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Report of a self-supported and self-planned bicycle tour on the famous Birdsville Track, Australia. Monsoon rains added an unexpected degree of difficulty...

Summer, Sun, Sand and Mud - cycling the Birdsville Track, Australia

Waltraud
2004-03-05 13:53:55

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new direction. The last three weeks, our main direction was North. Now we head Northeast, in direction of Windorah. From Windorah, where the sealed road starts, we will cycle directly East to the Pacific Ocean. But that's still a long way.

From Birdsville on the track has recently been serviced. This is good for cars, but not for cyclists. A new layer of gravel has been put on, but it was left to the traffic to compress it. We are fighting our way through, remembering that sand and mud is far worse. And it should become worse…

During our rest under a small tree at noon, we hear thunder. The small clouds compacted into high clouds indicating a thunderstorm. Again we have the wind against us, and see the clouds and storm approaching. It is like a black wall that comes closer with high speed. It is unbelievable how suddenly and how intense the rain hits us. Within seconds, temperatures fall to 15°C and the track is soft and muddy. No way to continue. After half an hour, the storm is over, and within minutes temperatures reach 35°C again, and the sun is shining. We have to wait another two hours, before the track is dry enough to allow cycling. Although our gear is not anymore as heavy as it was at the start of the tour, the tires still cut in quite a bit on the still soft track. After 18km fighting the soft track, we build up camp. We have to be quick, since the next thunderstorm is approaching. After that, the track will not be able to dry again today…

It seems that the frequency of rainstorms dictates our rhythm and the distance we can make. Today it was 75 km.

The wettest summer since 50 years

On the next day we manage to reach a roof before the rain starts. With the onset of rain we reach the little village Betoota (a farm and a former hotel/pub). We spend two boring hours under that roof of the hotel which has been closed years ago. The owner (85 years old) tells us in his barely understandable ...