Team A

 

We left our beautiful accommodation at Lake Argyle early in the morning as the sun had just come up. We wished we could have stayed another day to enjoy the serenity of the lake and its surroundings (even though the lake is home to some 30,000 crocodiles).

We enjoyed every step of the way, even as the heat was merciless. The sun was magnificent and very giving – though maybe a little too much!

A special thank you to Roy from the Victoria River Motel and Caravan Park for a very serene and peaceful night's sleep tonight!

- Runar Gigja (Iceland)

Team B

Today was a very special day for us. One member of our team, Angela Muhs from Germany, had won a flight over the extraordinary Bungle Bungle Ranges.

She was so happy when she came back. She seemed so free – smiling a special kind of smile.

“Everything is so relative when you are up there! Everything that seems so important when you are down here, becomes so small and insignificant when you see it from a different perspective high in the sky,” she said.

Angela writes: Our pilot was a very kind and dynamic, young lady. We took off at around 6 o’clock. I was very excited!

First we crossed Lake Argyle, the area where we had stayed last night.

I tried to spot our team in the caravan park, but could not make them out.

But then all of a sudden I left everything behind and was totally absorbed by the spectacular scenery.

I was speechless while watching the different shapes, forms and colours of mother earth.

So much unexpected beauty and vastness!

The whole tour took us two and a half hours.

When I came back to my team I felt totally refreshed and energised for my daily mileage...

[Elke continues] We were happy to have her back with us in the team, and not just because there were still many kilometres to run.

Now we are heading north-east and it gets hotter and hotter.

No way out – just one way!

After we had crossed the border into the Northern Territory we were reminded to change our watches 1.5 hours ahead.

– Angela Muhs (Germany) and Elke Lindner (Germany)

Team C

Today we farewelled the vast State of Western Australia – a State that covers an area equal in size to the whole of Western Europe, yet houses only 2 million people – and entered into the Northern Territory.

Our last task in WA was to thank Charlie Sharpe from the Lake Argyle Tourist Village Motel for providing our camping accommodation last night near the shores of Lake Argyle (unfortunately our photo of Charlie was accidentally deleted from our camera, but our gratitude for our unforgettable night's stay will never be deleted).

Today a few lucky members of our team received a complimentary flight courtesy of Sling Air, Kununurra.  The flight took them over the extraordinary Bungle Bungles, Lake Argyle  and the enormous Argyle Diamond Mine, which is presently responsible for one third of the world's diamond production.

By chance we met with Mark, a Sling Air pilot who has 3 times completed the Sri Chinmoy Triple Triathlon in Canberra as an individual entrant. The race comprises 9 legs (3 lake swims, 3 mountain bike rides and 3 cross country runs) that traverses the 9 highest peaks in and around Canberra. Only a few athletes dare to complete this event which is often quoted as being tougher than a regular Ironman triathlon.

After meeting up with our early morning flyers, we drove eastward for 200 km to the small township of Timber Creek to begin our running. By the time our feet touched the road, the sun was already high in the sky and blessing us with its full resplendent smile.

However to keep us company on our travels we met with many other holidaymakers who shared their stories with us, held the Torch and very often provided some cool drinks to help us on our way.

It was Nana from Japan who really caught our eye. After having ridden his bike through most of Europe and then island-hopping through Asia from Japan to Darwin, we found Nana cycling on the highway, bound for Perth. This time it was our turn to offer service to a fellow traveller, and we filled his water-bottles from our supply, as he was almost empty and still 29 km from Timber Creek.

But despite the conditions, the scenery was spectacular. Just before sunset the surrounding cliff faces turned a glowing red, adding life and colour to all around us.

– Veeraja Uppal (Australia)

Team R.V.

Since we had no internet reception last night, we drove down the road to Timber Creek to upload yesterday's report and videos. I had a few minutes to wander around the very small hamlet and came across a bridge that had a sign saying daily crocodile feeding at 5 pm. It was a slim bridge over a creek with murky green waters, perfect for crocodiles and perfect for a photo expedition.

As I peered into the waters to spot any large reptiles lurking nearby, getting ready to pounce for a meal, behind me I could hear a lot of loud bird noises that eventually drew my attention into the jungle. Suddenly there was a fluttering of wings close by in the trees; startled I swung around...

what was it? ... large and prehistoric looking ... is this a Twilight Zone episode?... or are there ancient relatives of the dinosaurs still lingering here in this outback jungle ... nervous but intrepid, I had to venture into the unknown...

again a swooping noise, and looking up to see in the treetops a strange winged creature ...

... since they seemed to take no notice of my presence I followed them to their hang out ...

they were as curious as I, so we peered at each other in wonder...

some just went about their daily affairs...

and some were slightly disturbed that I was disturbing their peaceful afternoon...

so I slowly backed away – having forgotten about crocodiles completely – and left the flying creatures to hang around in quiet peace.

– Prabhakar Street (Canada)

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Team Members:
Nigel Webber (Australia), Prabhakar Street (Canada), Elke Lindner (Germany), Dima Lehonkov (Ukraine), Nataliya Lehonkova (Ukraine), Prachar Stegemann Australia), Misha Kulagin (Russia), Runar Gigja (Iceland), Prabuddha Nicol (Australia), Nishima Knowsley (New Zealand), Iva Nemcova (Czech Republic), Miro Pospisek (Czech Republic), Sandro Zincarini (Italy), Angela Muhs (Germany), Edi Serban (Romania), Standa Zubaty (Czech Republic), Veeraja Uppal (Australia)

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