Day 477 | Just south of the Windorah turnoff: on the side of the road
71 km | zzOz total: 15,081 km
Probably I should have stayed in Bedourie, it sure is one of the most over serviced localities I’ve come across, I sense a strong rivalry not dissimilar to that crazy tower building competition in mid Italy, Sienna or San Giminano, with it’s more populous neighbour to the north, Boulia, my current location only lacking in one respect: no internet reception.
There’s a well stocked and reasonably priced store, a huge public ablution block next door to a town hall that could comfortably seat the entire shire residents, if they had seats, that’s the hall not the toilets, a fulltime tourist information centre, a park and playground, unused despite the current school holidays, with free bbq, 3 large shade structures with picnic tables and two power outlets per structure, yay, pity about the internet situation, a stainless steel bench with sink and tap, and along the strip a few historic buildings, the Royal Hotel one of the country’s most unusual pubs, used continuously since the 1880s, still the same bar room, kind of like going into someone’s austere lounge, unadorned by advertising of any kind on either the interior or exterior, including letting travellers know it’s an operational pub, and, most surprising for the town, population 120, a hint of that competitiveness, large areas, here and there, of ultra green grass.
No internet: what’s the point.
I track south out of town, I’d only spend money here, one beer and I’d be stretched horizontal snoring on a picnic table, instead make slow progress alongside a major sand dune, smashing into that unrelenting windstorm until well after 5 I find a tree near a grader turning area, as close as I’ve been to the road but realising that major traffic out here is unlikely and set up camp.
The wind continues but I get on with the daily ritual, get the tent up and load it so it don’t blow back to whence I’ve come, write my diary, listen to the second half of the 6 pm news on my little radio, the first half still all static, and as the sun goes down the horizon lights up a spectacular orange on the western aspect, slowly fading, cook up my pasta, no cup of soup tonight to conserve the water supply, and as I eat up the just past full moon rises up a whacky orange colour like God just couldn’t be bothered with the correct palette out here where there is a limited audience.
Already horizontal it doesn’t take much to drop off to Slumberland.