To go to Darwin River to have lunch with friends…….well why wouldn’t you! Any normal person would do that – right? Well maybe not but that’s what FarRiders do.
This was in itself going to be an enormous ask of myself and one that I thought I had in hand. However as it turned out I didn’t and wasn’t prepared in many ways to take on this huge challenge of myself.
- Ride fitness – none
- Mental fitness – none
- Camping expectation – thought I had that nailed
- Ride plans – all in hand and alternatives available
The only thing that I had no problem with at all was Angel!, she performed effortlessly as usual. Thank goodness I take good care of her cos she certainly needed to take good care of me.
In the back of your mind you always worry about wildlife out on road and especially when you are by yourself. You have to rely on your own abilities and your own strengths and unfortunately your weaknesses to. To say I learnt a lot about myself this trip is an understatement.
I had roos, coming at me from all directions in the first few days, eagles a couple with wing spans of about 2 metres, sheep, goats, cattle including one that chased me down the Stuart Highway and people that were amazed that I was doing this trip all this on my own. That amazement when I look back I think was the most daunting fact – I’d left Karl at home, my folks were off travelling (and I’d hoped to meet up with them but unfortunately plans changed and this wasn’t to be), the pressure I put myself under to camp most of the way was unbelievable and in the end it was just all too much.
I cracked!
In a nutshell though I think I summed it up in this post on Facebook.
Thanks Everyone for the kind words. I’m pretty buggered right now and sitting enjoying a cuppa tea with my Sweety.
To be honest with you all, I really don’t think of myself as being anything special let alone Wonder Woman (thanks Shaz).
But, when I sit back and reflect on what I have gone through on this trip (adventure) and what I have also achieved and learned, I am very special and extremely proud of myself to embarking on something like this.
However, I am what I am and I do what I do because I have the opportunity to do so. But without the undeniable enormous support from Karl and my family and all my friends helping me out along the way, I couldn’t do it.
So, a HUGE “THANK YOU” to you Sweety Karl Verran who I have missed more than any words can convey and to all my friends for the support – in particular Kim Hansen who rang me when I was at my lowest point and help me get through the struggle I was having.
What did I learn, well many things but………
The most important things are the people you have by your side in life.
Would I do this trip again – absolutely.
Would I do it on my own again – NO WAY! The next big trip will be with Karl.
Will I camp again – not on my own. It wasn’t being on my own in the tent at night or even leaving everything I owned on the trip in the tent. It was purely the stress of setting and packing up on a timeline that cooked this little duck. Oh and the tiny tent pegs (that are pretty bent now)…..I must buy us some decent ones.
I overcame some hurdles and motored on and am thankful that I did. Cos I had an absolute adventure that you can’t buy from some travel agent.
There were also a few firsts on this ride for me:
- 1st FarRide North
- 1st Female Rider to attend FRN
- 1st time I’ve travelled so far from home
- 1st time I’ve used a ratchet strap (a story all on it’s own)
Now for the nerds – the stats:
Distance completed for FarRide North – 1016 km
Total Distance completed – 8506.2 km
Max Speed – 164 kph
Moving Average – 106 kph
Overall Average – 99 kph
Oh , the map – nearly forgot my Spot tracking (now if you do a lot of travelling (riding) on your own, these things are invaluable).
FRN#1 Spot track
Pretty impressive, even if I do say so myself.
Until the next adventure…… thanks for reading.
Kimmie xxx
