Windmills, of all things, are what Penong is known for. This tiny settlement on the Eyre Highway, a couple of hundred people on the western edge of South Australia's Eyre Peninsula, pumps its water from underground using wind, and old farm windmills stand in rows along the roadside and in a small museum at the edge of town. In a place where the horizon is a straight line and the sky fills most of the view, they make a strangely graceful sight.
Ceduna, about seventy kilometres to the east, is the last proper town, with supermarkets, motels and a pub, and the Nullarbor Plain proper starts a few hours further on. Penong is the last settlement of any size before the long empty run into Western Australia, and it has a store and a roadhouse-type stop, but supplies are limited and opening hours short. The sensible rule on the Eyre Highway is to fill up at every opportunity, carry water and not to assume a pump has fuel until you see it working.
About twenty kilometres south of Penong, down a gravel track, lies Cactus Beach, a wild surf spot at the edge of the Southern Ocean, famous among surfers for its powerful left and right breaks. The coast is a line of limestone cliffs and white dunes, with deep blue water, and the swell comes in from Antarctica with nothing to stop it. The area is also the edge of the Great Australian Bight, where southern right whales come to calve in winter, and the whale-watching at the Head of Bight, farther west, is world class.
The riding on this section is straight, flat and exposed. Wind is the main difficulty, since a crosswind from the south can push a loaded bike sideways, and a headwind can halve fuel economy. Road trains, long trucks with several trailers, use the highway, and their slipstream and the wind they push are strong, so give them room and expect a buffeting when they pass. Dawn and dusk bring kangaroos, wombats and emus onto the road, and hitting one at speed is dangerous, so slow down in the low light.
Summer days are hot and dry, and winter nights are cold, so carry layers, plenty of water and a basic repair kit. The silence and space are the reward.