A_R_R_2015_04

90 | AUSTRALIAN ROAD RIDER

DESTINATION KALGOORLIE

boasted three hotels, a telegraph station,

a blacksmith and a total of seven shops.

Unfortunately, the gold was completely

mined out by the early 1900s and by 1942

the town was abandoned. Today there

are only a few empty sandstone shells

to show that a thriving community once

lived and worked here.

I have seen goannas on a regular

basis as well as galahs, ‘roos and emus

along this road and the local eagle

population is doing well, with a constant

supply of food supplied by the passing

traffi c. There are some massive birds

in the area and watching one of these

monsters lumbering into the air a er

having a feast on very “ripe” road kill is an

impressive sight.

I once made the mistake of stopping

to look at what an eagle had been eating

and needless to say the stench got me

back on the bike very quickly. Evidently

their stomach acids can kill just about

anything and is capable of dissolving

bone.

The dirt road continues on to Ora

Banda and the pub here seems to be

closed most of the times I have ridden

past, so I usually head on towards the

well-known Broad Arrow Pub, which is

defi nitely worth a visit with its excellent

food, cold beers and usually a range of

interesting people to talk to.

The Broad Arrow publican will hand

over a marker pen if you ask and you

are free to add your name to the many

hundreds that cover the pub walls. This

pub has a real “outback” character and

the walls are decorated with a detailed

photographic record of the local history

— defi nitely worth a stop.

From here it is a 40km run back to

Kalgoorlie and if you still want to do

some more exploring, the Super Pit is

about another 6km along the highway

just past Boulder on the le -hand side of

the highway — and it’s one hell of a big

hole! ARR

“As with most interesting places in Oz, the ride includes

about 75km of good dirt, which I found easy on a 15-year-old

Honda CB750/4 and a breeze on a newer GS BMW”

■ Broad Arrow Bar is full of

character and characters

r Abandoned Kunanalling between Coolgardie

and Balgarri

r The red dirt badge of honour r It’s customary to leave your mark

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