D17 环澳自驾游——Charters Towers

如果从凯恩斯直接向西，靠近海岸穿越昆州北部的风景更丰富多彩，但是路况非常差，需要高底盘的越野车。所以我按原计划重新从凯恩斯回到汤斯维尔（400公里），然后从内陆穿越昆士兰州进入北领地。这条路的路况比较好，并不是严格的无人区，而是少人区。但是沿途补给非常少，间距很大，据说风景非常单调，所以对独自长途驾驶也非常具有挑战性。

第一站是往西南方向前进140公里到达Charters Towers，我九年前走内陆从黄金海岸去达凯恩斯的时候经过这里，这也是我曾经去过的昆州最靠内陆的地方。之后就正式想正西方向，一直开到北领地，然后再向西北方向开往达尔文。

If you head directly west from Cairns, the route near the coast across northern Queensland offers more vibrant and diverse scenery. However, the road conditions are very poor and require a high-clearance 4WD vehicle. So I decided to stick to my original plan: return to Townsville from Cairns (a 400 km journey), and then travel inland through Queensland into the Northern Territory. This inland route has better road conditions. It’s not strictly an uninhabited zone, but rather a sparsely populated area. Nevertheless, fuel and supply stops are very limited and spaced far apart. The scenery is reportedly very monotonous, making long-distance solo driving quite a challenge.

The first stop is 140 km southwest to Charters Towers. I passed through this town nine years ago when I traveled inland from the Gold Coast to Cairns. At that time, it was also the most inland point in Queensland I had ever visited. From there, I’ll head directly west all the way to the Northern Territory, and then northwest toward Darwin.

《Go West》这首流行歌最初由美国音乐组合Village People（村民人）在1979年发行。后来，英国合成流行乐队Pet Shop Boys在1993年翻唱了这首歌，并将其带到全球范围的流行巅峰，使得这首歌在东西方都留下了深远的影响。最初表达的是“向西部拓展”的美国理想主义愿景，暗指自由、希望与机会的象征。

东欧剧变与苏联解体之后，“走向西方”成为一股历史潮流。这一转向不仅意味着政治体制和文化价值的重构，更是一种深层的精神意向。

虽然环澳自驾游已经过去两个多星期了，但是一直在我比较熟悉的澳洲东部沿海一带，随时都可以返回堪培拉的家里。过了Charters Towers，就真正开始义无反顾地向西穿越壮丽的澳洲大陆。

其实向前走才是真正的回家，每个人从出生的那一天开始就一直走在回家的路上。

“Go West” is a pop song originally released in 1979 by the American music group Village People. Later, in 1993, the British synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys covered the song and brought it to global popularity, leaving a lasting impact across both the East and the West. The original version conveyed the idealistic American vision of “going west,” symbolizing freedom, hope, and opportunity.

After the dramatic political changes in Eastern Europe and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, “going West” became a powerful historical trend. This shift represented not only a transformation of political systems and cultural values but also a deeper spiritual aspiration.

Although it’s been more than two weeks since the start of my circumnavigation of Australia, I’ve mostly stayed in the more familiar eastern coastal regions, where I could return home at any moment. But once I pass Charters Towers, it marks the true beginning of my unwavering westward journey across the majestic Australian continent.

In fact, moving forward is the real journey home. From the day we are born, each of us has already set foot on the road to return.

上面两首歌《Go West》和《回家》，代表了贯穿每个人一生的精神张力，探险本身就是一种回归。

许多西方音乐都有宗教含义，常被误解为爱情歌曲，其实歌唱的对象不一定是具体的人。上面这首《回家》，如果理解成一个人的精神旅程，感受会大不相同。

The two songs above, “Go West” and “Home”, represent the spiritual tension that runs through a person’s entire life—exploration itself is a form of return.

Many Western songs carry religious or spiritual meaning, though they are often mistaken for love songs. In reality, the one being sung to is not necessarily a specific person. The song “Home”, for instance, takes on a completely different resonance when understood as a spiritual journey of the self.

休息的时候浏览一下脸书，发现我昨天路上看到的这个人居然在我们的群里。他是日本人松坂知哉，拉着这个小车步行从凯恩斯到墨尔本！这段路程大概有3000公里，相当于从广州到哈尔滨！

While taking a break, I browsed Facebook and was surprised to find that the person I saw on the road yesterday is actually in our group. He’s Tomoya Matsuzaka from Japan, walking from Cairns to Melbourne while pulling this little cart!