Super Moon and Salty News: Home Valley Station to near Durack Homestead site

June 27, 2013

Day 3
From 'Home Valley Station' to a roadside billabong campsite near the site of the destroyed Durack Homestead

"The good news is that there will probably be water in the creek crossings between here and 'Ellenbrae'. The bad news is that the water will probably be salty because the super moon caused king-tides which pushed seawater well inland along the rivers", said the helpful person at Home Valley Station where we'd camped the night before.

So today's plan would need to factor the possibility of a dry camp. That is, we had to load up with freshwater.

From Home Valley Station, the road surface continued to be more suitable for unloaded, full suspension mountain bikes than our water and food burdened tour treadlies. It was rough.
That is, until we came upon that most marvellous of machines, a road grader. Thereafter, we were able to pick up the pace for at least a few kilometres.

The big question today was if we would find a campsite with drinkable water by sunset.

As a precaution we loaded up with 10-12 litres of water each. This would enable us to camp at a dry site if we had to for one night, then push on to Ellenbrae Station tomorrow. The trade-off of course is that the bikes were very heavy and even harder to handle on the loose gravel and corrugations.

It wasn't just the bicycles finding the road tough. During the day we came across a Darwin family whose camper-trailer axle had succumbed to the rough road. The stub-axle had snapped.
They decided to abandon the trailer and carry on with just their vehicle.

Later in the day we were offered water by a friendly couple passing by in their 4 W-D camper. We accepted a couple of litres as insurance in case the streams ahead were really salty.

By sunset, we'd reached the site of the Durack Homestead which had been destroyed by floods several years ago. We explored the lagoon area and Jacks Waterhole on foot, then came back to the road. The water was OK but the site difficult to access by bike.

Nearby, adjacent to the road was a small waterhole with a sandy bank with enough space for the three tents.

Although a little difficult to wheel the bikes to, and slightly ash covered from bushfire, it was a reasonable campsite and a welcome stopping point.

During the night there was a shower of rain which caused us to scamper about in the dark covering the tents and gear.

The light night shower turned out not to be a deluge.

The lesson of course, learned and forgotten numerous times over the years, was that even the finest looking night can produce a drenching.

Today's stats:
60 km
5hrs 11mins of pedalling
11 km/hr average
Max. 53.5 km/hr

A couple of days before we'd begun the ride, I'd taken this photo in Broome where I'd stored my vehicle with a vague hope of cycling about 700 km back to it.This was a glimpse of the so-called super moon rising. It was both a surprise and impressive.What I hadn't anticipated was that the close moon brought king tides which affected some of the streams along the coast. This in turn affected where we could obtain water and camp.

Grassy woodland at Home Valley Station. Looking back to the Pentecost wetlands

Short sections of sealed road on the jump-ups were very welcome. They were not very long but gave respite from the corrugations.The Kimberley light colour show continued with an unusual hue of yellow-orange. It was especially noticeable in the early hours of the day.

This ride along the Gibb River Road was taking us through and near the ancestral lands of the Ngarinyin, Worrorra and Wunambal speaking peoples.The Ngarinyin lands extend in a north-easterly direction from the ruggedly beautiful King Leopold Ranges which we'd cycle across toward the end of the ride.

A high point a few kilometres from Home Valley. Looking back toward the Pentecost River which we'd crossed yesterday.

Early morning view of the Cockburn Range from near Home Valley Station

We roll further west through grassy woodland

This road grader was a sight for shaking eyes.

The graded surface made for easier cycling than the deeply corrugated gravel.

The grassy woodland continues. The grass was a metre or more tall in places.

This large truck and trailer slowed to a crawl to pass us. Most of the truck drivers were very considerate when passing.

Late afternoon roadside view near the Durack Homestead site

Pandanus trees at sunset near where we camped. They are an indicator of permanent water.

Today's ride: 60 km (37 miles)
Total: 179 km (111 miles)

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