Kal to Tjukayirla Roadhouse

   The second leg: Kalgoorlie to Tjukayirla Roadhouse.  Distance: 664km.  Abandoned car wrecks on the side of the road: lost count at over 40.  Flat, flat, flat land as far as the eye could see.  Dusty and hot, although the road wasn’t too bad as we passed 4 groups of graders.  A long day in the dirt.

  The first few hundred kilometres were marked by the discovery of this little fellow, a thorny devil for those unfamiliar.   

  We decided on Frank.  After spending hours in the ute brainstorming a decent name for our fearless Cruiser, Tegan came up with something that stuck.  Why?  Frankenstein is a natural choice because his new windscreen panels had come from 2 different vehicles.  But since he really isn’t that much of a monster, Frank seemed a better fit, and much less ugly sounding.  Frank has some air of esteem about it, a working class hero who puts his head down and works until the whistle sounds; someone to lead us into the desert and beyond.    

   We arrived at the roadhouse with some time to spare until the “no service after 8pm” rule came into effect.  Locks on the diesel pumps, bars on the doors and windows, it was clear we were in the desert.  In fact, we were the only ones in the whole joint, besides the managers.  Tegan cooked a nice risotto and we fell fast asleep next to Frank after a brief, yet unsuccessful search for reptiles.  

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   Coming up: secure your unleaded fuel, hide your alcohol, and observe the camels and raptors.