Day 248
More wind and open fields. Another slog, barely reached 10km per hour and felt like we had gone over 100 km when we only went 50 km. On the bright side the weather was cool and pleasant.
When we saw the sign for Nelia it was surprising that there was anything there. Just before you get to the railroad tracks turn left and 2km in, you are there. There aren’t any signs, just a lot of free range animals and a sign for a gallery and a post office.
Corella Country Stay is a work in progress, but the charm of the place, the animals and the owners makes up for any shortcomings. Inherited from his mother, Eric the owner decided to give tourism a try and has been renovating for the last 3 years. They also have a number of fowl, goats and sheep. We only met Sebastian, who do to his unique personality and subsequent naming has been spared the chopping block. Raised from a kid, Sebastian is more like a domesticated lawn mower. In between nibbling and nosing into anywhere he might find food he nozzles, and paws to be pet. We were told that he like to give “hugs” and that if he did we should spray him with water. After he was nosing around in my bag I gave him a shower, and he fled with his head averted and braced against a potential squirt. Goats hold grudges and later when I tried to rub him he warded me off with sweep of his horns.
Meeting Sebastian suggested goats as a potential pet and Cher getting to feed one ensured it. Eric, our host, prepared a bottle of milk and Cher simply held it while the kid sucked it down, only taking breaks to breath. When the little goat finished she snuggled up against Cher’s legs and enjoyed a good petting, before falling asleep by Cher’s feet. She was both cute and delicious. I did think about throwing her on the fire and wondered if we would be able to raise it as a pet and eat it later. Cher claims she would just send it off to a butcher, so she wouldn’t have to do it. I wondered if I would feel guilty cooking it up. Maybe we should worry about our cycling for now and less about the possibility of having delicious pets.