Month in Pictures: July 2014

We've picked the wrong way to ride in Australia! Turns out that the wind blows from the SE in Queensland, and guess which way we're going…10-15 knots = 19-27km/h in the FACE.

If you want to meet interesting people, travel Australia from campground to campground! This bus has been just about everywhere in Australia, and it's owner Brother Monkey is as colourful as they come!

So, what's there to see in Far North Queensland? Well, we found storms and LOTS of sugar cane today!

In Australia, it's important to learn to share your tent with friends!

We recently witnessed a purple sunset up in Northern Australia… turns out that's a thing!

Say hello to Wilbur the witchetty grub! These grubs are the most important insect food of the desert and have historically been a staple in the diets of Aboriginal Australians. We didn't eat Wilbur, but apparently he tastes like almonds!

It's a FATBIKE kinda day up here in Far North Queensland!

Alee has completed 215 of 280km now! Only three hours left of daylight!!! It's going to be close…

How did Alee finish up on his 280km ride yesterday? Well, he pulled into Airlie Beach 20 minutes after sunset, but luckily had Kat and our friend Jen driving behind with the hazard lights on! The whole ride consisted of strong headwinds which wore away at Alee and never gave him the chance to cruise along. Only 2 minutes off the bike (to refill water) over a 12.5 hour period!!!

You may be wondering what Alee eats when he rides for over 12hrs without stopping. Yesterday, he went through 5 apples, 15 muesli bars, 100g of nuts and drank 1.25L of Coke. It's a surprisingly low amount given the effort required, however if you eat correctly for 24hrs before, you don't need too much food on the go!

There's no doubt that Australia is a great place to be! #airliebeach

illy coffee beans are available in almost every country we've been to, and in our experience, taste better than 9/10 locally roasted options. Our Airspresso then uses these beans to pump out amazing espresso shots!

It's been over two years and 31,000km in the making… today we say goodbye to our Gates Carbon Drive belt! You've well exceeded what we thought was possible by you. RIP.

We've had a bit of time off the bike recently to rest Kat's back. Hopefully the stretching, application of heat and rest will make her ready to roll again tomorrow!

Q: Can you guess what this important bit of kit is? Hint: it's not for our bike, and it's bloody useful in Australia! A: A key to turn on taps.

With the McLean/Arnold super troop we felt like one of the family. They hosted us for almost two weeks(!) while we rested, had family dinners and made big decisions! Thanks guys!

We've just made the hardest decision of our two year trip. We're flying home. In four days. We cycled to within 2400km of home, but unfortunately Kat's back is not showing any signs of improvement. It would've been great to cycle to our doorstep, but we'll save that for another time. Looking forward to seeing friends and family in mere days!!!

Last night in the tent for a while! We're back home tomorrow!!!

As we leave cane country today, we are reminded of our heartwarming time with Fred and Kathy on their cane farm in Silkwood – two dear friends and two more members of our extended world family. We can't wait to meet their daughter Loretta at our next stop in Melbourne!

That's it folks! The champagne is out and we're catching up with our family. A very surreal experience after so long!

Australian native flowers and a card with a cute tandeming couple on it! Who knew you got gifts when you returned from holidays?!