Day 6

Start:  Moe

Finish:  Traralgon

Distance:  20

Total:  105

Today’s walk was through some real backroads. After starting in Moe I didn’t go through any towns until my finish in Traralgon 20 miles later. 

The day got started at 7:30 after a bad night’s rest. The motel was so-so, but the bed was hard as a rock. It was like sleeping on the floor. Every 30 minutes I was waking up with hip and shoulder pain from sleeping on my side on this bed. I finally gave up at 6:30, got up and packed and headed downtown to find some breakfast. I found a great little Vietnamese bakery and had a pastry. Then it was across the street to the Subway shop to buy lunch for down the road. 

Like I said, I was completely out in the country all day. This is cattle country. I’ve seen hundreds of dairies and plenty of beef cattle ranches too. They’ve had plenty of rain and the cattle are fat. 

After a couple of hours I happened upon a very large electrical power plant. At first I thought it was a nuclear plant but after walking all the way around the complex I saw the huge strip coal mine adjacent to the plant.  The road I was walking went right up next to the cooling towers and there was so much steam coming down I thought I was going to need my parka. 

Next, after a few more miles, I noticed on my map I was being routed around some sort of very large industrial complex but couldn’t tell what it was. It was adding at least five miles to my walking distance. Once I got to it the signs said it was a paper mill. And there were signs at every gate entrance saying keep out; no thoroughfare; no through traffic. So I quit looking for a shortcut and followed my phone the long way around.  I did however sit outside one of their entrance gates and eat my Subway sandwich for lunch. 

I finally made it into Traralgon about 3:00 and stopped at the train station to get some logistical advice for the days ahead. I didn’t need train help; I needed bus help and the same folks handle both. That’s when I met Cassandra Green who knows everything about bus schedules in these parts. There are a few places coming up in the next 2-3 weeks where the towns are too far apart to walk in one day.  However, the state transportation system actually has bus service in rural areas and have bus stops at road intersections along my route.  So if I can  coordinate my walking time to be at a remote bus stop and ride into the next town, I can avoid camping on the side of the road. I’ll just need to catch the bus back to that same bus stop the next day to pick up where I left off. So Cassandra at the train station helped me decipher the bus schedules based on my route. 

Medical update:  No big issues. I feel like a shin splint is coming on in my right leg, and I have a big blister on my right foot. And after walking all day with my pack, I immediately get all stiffened up after relaxing for an hour or two in my room. If I walk somewhere to eat later in the evening people probably think there’s something seriously wrong with me. But after a nights rest I feel great!  

That’s it for today. I went over the 100 mile mark and Melbourne is a distant memory. JB