The road to Darwin

The road to Darwin was not too long and I arrived before I knew it. However, there were a few experiences that were worth of note.

My first day of riding after leaving Kununarra was very slow and uncomfortable due to the effects of alcohol in my body from the pub the night before. I was in a world of pain.

The night after I arrived at a rest stop to replace the broken spokes that had snapped without my knowing. It was there that I met Thomas, a 24year old boy riding around Australia from Melbourne back to Melbourne. Sound familiar? But Thomas was different from me in that he prefers 'Thomas', and he is Dutch. Thomas and I got along very well, and chatted late into the night about our experiences and troubles. It was great to speak with someone encountering the same troubles and feats as myself. We were even treated to a roast dinner and a few cold beers by a lovely couple that I had met back in the Pilbara, Bev and Keith. 

When I arrived in Katherine I called an old friend of my dads (he went to school with dad so he must be bloody old!) named Frank. I was keen to have a quiet drink with this man and ask him some questions about dad as a young man. However, unfortunately Frank was in Darwin for a week so it was not to be. He did however tell me to visit the Katherine Country Club for dinner and a drink - on him! 

So I rode to the venue and told the staff my name and Frank was going to pay. Well! They shook my hand and congratulated me on my riding effort so far. I was introduced to the bar staff and told that I may order anything I wish. What service! As it turned out Frank is the head manager and had phoned ahead to ready them. It really was a fantastic dinner!

From Katherine I headed north, camping at different water-falls along the way. One such fall - Robin Falls - was a stunning little camp off the main tourist route, where I met Raymond and Rose. These two characters were truly amazing people and we stayed up around a camp fire with hot stew and talked about nutrition and healthy travelling food. They were very knowledgeable about food. They were also from Spain (Raymond) and somewhere in Europe that I had never heard of before (Rose). Since they both speak English to each other and have lived in Australia for many years, one might think that a high level of English had been achieved... but no, it was terrible. Both the manner in which they talked and the mix of jumbled up words were truly humorous and had me laughing all night.  

I then spent the next few days exploring the many wonders of Litchfield National Park. I stayed at each fall, explored the dirt roads free of my trailer, met some amazing people (again, usually resulting in delicious dinners!) and had a fantastic time.  

                                                                            Only 500km's? Oh dear...

                                                                  Because 110km's/hour wasn't fast enough

                                                                      Toothy

                                                                        Tom and Thomas!

But it was time to hit Darwin City, and my good friend Dave was flying over from Melbourne to meet me! I knew that a great time was awaiting.