Day 123: Daly Waters to Larrimah

June 13, 2021

Start: 6:50am
Distance: 96kms
Ride time: 4:53hrs
Average: 20km/hr
Max: 28km/hr
Finish: 12:20pm

My alarm went off at 5:30am as it was due to reach 32C later in the day. It felt like 5C when I woke. Maybe the coldest morning of the trip so far.

The roadhouse opens at 6am and I went there for a hearty breakfast.

The Carpentaria Hwy ends at Daly Waters.

I am now heading north to Darwin on the Stuart Hwy.

The Stuart HWY runs between Adelaide in the south and Darwin in the north.

The speed limit is a high 130km/hr on some roads in the Northern Territory.

It's not ideal when there is little or no shoulder.

I lost phone reception soon after leaving Daly Waters. About 20kms out of town I saw this:

This is a magical device that gives you mobile phone service.

You have to put your phone on the stand for it to work. I got one bar of 4G.

I passed a couple road trains heading south that were carrying cotton.

I stopped at a rest area at about the 50km mark. It had toilets and water tanks.

There were lots of caravans on the road compared to the Carpentaria HWY. Between 10am and 11am, I counted 16 caravans heading north to Darwin and 18 caravans heading south to Adelaide.

I got off the road for 4 road trains in the hour too.

Grass regrowth after a fuel reduction burn.

I arrived at Larrimah at lunchtime and went to Fran's. It's a backyard cafe set-up. I had a caramel milkshake and a big salad sandwich for a total of $12.

I then checked in to the Larrimah Pink Panther Hotel Caravan Park.

There is an elaborate bowerbird nest in the bushes next to my tent. The bird has collected lots of rocks, glass and bits of metal.

Great bowerbird.

Crested pigeon.

This is Walk-up. He likes gentle scratches. He said hello to me.

He's a long-billed corella.

There are some bikes at the pub.

I am close to the road and lots of road trains have gone past.

I hope they stop during the night.

There is Optus phone reception here and no Telstra. I am with a company that uses the Telstra network.

It gave me the opportunity to spend a couple hours reading.

Today's ride: 96 km (60 miles)
Total: 5,968 km (3,706 miles)

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Rita McCarthyWe were amazed with how many caravaners head up to Darwin. Can see why you need to wear bright colours.
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