I lie in pain till ~4am, start to write up the blog & put a day or two up. Pack the tent ready for 8am, but I get offered a coffee by one of the ladies at the camp-site, on this Southern side of the ferry, they were Filipino families from Cairns
(Left to Right) Kathleen, Naomi, Genelle, Teddy, Melvin, Lloyd, Eli, Gen, (plus others)
A bunch of 4 families who met in the same suburb in Cairns, (many of them at a church) and a year ago they planned this trip to the Tip. Lloyd is their guide (he has been 6 times before). They gave me a coffee, then an egg sandwich, then two more coffees, let me charge my phone on their big battery power- pack, and let me draw 4 or 5 of them… we heard some life-stories together. What fun. Then …charged phone to 85% (not 100%, so might need to keep it in Aeroplane mode today, since I might need to use it to ring someone at the other end, and for maps). Hoping to make it to the airport road today (36 km). If i can make it in time the shuttle bus from the airport will pick me up between 5:30 and 6 p.m. on that road. If I miss it I'll have to walk the full 42km in tonight getting in about 11:55pm. Booked in to a bed in the motel tonight and tomorrow night.. if I get to the airport road and get picked up for dinner and a bed, I'll probably try and get a lift out to the same spot on the bus or by car in the morning.
On to the Ferry ~9:20am
Then striding… though I try to always make time for people.. (though they can be the worst, they are also the best)..
Rein & Vivian gave me the time of day and. .
before they have to get going back to Cairns then Melbourne.. Thanks.
Ryan , Margot, Romana, & Corey,
gave me time, water, Meuslie Bars and Tuna woohoo! And we had time for a quick pic of Ryan and Margot.
Thanks. They might pop in to my place if they take to the road again next year ..
Had a promising short cut,
I was feeling so good about it, that I stopped and had lunch in the middle of it.
Disappointing, because it ended in a swamp with meter deep clear water near this bank.
(might have had a bridge back in the day). So had to retrace my steps for a couple of km. after lunch.
Russell and Angie, with Jimmy the dog, who say G’day a day or two back, stopped on their way back just to say G’day. Yup they made it all right. Thanks for keeping on connecting.
Jordan from the (motor-)Bike Crews to the Tip stopped to find out where I started from and to shake my hand.
Then mono’d off up the road…. Followed by four others then the other 10 or so came along behind.
I didn’t make it to the Airport road by 6pm, still back on the dirt Bamagar Road (or Peninsular Development Road PDR), heading North. When about 7pm or 8pm I thought to try reception, I found a text that told me I had a voice mail left from the motel. That’s when I found 36 voice-mails. So I got to listen to them all, then ring back Deborah and that’s when we realized how far I’d come, and when they offered to pick me up on the Airport road. Boy am I glad they did .. my feet and legs were sore. How glad I was for a minimum bag today, and for Corey’s gift of water. Ran out of that around 5:30 pm.
Had to push through a feeling of self-pity and tiredness, and thirst, and no one drove past me after ~5:45pm, so no chance of even hitching a lift in, then returning tomorrow to that spot (& not easy to anyway). Singing good and positive songs into the night helped me do it, thoughts that came to me I am sure, from my walking partner, providence.
I got to about 4 km out of Bamagar on the Airport Road, about 8:30pm, and the Manager of the Motel (Raj, with another bloke, Shayne (who gave me some shoes, socks, and a longsleeved high viz shirt - thanks mate!) came and picked me up. Then Raj the manager got my bag (thanks to Teddi and Melvin, from this morning who had dropped it off for me), and Trish gave me some left-overs from the kitchen (lamb chops and roast vegies) & took me to my room, a block or two away. Everything seems to be there. Thanks everyone for speeding me on my way.
Arrived to 4 or 5km outside of Bamagar, and booked in this morning to the motel in town. The manager came & got me around 9pm so they didn't have to wait up till midnight. Not sure if I could have made it right into town - that might have been the last straw... Came from the ferry this morning…
So about 37 or 38 km today... (& 42 km yesterday, got in about 1:30am this morning but no sleep because I left my sleeping mat with the trolley. And I seem to have lost my personal body-padding. Feet now a bit swollen around the Achilles tendon. Precious time learning to not wallow in self pity, with good uplifting songs that focus my wandering imaginative mind on something worth the focus...
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