2010-02-13 -19 147

Ayr, Australia, 2010-02-13

Location

On a cane farm just this side of Brandon.

Participants

Matty K and family

Matty K's Expedition

Success!

We set out in sunshine, and steered towards the rainy mountains. Then we hit the rain. It was very heavy rain. Having two young children along made the idea of an (almost-)underwater hash somewhat unpalatable. Fortunately about 4km from the point the rain stopped suddenly.

Half a kilometre out I spontaneously decided to take a turning that lead into the cane farm beside the road, crossed the tram tracks, and drove along the track between the tram and the paddock. A few hundred metres down the track we began to lose traction in our front-wheel-drive around-town sedan; apparently it didn't particularly like the hard-packed dirt with its fine coating of cane dust, powdered clay and water. Eventually we made it along the slightly winding track and turned to follow it around the corner of the paddock.

A small grassy bay had been left in the edge of the paddock, housing a tin shed and a pump or something, and fortunately for us the hash point was right on the edge of the bay! There was no need to even get out of the car, let alone consider attempting to penetrate the dense (wet, scratchy, sharp, snake- and spider-infested) 8' wall of sugar cane that surrounded us.

I parked on the long grass (who'd ever have thought that long wet grass would ever provide better traction than hard earth?), snapped some shots, then retraced our path back to the road and then to Townsville.

The end.