Back to the beach

Short day compared to the last few, but I needed it. I was tired this morning and not looking forward to a full day of cycling on the Bruce Highway. But actually this stretch of it wasn’t too bad – there was actually a shoulder for most of the way, and if one good thing can be said about riding on the highway, it’s that the road is generally MUCH less hilly than backroads.

So my original plan was to do about 65 km to Calliole, which is just another no-name town near the highway that happens to have a caravan park, and then to push a big day into Rockhampton tomorrow. But after 40 km on hot tarmac on the highway, I saw a sign for a turn-off to Tannum Sands Beach with a caravan park, only 8 km off the highway, and the alter ego said oh yeah!! I mean come on now, I am cycling around Australia to SEE Australia, and I’ve just done 5 days of good hard riding AND I’ve been staying in crap caravan parks with Aussie white trash (yes there is such a thing) and, well I just wanted to see the beach and have an easy day.

So I pulled off and of course as soon as I left the highway the hills began and they were fierce but it was only 8 km and then I saw the ocean at Tannum Sands and it was worth it!

I knew I better hit the supermarket before finding the park because it was hot and I would not feel like leaving once I got there, so I asked some skate-rat 13-year old kid on a dirt bike where one was (I’m finding these kids actually give the most accurate directions, complete with shortcuts through parking lots and back streets), and I stocked up at the Woolworth’s, or ‘Woolies’ as they call it here, 2 km out of town, and finally cycled back and found the caravan park.

Shower, laundry, clothes hanging on the line, and here I am, sitting by the pool in a lounge chair in the warmth of the late afternoon sun, listening to Aussie’s version of NPR on my little radio, and the only thing that’s missing is my rum and coke on ice with an umbrella floating in it. You couldn’t enjoy this as much as I am now unless you had the same few days of hills and rain and traffic and engine exhaust and, well, you get the picture. This could be a good place to take a rest day tomorrow.

Distance: 54.33 km
Time: 2 hr 47 minutes
Avg Speed: 19.5 km/hr

Here is the evil campervan that nearly ate my wee little tent

Fantastic view from the pub at Tannum

Kangaroos having afternoon tea at the caravan park

Add comment April 28th, 2003