BACK TO STORY

At 18 I moved out of home with my first boyfriend only to realise it was all wrong. I then awaited for my cousin to come and move in with me. We soon talked about working and travelling. Going to TAFE and dreaming about getting a good job. That happened sooner than later. But things were meant to be – good training with new software lead me to various jobs and well paid.

In the meantime, I met my later to be husband, co-owner of a house, father of my children and now my ex. First I took him on his first overseas trip from Perth Australia to our local holiday destination Bali. I loved it so much I quickly had my next destination in mind Singapore and Thailand. Two girlfriends and 3 weeks backpacking around with no set plan really planted the seed that I wanted to do more of this.

Boyfriend at the time missed me so much he organised a loan for a house and proposal on getting the keys to the next 26 years of my life. He became husband at 27 for nearly 21 years and we started with me planning the honeymoon for Malaysia as I hadn’t go there on my previous trip. So again why make plans when you can just organise the flight in and flight out and accommodation for those two nights. Best adventure and shared with people I met that I would love to catch them in 5 years on my world travels.

My dreams has to take a raincheck as the house required cash or time which meant working and more working. age became a factor, if we were to start a family. At 30 we started trying, with no breather, along came our first child quickly after a miscarriage. She was welcomed and dotted on and life was good. A year or so on not wanting to be over 35 having children, number two was planned for.

Low and behold she arrived on her sisters 2nd birthday. So next job stay at home mother which I never begrudged and loved being one with my whole heart and sole but still did not allow for savings or travel.

I did all the parenting things with mothers groups, playgroups, gymnastics and ballet. Life moved along quickly and little by little I stopped doing all the things I used to love except for cycling. There was no more diving, I sold my Honda as we got married and a night out became a thing of the past. I became a different person, I felt like I lost a part of who I really was, the fun and adventurer in me slowly faded away. She slowly disappeared as if she had never existed to be replaced with the Mum who took the kids everywhere and helped in class once a week.

This routine was my life until I realised that I loved being in the class as mother help. I thought and talked to the teachers about how I could work in an environment like this. (Realising that I had always wanted to be a teacher but wanting a 9 to 5 job I had put that dream aside).

The dream soon became reality. I polished up on my essay writing skills and completed the tertiary admissions test. I attempted a practice test on January 5th 2005.

The result blew my socks off! I passed and was offered a position in the Joondalup primary teaching degree. I finished my degree and started work straight away. University had taken a toll both on myself and my marriage.

Travelling was my dream, my home away from home and my escape. I began to save like crazy. In 2009 I took my first two week holiday and my savings that I had made from my new job and took my two daughters and my husband to Bali. We ventured around that island for ten days.

Little did I know that was the last time my husband really could remember he loved me. Times were tough and I tried my best to make the most of the situation. It was the beginning to an end.

My lost love for adventure and thrill began to come back. I had gained weight with the stress of uni. I was tired both mentally and physically. I needed to be fit in the body and the soul. I met positive minded people on an adventure down south with Adventurous Women and came home and started to save to buy my first mountain bike. That mountain bike and those positive people were my escape from a slowly breaking marriage.

I used the money some of the money from the savings account I had for my girls because I was getting the bike a week away from payday. I payed the money back, however, I never heard the end of it.

I battled, fought and finally got fit and healthy and tried to get all the family involved but the ex did not want to be involved. So on his scout weekends away with the kids, off I would go on mini holidays with my new found friends who encouraged the person I had long ago lost and felt her emerging again to blossom. Of course, I was then brought down for taking the opportunity to explore a hobby with my friends.

I entered challenges and races and saw my track buddies and I win many medals and notoriety from our fun stories and efforts. We started epic adventures, competing in Margaret rivers cape to cape earning my track buddy and I the sweeps position for the race. Our goal with all our challenges was to finish.

This mountain biking love soon died when I was given the ultimatum to change or I would loose my husband. So many changes were made but it was too late in December of 2014 he announced just before xmas he no longer wanted to be married to me.

So I said we needed to do marriage counselling and it wouldn’t happen at Christmas for the kids. I felt myself go into a shell and my mountain biking became a thing of the past. It was soon clear that things were not going to change so just before valentines day and our 21st wedding anniversary I asked him to leave.

I spend the next year just trying to heal and get back to myself. As the anniversary of the ultimatum the year before I brought myself for xmas Motorbike lessons and Diving renewal. Best thing I ever did.

I was back and intended to stay as I liked this new me. The next year saw me get back a bit on the mountain bike but not as much as the motorbike. I again found many like minded ladies and friends to ride with who were adventurous like myself and loved being outdoors and living life.

Fast forward a year and my awful house which had gone into disrepair was really playing on my psyche as I was ashamed of how it had got let go over the break down of my marriage. With a dip of my toe into relationships one took me for a emotional ride back to a judgmental male who again wanted me to change. At which point I told him it wouldn’t be happening. But it took a toll on my emotional state along with the divorce being done.

I started eating and not doing my swing dancing anymore. Not riding my mountain bike and my motorbike had 6 months where it was out of action due to insurance issues.

So the decision to renovate my house came about. It had never been my home as things I had always wanted to do were either no time or no money. It started with the linch pin the back yard and shed.

I decluttered the rubbish and took many a loads to the tip. The repair of the shed required the concrete floor to be repoured so that things could get stored and not become damp. Next the toilet went so on ripping out the toilet and getting a plumber the only tiles other than the kitchen needed removing.

So I bit the bullet and got a loan and spent the next year and a half with help of a very good friend I gutted my kitchen and bathroom. Repainted the house and redid my bedroom and put tiles through the house. The feeling of the paint refreshed my whole outlook. I felt relaxed and cleansed.

The next year was reaping what I’d sowed. So the next year was meant to be one where I could save and get ready to travel again when my long service leave would kick in.

But alas two more males would make my life a living hell. Work colleges took my full time working week which consisted of 3 days permanency and 2 days contract. They pulled a swift one which saw them put my two days contract into the 3 days permanency. Leaving me to look for relief work for two days.

Again another emotional roller coaster that nearly saw me quit the profession. It was only that my long service leave was the next year so I grinned and beared it and found solace in meeting other new teachers at different schools. It’s never long once schools realise your work ethic and passion of kids and teaching that I was soon almost full time. But it was the holidays where you don’t get paid for not working so savings didn’t happened this year like I’d hoped.

So I took the summer off and went camping at the beach to restore myself and gather my thoughts about the year ahead.

The next year took another swing left of field as those two males were soon to be no longer something I had to deal with. A new principal on the scene I was soon to have 4 days of work and a day at another school seeing me full time again. So with the on road motorbike repaired and back on two wheels and working and able to save again. I had planned to backpack once I had enough money saved and Long service leave was earnt.

Well I started going to talks on travellers getting around the world on their motorbikes. Where they took or hired their bikes and made their way around the world on two wheels. This got me thinking that I could get an off road bike, get skills that would allow me to ride on bad roads. So here I am. Another year on and some dirt skills under my belt and a modified bike that now has panniers on it.

I had already acquired some of my light weight gear as I got back on my mountain bike and started doing bits of the Munda biddi in sections. So as I took the green KLX250s fondly referred to as String Bean (as he’s tall and skinny compared to my Red Honda cb500 known as candi) and went off road, testing out my packing on weekends away. I assessed the need for panniers instead of only one back on the passenger seat held on by andy strapz.

I joined Perth Off road riders on days out bringing my mountain bike skills to my dirtbike rising and I met another great adventurous friend Red Roz on her Honda crf250L. She informed me she was heading out when it was my school holidays. I begged her to let me tag along. So she asked for a week alone as she dealt with her life and 5 days later I joined her on our first big epic week away I brought a hammock to test and Roz showed me the intricacies of getting it just right.

We were two like minded soles roaming with no set plan and living off the grid in the bush and only appearing when the need for fuel was required and at that point we would treat ourselves to the pubs steak and whatever was on offer with a well earned cold beer. Supplies replenished and discussions of where we might go next Roz planned on the InReach and her earthmate map where we might explore for the day and a rough see where we are at 3 and look for somewhere to sling a hammock for the night.

The plan was now well and truly cemented in my head now and I was starting to think how I could do my trip and when could I go. What would it take and so the ball started to gather moss and momentum.

Now I am in the last part getting paperwork, passports, insurance and spare parts etc.

Stay in touch!

Kyra