| Friends expressed concern for Anita Ryan's safety | | | | some hot food and cold beer. |
| across the Nullarbor Plain from Perth to Sydney | | | | A very cheerful waitress told me about the menu: "oh |
| (Australia). A single female travelling solo may be a | | | | we have both kinds - chicken AND beef!" |
| magnet to the rugged men of the desert, they said. | | | | "How about wine-by-the-glass?" I ask. |
| Anita recorded her journey for posterity, or a first-hand | | | | "Oh, the best cask wine money can buy!" |
| obituary should the worst happen. | | | | I really love their enthusiasm - we were, after all, in the |
| PART ONE | | | | middle of very harsh terrain miles from bountiful fresh |
| Heading south from Perth, I stopped at Bunbury to | | | | water and internet connections, and these girls can still |
| swim with wild dolphins in Koombana Bay. The Dolphin | | | | smile. |
| Discovery Centre supplied the wetsuit, but swimming | | | | I then went to book a room, but the motel was booked |
| with these magnificent creatures made me forget the | | | | out. (And it wasn't even school holidays!) I had no |
| cold. I even forgot my own name, which was tragic | | | | option but to take a rudimentary cabin in the caravan |
| seeing as I was the only company I had hereon in - | | | | park. It was comfortable enough, but the constant |
| apart from infinitely annoying commercial radio. | | | | stream of people flip-flopping past my door to the |
| My senses still buzzing, I drove inland through the | | | | amenities block had me cursing the double-plugger. |
| salt-bed of Lake Grace, turning south again at Lake | | | | Just as I thought it was safe to go to sleep, at 3am, I |
| King. Here I passed a sign welcoming me to the | | | | was woken by my neighbour's alarm through the thin |
| outback, and began to notice other drivers waving at | | | | walls. This is not unusual, except that it was his mobile |
| me. It took a while to realise they weren't waving off | | | | phone, and it was set to vibrate. |
| the abundance of flies, they were simply being | | | | From then on, the sounds of travellers hitting the road |
| courteous country drivers. | | | | filled the air, and I found it impossible to get back to |
| After eight hours of driving since Perth, I arrived in | | | | sleep. |
| Esperance - a town so pretty I quickly forgave it for | | | | Tired and cranky at the start of my third day, I took a |
| placing its entrance through the industrial area. | | | | gentle trip to the Old Telegraph Station 4km south of |
| Fortunately I arrived in time to drive the 45-minute Pink | | | | the Eucla establishment. Seeing how remote and |
| Lake circuit to see (you guessed it) the pink lake. | | | | rugged our settlers would have had it made me count |
| The circuit runs past Australia's first wind farm at | | | | my blessings, and I pointed my car east in a much |
| Salmon Beach, then meanders onwards past the | | | | better mood. |
| stunning Bluehaven and Twilight Beaches. Luckily the | | | | Minutes later, I stopped again. I'd reached the Western |
| speed limit is 60 km/h - the view is so amazing who | | | | Australian and South Australian border and there were |
| wants to watch the road? | | | | roadblocks while guards searched the cars for fruit |
| I took my time following it past 9 Mile Beach, 10 Mile | | | | and vegetable matter. I ate all the fruit I could then |
| Lagoon and 11 Mile Resort (no, I'm not joking, those | | | | surrendered the rest, along with a Margaret River |
| really are the names of the beaches). Relaxing at Pink | | | | grapevine cutting that was to be a gift for my brother. |
| Lake I hung around for the sunset to see if the lake | | | | Sadly, border guards weren't forthcoming with hot |
| gets any pinker. It didn't. | | | | coffee to accompany my breakfast, even despite |
| I found accommodation easily, choosing a Bed and | | | | fluttering eye-lashes and a threat to put my hair down. |
| Breakfast a block from the jetty. For dinner I headed | | | | Never mind. For the next 180 kilometres I was to be |
| off to Esperance's 30-year institution: Beryl's Eats - a | | | | treated to the most stunning coastline I could imagine. |
| mobile burger van on the Jetty foreshore. Then I did | | | | Innocuous "Photo Opportunity" signs dotted along the |
| what every local does... I sat between the fishermen | | | | road pointed to car parks 600m towards the coast, |
| on the jetty, ate half the burger and threw the rest to | | | | and every single one was worth the detour. |
| the sea-lions playing under the jetty pylons. | | | | There is no railing along the cliff edges; so be careful |
| On Day Two I awoke to breakfast served on | | | | you don't get blown off. Furthermore, if you suffer |
| Wedgewood china and advice to wear my hair down | | | | from vertigo, go with a friend - they can hold onto you |
| - "The police are young dear," my host smiled. | | | | and stop you from jumping off. The water is so |
| I set off with bouncing hair and high spirits despite | | | | stunning and clear, it really entered my mind as a good |
| having to give up my plan to travel further east along | | | | thing to fly off the edge. I don't know how far down it |
| the Cape le Grande. Arguably it is Australia's most | | | | is, but I sensibly dragged myself away before I could |
| stunning coastline, but with 4WD-only access it was an | | | | find out. |
| invitation for disaster for my two-door coupe. | | | | Two hours later I entered what I came to refer to as |
| Instead I headed north to Norseman - the last town | | | | the "zone" - the Nullarbor Treeless Plain. |
| before setting forth across the Nullarbor. | | | | Lightly vegetated, the land is an incredible desert |
| Norseman is named after an old horse who crossed | | | | wilderness, its wild beauty offering an hour of spiritual |
| the Nullarbor and founded the town. The story got me | | | | space. As it melded into the National Park and then the |
| to wondering if the town is therefore made up of | | | | Yalata Aboriginal Land, I was so moved I decided to |
| stallions and nags. | | | | create a mobile Nullarbor Disco as a gesture of |
| Barely ten minutes onto the Eyre Highway that would | | | | gratitude. I sang the only song I know about "rain" in an |
| take me approximately 1200 kilometres without having | | | | effort to influence the Universe to nourish the |
| to turn a corner, I passed my first casualty. A pop-top | | | | spattering of trees, although I'm not quite sure what the |
| caravan that had popped its top. It was a timely | | | | trees would do if it really did start raining men. |
| reminder that I was embarking on a serious journey | | | | Emerging from the "zone", I felt a real sense of loss as |
| and my job was to stay alive to enjoy it. | | | | I encountered commercial signage advertising crafts |
| Barely two hours later I whizzed past the Belladonia | | | | and email. Ah, civilisation. I use the term very loosely |
| roadhouse. That's when I realised the dots on the map | | | | mind you - my senses were assaulted with the sight |
| aren't towns, but roadhouses. Thankfully for the | | | | of cleared land that looked brutalised after the |
| recalcitrant traveller like me (sans jerry can and | | | | untamed beauty of the desert. I didn't enjoy this section |
| camping gear), the roadhouses are usually no more | | | | and, for the first time in this whole adventure, I felt tired |
| than two hours apart and have fuel and | | | | while driving. |
| accommodation facilities. However, unfortunately for | | | | Even though I thought it was mid afternoon, I had |
| the recalcitrant traveller like me (sans drinking water) | | | | missed a time-zone change, and it was now in fact |
| showers can cost a dollar a minute and attendants | | | | late afternoon. Luckily, Ceduna was only another 30 |
| laugh at requests for fresh water. | | | | minutes down the road. The time lag combined with |
| Outnumbering roadhouses by, oh, a million to one, was | | | | the deflation from re-entering civilisation had taken its |
| road kill. This was proof positive of the road signs | | | | toll. I fell into bed after gorging on Smoky Bay oysters, |
| warning the presence of kangaroos, emus and camels. | | | | and this time slept like a baby. (No, I didn't wake every |
| Camels? Yes, apparently so, although I didn't see any. I | | | | two hours with a pooey nappy screaming for bosoms. |
| only saw dozens of kangaroos and emus, and | | | | I mean, I slept well.) |
| needless to say treated them with enormous respect. | | | | By my fourth day, I'd just about had enough. I was |
| One emu particularly impressed me when he crossed | | | | starting to suffer from Rrrrr Disease - named after the |
| the highway at what looked like a pedestrian crossing. I | | | | sound of the relentless hum of tyres on the road that |
| learned later that the white stripes are markers for an | | | | permeates every waking thought. I took a shortcut |
| emergency landing strip for the Royal Flying Doctor | | | | across a desolate wasteland across the top of the |
| Service. So now I was watching out for kangaroos, | | | | Eyre Peninsula to Port Augusta, but it was a hard slog. |
| emus, camels and aeroplanes. | | | | Only one town, Kimba, made an effort to welcome |
| At around the halfway point of my day's driving, I hit | | | | tourists, reminding them that they were now "half way |
| the start of Australia's longest straight road. On the | | | | across Australia." |
| map it's called the 90 Mile Highway, but I think that's | | | | The best thing to happen to me this day, was a |
| because it was built in the time of imperial | | | | serendipitous diversion via the southern Flinders |
| measurement. Besides, "144 Kilometre Road" doesn't | | | | Ranges. After the monotony of the dead straight |
| have the same ring to it. | | | | roads, it was delightful to be able to steer again and I |
| Another hour on and the countryside started | | | | vowed to never take a curvy road for granted after |
| resembling a Leunig cartoon. A barren landscape with | | | | this. The inland road wove its way south through |
| only a scraggy tree to break the horizon. | | | | picturesque historic towns and via the Clare Valley |
| The road kill was now competing for space amongst | | | | wine region. |
| an amazing array of inanimate objects such as blown | | | | I headed straight for my favourite Clare winery, only to |
| tyres, half a ute, a boat rudder, and a yellow Hi-Ace | | | | discover they had shut early. This disappointment |
| converted to a message board: "Hi Pam and kids, I | | | | triggered a weariness so profound I fell onto the grass |
| saw a yowie." And I thought they were only found | | | | and sooked. By now I was completely sun-smacked, |
| near cash registers. | | | | road-wrecked, wave-whacked, white-lined, sign-swiped |
| Despite the barrenness of the terrain, it is exquisitely | | | | and travel thick. The thought of getting back into the |
| beautiful, especially when viewed from the Madura | | | | car sent me into a panic, and it was only the patient |
| Pass lookout another two hours on. I almost got out of | | | | coaxing of a friend by mobile phone that convinced |
| the car to take a photo, but the heat outside melted | | | | me to get back into the saddle to drive the last hour to |
| my lip-gloss. | | | | Adelaide, which I did, only it took me two hours including |
| The Madura Pass marked the start of a rounded hill | | | | the periodic roadside rests to settle the nerves. |
| so long and unvarying I imagine that from the air it | | | | After mopping up my dribble, I went to bed looking for |
| must look like a giant carpet snake. It stretches all the | | | | sleep. Unfortunately, the perplexing question of "Where |
| way to Eucla, 200 kilometres on. | | | | was the rabbit proof fence?" kept me awake, until I |
| A huge white Christians' cross overlooks the highway | | | | looked it up on a map only to find it several hundred |
| on approach to Eucla. After ten hours in the car, I was | | | | kilometres north of where I'd been driving. Ooops. Just |
| so delighted to see it I almost converted. I didn't, but it | | | | goes to show how good I am with maps - I'm probably |
| was a narrow escape. | | | | quite lucky to have even found Adelaide! |
| Upon arriving at the biggest roadhouse on the Eyre | | | | Even so, the fact that I'd got this far safely was |
| Highway, I did some stretches to activate my leg | | | | enough to say a heartfelt "thank-you" to my guardian |
| muscles again and headed straight to the bistro for | | | | angel. |