Journal entries

Friday 11th January

DAY 20

Late start this morning. Made the most of the showers. Michael and Josie ( a couple Steve met who he says "were very nice people and they gave me a lift into town to buy supplies and send letters - Had a good chat through the afternoon) saw me off at around 7am. I've stopped at 868 for breakfast. There's a fire siren somewhere in the distance. Not a good thing as its windy and its turning into a hot one!

Stopped to chat to some campers. Tried my first fresh Murray fish, fried Yellowfin - not bad!

Wind came up very strong and gusty, head wind of course, but I did get about 2km of tail wind for a bit of a sail. Arrived at Wentworth (832) around 4:30pm. Have had a bit of a feed and will make some calls before walking the kayak around the lock (closed at 4pm). I've still got time to get some more miles in and get a camp spot the other side of Wentworth.

There's a big difference in water quality from the River Darling. It's like paddling through malted milk, only crunchy.

No mobile service in Wentworth. Well, we're not in Kansas anymore Toto! Got back into the river after much longer than expected walk around the lock. Axles on trolley are showing definite signs of wear. Paddled past one houseboat full of happy people. I should have stayed with them.

Winds very strong. Have had to wear splash deck most of the day. All of a sudden there are no more spots to camp. Paddling into strong winds and it was getting dark. Pulled into one spot but looked like dry ground was a thin crustover deep black mud. I came across a T junction in the river in the dark. I must admit I am not exactly sure where I am. As far as I can work out, it's probably the 826 mark because I eventually found a small beach.

It's blowing a gale and the tents flapping like crazy. I have to admit at this moment I'd much rather be back home. I feel like I am starting to burn out. It'd be so much easier if it wasn't for the wind. There are also strong wind warnings out for tomorrow. I think it's going to be a long hard 5 days to Renmark (and I've lost my purple pen!)

Saturday 12th January

DAY 21

Had to shift the tent twice last night because it kept falling down. Pegs couldn't hold against the wind in the sand. I figured that I stayed at 826 last night. Everything seems so much clearer by daylight and there are camp spots around. You just need to find one before you park!

Have stopped at 792 for lunch. Liquid rocky road is interesting. Saw a little black pig today - it gave a shriek and bolted off when I snuck up on it. Stopped and looked at the wreck of the Emerald Barge - now home to a mob of goats.

Hard to paddle this afternoon, windy as usual. Arrived at lock 9 (770) around 6:30am. No way round so had to back track to find a place to get up the bank. Found a spot that was moderately steep, rough and loose, but only about 10 metres up to a track. Too steep to go straight up so had to zig zag between trees. Almost to the top, then it rolled over and went crashing to the bottom again. Had to empty out both bulk heads to get it to the top, then re-pack everything. Lost about an hour and a half getting around the lock. It makes sense to me, to have a boat ramp at each side of the lock with a short linking roadway!!

Have stopped just below the lock for the night. I now have the roar of water all night. At least it drowns out the wind. It's amazing how flat a campsite looks until you lay down in your bed. I don't think I slept on a level surface in 2 weeks. From tonights menu I chose the Nachos Ravioli - 'a mouth watering combination of cheese filled ravioli in a midly spiced tomato salsa with onions and jalapeno peppers - served cold from the can over stale wet bread, followed by half a dozen biscuits which had fallen out of the packets and into my rubbish bag - all washed down with the last of my warm light beers'. Camp cuisine at it best!

I expect a late(ish) start tomorrow as I have a bit of food organising to do and a bit of a re-pack after that roll down the hill. Hopefully tomorrow may be a bit easier.

Sunday 13th January

DAY 22

Almost threw the alarm into the river this morning. On river by 5:30am. Strong wind by 7:30am. Got some good miles in during the morning. Saw a few emus. Had about 4kms worth of sailing. Long hard afternoon!

Stopped for a break after lunch but the flies drove me back onto the river. Paddled on to lock 7 (also went thru lock 8 without too much holdup). Couldn't get around lock 7 but the lock master came out and let me through out of hours, lecturing me about the cost of allowing a million litres of water down the river without good reason. I reckon just sending it down to S.A is pretty good reason!

Have stopped just next to the lock at 702 where the Rufus River comes out of Lake Victoria. They're letting a bit of water through so its increased flow a bit. A bonus for me. Have met two guys, Gary and Bill and 3 kids next to the junction. Sounds like they're cooking me some meat, which won't go astray. It's about 8:30pm now so it may be a late one.

Monday 14th January

DAY 23

One day I'll learn to actually turn on my alarm when I get it out - then I'll get up on time - maybe? On the river at 6am. Hard going this morning, had Spam on bread for breakfast, hot and spicy Spam is actually hot and spicy...impressed!! I've just been watching a little Azure Kingfisher diving into the water from a branch, just like they're supposed to but you never see. Yesterday I watched a group of spoonbill doing their feeding thing too. All the things that you don't see while working in a windowless bunker.

Met these people (Holloways and Fergusons and Nerida Matulick) at Devils Elbow, music blaring. A tiny piece of civilization in the middle of nowhere. Gave me a nice cold coke and chatted for a while standing on hot sand in the blazing sun.

Got close to a pig having a root around at the rivers edge. Smiled for the camera then buggered off. Almost caught a fish just then. I saw something big and shiny moving around the edge of the river. Half out of the water. I moved back a bit, got a run up and ran straight over it to pin it down. It managed to wriggle free though. It was probably just a carp, I reckon, but it was big! At least I could have said I'd caught something, but I didn't.

Towards the end of the day I was paddling out of Higgins cutting (656) and only had a few more Kms to go before I reached the 650 mark which would put me four days ahead of schedule. As I came out of the cutting there was a house boat coming towards me. I quickly struggled to get my pants up as I had been taking the opportunity to 'nude it up' in the isolated stretch before old Custom House. As I approached the boat, someone yelled out "is that Steve", and I thought maybe there had been trouble and people were looking for me. It turned out to be my sisters' boss, Richard, and we hauled (with a lot of difficulty) the kayak onto the back of the boat, we then traveled back to (I think) the cliffs at 664. I got to drive the house boat for a bit, which is considerably different to the kayak. I have to get myself one of these depth finders and maybe a fridge and a bed! This is the most incredible juxtaposition to go from bare essentials to extreme luxury (or so it feels to me). Cold drinks, a shower a soft spot to sleep, cooked food with fresh herbs. Every flat surface seems to be covered with bottles of good wine and Champagne and of course real music where you don't need to wear headphones and real people who I actually know! Dinner was by candlelight and there were many toasts.

Tuesday 15th January

DAY 24

I can see it's going to be a late start, it's nearly 7am and these people haven't even begun to stir. Apparently I'm going to get a lift back to where we met behind the most amazing ski boat I've seen. That could be very interesting. I'm not sure how the kayak will handle high speed, and I'm sure high speed will come into it somewhere. There's now a bit of life in the camp. The usual bed hair and coffee.

Had my tow behind the black beast, that was interesting to say the least. A sudden slap in the face with the reality stick and I was on my way back again. Stopped at both SA border signs and then stopped at Old Customs House. Was invited aboard the 'Cocktails and Dreams' houseboat for lunch.

I must admit to feeling more than a little unmotivated today. The paddle through to Customs House (636) seemed hard. After stopping for a couple of beers and a nice freshly made sandwich on 'Cocktails and Dreams' I pulled into some reeds and had a quick nap! After that the going seemed easier and once again I found myself stopped for the night at a lock. Lock number 6 actually (620) means I only did 36kms today. I think that is my worst day yet! It is nice here though, a nice flat patch of grass, the sound of water rushing over the weir even a rose garden and a plaque. It is around 8pm and I am ready for bed. Hopefully it will be an early one tomorrow (I've set the alarm) and it should be a good 50km into Renmark tomorrow (568). This lock has been the best to go round so far. There's a makeshift ramp at either side with grass in between. Why can't they all be like that?