Planned a 73kms run today, so slept in and on the road by 7.30am. A flattish road and a tail wind made cycling enjoyable.
At 24kms we were tootling along when Del was suddenly sideswiped by a passing car.
The driver, an elderly man, had only registered me. He passed far too closely then cut in front of me.
His wing mirror scraped Del's arm, wrist and hand, sending the bike into an uncontrollable wobble across the road. Del tried to control it from throwing him onto the road and eventually managed to bring it safely to rest on the opposite side. He was quite shaken.
A large blood blister instantly developed on his hand. There was bruising on his arm and wrist, but no sign of broken bones, thank heaven.
The driver stopped as soon as he realised what had happened, and offered to help.
He was shaken, too.
Del checked the bike over for any damage, then we were off again, but not before I had a good old cry. Just so thankful. The situation could have been so much worse.
We're now in the Pilbara region - a range of low lying hills surrounded by an often barren plain.
For the first time since leaving Broome, we crossed three rivers.
For the first time since leaving Broome, we crossed three rivers.
The Degrey River looked quite healthy with pelicans and other birds enjoying the water.
We had planned to stay the night at the Degrey Rest Area, but discovered that it was closed due to a "bio hazard" and we would have to camp in the bush.
Decided to cycle further to reduce the cycling tomorrow. It's difficult to camp in the bush if there is NO BUSH! Cycled 20 more kms looking for a suitable spot! Eventually found the only clump of trees for miles!
As we were setting up camp, one of the bikes fell over and gave Del an enormous thump on the head, poor thing.
So here we are, in our tent, a few metres away from the road, drinking our condensed milk coffee, being bombarded by swarms of flies! Luckily they disappear as the sun goes down.
Freeze dried meal for dinner followed by Dole Fruit Chunks.
What a life!
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