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July 1st-10th, 2001July 1st, 2nd, 3rd; Colorado visit, reunion
Made a trip to Fort Collins to inspect a rental property I own there and also to drop in on some folks at HP. Looks like there are enough changes at work. However, will let this all sort out for another eight months before getting too involved with this. My father has spent lots of effort these past few months working and fixing up the web site from my dispatches. We spent time trying to see if we could get Frontpage 2000 working better on Windows '98, to make this easier. This was harder than it should have been due to several factors: (1) Frontpage 2000 is not inter-operable between W2K and W98 (2) Frontpage 2000 on W98 is abysmal concerning case sensitively and does not keep names consistent with respect to upper/lower case (3) Our hosting is on an Apache server on Linux, where case sensitivity is critical (4) General size and complexity of this site, particularly the navigation. Hopefully we got this better...though this was a lot more labor intensive than it should have been. My new bike had arrived in Colorado. Decided not to take it to
Australia, but did get it put together as a "hot spare". Also
bought another 700x35 tire and an additional water container. July 4th and 5th; Travel days to Darwin
Found a "transit lounge" in KLIA with food and net access for not too much $. KL airport has squat toilets complete with a high pressure hose to wash one's backside. Fortunately, also western toilets with toilet paper. I'm not that adventuresome :-).
July 6th; Rest day in Darwin
July 7th; Darwin to Adelaide River
Darwin was already stirring when I got up for brekky. In front of the hostels, folks with backpacks waited, presumably for their Litchfield or Kakadu tours. It felt cool, though I was already sweating. I rode along the Stuart Highway for a while, before following a bike path that paralleled the road. Several bike commuters out and also a club ride with half a dozen people. Peaceful and quiet riding the first 23 km to Palmerston. Here I got back on the multi-lane highway. This first stretch was reasonably populated and I used this as an excuse to stop a few times for a drink at Palmerston, Noonamah and Acacia. After the Arnhem Highway left, the road reverted back to one lane each way.
After Acacia, at 63 km, it got warmer, though I seemed to sweat less. Traffic also became less after the Bachelor turnoff at 85 km. Another 3 km further was a nice roadside rest area. Half a dozen caravans had already found it. The last 25 km went quickly and I arrived in Adelaide River in time for a late lunch. Adelaide River had a nice pub whose claim to fame was Charlie, a (stuffed) buffalo that had starred in the film "Crocodile Dundee". Outside in a pen were a few live buffalo. At lunch there was a large group raising money for camps for children with cancer. Otherwise a good share of roadside traffic stopping. I also walked out the the WW2 cemetery. A number of
victims of the air raids on Darwin were buried here. It wasn't a
particularly long day and winds were mostly crosswinds from the east. Yet,
I felt the ride some on this first day after the break. July 8th; Adelaide River to Pine Creek
A rest area at 30 km at Bridge Creek and a chance to eat an orange. Signs indicated that this area had been site of a gold rush with boom and bust settlement. Another 27 km to Hayes Creek and a stop for brekky. I was good and hungry by then. The "cancer fundraisers" were here again on their way back to Darwin.
After Hayes Creek, terrain had more hills. Light winds with an occasional head wind. My speed slowed as I climbed through the hills. A Popsicle stop at Emerald Springs at 80 km got me going again for the last 30 km to Pine Creek. Hills were also less here, through head winds were stronger. Motels in Pine Creek were full, so
found a camp site at the Lazy Lizard Caravan Park. In the afternoon, I was
a "lazy lizard", but also walked around Pine Creek. July 9th; Pine Creek to Katherine
Light traffic today. Terrain with gentle rises and falls, particularly in the last half of the ride from Edith Falls turnoff onwards. Fortunately, high thin clouds kept the sun off and things a bit cooler. Despite a late start, distance was shorter today and went quickly. Stopped briefly at the Edith Falls turnoff at 49 km and then not again until Katherine.
Bought some extra food in Katherine as the forthcoming
section will require some multi-day travels between food stops and also longer
gaps between water stops. July 10th; Katherine to 62 mile rest area
Today's route had some gentle rises and falls as it crossed from one drainage to another. At 70 km, slightly larger hills that the road wound through for 15 km or so. Almost entirely "savannah woodlands" again. Apparently woodlands have some of the most diverse wildlife, though much of it is nocturnal. Riding through the day, one sees mostly birds and termite mounds.
Came to the 62 mile rest area after 102 km. Five caravans parked. We all shared a picnic table for our lunches and then they departed. The rest area had a nice water tank, few shade trees and otherwise was a good place to stay. Later in the afternoon, met my first Japanese cyclists. A man, woman and their five year old child. The child rode out back on her father's bike and had an alphabet coloring book for during the ride. Today it was T/train and U/umbrella day. Otherwise, the parents spoke limited English. They had started in Perth and were riding first to Darwin and then to Sydney. Their two year journey would continue from Australia to New Zealand, South America and North America. I'm impressed! The rest area had a mix of pass through
traffic and then later caravan traffic that evening, about ten vehicles parked
overnight. |
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