Today is the first full day in the Outback, and the first full day of a constant and unchanging landscape filled with essentially nothing (still waiting on all those deadly snakes to come around). And essentially nothing here translates to "mostly dead animals" (but we'll talk about those
Australia Bike Tour Day 28: The Outback!
Today marked a big step in my trip across Australia: my official entrance into the Outback. Basically the moment I've been waiting for since this trip's inception. In Adelaide, I bought myself a ten-liter Sea to Summit Water Bag, and I've got five water bottles ranging in size from 600 ml to
Australia Bike Tour Day 27: Port Augusta
It's only been four days since Adelaide (and my ten-day break), but I have decided to take another day off in Port Augusta to ensure I'm fully prepared before making my entrance into the Outback (and because I am addicted to days spent lounging around living off pizza and beer). Home to under
Australia Bike Tour Day 26: Destination Darwin
A relatively short morning ride brings me to Port Augusta - the last true civilization I'll be seeing for quite some time. I ponder, as I often do, my journey through the Outback as I look at where I've come from and where I've still to go. The highway I will be traveling on northwards from
Australia Bike Tour Day 25: Merino Tires
The mention of a specific country usually conjures up images, stereotypes, or ideas commonly associated with said country. In the case of Australia, people tend to imagine things like kangaroos, deadly spiders or snakes, the Sydney Opera House, or putting shrimp on barbies. Of course, I too
Australia Bike Tour Day 24: Snowtown
Despite last night's plagues including train horn blasts, a barking dog, and the much too loud conversation of two German-speaking girls, I wake up refreshed and ready for my first full day of riding following my Adelaide intermission. Except my tent and fly are soaked in dew. And it looks
Australia Bike Tour Day 23: The Flies
Now that I've managed to break free of my long and unexpected break in Adelaide, I'm back on the road and heading north (before I had been heading mostly west). With my new bearings, I find that I've left behind the city-to-town transitionary period I experienced on my way from Melbourne to
Australia Bike Tour Day 13-22: Adelaide Intermission
Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, boasts a population of over 1.2 million and represents civilization's final foothold before my journey turns northward towards the Outback. As was the case yesterday afternoon when I first arrived here, it's raining. In fact, the forecast predicts that
Australia Bike Tour Day 12: The Adelaide Hills
Last night I camped in Tailem Bend, positioning myself within striking distance of Adelaide (where I plan to take a few days off before setting out towards the Outback). However, I've heard some nasty rumors about the roads to this Adelaide place. Apparently there be hills. Hills mean elevation