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We thought about using this space to write some sill Christmas carol spoof, like "I'm Dreaming of a Wet Christmas," but we're
silly far too often.
But I guess that's why you keep coming back. Did you know there are over 15,000 people a month reading our adventures
along with you? We're amazed too. Amazed, astounded, and very, very appreciative. I mean, all we do is live our lives,
take a few photos and write a few stories... we never expected such a response!
Gratitude to those who write us and tell us how much you enjoy the site, apologies to those we haven't responded to. We
love email from happy readers (even when internet time costs $12 an hour in the middle of the desert). Thanks for all the
well wishes and support! Let the adventure continue! Merry Christmas to all of you!
Love,
- Kevin, Aimee & Wally
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Wyatt Wonders:
Age: 41
Birthday: Christmas!
Home: Marble Bar
Height: 5'6
Hat: 10 Gallon
Wyatt's Words of Wisdom: Never let anyone know you can do more than your job description.
Hope you win the Lotto soon, Wyatt!
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meet santa claus
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On Christmas night, Santa finally found us rolling along the Kimberley and invited us to his home for a late dinner and a cold shower. In these parts, Santa goes by the name of Wyatt Edwards. Between mouthfuls of steak, we got to know him a little better...
It's Christmas. What are you doing out here? All the other fellas from the camp have gone home for Christmas and they needed someone to stay and keep an eye on the camp. I offered. Not a bad job, just getting paid 8 hours a day to watch telly.
When does everyone else get back? Probably the first week of January, but even that's not for long because we're done our work. We just need to take down the camp and there'll be an official bridge-opening celebration.
So you've got this whole place to yourself for two weeks? Yeah, it's a good time to just relax. I've been working every day for three weeks straight and I need a break.
When the camp leaves, what happens to all this stuff? They'll tear the whole thing down and within three months you'd never know there used to be a camp here. Whatever food the boys don't eat gets shipped on to the next camp or thrown away, I guess.
So until then, you can just sit and eat steak? Nah. I don't eat much. Help yourselves though.
Mind if we stay another night? No worries.
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these are the people in our neighbourhood...
Lori & Family
Whassa? A family just stops on the road and gives us... money? Is it the Christmas spirit, is it the happiest highway in Australia, or do we just look so pathetic that they think we need meat on our bones? Whatever it is, we ain't complaining! Thanks Lori!
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Julian, Wendy & the Girls
No more pencils, no more books! School's out in Australia, for the summer! These girls have just spent some time in Broome before they get ready to start their next year at school in Darwin. Look how happy she is about going back!
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Aaron & Joanne
This highway's just loaded with Canadians! Nice ones too! Aaron and Joanne are a couple of happy, worldly Canucks who have been living in Bangkok for a few years, and, best of all, they say we can stay with them when we come to Thailand! We'll be there soon!
P.S. Joanne, we found your address book. It fell off your car! Email us!
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The Danish Entourage
This highway's just loaded with Danes! Nice ones too! These two couples are trying to knock off Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia in only a few short weeks! Good thing they have a car. Also a good thing they had OJ, iced coffee and beer for us!
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wally's amazin' facts!
The worm in the apple is not really a worm at all... it's a codling moth! Well, it's not quite a moth yet. It's still
just a larva. How do ya like them apples?
This Week's Amazin' Fact: Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell Croc! Ha! The Kimberley is some of
the wildest country in Australia, just choc-a-block with crocs. A freshie, or freshwater croc,
usually grows to about a metre long, but they shouldn't bug you if you swim in their billabong. It's the salties
you gotta watch out for... They can get up to 5 metres long, and walk 40km a night in search of food!
I wonder if they think wombats are tasty? Crikey!
I'm off for my Christmas dinner, but before I go, does anyone know what you shouldn't
eat if you think you'll be near crocs? I'll give you a hint: it's not wombat. But you shouldn't
be eating wombats anyway! We're gamey!
Don't forget to look for Wally this week!
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| Distance this week: 373km | Distance since Day 1: 4935km |
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What is Bikeabout? Click here to find out!
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Day 93: No Photo Available
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44.2km
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35°
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7.5h
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11L
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Couple Climbs
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Under the Boab
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 surprise gift or cruel joke?
We had spent the night sweating into our makeshift pillows, tossing and turning in our sloping tent parked next to a rubbish
bin in a conveniently located truckie pull-off. The ground managed to retain the heat of the sun long into the night, and
recharged rather quickly once the sun came up this morning.
After a restless night, we had spent most of the next day sweating into our makeshift pillows, tossing and turning in our
sloping tent parked next to a rubbish bin in a conveniently located truckie pull-off. We were getting low on water, and
for a time, considered placing a drip pan under our chins while we played cards and waited for the sun to descend to a
respectible tangent. By 4:00pm, two dried husks of human shells unzipped their home, rolled it up and departed at the pace
of a similar abode-burdened animal.
8.3km later, we bumped into the Doon Doon Roadhouse, an air-conditioned, low-priced, well-managed, liquid-rich haven of
bliss. Should we be happy, or upset? Hmm... I'll think it over as I sip this ice cold Coca-Cola...
"Get in and close up... now!!"
- Aimee.
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Day 96: Boxed in on Boxing Day
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 mcdonalds for christmas
The beginning of this story actually starts late Christmas night. We were pedalling along in our usual manner, when a man in a ute pulls up alongside. (Ahhh. So many of our best stories start with a man pulling up alongside us in a ute.)
He looks at us incredulously and asks us if we are aware of what day it was. Yup! We answer with smiles, thinking of the spam and pineapple Christmas dinner awaiting us when we stop pedaling.
Obviously, spam was not high on his list of delicacies (give him a week of tuna, and it will be) and this prompted him to invite us to his 'camp' for dinner.
Now, a 'camp' in Australia could mean just about anything, from a sheep station 30km off the road where there's mutton for brekky, lunch and tea, to a swag and a billy under a coolibah tree. Sure, we said, we'll be there.
When we finally arrived at his 'camp', it turned out to be the Ord River Construction Camp that was vacated for Christmas, with just our friend Wyatt watching over everything to make sure nobody steals off with the backhoe in the middle of the night. We kept him company, he kept us company and we enjoyed the spoils of the construction camp for the next two days. Steak! Mattresses! Baby corn! Rocky Road! Internet! And cold, delicious Coke!
Thanks Wyatt and the J.J. McDonald & Sons Engineering Company for a fantastic Christmas!
"I figure if we lived in Melbourne for three months and never heard of Melbourne Bitter, maybe we shouldn't start drinking it here."
- Aimee.
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humbug:
(v.) panhandle, beg, ask for money, cigarettes, etc. Could this be a Mr. Scrooge reference, refusing to fulfill a requested handout?
party hardly
stuffing stocker?
can't stay forever
deck the halls
ups and downs
