Emboldened by the low range hi-jinx of our last journey, we set off on the Google path to Port Augusta. Sure, the “roads” had no names but we had been lulled into a belief that Google Maps would always get us there. And, to be fair, it looked promising…..at the start. Good dirt road, tarred sections, yep, this was going to be good. We could see that the road would split into two options, both of which would work for us.
Another dirt section, we swung around a bend and then our plan started to unravel. Our first option stopped at a sturdy timber fence with no hint of a road beyond that. Not to worry. We could see our second option was a very well maintained dirt road that seem to start further up the hill, so we dutifully followed the map a couple of hundred metres. There was a gate across the road and it was unlocked. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the problem. There was a large sign firmly stating that we were about to enter a live army firing range, littered with immanent death.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Did I hear six mortars or seven? Do you feel lucky, well ,do you punk?” and then probably “What the hell, go for it!” I will admit, I did consider the possibility, but then realized that if the gate at the other end wasn’t also unlocked, a much longer double back would be required, assuming we weren’t blown up along the way. So ensued a painful 40klm retreat that thankfully by-passed our emergency track and had us back on the highway soon enough.
And so, a little late, but in once piece, we arrived back at the bare earth, Lincoln Gap camp ground where we started our journey across and around half of Australia – 447 days ago. Sure, we had been on the road for months before that, but this was the first time we had crossed paths with ourselves. Our trip from here to Melbourne is going to be just a taxi service we expect to do in just four days. So, in our minds, this brings to a close, the first of our epic adventures.
We celebrated appropriately with a bottle of bubbly and a B-B-Q and watched one last sunset (for now), over this amazing country.
So for the next two months, the internet will fall silent. The van is going into storage for six weeks while we see our respective friends and save our pennies. At this stage, come the spring, we will be back on the road. Our first few destinations will be southern outback NSW, the Flinders Ranges, Broken Hill and then all points north. Over the break, I hope to get the best photos into a gallery for, as they say, your viewing pleasure.
A special thank-you to all our subscribers and readers, Your comments and feedback over our journey so far, have made this record of our triumphs and near tragedies that much easier and enjoyable to write. See you on the flip side!!
