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Came for motorcycles and penguins, found nature.
šø @natalie_tran
Imagine you come out of three days of gravel road to these massive rock formations. Itās hard to describe the feeling of first seeing the Olgas or Kata Tjuta which literally means āmany headsā, a place of spiritual significance to the Aboriginal people.
Coming in from the West, the first formation to be seen is not the Ayers Rock itself but the even bigger formation of the Olgas. I donāt know which one was more impressive. There surely is some energy to these places that canāt be expressed in a picture. You have to see it to, you know, see it.
I have published a blog post about what itās like to ride the Great Central Road. Check it out if you havenāt: r100theworld.com
Day 3 on the Great Central Road.
How do you ride on this stuff? When it comes to corrugations and sand, itās better to stay above a certain speed as the corrugations donāt affect the vehicle as much and the ride becomes less physical. The ride then feels like floating rather than driving.
Day 2 on the Great Central Road.
Everybody is talking about mindfulness these days. What is it anyway? In the core, rather than listening to the stories created by your mind, you just see and feel what is actually happening, right now.
The isolation of the desert induces serenity while the gravel road demands just the right amount of attention. Now, itās just me, the roaring bike (thanks to a failed silencer) and the road. The ever-idling stories of the mind stop for a moment and Iām just here, aware, which is fantastic. No place Iād rather be.
Met Al, the incredibly likeable owner of Tjukayirla Roadhouse and a real showcase of Australian friendliness, at the end of day 1.
You cannot see in the picture that Al and me are facing a whole film team. Times are getting quiet now as the summer started, but Ironically they have a British film crew around shooting for a fashion label which wants to open their first branch in the most remote place. The only connection to the outside world this place has is a small bitumen airstrip and the Great Central Road itself with 3 hours of nothingness in both directions before youād reach the next town, which makes it kind of romantic.
They interview me about my journey and my experience with the GCR, and pay for my fuel in return. Was that my first Australian job?
Day 1 on the Great Central Road.
Very soon, I realise that this is more than just a long gravel road, it definitely comes with some challenges in the form of severe corrugations and sandy patches that slip my front wheel aside making the whole machine shake, almost throwing me off a few times. Easy! I am used to the secure feeling of on-road riding where this feels more like sailing which, at first, can be nerve-wrecking. How should I sustain this for the next 1100 kilometres? Am I attempting too much? Throughout the drive, thereās some wrecked cars ditched at the side of the road, which, compared to the few actual driving cars that I see throughout this day, is not exactly encouraging.
I just published a blog post about taking on Australiaās Great Central Road. Check it out if you like: r100theworld.com
