We start our report with a few shots of the sunset from 80 Mile Beach, taken the previous evening ...
... where Sarankhuu found himself a giant conch, to serenade the night ...
... it was wonderful to wake up in Anna Plains Cattle Station ...
... surrounded by calves, chickens, horses and 20,000 brahman cattle. These Indian cattle are well adapted to the hot climate and dry grass ...
... fortunately, there was one million acres to share so everyone was able to find their own space ...
... that is, except Kayla the dog, who took up residence in one of our tents. Not one to deny herself the simple comforts, she found the soft mattress preferable to the canvas floor ...
... fortunately, Kaspars was an accommodating host ...
... she then ‘helped’ us pack up the tents!
Lucky for us, we weren't driving these old fellas around Australia ...
An early start helped us to avoid the worst heat of the day ...
... it was our hottest day on the road so far – 30 degrees!
At last the wind has finally dropped ...
Anubha had an impromptu interview with ABC Broome over the phone while out on the road ...
We hear many interesting sounds coming out of the bush as we run. There are many birds I have never heard before. As the heat increases, we drink more and more water ...
Pravin slows down for Amalendu, and they wish each other well on their respective journies ...
... we meet up with the rest of the team along the road and exchange pleasantries ...
Today we farwell our 3 Czech brother-runners, Lumir (not pictured today, sorry!); Pathik, here extinguishing the flame to signify the conclusion of his last run in Australia (for now) ...
... and Udayachal, coming to the end of his final run of this sojourn ...
... concluded with a soulful pranam of gratitude ...
Finally we make it to Cable Beach, with its broken shells that bake into the white sand.
It was very nice to find a beach that had sand and also one that we could swim in! (We had been told the previous night at 80 Mile Beach that the bull sharks were very numerous and swimming was inadvisable ...) Cable Beach is very popular, with a lifesaver patrolled area and a large number enjoying the 28 degree temperature: only one drawback, the surf was only 1 foot high ... even in paradise you can't have everything ...
On reaching our accommodation for the night, our three Czech team mates from Zlin – Lumir, Pathik and Udayachal – made us a dessert involving chocolate, cream, yoghurt and Sponge fingers, for the LAST time. They flew out a few hours later to return to the Czech Republic. We will miss them for their good cheer and ability to run many miles, but mostly for their delicious desserts!
We had arrived in the beautiful tropical town of Broome, where serendipitously it was the night of ‘Stairway to the Moon’ – a natural phenomenon in which the full moon rises over the mud flats when the tide is out. This phenomenon is unique to this part of Australia and can only be seen a couple of times a year, so it was with great excitement that we headed down to the park …
... along with thousands of other visitors. The town hosts a wonderful Night Market, only on the Stairway to the Moon nights ...
... such a vibrant, colourful, joyous market!
The crowded market of happy, open-hearted folk, was the perfect stage to bring out the Peace Torch ... Many of the people there had seen us on the road – some today as we headed into Broome, some over several days of travelling, and some from as far away as 600 km! It was great to meet everyone and share our hearts along with the joy of the flame ...
... which assumes a special magic after dark ...
Then, at 6.27pm ...
... the market was deserted ...
... as everyone lined the sand dune to wait and watch as the moon rose over the ocean ...
... what an incredible, breathtaking sight!
