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August 5, 2001
Overland Australia - Update 11
Day 13
August 5, 2001
Chillagoe to Pinnacle Springs 61 kms
We had a good layover day at Chillagoe. Actually, it was a great day. The town looked pretty darned civilized as we rolled off the dirt corrugation from Elizabeth Creek up by Wrotham Park Station. We knocked-off 81 kms by 3:30 that day, and looked forward to a well-deserved rest day, our first since Maytown way back up there in the Palmer goldfields.
Today we hit the road at about 7:45 on a fine, clear morning. We said goodbye to Josh's parents and sister Sophie who'd come up for the night from Cairns with re-supplies and treats! We also had a great overnight visit by Norlia and Sherryll, our logistical support team and Distance Education contacts here in the bush. It's through Sherryll, the Distance Education teacher, that we're able to be here on this beautiful evening at Pinnacle Springs Station, 19 miles down the railroad line from Almaden.
We're all getting stronger, for sure. We arrived here after cycling 30 kms from Chillagoe to the Ootan turnoff. Tea and sandwiches (heaps of peanut butter!), and we were on our way, following the track, which parallels the Cairns-Kuranda Railway. The railroad is the defining means of original communication and transport in this area. It was built for the mines in Chillagoe and Almaden, and the tin mines at Herberton. Begun in 1886 and completed in 1891, it opened Cairns as the main seaport. Read the History update today to find out more about the railway.
For us, we arrived here at around 2:30 in the afternoon and walked over to the 'yards' to help-out with the branding of 60 'weaners,' cattle just removed from their mothers.
And now it's evening time here at Pinnacle Springs Station with the Kruckow family, Verna and Peter, and daughters Emma and Laura, on their 40000-acre station. It was a fine riding day, and a fine evening-to-come with conversations and shared stories
Jim
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Posted on August 5, 2001 12:18 PM