Day 58 - Outback wellness

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Baradine - Pilliga (Bore Bath) 76km

Happy camper
For the first time in a while we wake up to a dry tent. This contributes more to the uplifting mood this morning than one might imagine.  It means an easy pack up and more time to potter around a bit and have a second cup of coffee. And besides all that it gives me time to make peace with this town, after a cranky first encounter yesterday.

The maximum speed today was 19.4km/h (yesterday's was 48.1 km/h). This tells you that it was more flat than Google Maps "mostly flat" could imagine. And there weren't many bends in the road either, straight ahead (something that rarely happens in our life) for miles and miles.

Straight ahead


More straight ahead


Baradine is the southern gateway to the Pilliga State Forest and National Park, an area not only of significant importance for the Aboriginal community but also it's ecosystem is quite unique. It is home to the largest White Cypress forest in the southern hemisphere.

Unfortunately riding through the park/forest is off limits for us. Simply because the sandy roads pose too much risk for getting stuck and ending up pushing the bikes rather than riding them. But the main traffic artery through the park to Pilliga is a beautiful scenic route, 70km long, of which 30km are unsealed. 

For the first time on this trip we dig into our little box of bicycle touring tricks to keep the mental health intact while battling the monotony of long straight roads and we pull the headphones out. It makes us both realise how much we miss music. So we bump along to our happy tunes while navigating sandy potholes and corrugations. 

Lunch in the dirt

Out of this exercise comes the idea to start compiling a Coddiwomple soundtrack, called "Spokesongs".  After all, music, like food and wine, is such a powerful memory trigger. We look forward to sharing this for a listen in or a listen along - stay tuned.

The best bit of the day - like so often - comes at the end. It's not necessarily a five star spa and wellness resort, but the way we look and smell they wouldn't let us into one of those anyway. It's the Pilliga Bore Bath - and comes in the format of a little pool with 37 degrees warm water straight out of the ground. I will spare you all the geological jargon - after soaking in the water for a good hour, I am way too relaxed to squeeze my brain around the geology of the Great Artesian Basin and how and why this happens. But geez, it felt good.

Outback wellness

The last bit of energy is spent setting up camp and taking care of our growing appetite, which always seems greater after a swim.

What's cookin'?




Location: Pilliga NSW 2388, Australia

Comments

  1. FrancieApril 7, 2022 at 9:23 AM

    I sooo loved the artesian bore baths we encountered years ago on our travels. 37 degrees wow!
    I bumped our Spa temperature up to near that temperature and I love it. Perfect ending to a long, straight roads day. Stay there!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownApril 14, 2022 at 7:59 PM

    You could share the playlist at a boogie at the bowlo!

    ReplyDelete

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