The East Coast Cruize

My mind was set. I knew what I wanted to do and how I was going to do it. When I arrived back at Cairns it was time to make my move. I felt cool, calm and collected with a strong dash of determination. Funds were dangerously low, the rainy season was fast approaching and my bum was soft again from days off the bike. Things were going to be tough, but I was ready to grit my teeth and push on down busy highways and hilly terrain.
There was a strong necessity for sacrifice, and this materialized in the form of bush camping Every. Night. From. Now. On. This may sound wimpy, but camping out in the sticks on Australia's busiest coast was going to take some dedication and discipline. It meant that showering was out the window. As was electricity for charging my computer, camera etc. It also meant that I would never know where I was headed for the night. Riding through open farm crops hoping wildly that trees would soon take over to provide some shelter to lay my weary head. If the trees didn't appear on the horizon, where would I sleep? If it got too late and I found myself riding through busy suburbia, how would I find a suitable place to camp in the black of the night?
Well, after a great deal of anxiety about sleeping under the stars from now on, my first night was spent inside a house in a nice warm bed. Hardcore! After a long days cycling I pitched my tent on the side of the road surrounded by banana plantations. The sun had gone down and I was busying myself cooking rice with tuna. Quite suddenly a quad motorbike came roaring past not far from my tent. The two passengers doubled back to see what I was up to. When they slid off the seat, I noticed very quickly that they were extremely intoxicated. Both male and female were holding cans of rum, swaying on the spot slurring their speech a great deal. I didn't catch either name, but this couple were the banana farm owners surrounding me. I was invited to come to their house to have a hot meal, a shower and a bed. I felt a little apprehensive about staying with two drunk people that lived in a matrix of tall banana plants. To make matters more uncomfortable, they made regular 'jokes' about the film Wolf Creek, which sent shivers down my spine. However, I was stinky and hungry and keen for another adventure. So I followed the motorbike through the darkness around endless winding dirt roads - quite like a maze. How would I find my way back out in the morning? Oh well, I'll have to cross that bridge when I come to it.
The night turned out to be far less remarkable then I had hoped. When we arrived I was chased by a vicious pitbull 'fluffy'. It was on a long chain but for that split second when I didn't know how long the chain was, I just froze on the spot and panicked. There were wild pigs chained to a heavy machine in the garden, which were being fattened up for tucker. They were not happy to see me. I was treated to a horrible bowl of half cooked sausage stew, and promptly jumped in the shower. When I came back out the pair of these drunken characters were fast asleep (past out) on the couch. Fantastic. So I snooped around the house in order to find the spare bedroom, lay my head on a rock hard mattress, and drifted away. What a start to my East Coast adventure.          

                                                                         Well... Dad???

                                                                   Yellow-breasted Sunbird

                                                                           Evil eyes