THE genuine OZ EXPERIENCE: stuck in THE OUTBACK

Last Updated: 01/09/18 | January 9th, 2018

Years ago, on my very first see to Australia, I took a backpacker bus from Perth to Broome. Backpacker buses in Australia are designed to take backpackers around the country in hop on/hop off style. Basically, you get on the bus when you want, off the bus when you want, as well as then on the next bus coming with when you move on. It’s a great as well as low-cost method to see the country as well as satisfy travelers.

And, sometimes, they lead to extremely fascinating experiences.

During our trip’s very first stop, on the outskirts of Perth, the bus wouldn’t start. Wes, our bus driver, looked under the hood. He was a truly Aussie bloke. A hard, outback guy who reminded me of Crocodile Dundee. If you ever got trapped in the outback, you understood he’d understand what to do. After looking under the hood, he came back up, wiped some grease from his hands, as well as stated to us, “OK, I believe we’re prepared to go.”

Our little group – there were only 10 on this leg of the trip – packed back in the bus as well as waited.

Wes got in but, when he put the key back in the ignition, the bus still didn’t start.

“Hmm…” he stated out loud before going back under the hood.

“Ok, something’s up with the battery. I’ll get it fixed in the next town. For now, we are going to have to push.”

The café we had stopped was on a hill, which made pushing the bus easy. everybody got behind, pushed, as well as the bus roared back to life as it went down the hill. We got back in with a palpable sense of unease among us as Wes revealed he wasn’t going to turn the bus off for fear of this happening again.

It was a well-founded fear since soon we were halfway to Geraldton, a major refueling stop on the method north, when we stopped at the Pinnacles. These are limestone structures that jut from the flat desert for miles upon miles. Wes had accidentally turned off the bus out of habit as well as it once again wouldn’t start. Out we went again, pushing as difficult as we might up until we got our bus moving.

In Geraldton, while we went buying for food as well as supplies for our upcoming camping trips (part of the method the trip kept expense down was for us to buy food to cook), Wes took the bus to a mechanic. I wasn’t sure what the issue was, as well as when he explained it in cars and truck lingo, my unmechanical ears just tuned out. I was just happy the bus was working again. I didn’t want to go back to Perth as well as begin over again. I don’t believe anyone did.

Our bus always seemed to be on its last leg, as well as that leg lastly provided out with a big bang.

But, somewhere right outside a little mining community, our bus had had enough. The bus clicked as well as clacked, made some grinding sounds, as well as the stick shift bounced up. Smoke as well as dust filled the front of the bus. all of us understood what had happened, though none dared say. The driver pushed the bus for a bit longer however ultimately resigned himself to the truth that we weren’t going to reach the next town.

“Holy shit,” all of us yelled.

Wes coasted as well as pulled the bus to the side of the road.

Wes opened the hood. Our fan belt had come loose; hit one more part of the engine, which spliced itself into the engine. however what I comprehended was that our bus was totally fucked.

The issue with breaking down in the outback is that there aren’t many people around. And, if you break down as well far from the last town, you’ll without cellphone reception as well as stuck there for hours.

“Right,” stated Wes, “Since we don’t have any type of phone service, all we can do is sit as well as wait right here up until somebody drives past us. When somebody sees us, they’ll stop. Out here, nobody leaves stranded as a matter of life as well as death. We’ll be fine when somebody comes by. The issue is that there’s just not telling exactly how long that might be.”

We all groaned however there was nothing we might do. It was early afternoon as well as the sun was blaring down on us. We entertained ourselves by drinking beer, playing trivia games, as well as playing the occasional game of Frisbee. hours passed, as well as the sun moved farther down in the sky. No cars and trucks came.

We played more games. The bottom of our beer bottles had trivia concerns so at first, we entertained each other with that, then a few card games however as the day used on we just grew tired as well as stopped speaking altogether. Our enjoyment level had waned as well as we were miserable.

Then in the distance, a shimmer of metal was moving toward us. Wes flagged the cars and truck down as well as explained the circumstance the circumstance to the driver.

“Mates,” Wes stated coming back, “I understand this not suitable however I’m going with this guy back into town. The cars and truck isn’t huge sufficient for all of us. I’m going to go to the mechanic, get us a truck, as well as come back with a bus. It won’t be more than an hour or so.”

We all eyed each other nervously. “Uhhhhhh,” we jointly said. Visions of the horror movie Wolf Creek suddenly jumped with my head. What if somebody else came by, kidnapped us, as well as then performed sick, twisted experiments on us.

“Can’t we just go with you,” stated a French woman on the bus. “I don’t truly want to stay right here alone.”

“Yeah, we can all cram in,” stated her friend.

“There’s not sufficient space for all of you. You’ll be fine. trust me. nobody is going to kidnap you. I am not going to leave you as well as you have lots of water as well as food. We aren’t as well far from town. There’s no other option,” Wes stated as he got in the car. “I have to get the tow truck.”

It was going to be a long hour.

True to his word, our driver returned with a tow truck an hour later. half our issue was solved. The other half was exactly how we were going to continue on without any bus. The earliest we might get our bus back was on Tuesday. Not a huge offer if it wasn’t Thursday. I wouldn’t mind costs a night in this sleepy mining town, however not five.

None of the other passengers were keen on the concept either, as well as after some phone calls, our driver discovered a four-wheel-drive that we six would have to cram into. A difficult task, as the cars and truck was meant for five people—without luggage. It was going to be a squished trip as much as Broome, however at least we were on our method now.

And we still handled to save a few beers for the road.

That backpacker bus business has long since gone out of business. I always discovered it a shame. though we had some mishaps, they dealt with them quite well as well as Wes was incredible. I always question what occurred to him as well as other people on my tour.

We never stayed in touch beyond our trip. However, when we ran into each other in other parts of the country, we’d always share this story. That is what travel mishaps do. They bond you together.

As the stating goes, travel truly is attractive in retrospect.

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