1 May - Day 5 - Into the Eye of the Storm

We left Goondiwindi at 7:30 this morning. After fuelling we decided to skip breakfast and get a head start hoping to minimise the effect of the storms forecast for SE Queensland. Unfortunately due to a mix up in the navigation instructions we headed off in the wrong direction and rode nearly 200km before we realised we were now 200km further from our destination, not closer. Given the conditions, rain and wind, and the extra distance that needed to be covered it seemed unlikely we would reach our destination of Maroochydore tonight. At every fuel stop people were amazed we were riding and when we told them where we were going it seemed the weather was going to get a lot worse. We had no choice but to ride stopping only for fuel every 200km, and when we refuelled at Dalby, it seemed that we might still make it.

By 4pm most of the daylight was gone and we were riding on roads which were completely surrounded by water on all sides. Stopping was not an option - no shelter and a real chance of being caught in a flood. The photo above (not mine) captures a little of what our conditions were like although not as sunny.

By the time we reached Toowoomba, it became clear that we were not going to get to the Sunshine Coast and changed our attention to finding a motel which could accommodate the whole group. Fortunately we managed to do so quickly and at the moment we are all busy drying out our gear. Not sure what tomorrow will bring. The forecast doesn't look good but we're hopeful of reaching our destination tomorrow morning.

This radar map shows what we are dealing with. We're right in the middle of it.

Total Distance 602km