Here I am in Townsville - half way (about 3,000 km). What a great ride it has been this morning, starting at Cannonvale (near Airlie Beach). Started early 7 am, not that early by Queensland standards I know, but it was so beautiful in the cool early air - through canefields, then little mountainous bits, then more cane. Then dry country with lots of cattle, all brahmans, then more cane as the terrain changes. Really lovely contrasts. And the cane farms are by no means the busted cane cockies that there were a few years ago - it all looks very prosperous indeed, new cars, new tractors, new houses ...

I thought there was a lot of cane at Proserpine but around Ayr - on the Burdekin River - goodness me. 3 or 4 sugar mills around the town. A spectacular long bridge across the river. Under the bridge this morning, waiting for unloading at the Inkerman Sugar Mill, were several fully loaded cane trains, probably a couple of hundred carriages altogether. Much of the cane there is irrigated, and it was interesting that although the cane was doing very well - tall, growthy, very healthy looking - all the small creeks in that area are choked with weeds (looks like water hyacinth) - obviously big problems developing with nutrient runoff. The irrigation seems to be from underground water - most of the rivers are almost dry at the moment, even the mighty Burdekin is pretty low.

Continued on to Townsville. Older parts of T'ville are a mess but there are some very smic new developments - lovely newer houses and they really are making the most of the beachfront, marina, etc. The big red stony bluffs that loom over the town make it look very dry and hot. But new places have been built right on the front face of some of the bluffs, and one has a waterfall gushing down it, all the way to street level on the beach. Not bad.

Did some washing; washed tar spots off the bike; repacked some gear; long walk along the seaside. Now it's back to the hotel for a rest. Tomorrow I will go across to Magnetic Island for the morning, on the ferry.