Alice to Alice via Ayers Rock

so I leave Alice Springs friday afternoon, head south for an hour and then west towards the Kings Canyon, 100 km of dirt road. it takes me a while to find the rhythm of the road, lots of floodways like this one:

and dips that are quite short and sharp. after a while I think I found the roads soul and settle at 120 km/h cruise speed. those new michelin desert tyres are a champ. just as much grip as the dunlops if not more but hey, all that following of ruts is gone. the bike goes where I want it to go. wow! love’em! which leads to more confidence which brings me to this dip. short and deep, from the distance it looks like all the others before but it isn’t. it’s much deeper. much! too late, I open the throttle full to try to power over it but the rear wheel sinks deep and hits the opposite face full on. the suspension bottoms out, bounces back and the back end comes high up, back wheel almost over front wheel. I thought the bike and I are going for a front flip but somehow she landed alright and didn’t even wobble, just carried on. must be all that weight that kept the bike moving straight ahead. thank god, that was close. at bottoming out the rear tire looses 1/4 of its centre knobs. after 2 hours on this new tire.

I carry on, camp an hour later and sleep well that night. next morning I pack and am on my way to Ayers Rock. bitumen from here on, I have breakfast at Curtin Springs roadhouse:

and see mount conner on the way. this really sticks out of an otherwise pretty flat landscape.

a little further and I arrive at Uluru car park.

lots of busses and campers coming in and out, highly touristy as one would expect. I’m getting slightly edgy already but I do want to walk along that big rock a little and take some shots.

without any knowledge about this rock I am quite free to perceive its energy and man does it have a presence. plus it looks a bit like I imagine alien skin, nothing my eyes have seen before. I feel a deep respect for the sacredness the indigenous people connect with this rock. Its not my sacredness but for sure it is something special. enough. I’m all filled up with rockology and hungry to ride again. it’s been two hours. while heading back east on the highway I weigh the pros and cons of going back and getting a new tire or carrying on and safe some time. I decide for a new tire. I drive past ‘watch out for camels’ sign but only come across a few that were fenced in at the service station.

ah well ok then but no tongue!

I got to Alice ok and booked a bunk at Annie’s backpackers. this place took me by surprise. 80’ies soft grunge punk decor and music, 3 different movie projectors playing Tom and Jerry, Superman comic, and another comic, a live band, not matching color schemes everywhere and yet the whole was bigger than its parts. i was part of a living piece of art. incredible. if you ever get a chance…

yes thats a doll floating around in the pool!

today I cleaned the airfilter and wind screen, that’s 2 kg’s less, phew. tomorrow first thing I get the tire mounted, hopefully, and then out of Alice and south on dirt! Finke, Oodnadatta to Marree past Lake Eyre. then onwards on dirt as long as possible to Sydney, yes.

ciao for now, Helly

• October 3, 2010
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