norm. Let me tell you about my hitchhiker. This little fellow started in my life as just a nuisance, as I pulled out of my parking spot. I thought he was on the inside of the screen until I flicked him with a towel. (Notice I say ‘he’ – as I am sure that no female of a species would hang around for so long knowing that she is unwelcome.) Not only did he not fly away, he waved one little leg at me. With his suckers in full sucking mode, his other little feet hung on grimly to the outside of the windscreen. I tapped the screen where he clung, I directed cold air onto him, and I swerved back and forth across the quiet country road. I swear he fixed his beady little eyes on me and grinned with utmost evil. For a few kilometres I was totally distracted from the road and focused on the hitchhiker.

I don’t back down from a contest easily. I thrive on competition. I could have outlasted him. I could have outwitted him. I just couldn’t let him make me a traffic hazard if anyone else came up this road. That is why I did what I did, the only reason! I flicked on the windscreen wipers and sent him flying into oblivion. This may sound like self-justification or a petty power struggle. It wasn’t. I was thinking only of other innocent road users. Besides, isn’t hitchhiking illegal?

Across the Nullarbor

Earlier this month I was in touch with Brian through a Solo website. We arranged to meet in Ceduna and spent the next four days travelling in tandem. It was an easy trip and allowed us to park safely in free camping each night. We started to meet the same people every couple of days. We'll meet them again at either Wagin or Albany.

I have decided that it is nice to travel with someone for a few days. Four days was enough with someone I'd just met, maybe longer with friends. We got into a rhythm, leaving about 9am, stopping for a cuppa at about 10.30, lunch at midday or thereabouts, an occasional stretch break , then looking for an overnight park from about 3pm. Brian kept a flask of hot water and I joined him for a coffee at morning tea time. In the afternoon, I put together a snack plate and we had a drink. By dark, we were locked up in our respective vans, usually with a dozen or more other vans.

Along the Nullarbor coast

Watch out for low flying aircraft

I wondered why there were pedestrian crossings in the middle of nowhere.
I discovered that the lines marked the beginning and end of the landing area

South Australian Coast

Happy Birthday! I decided not to spend my birthday in free camping. Actually, I had intended to but the spot I had selected was tiny and untidy and seemed to have semi-permanent campers. When the flies almost carried me away, I headed to a caravan park. Smoky Bay park was lovely, right on the water and quite shady.

Interesting enough, I was shunted into an awful spot.The receptionist said she'd put me close to the camp kitchen and the amenities. She didn't say I was away from everyone else, that clothes on the rotary hoist would slap against my van in the wind and that people had to walk between the clothes line and the van to get to the dump point. I had visions of people in the middle of the night, sloshing by with their toilet waste. And there wasn't a skerrick of shade. Maybe she thought that was all I could expect when I'd had the cheek to ask for a solo's rate ($28 instead of $30). To her credit, she didn't object when I asked to move to the other side of the camp kitchen

Maggie and Paul leaving Smoky Bay.
She said: We thought it would be nice to cycle
out of our driveway in Perth
and into our daughter's driveway in Melbourne.
They left at the beginning July and will arrive
in Melbourne at the end of October.

Half Way Across Australia

I am a bit of a wimp! There were a few days of cold wind so I found myself a little corner and holed up for two nights. The little town of Kimba (population 1000) is an RV friendly town with a choice of three free camping areas. I stayed at the Recreation Grounds, with about 20 other vans and caravans. It was lovely - clean toilets, coin-in-the-slot hot showers - and the town couldn't have been more welcoming.

A Modern Monument
An Australian Acropolis of the future 

The Snail Trail

I was so keen to get moving but I haven’t achieved much. Because the fitting of the insect screens took far longer than I expected, I didn't pick up the van until after 2pm. I didn’t want to have another round of saying goodbye and setting out again so I went all the way to Ipswich (45 minutes) and stayed with cousin Carmel over night.

The next day I drove to Toowoomba (about an hour) and visited former colleagues – Nan Kucks for morning tea and lunch, then Margaret Kreis in the afternoon. Another hour on the road and I reached Goombungee and had two nights with Cecily and Murray, arriving just in time for dinner with their neighbours. Cec and I had a couple of short chats over the two days and I ended up leaving well into the afternoon.

As it happens my niece Rachael lives a couple of hours down the road at Stanthorpe. Her parents, my brother Terry and sister-in-law Karen happened to be visiting so we had another short chat. Rachael and Dallas live on the outskirts of town in a quiet street, so I parked there and stayed overnight.  

That was night four and I was still in Queensland. I made a quick trip the next day over the border into New South Wales.

The wattle is in bloom everywhere

Catching up with Nan

The Big Chook

The Big Golden Guitar

Fancy Toilets at Tamworth

The inside of the toilet doors have verses

Holy Catfish

Holy Catfish!

I think this sounds like some Superhero – perhaps Batman or Robin. I wonder if he had the skeleton of a catfish in mind.

Countdown

I had expected to be on the road long before this. I was scheduled for some minor surgery on 20th July which was postponed till 3rd August, then 10th, 17th and 24th August. Because I have had a cough, I haven't been able to have an anaesthetic so the procedure has been postponed yet again. I don't have an appointment date so I've decided to try to book for late November or early December.

My goal for this year was to attend the CMCA rally in Albany WA starting about 26th October and tie that in with the Solo's rally in Wagin WA beginning on 12th October. I've decided that I can do both now so I am making plans.I have a few commitments before I can get away but I expect to leave by 10th September which will give me a month to make the leisurely trip across the Nullabor.

I have the van booked in to have the air conditioning re-gassed. Then I have to get the roof top air conditioner checked. This is one trip where I know I'll be needing cool air. Apart from that, I still have to get a door seal and an insect screen fitted to the sliding door. If there is anything else, it can wait or can be attended to en route.

At this time of the year, most Toastmasters clubs run speech contests and I have committed myself for three meetings. I am not competing this year because I wouldn't be here for the next round of competition. So I have volunteered to chair the contests at Peninsula and Healthy Chatterers clubs on 7th and 9th September.

Before then, I have agreed to make a speech at Bunya Toastmasters for their evaluation contest. This involves my making a 5-7 minute speech which will be evaluated by all contestants, probably anything from 3 to 7 or 8 evaluations. The speaker is usually from another club so that contestants aren't familiar with the speaker's style and have never heard the speech before. After the speech, the evaluators all leave the room and return one at a time to deliver their evaluation. Evaluations are always encouraging but it can be interesting to hear how others perceived the speech and to listen to suggestions for improvement.I am happy with the speech I have prepared but I'm glad I still have time to rehearse as it is still a bit rusty.

I hope I will get to Toastmasters meetings along the way. I have a couple of partly prepared speeches and bits and pieces like jokes, word of the day, and evaluation sheets to take with me. With a bit of warning, most clubs are happy to have guests and they often have a space available on the agenda. If all else fails, I will talk to myself all across the Nullabor.