Broadwater to Ballina

4th May : It was a rainy day in Broadwater and a pleasure to sit it out. The last of the journey will be all the more enjoyable for the rest. Everyone needs a catch-up day.
Broadwater, Australia, the Earth! It's this whole place you all should go sometime! There's like trees and buildings and people and stuff. Pretty great if you like that kind of thing.

Letter

It turned out to be a drenching night, one of those that begins without a cloud and by morning one shoulder or hip is resting in a swag puddle. By staying at my mate's place for the day I'm well rested, dry, warm, clean, fed and in much higher spirits to continue with my journey.

If I walked this trail again it would be even more exceptional if others were on the trail. I can see why people would go on walkabout and how moving through the wider envrionment can expand one's capacity for seeing it how it is. I'm very lucky.


5th May : It's goodbye to the southern cane lands as the sugarcane lines the street to wave and whisper its well wishes on my way.
It was a relief to find that I'm no longer frightened of the Ballina Big Prawn. Staying with mates at Lennox Head where I'm safe from giant props and in good company.

Letter

The morning fog on the 'Sugartown' (Broadwater) canefields turned me into a regular rubberneck, photo-taking tourist. After walking 45-50km days, the 35km to Lennox Head should've been a breeze. For some reason it turned out to be an extra 6km. I must've been on the scenic route.

On the approach to Ballina a 50m high ghostly shape dominates the skyline. It's the one and only Big Prawn. Built initially as a town scarecrow, it then, to the Ballinese residents' surprise, began to attract tourists. The ghastly shape with its man-sized beady eyes near scared the pants off me in our first meeting. It's now safely fenced off from the public to prevent it from terrorising plankton in the area, or from escaping to perch on someone's home amid rumours that a developer wants to demolish it. Except for it's amusement value, I have no opinion on the matter.

As I walked into town more amusement! A go-cart shot out of a side street and paraded along the main street, probably after having burst through the minature gates at the race track. A perfect example of why you have to walk to be in the place and witness the madness of every day life.

When I had calmed down from all the amusement, I returned to my deeply serious state of contemplation. Some people are quirky and some people are not. But is there really an 'us and them'? Maybe there's just a the type of people that think there is an 'us and them'. Wait... that's confusing. I mean, maybe 'us and them' is just for people who refuse to believe that we're all in this together?

It might seem, at this stage of the journey, that I'm just travelling from mate's place to mate's place. Today that was true, but it could have easily been spoiled. Before I could find the right place I had to solve the Lennox Head street numbering system. They have fractions and dashed numbers, to baffle visitors and entertain the locals.


6th May : The sun has just set on Byron Bay and a day of beach walking. I've no idea where I'll sleep tonight with so many revellers about, but I'm fed and looking for a quiet drink.

Letter

My mates loaded me with honey, pepitas and avocados. Sonse I was a child and my mother convinced me I wouldn't like avocado, I've been somewhat juvenile over the exotic fruit. I tend to get a little giddy in the presence of an avocado, giggle like a school girl and pledge to be friends forever if I get given one. They gave me three!

On my way I stumbled across an unclad beach and considered a swim. The truth is that an unclad beach is much less enticing than a completely deserted beach.

The beach carpark, in big painted letters said 'LOCALS ONLY'. This could explain the suspicious looks I recieved.

In Byron it seemed like everyone was in the street, in the park or on the beach, completely absorbed in whatever they were doing or where ever they were going. There are plenty of people doing all sorts of weird and wonderful things there and hardly anyone noticed there was a swaggie there at all. On the foreshore the sun was setting as I ate and gazed at the beaches to the north. I'd be walking along them tomorrow.

The Great Northern Hotel is a favourite spot of mine. A local commented on my neat handwriting. I hope my primary school teachers are reading. But if they were they'd just be picking out all the spelling mistakes.