24th August – Three Ways Roadhouse nr Tennant Creek – 326kms today,8,617kms to date.

This Australian Defence Force Tank transporter turned up at the roadhouse as we were having breakfast. It is an M1 Abrahms tank made in the USA. They were taking it to Brisbane.  We saw a snake on the road and a Pelican in the Newcastle Waters flood plain.  That was a big  surprise.

 Quite frequently we see ant hills dressed up like this on the side of the roads. Occasionally they do a bit of modelling on them but mainly they just drape them with old T-shirts etc. Probably done by backpackers playing strip poker??? 

We met this little man soon after we left Dunmarra roadhouse. His name was Nicholas and we think he is French. He seems to be walking round the world. He started in April 2013 and has just done Japan and NZ and is now “doing” Australia. Next he will walk through SE Asia, the Middle East, Europe and finish off walking from Alaska to the tip of South America. Forrest Gump II or just plain nuts!!!!

Nicholas was the second guy we saw walking through Australia

The roads were pretty straight today, but there were some panoramic views off to the East as we crested the few hills on the road.  This area of Australia is so flat that you can see the curvature of the earth on the horizon.  Unfortunately there was a strong side wind which made riding rather difficult. The wind is forecast to continue and we will be heading straight into it when we leave for Mt Isa on Tuesday. Colin has a theory that if we get going early just after first light we can get a few kms under our belt before the wind sets in. We’ll see.

This is the Three Ways Roadhouse where we are spending a couple of nights. It is at the start of the Barkly Highway which heads east to Mt Isa. It is 25kms north of Tennant Creek. There is a local festival called Desert Harmony on in Tennant Creek and we are going to check it out plus other sights tomorrow.

This is a memorial to the Reverend John Flynn of Flying Doctor fame. It is near the Three Ways roadhouse.