Day 121, Tuesday, 28 July 2009

Distance travelled – 82.2 km
Avg speed – 23.7 kph
Max speed – 35.1 kph

Larrimah to Mataranka

Barbara and Peter set off ahead of us but with only 75 km to ride to Mataranka Denise and I were very casual about getting away leaving at 9.30. It is funny it does not seem that long ago that a 75km day would have had us on the road at 8.00am fearful of not making the distance. Distances over 100km do not seem to worry us these days, even with soul destroying head winds we have found we can do 110km. We must be getting fitter, our confidence is certainly growing. In chatting to both Peter and Barbara last night all four of us believe this is the healthiest we have felt for a long time. Even before reaching Darwin we find ourselves looking forward to the trip from Katherine to Broome.

About an hour out of Larrimah we spotted a cyclist heading towards us. In keeping with the touring cyclists unwritten code of conduct we pulled over so we could have a chat. The only shade was on the right side of the road so we crossed and parked under the shade waiting for him to approach. About 400 metres away he crossed to the left side of the road, which we thought a little weird. As he passed us he muttered something about how the black cockatoos were annoying him this morning and then returned to the right side of the road without saying anything else. Apparently he had done the same to Peter and Barbara further up the road, so we were to refer to him as “Grumpy” after that.

For the last week we were being told not to go to the thermal pools at Mataranka Springs but to go to Bitter Springs on the north side of Mataranka in Elsey National Park. We were also told there was a caravan park within walking distance of Bitter Springs so that this was the best place to stay.  We restocked our supplies at the supermarket and rode out to Bitter Springs about 4 km out of town. The much praised caravan park did not look that appealing so we rode back in and stayed at Territory Manor Caravan Park which had more grass and shade. It also had a restaurant as were still looking for lunch. As we finished lunch Peter and Barbara arrived.

Over lunch Denise and I decided that we would not bother to go to Bitter Springs as “after all thermal springs are all the same aren’t they”. However, as we were putting up the tent our next door neighbour said they were about to go to the springs if we would like a lift so we accepted. We were glad we did as we have not seen or experienced anything like it. On our return we decided to stay an extra night and go back tomorrow with the cameras.  We were very thankful for the invitation of a lift.

Zoom into the map and use the 'Satellite' layer to see our new location.

Getting a drink

Larrimah Hotel

Larrimah Hotel

Morning tea

Looking behind us

View from the Stuart Highway

Checking our Email at Mataranka

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