« Overland Australia - basecamp update 2 | Main | Overland Australia - basecamp update 4 »
July 18, 2001
Overland Australia - basecamp update 3
23 July 2001
Hi, my name is Crister Brady. I’m the youngest member on the expedition and this is my first time in Australia. I arrived here in Cairns on Wednesday and it’s been non-stop ever since!
John Andrews, a Cairns local, greeted my dad and I in our Mitsubishi support vehicle aptly named Clue for the stuffed animal on the dashboard. Mike Roney from Utah and April from Colorado were the next members we met. Our home base of the expedition is John and Norlia’s house, which is decorated by their awesome artwork.
After a restful sleep we woke up on Thursday to perfect weather. April, my dad, and myself unloaded and built up our bikes which had been tightly packed away in traveling boxes and bags. Around 10 a.m. we
began sorting and organizing food…food! We must have a couple tons! But, I bet we will be eating a lot more than anyone can imagine once we get moving.
After about an hour and a half of that we headed down to the local bike shop to get April’s disc brake rotor fixed which had been bent during the flight. We then headed downtown and saw what a beautiful place Cairns is: Waterfront walkways, surrounding green mountains
and a climate that is incredibly pleasant!
Around four, Jason, Bel, and Todd arrived. We heard about their adventures while kayaking and talked about some minor logistics. Josh, a 19 year old from Cairns who will join the expedition, also arrived soon after. Around eight we all had a delicious pasta dinner cooked by Norlia and then had a two-hour meeting concerning major logistics. During the meeting we tried to imagine what a normal day (if there will be such a thing) will look like, and tried to plan around the facts recovered from that. After a long day we went to sleep around midnight.
Today we have been packing, packing, and packing the vehicle. A T.V. crew from a local station did some interviews and a few biking shots, which was pretty fun. The packing of the vehicle involves careful organization and mostly “managed” by John who does an awesome job at it! The group seems to be coming together well, and everyone seems very ready for the 3 months that lay in front of us! Yahoo!!!!!!!
Posted on July 18, 2001 2:11 PM