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As we speak, an SUV
driven by a woman passes by. It’s his wife, he says. He tries to
convince me to spend
So he turns round in my head, and I wonder who is the bigger fool.
So here it goes, back to bed, warm with covers; no need to pitch a tent; no need to worry about the thermal qualities of my sleeping bag. Total distance traveled today: 133 km; time taken: 8 hours, 40 minutes; average speed: 15.3 km/hour
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expresses horror about “all the Blacks”, but doesn’t add much more.
The cold on the front porch of the hotel and hunger eventually drive
me inside where I order a plate of garlic shrimp for sustenance and
also to warm up. A local Chardonnay goes well with the dish. I
leave the restaurant an hour later, and find that the “hermit” is
still outside. He is consuming one more glass of beer to top up the
other ones. When I mention that I thought his wife had joined up
with him, he explains that she is the town's “doctoress” and is
attending to sick people. I then ask him whether he is “the
hermit”. When he says “yes” and I wonder “how come?”, he says
“because I can afford it”. We both have a good laugh before I ride
my bicycle back in the dark and cold to my cabin in the caravan
park.
There
comes the final 4.3 km climb shortly before Walpole. Then comes a
long descent, and I arrive at the local hotel/motel where I check in
at around 6:30 in the afternoon. A hot shower and a few pints of
beer make my muscles relax. Then come Kathy and Sue who make me
relax even more. Sue just separated from her husband in Adelaide
and has accepted a job with Woolworth in Rockingham, where I had
spent
my first night south of Perth. She has left her two children aged
13 and 17 behind in Adelaide with relatives. She is disturbed and
confused and tries to rationalize her actions. Kathy, married with
two children, accompanies Sue to help her start her new life. Kathy
and Sue, having both greatly imbibed, keep their voices a little too
loud; Kathy writes me a note: “So nice to meet you. Give us a
thought, Kathy & Sue – on the way to Perth – Hope to catch you in
Europe!!!”