1-13-09
Kangaroo Island

&

1-12-09

To Adelaide

We stopped in to see Mick and Neil had to let his daughter try out the ride on his bike before I got to meet Mick. She likes motorbikes already but then dad has a new one that we came to see.

Mick

Mick just finished restoring this VW bus.

The bike!!!!!

1300cc machine of terror. Mick said he had it up to 240km/hr but cant really run it out since it is still being broke in. he said it would do 140km/hr in first. It is a big heavy bike but when you get it up and balanced it doesn’t seem that heavy.

We rode on down to Neil’s house and here it is. It is on the outskirts of Adalaide in a real nice area. It is surrounded by some really nice trees and in the back yard he has his two border collie dogs (they like pets) his koi fish, rabbit, lizard that was hiding, and a really nice collection of little fancy birds in a big cage. I spent the night in his sons room who was visiting someplace for the night.

This is Stephanie and Sophie, Neil’s wife and beautiful child.

A nice little horse hauler eh?

The grapes were being watered with a drip system. Neil said that they use treated sewer water for irrigating since using good water was so severely restricted.

On a hill looking down on the farming areas (mainland).

The roads were very nice down to the ferry to Kangaroo Island.

This is only the second time I have seen cell grazing here in Oz. you can see by the brown and green areas how they have restricted this guys irrigating.

The KI ferry coming into dock. I was wondering how this would work since there is no loading/off loading door on the front of the boat. It is an amazing maneuver that they do at both docks.

I had to ask one of the deck hands about the flag being red instead of blue like all the other flags I have seen. He said it has something to do with all the seamen that were killed in the war. I guess it signifies the blood they lost. Only the boats use these.

There are lots of dirt roads on the island and they are well marked and used. I wasn’t worried that I would get caught out someplace and not have anyone come by in case something bad happened.

The beaches were OK….

Road to lighthouse.

I got to take the tour up to the top.

The finer points of the old type instruments and working parts.

There are lots of places for sale on the island. This was a nice little poor farm that I am sure will sell for big bucks when sold. There are lots of lots for sale and there are the big trophy homes going up overlooking the sea. Same old shit everywhere. Nice little farms and ranches being broken up and never again used productively.

Looks like someone is going to cater to frugal tourists. When I was considering making the trip across to the island I met a couple on a bike and they said it was worth it to go over especially since I had camping gear. They stayed at a bed and breakfast and it cost $140/night. It cost $140 just to get the bike and me over here. I have been gorilla camping for two nights now and I see lots of places to camp all over and not a lot of NO camping signs. This is a friendly island and a lot better than the mainland for sure.

Very nice bike roads.

This morning I met this guy down at a little rest area where I was eating my breakfast. He is a serious bird hunter (camera) as you can see by his outfit.

We sat and visited for a long time and traded views on governments, usa, Australia, and the world in general. He has a website where he has bird photos. I have just pulled up the main page but will have a more in-depth look when I get more time.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ozjulian