Wooleen
I left Mullewa after posting over two kilos of stuff home, which I found I didn’t really need. I was traveling up the Carnarvon Mullewa Road and my legs felt renewed. There's a mine site about 50km out of town that extract their ore and truck it out past Mullewa. The trucks were huge! They carried four fully loaded trailers on the back. It was crazy when they passed but they were good drivers and there weren't any issues. The weight of the trucks changed the originally flat roads to ripples. I saw sheep, goats, cows, emus and kangaroos along this stretch.
After passing the turnoff to the mine site the road turned to gravel but it had been graded recently and was in good condition. I rode into the night. After crossing the boundary into Wandina Station I swear I heard a dog’s bark, which was strange as the homestead was kilometres away. I had been told previously that the wild dogs up north were a problem and could kill entire herds of sheep in one night. I quickly searched for my pocket knife in my handlebar bag but it was dark and I couldn’t find it. At that stage I decided to camp and pulled off into a little clearing in the scrub. It was cold and I was so exhausted that once I was in my tent I couldn’t be bothered getting out again to cook dinner. I ate an apple and some oats. The following day only three vehicles passed me; a caravan, a 4wd and a truck hauling cattle. I found out later that the cattle were coming from Wooleen Station. I set up camp on a hill and managed to watch a great sunset. The stars and moon came out and were bright enough to cook under without needing to use my torch. I ate as much as my pot could hold. It was my favourite campsite yet.
As soon as I jumped on the road the following morning four cars passed, all travellers. One stopped for a chat as I was adjusting one of my bags. I didn’t see any more cars for the rest of the day. There had been recent rains in the area which were greatly welcomed and I noticed a myriad of livestock tracks surrounding the roadside puddles. It was a good ride apart from ripping a cleat straight out of my shoe, which took some time to repair. I got into Wooleen station in the early afternoon and met the owners and station employees working for the season. I was shown a quaint old donga that I’d be staying in whilst I volunteered. I was looking forward to the bed, doona, and hot shower.
I’ve been on Wooleen for just under a week and in that time I’ve assisted in the running of the station by dismantling unused sheep fences, removing and repairing stockyard gates, gathering fire wood, and servicing work vehicles, among other homestead duties. I’ve found it really interesting to experience life on an operating station, and especially at Wooleen where they are employing alternative management strategies to ensure the station can remain environmentally sustainable. My favourite part has been sunset drinks after a hard day’s work at one of the stunning locations on the property. I’m back on the bike today and will be spending the next five or six days getting to Mt Augustus. It’s going to get really remote as it will take around two weeks to get to the next town – Tom Price, and mobile reception is non-existent in the area. Adventure time!