David's Journal Entry

The joys of a genuinely top-drawer shower today resulted in a very slow start. Mike waxed lyrical upon his return from his morning ablutions (which had taken him so long I had struck camp by the time he was done). I was not disappointed when I had my turn and was very happy to take a little longer than usual to enjoy being scoured clean by the piping-hot water. The net result of our combined indulgence was a 9.30am start. Nevertheless, once on the road the going was good and we were rewarded by our first sighting of the state flower of South Australia, the delightful Sturt's Desert Pea, which makes a change from the melon-like and noxious desert gourd which lines much of this stretch of highway.  This was the first of many beautiful and new (to us) flora as the landscape shifted. Perhaps most surprising was the last 20km or so today,  where the vegetation was almost heath-like, reminiscent of Connemara or parts of Iceland. Flat and devoid of trees but full of colour and interest, with an occasional flowering succulent. 

Perhaps the most memorable part of the day was meeting Mr Francis Fung, from Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia at Lake Hart. Despite being a 52-year resident of Australia he was, nevertheless, quite happy to talk of Makan and Malaysian politics (although it is fair to say I am still a relative newbie in this department). It would appear flying the Malaysian flag alongside the Aussie one was a good decision after all!

Our final destination, Pimba (Spud's) Roadhouse, is no longer the family-run business it promised to be and once was. Nevertheless, it was very hospitable and gave us time to digest the day. The camping area near the roadhouse was so hard that we couldn't drive a tent stake into the ground so in the words of Bear Gryll's we adapted, improvised and overcame and in the end, with a little guerilla engineering, our Voile straps and some large rocks were sufficient to hold our shelters in place for the night.

Over dinner, we reflected on the point of journeys such as these. It is fair to say Mike has thought about this more deeply than I have. He has a more refined approach to it all and seems to be seeking something far more profound, whereas I am happy to just be here in the present. Sometimes I do find the going hard, but a tin of tuna and a rest is usually enough for a reboot. That or reminding myself I am here by choice and there is much beauty and pleasure in this experience, irrespective of the brief discomforts. In contrast, Mike seems to be thinking bigger. This is perhaps why our frequent and supportive refrain "you do you" has been a quick source of resolution when we have had differing opinions. There isn't one right way.