Getting Bessy home was an adventure in itself but one that we were happy to make. To avoid going through New South Wales or Victoria, we stayed central which took a bit longer but was worth it. We got to go through some cute little towns and see parts of Australia we hadn’t been before (I was also excited to not have to go through the Hay Plains). Along the way, there were some beautiful spots to stop and a few lookouts. I couldn’t get over the beauty of the red burnt outback lands.
We drove till we were tired and then found an old side road to pull up for the night. We climbed into the back on our single mattress, that we found for a bargain on marketplace, and drifted to sleep counting stars under the desert night sky.
I was surprised just how many little old cut off roads there were or rest stops that you could pull into and sleep for the night, completely FREE! The best part was we were the only ones in this little spot and we had an amazing sunrise to wake to.
The next morning, we headed to the closest town, Cunnamulla, to freshen up and have a coffee (hot chocolate for me thanks) with the Cunnamulla Fella before continuing South..well West then South. This is also where we passed through some friendly little outback towns, like Eulo, where we got to see a life sized diprotodon and Windorah's solar farm (Rob loved this, as he works in the solar industry).
Most of the trip was made up of either single, thin roads, which I found a bit scary when a truck would come the other way, or dirt roads. But for the most part there weren’t many other travelers, and most were a lot more accustomed than me at sharing the narrow roads. We soon built up our confidence in Bessy and had a few little goes off road to explore some lookouts and take a break.
The second night, we slept in a small cutout just outside Birdsville. We planned to keep traveling but the petrol station had shut up shop for the night. There were a few more people camped at this spot, being so close to a town, but again we found our own little area and watched some Netflix before calling it a night. The next morning we were up and ready to get petrol and continue our adventure home.
The next part of the journey was where we really got to start testing Bessy out. It was dirt road on dirt road followed by some more dirt road. The rain had not only created quite muddy conditions, but we also came across countless potholes and puddles. It was easy for me, I just got to sit back and enjoy the ride and after Rob overcame his fear of cars in water, we had a great time getting through them.
After driving most of the way home, Rob took a break and I took in the scenery driving the last stint through the Flinders Ranges, another part of South Australia I’ve never seen before. As I drove through the ranges, I planned out future trips while Rob rested in his own dreamland.
After three long days of driving, we made it home, gave Bessy a rinse off after her big adventure and fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillow.
In just one short and quick trip we got to see a lot of outback Australia and I cannot wait to get out and explore more!
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