Got to love waking up, watching the sunrise, hitting the snooze button and going back to sleep… only to wake up again and the sun is now warm on you and the wind that was blowing has stopped. Mmmmm… what a way to start the day!
I slowly packed up and headed off, with a target of at least 24km today. Why 24km? Well, main sub-stations are 12km apart and they provide the best camp spots along the railway line… so my second sub-station would be great, a little further ever better.
Going was tough and fairly slow, struggling again to get comfortable… but walking speed was good so I could afford little breaks here & there to rest the hips & shoulders. Scenery though has changed and is now very bare, and so I generally focus on the path ahead of me – keeping an eye on the terrain to ensure I don’t injure myself and also for ‘wildlife’.
I’ve realised I probably won’t make Prince Albert Road tomorrow as hoped, so was rationing water to ensure I had enough for a day and a half after today. But I kept wanting to drink so it became a mental game again. No tap to open, no fridge to walk to… just the water on my back until the next water source. So, I was wind pump hunting. Sadly many don’t have rotors / blades, and some that are still standing are so rusted they don’t turn. A few that do, don’t have any water connection or the dam is empty.
As I approached a broken down siding a Transnet car pulled in! Oh shucks, now what? There’s nothing here for him to do except something about me… or it’s pure coincidence. Fortunately, it was the latter. He was on his was back from Beaufort West to Cape Town (damn, why didn’t I climb in the car with him?), and just needed to stretch his legs. He’s one of the safety officers and did an audit in Beaufort. But, his car is regulated to 100km an hour so he gets frustrated and just pulls over all the time to relax and focus again. Good man! Stay alert stay alive!
I went wind pump hunting again and this time I struck it lucky!! WOOOOHOOOOOO! My smile was so big I reckon most people wouldn’t thought I’d struck gold! Not wanting to weigh myself down too much, I just filled up the 4L dirty bag from the MSR AutoFlow and pushed on about 1km to a mini-substation [more signalling I think] and sat in the shade and enjoyed so fresh “bonus” water as I call it and a mixer too!
I took that chance to eat some more too, and have a lovely snooze.
The day was wearing on and body tiring quickly now, despite the extra water and snooze. And then I saw the Gemsbok sub-station… from FAR away. Well, I may have taken a few short stops from the time I saw it to arrival, but I got here rather full of energy and excited to have a home for the night and be setup before dark.
A little further along the line is another group of buildings – dunno if its a siding or a farm, but I guess that’ll have to wait for tomorrow.
Dinner was a Backcountry Cuisine meal – thanks to Outward Ventures – and it was Mexican Chicken. I’m doing ‘double dinner’ rations for this week, so am gonna enjoy some John West tuna after I’ve finished typing… Lime & Black Pepper dressing. YAY! Awesome food all round…
Gear item of the day was certainly the MSR AutoFlow water filter. I HATE having to pump water and I HATE having to pump at the collection point (often in the baking sun)… and this takes care of both.
Sky is clear, apart from a few clouds on the horizon, and the moon is BIG and bright… but I can still see stars in the sky and I am out of the wind – so I am going to bed a happy Ray!!!
Oooh, even happier because my new bicycle has been ordered. Now, I know it’s not quite Betty and no bicycle will ever be Betty… but, she is a beaut!
Thanks to The Epic Bike Shop, Salomon Sports and Kona for helping me out – you guys are incredible!
