It was the first day with all of our new team members today. Everything always seems to take a little longer as we start to work together as one unit. So tents were being packed down, as porridge was being made and lunch assembled ...
... as we had no school visits today (it is school holidays for the next 2 weeks), we didn't have a set time to leave, but knew it was going to be a hot one so didn't want to leave it too late ...
... we got talking with some of the campers and meet Lorraine, Liz and Bella who were all happy to have shared the camp with us last night and wished us well on our journey today ...
While not wanting to leave too late, at the same time we could not leave Mataranka without a swim in Bitter Springs, one of Australia’s lesser-known wonders ...
Bitter Springs is an oasis amongst the dry landscape around us. These warm springs flow up from beneath the ground, where they have travelled all the way from the Barkly Tableland in Queensland – over 1000km away ...
The water is warm and relaxing, the perfect temperature, and mineral-rich – just the ticket for tired muscles ...
We dove in with all the locals and enjoyed the tepid waters. There is a current that gently takes you down stream a few hundred metres and then you jump out and run back up to dive back in ...
Through swimming goggles, we could see a clear and wondrous underwater world, with beautiful species of moss and other greenery.
As we floated downstream and looked up we saw many criss-crossings of spider webs with large spiders dangling over the water (I must admit I did swim a little harder when I saw them hanging tantalisingly above me!) ...
The reflections in the water, combined with the natural algae and floating vegetation, created some wonderful "Expressionist" scenes ...
Right at the end of our swim we were greeted by a small tree snake that was sunning itself on the path and seemed to be posing for photos as each person got out of the water ...
... though one of the locals didn't think it was poisonous, we all still gave it its space.
After our dip in Bitter Springs we started our km, another hot humid day in the Northern Territory and for most of the team it was our first day of official running on the Peace Run in Australia.
As Irina, our new Russian team member from Vladivostok took the Peace Torch for the first time, she exclaimed: “Now I run in Australia, my dream is made!”
As we acclimatise to this weather we were all very happy to see the van and our supply of water after each of our 5km stints.
Finding respite in the shade as we cooled down before jumping out again for our next 5km ...
Those last 5km our team all unanimously decided that we were running in an oven, slowly baking.
Mr and Mrs Khan also stopped to wish us well on our way.
Further ahead, our boys teams were grinding out the kms ...
Our route today was clear – head south, due south ...
Prachar has rejoined the team and was easing into things slowly today.
... no easing into things for Drishalu though, who is running all the way around the continent.
We met an extraordinary couple on the road today. We have encountered many cyclists, but French adventurers Bernard Deniaud and Frédéric Benoit are not cycling – they are propelling themselves with their own feet from Darwin to Adelaide on their custom-built "trotinettes" (better known to Australian children as "scooters") ...
Although they don't speak a word of English, fortunately on our team we have Abhinabha from Holland, Kaspars from Latvia and Ion from Moldova who all speak excellent French, so we could have a long chat with these amazing guys.
Last year they rode on their trotinettes from Dhakar (in Senegal) to Paris, a journey of 3 months. Bernard is a reality TV star in France, where the pair have a huge following especially through their Facebook page "Kickabout Australia". They are covering on average 50 - 75 km a day.
Kaspars was so delighted with this chance encounter. Since his childhood he has been a huge fan of the French movie star Pierre Richard, and he remarked that Bernard reminded him strongly of his favourite star. Bernard's companion, Frédéric, then astounded Kaspars by informing him that his wife knows Monsieur Richard well and will be happy to arrange an introduction for Kaspars next time he is in France!
Kaspars was over the moon.
The pair headed off with a new addition to their collection of prized stickers ...
While there are still quite a few big trucks and road trains in these parts ...
... they have mostly been replaced by ...
... the ubiquitous caravans and motorhomes, many of them bearing number plates from Victoria and South Australia, all headed north to escape the Winter cold and to enjoy the school holidays.
The termite mounds in these parts come in all shapes and sizes ...
... a look into the intricate network of passageways and chambers inside ...
At this point in the day, we benefited from a high but forgiving cloud cover, which took away the sting from what might otherwise have been a ruthless midday sun.
The final miles into Daly Waters were marked by hot afternoon sun, without so much of the cool breeze that had eased yesterday’s running.
It still seemed to be no problem for the intrepid team of Abhinabha and Samalya. Samalya was on such a roll that he kept returning for just a few extra kilometres.
For Noivedya, the conditions were especially demanding – as he was still acclimatising. True, he was from the same nation, but the chilly Canberra winter of a few days ago is far removed from the endless Northern Territory summer. His fellow Antipodean teammates, Steve and Sukhajata, have already been running through the tropics for a number of weeks. Abhinabha and Samalya had arrived from a European summer – which, strangely enough, made them more prepared than someone from southern Australia. Fortunately, Noivedya was able to finish in one piece.
He should be fully acclimatised in the next week ... when he promises to start looking for new excuses.
Abhinabha learns songs ...
... while Prachar works on conjuring something for yesterday's report ...
We finished at the famous Daly Waters Pub, which has kindly given us space on their campsite for tonight. The centrepiece of this establishment is the archetypal Australian bar. Visitors from around the world have stapled samples of their local currency all over the wall, as well as badges, cloth patches, stickers and baseball caps, among other things. Many people have even pinned their drivers’ licences and other photo IDs to the front bar! It is a history of the many visitors – and many others were there tonight, enjoying live country and folk music in the courtyard.
This lady met us when we arrived and was happy to to hold the Torch ...
... and also to take a few steps for peace ...
Mike kindly showed us to our campground ...
Joy was all joy to meet the Peace Run, she insisted on taking photos of us with the Torch. From Adelaide, she is travelling with her son. They have been seeing our team since Kununurra in Western Australia, and have finally caught up with us.
At our accommodation, we met with the Callow family, from Wollongong, NSW ...
... Finn ...
... Piper ...
... Halle ...
... and Phoebe ...
... Phoebe, here with her dad, is the NSW State champion in her age group for 3000m and would have loved to join our team for a way, though her family is heading north, whereas we are heading due south.
Time to pitch our tents and settle in for the night ...
