Marbles

30th June – Tuesday

No alien visitations during the night, fortunately, but a beautiful big sky full of stars.

Woke to a rather strong sewage smell this morning and then discovered a septic vent very nicely concealed in a tree next to our site.! Very hot today – 25 at 8.00 am and 35 degrees by lunchtime. We are looking for shady sites now, definitely.

We stopped at the Devils Marbles for a walk and photo opportunity. These large granite boulders are virtually beside the highway, with plenty of parking. Gorgeous colours and lots of interesting shapes. Someone even removed some skin from his stomach trying to climb onto the top of a boulders. (The sacred spirits were obviously doing a great protection job!)

We have stopped in Tennant Creek for the night at the Outback Caravan Park. We have entertainment tonight – Jim is going to show us how to cook a kangaroo’s tail, recite poetry and tell a few yarns. Tennant Creek is another interesting town with a supermarket, couple of banks and service stations and about half a dozen pubs. There is also a large indigenous population as well. Ants are a bit of a problem in the caravan park, so Les took himself to the supermarket to purchase some talcum powder – came back with boring Johnsons Baby Powder.

I have had a slight problem with Telstra (again!!!), this time with overcharging (surprise, surprise!!!). Yesterday morning I spoke to a nice man in India, whose computer wasn’t working – please ring back. No mobile coverage last night, so rang back today and spoke to a lady in the Philippines (where else!). It took 20 minutes but we did manage to sort out the language and accounts problems.

We may not have mobile telephone coverage for the next two nights as we will be stopping at roadhouses between here at Mt Isa. Stay tuned.

Aliens

29th June – Monday

Our departure from Alice Springs was delayed as the refrigerator needed to be fixed and we had to wait until 9.00am for the refrigeration mechanic to arrive back at the workshop. He quickly decided we needed a new 240 volt element, he had one in stock and could install it immediately. Woohoo!!! $95 fee to open his toolbox, plus part, however, we will certainly be contacting Jayco as the unit has only had 5 month’s use.

Another beautiful day, very warm early which quickly became rather hot – 32 degrees after lunch. Today we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn and the landscape changed slightly once again – termite mounts have now appeared. The road from Alice Springs to Wycliffe Well passes through cattle country and we did come across some stockmen mustering, as well as some stock wandering. Unfortunately, there were also a few who were no longer wandering, including a large, very puffy steer laying flat on his back with a large blue balloon protruding from his bottom. Wouldn’t like to be in bull’s roar when a crow punctured this “balloon!”

Himself was much more relaxed in the passenger seat today and actually played with the sound system and checked out the roadmap.

We decided not to stop at Ti Tree for lunch as it was fairly crowded with local inhabitants and continued to a rest stop about 20 kms north. There are plenty of rest stops (occasionally they even have a toilet) and the road was extremely good today, very flat and long straights. The longest straight measured 43 kms!

The roadhouse/caravan park at Wycliffe Well is rather interesting and has lots of murals, an indoor swimming pool and a train ride for the adults around the lake. Kids are welcome, too, if there are any about. Wycliffe Well is evidently the UFO capital of Australia, which probably accounts for the lack of mobile phone coverage.

To Market, To Market

28th June – Sunday

Our final day in Alice Springs – and another beautiful, warm day.

We started the day with our free pancakes for breakfast, then headed into the Todd Mall for the advertised market. When we arrived at the mall, no market in sight! Eventually found it in a nearby park. Evidently a burst water main in the mall forced the relocation. There were lots of typical market stalls, the main item for sale seemed to be beanies! What a surprise. However, these were a lot cheaper than the ones on sale at the festival. Wondered how many of the relations wanted a beanie???

Spent a fairly quiet afternoon, wondering if the refrigerator was working or not. The stock in the freezer had started to defrost and we didn’t know if it was because the door had been left slightly ajar or the thing just wasn’t working. We have now started the gas and will check in a couple of hours. Otherwise, we will be eating lots the next two days.

No photos today, so will publish one of a model draped over a car bonnet.

Beanies

27th June – Saturday

Another boring day weatherwise – clear, sunny, still and a pleasant 24 degrees.

We have discovered how lucky we are to be in Alice Springs this weekend as the annual Beanie Festival is being held. Full of curiosity, as it isn’t every day one gets to attend a beanie festival, we headed for the venue and discovered that people come from near and far to exhibit, sell and buy beanies! There were literally thousands of beanies for sale – all colours, shapes and yarns. The majority appeared to have been either knitted or crocheted from the type of yarn commonly on sale at Chickenfeed or Spotlight for less than $1 a ball. The average beanie price would have been $50, with many priced much higher. Perhaps I should start knitting now in case we come this way next year!!! Cat was quite overcome with the selection on offer and thought it was better to think about his choice.

After lunch we headed for the East McDonnell Ranges, which, although part of the same range, are different to the West McDonnell Ranges. The countryside was more desolate in places and the ranges weren’t as rugged. Other spots had quite large trees and we even sighted some cows. The road quickly narrowed to a single lane bitumen strip with large gravel shoulders – not a problem as the traffic wasn’t exactly rush hour. We called into Corroboree Rock, a sacred site even though the reason for the sacredness has been lost, on the way to Trephina Gorge. We also drove through the Ross River, minus any water. We had to walk past some fairly vicious bees congregating around a tap to reach the river bed pathway to the gorge, then it was a trudge through the sand, flies and heat and breathtaking scenery to reach the cliff walls. There was even some rather green water remaining in a waterhole.

Our return was back past the bees before a short drive to The Ghost Gum. There were quite a few ghost gums in this area and a track had been formed into a large tree which was off the road. As soon as the car door was opened, Cat was out and half way up the tree before being scruffed!

It's a Small World

26th June – Friday

We awoke to a beautiful clear morning after the cloud of yesterday. Not quite as warm today, just a pleasant 23-24 degrees.

As the sun was shining, we decided to head for Standley Chasm, which must be seen at noon. I think every tourist within a 100 km radius made the same decision – there were more people than flies! The chasm is on private property, so the owners charge a “small” admission fee. As poor pensioners, we only had to pay $7.50 each! The admission fee certainly isn’t used on track maintenance or upgrading. It was a quite rough walk along a creek bed to get to Standley Chasm and the colours of the walls were incredible. The light is so strong here that it makes the shadows very intense – and photos can be quite interesting with the play of light and shade. We waited until the sun had reached its zenith, but being mid-winter, we weren’t lucky enough for both walls of the canyon to be sunlit at the same time.

When we returned to the car park, we noticed another Tasmanian vehicle (lots of them here!) with Vietnam ribbons on the back window. Turns out the bloke did basic training with Les at Kapooka and they were in the same platoon! Then spent time together at Enoggera in the same company. Some time was spent reminiscing and chasing flies.

Then it was back to Simpsons Gap, where there were more flies than tourists. This was a lovely spot, with a large sandy river bed, just like a beach, and only a short walk to the actual gap and another waterhole. This is also home to the black-footed rock wallaby and one actually decided he wanted his photo taken, posing very prettily on a rock with his feet stuck out in front of him. We returned to the carpark to be met by another Tasmanian couple – Mr Morse senior of Morse’s Coaches in Devonport and an acquaintance of Dot and Ken. Such a small world today.

In case you haven’t heard – Michael Jackson died today.

Back to School

25th June – Thursday

We have now been on the road for one month!!!

Not the best of days, weatherwise – very windy and overcast, but still quite warm at 25 degrees. We did hear that it has only been 8 or 9 degrees in Hobart.

Today we went back to school, visiting the Alice Springs School of the Air. Even though it is school holidays in the Northern Territory, a recorded lesson was played for us to watch. With 160 students and 10 full time, plus a number of part time specialist teachers, these students have a very good student/teacher ratio. The NT Government provides every family with a computer, printer, scanner, fax, web cam and satellite dish at a cost of $12-15,000 per family and also provided the technical support. Students would spend up to 4 hours per week on-line, live, with their teacher and classmates, as well as be able to email or telephone at any time during the day. Cat very quickly became the teacher’s pet and was allowed sit on the teacher’s desk.

This afternoon we visited the Royal Flying Doctor Service base and after watching the obligatory video on the Service, were allowed view the emergency operations room from a viewing window. An emergency was currently underway, but as the plane was in the air, the room was no longer manned. Two patients were being evacuated from two different locations and transported to Adelaide. The attached museum not only contained examples of early radios and medical kits, but also a flight simulator for the Pilatus aircraft which flies out of Alice Springs. Unfortunately, our pilot had trouble landing, so we just ended up flying off into the sunset!

Virtually next door was the Pioneer Women’s Hall of Fame. Although these establishments were in one of the better suburbs, we thought the Hall of Fame was over-doing the security with barred windows, high walls and rolled barbed wire. We did discover that the site was originally the Alice Springs Gaol! Dame Enid, of course, Ida Birchall and Heather Innes were the only Tasmanians to be featured. One really has to admire the pioneering women of Central Australia and the conditions they endured – and not too long ago, either.

24th June – Wednesday

Bit cloudy this morning, so decided it would be a good day to visit the Desert Park, which is run by the Northern Territory Government. The park is set out into the three desert divisions – woodland, sand and desert rivers, with a number of tracks winding through each and a large number of walk-through aviaries. Cat came face to face with a Spinifex hopping mouse in one of the shelter sheds.

A number of activities take place during the day and the first on our list was on Aboriginal survival in the desert and conducted by two members of the local Aboriginal tribe. Not only very informative, but great entertainment as well. If anyone is interested, witchetty grubs should not be tossed onto the barbecue, they should be roasted in the coals!

We only had time for a quick sandwich before the nocturnal house guided tour. This would be one of the best nocturnal houses we have seen – very well set out – and a guide from North America who informed us of all the “critters” in the enclosures.

The day concluded with the Nature Theatre and the birds of prey. Although free flying, they were very well controlled and the buzzard was the only one who took his time coming in for a feed. Cat was very wary about these large raptors flying very close to us.

Not a great day for photos today.

23rd June – Tuesday

Weather same as yesterday, and the day before – about 25 degrees. Hopefully the suntan will return quickly.

This morning we visited the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens, a desert botanic garden, of course. It had a magnificent gateway constructed from sleepers from the Old Ghan railway and was divided into various sections, eg mallee, dunes, saline, acacia, etc. There were also a number of signs warning us to stay on the path because snakes and goannas lived in the area. Les found a coolabah tree to shelter under, as well as some new birds we haven’t seen before. Not many flowers, but some of the acacias were flowering.

This afternoon we enjoyed a game of bowls at the local club. Very interesting, and we also met some lovely locals as well as fellow travellers. The green was a bit different to what we are used to playing on – mainly sand with some grass. Very, very slow and narrow – quite hard work to actually get a bowl to the other end! It was also extremely hot on the green, as there was no shade. The glass of wine afterwards was very welcome.

Cat decided to catch up on some sleep today, as he isn’t really into bowls.

There are 200 students from Bendigo camped near us tonight - let's hope they go to bed early, and stay there!

Up, Up and Away

22nd June – Monday

Such an exciting day, it is hard to know where to start! Another clear, warm day with a top of about 25 degrees – very pleasant.

Today we headed for the West McDonnell Ranges, with a short stop at the grave of John Flynn, before heading west. The road was very good, mainly flat except for rolling through numerous creek crossings. The scenery was simply stunning!

We continued past the turn-off to Glen Helen Gorge, travelling approximately another 20 kms before turning back. This is the true Albert Namatjira country, with Mt Sonder featuring in his watercolours. The Glen Helen Gorge contains not only a camping ground, but also a “resort” with a lovely dining room. We had a cut lunch with us, so headed for the 10 minute walk to the waterhole. The track headed along the bed of the Finke River, before he who can find his way anywhere in the bush, lost the track and decided we needed to walk through head-high, snake infested grass and reeds. Cat was not amused and kept very close! The waterhole in the gorge was just beautiful, complete with a heron and kestrel to keep us amused. There are supposedly black-footed rock wallabies at this waterhole, but they obviously decided to hide behind the rocks while we were there. The return to the resort was along the track, which quite clearly went along the middle of the river bed.

Then the big excitement of the day. As it will be our wedding anniversary, we decided to have a ride in a HELICOPTER instead of going out to dinner. After listening to the safety instructions, making sure Cat was securely belted in and Les moving his keys and change to his inside pocket, it was into the helicopter and on with the headphones. Unfortunately, there were no doors to shut. It was the most incredible flight over the ranges and surrounding countryside – the dinosaur ridges looked like they had been drawn with a ruler. We finished the flight by flying through the Glen Helen Gorge, the very place we had sat for lunch. Cat was so excited by his visit to Glen Helen Gorge, we had to give him a valium to calm down.

Then it was on to Ormiston Gorge and another waterhole, beautiful river red gums and dry river beds – and lots of flies! This was a fairly large gorge, with lots of sand in the river bed. We had a quick trip in to the ochre pits – the colours in the cliffs were amazing. Serpentine Gorge was another gorge and waterhole, and quite a rough walking track. The road into this gorge was very rough and Les was able to practice his 4 wheel driving. The final gorge and waterhole of the day was at Ellery Creek. This large waterhole is evidently very popular as a swimming hole, but I considered the water a bit cold for a dip.

When we returned to the caravan park, a didgeridoo concert was in progress.

Trucks and Springs

21st June – Sunday

The shortest day of the year!

Last night was much warmer, the temperature only dropped to 6 degrees and today was a very pleasant 26. The wardrobe has now been swapped around and the heavy, winter clothes are under the bed, with the lighter shirts and pants now in the cupboards.

The morning had a very civilised start with pancakes supplied by the caravan park. As many as we wanted, we only had to keep lining up again – along with everyone else. A couple sitting with us were very informative about where we should and shouldn’t go and suggested we should start the day at the Todd Mall Market. So, being market fans, we headed off to a fairly empty mall and met the same couple who apologised about getting the dates wrong! However, we did have a wander along the mall and found a couple of the obligatory souvenir shops, as well as the memorial church to John Flynn.

Back to the caravan for lunch then to the National Road Transport Hall of Fame. Cat became very excited here with all the trucks and motorbikes to look at and climb on, despite the warning signs. He was particularly fond of the Indian motorbike. It was here that we discovered not only a commemorative brick/plaque to my cousin, Trevor, but also photos and stories of both Uncle Bill and Aunty Pat. Although the place was interesting anyway, this made it far more personal. There was also a museum of Kenworth trucks and lots of unrestored vehicles were outside. The Old Ghan was also at the same site, but impossible to get of photo of the train because of the position.

Following this, we headed to the Alice Springs Telegraph Station, the site of the original settlement and the springs, which is really just part of the Todd River. We had a great time here, talking to a guide who lived at the settlement as a half-caste child in the 1930’s and was able to give us his personal recollections as well as the earlier history. He also warned us about a brown snake that lives in the straw of the stables. One of us walked into the middle of the stable, while Cat and the sensible person stood outside the door. Cat enjoyed the telegraph office, and was quite intrigued with the old fashioned method of sending an email! We were lucky to find some water in the spot that is considered the original “Alice Springs,” although the river bed was very dry and sandy either side.

A quick trip to the top of Anzac Hill for a photo opportunity and the realisation that Alice Springs is set among some very rugged and stony hills. We also spotted the Woolworths service station, so filled up with fuel on the way back to the caravan park. Diesel was only $1.28, less the 4 cents discount.

A Town Like Alice

20th June – Saturday

A bad start to the day – I was attacked by a vicious cat! Definitely not Cat, who is much better behaved. The owners of Erldunda Roadhouse have a cat which believes it owns the surrounding area. It was sitting in the middle of the path and I had to walk around it, the cat attached itself to my pants leg and when I tried to remove its claws, it attacked my hand. I have a large puncture wound underneath the fingernail – I bled all over the floor of the amenities block before attempting first aid. When I reported the attack to the owners, I was told that Earl is very gentle and people like to cuddle him!!!

Only a short drive of two hours to Alice Springs and the McDonnell Ranges Caravan Park. What a great park! Absolutely huge (350 sites) but divided into sections with lots of amenities block – and washing machines! Definitely need them at the moment. There are free activities almost every day, from free pancakes on Sunday morning to 4WD tips and hints, star gazing and didgeridoo playing.

We checked out the local Woolworths this afternoon; a big store and bananas were only $2.95 kg. Les was very excited as he hasn’t had any bananas for a while. Also a Brumby’s Bakery and Lennard Chicken. We also found the Alice Springs Bowls Club and put our names down to social bowls on Tuesday afternoon.

We might have to stay a bit longer in Alice, as there is plenty to look at and do, apart from the McDonnell Ranges attractions.

No photos today, so will add another one from Kings Canyon.

Erldunda Revisted

19th June – Friday

We are now back in contact, so please start reading from the 16th June.

We left Kings Canyon this morning, not as bright and early as expected. We met a couple from Melbourne when we arrived at Kings Canyon Resort and they have the most beautiful, LARGE, Bernese mountain dog. The dog is an absolute sook and one of the couple has to stay with it at al times! Anyway, by the time we talked, etc, it was nearly 9.30am before we were on the road. Cat was still tuckered out from his long climb and walk yesterday, so spent all the morning asleep on the bed.

The countryside was the same as on the way in to Yulara and Kings Canyon, although we did see many more camels than last Saturday. We drove through a herd of 30-40, either side of the road.

We arrived at Erldunda, and mobile phone coverage, shortly before 1.00pm. We filled up with diesel immediately, just in case they ran out again. Tomorrow, we will be in Alice Springs for eight nights.

Another beautiful day, although a bit of a chilly breeze. It is probably only about 16 degrees today, a bit cooler than the 18 degrees of the last few days. Nights are extremely cold, though.

Have included some more photos from Kings Canyon.

The Rim

18th June – Thursday

To be boring – another very cold night and beautiful clear, sunny day.

Today we decided to tackle the Kings Canyon rim walk which is supposedly only 6.5 km, much shorter than the 11.5 km around Ayers Rock. Unfortunately, the walk commences with 500 steps to climb the first 100 metres. These are just the natural sandstone, with a bit of help to make very natural steps. I also didn’t believe the ranger when she told me it was only 100 metres! It took 45 minutes, but we did get to the top. On the way we met a number of geology students from the University of Adelaide, on a field trip to look at the rocks, naturally.

Once at the top, after a number of rests for Cat, the walking was much easier. The sandstone was just the most amazing colour and formation. We took our time, and lots of photos to bore relations, stopping at all the lookouts, bar one (Cat thought it was a bit too high and scary).

More steps to the bottom of the Garden of Eden with its cycads, trees and waterholes. Of course, what goes down has to go up again, so along long climb up the wooden steps, this time. Cat became rather involved with the ranger on the way up, spending quite some time chatting her up. We continued upwards and found a nice spot near a waterhole to have lunch. No problem with sacred sites at Kings Canyon! More people arrived for Cat to talk to – we probably spent a good hour talking to people at various rest spots.

The descent back to the car park was more gradual than the initial ascent, and wound down around the side of the hill/cliff face. We came across a sign that said 1 km to the car park, but again, I think the measurements were way out. When we came to the final emergency radio, Cat was out of the pack and up the pole before we could stop him. We also discovered that most of the dinosaurs had disappeared from their packet as well!

Even though it took us five hours, this would have to have been the best walk we have done – personally, I think it leaves Ayers Rock for dead! The whole area is so beautiful, natural and peaceful, not at all commercialised. Just wonderful.

Kathleen Springs

17th June – Wednesday

Another cold night and beautiful, clear morning. The stars last night were just incredible – it is so dark that one feels the stars are so much closer, plus there are many, many more. As we look out our front window over the George Gill Ranges, there is really nothing between us and the Indian Ocean or Arafura Sea. This is the most extraordinary place!

Les decided this morning that Cat required another day of rest after climbing Ayers Rock before tackling the rim walk around Kings Canyon, which involves a large number of steps to reach the rim. Of course, the decision had nothing to do with his aching and stiff legs!!!

Therefore, the morning was spent catching up on laundry, rest, reading, talking to neighbours and checking out the local eateries and general store. We very promptly decided to give the Outback BBQ a miss ($35+ for a main course!) and were pleasantly surprised with the range of stock at the store. Everything from petrol jerry cans to ice cream, fresh fruit and vegetables, meat and grocery items. Naturally, they were a LITTLE more expensive than one would expect to pay in a supermarket. Magnum ice creams were a mere $5.30 each.

After lunch we set out for the short 2.6 km walk to Kathleen Springs. This was a very easy walk along a creek bed in a gully which has been used for thousands of years by the Aborigines to trap animals and over a hundred years by white men to corral cattle. The old stock yards and water tank are still evident. At the end of the gully was the most fantastic water hole, with staggering reflections. This waterhole, according to Aboriginal legend, is the home of the Rainbow Serpent. Cat was a little worried about serpents and snakes and only ventured out of his backpack to pretend to be a jackaroo and for a quick photo opportunity at the waterhole.

We have finally seen a dingo – in the caravan park. It was very mangy and had trouble walking; the rangers really should capture and euthanise the poor thing. While we were watching the sunset, another dingo came into the park, wandering among the caravans. The cook had to stay outside in the cold while barbecuing the sausages, just in case! Cat flatly refused to leave the caravan.

The flies bred overnight!

Kings Canyon

16 June – Tuesday

Very cold night and morning, beautiful clear skies. On the road early, heading for Kings Canyon. Les took the navigator’s seat for the first 100 km.

The landscape into Kings Canyon was different again to previous days – there was more grass and the trees were a little bit taller, but still red dirt between the grass clumps. We were beginning to think we weren’t going to see any wildlife again today when we came upon a small mob of brumbies beside the road. Then a short while later – CAMELS! Both introduced species, of course.

We arrived at the Kings Canyon Resort shortly after noon, along with about 20 other people! There was no record of my booking, made a week ago. The receptionist wasn’t concerned as there were plenty of vacant sites and couldn’t really understand my concern as my credit card number had been taken to confirm the booking. I would be charged if we didn’t turn up and I am worried that the booking may have been entered for the wrong dates and I will be charged! No receipt was forthcoming, so I asked for one and was told that receipts aren’t normally issued!!! I received my receipt. Really weird set up for such a large concern as Voyages Resorts.

The caravan park is rather lovely, we look out our front window straight across the ranges – just gorgeous. There are a number of Tasmanians here, so will have to do a wander later. Unfortunately, there is no mobile phone coverage, hence no internet. However, we do have television reception.

Went for a short walk this afternoon along Kings Creek at the base of Kings Canyon. A fabulous walk (apart from the flies which travelled with us from the Olgas) with the sides of the canyon rising on both sides and the rocky creek bed to follow. Some beautiful gum trees, even a cycad, and even a holly grevillea. There were also quite a few birds, even a ring-neck parrot we hadn’t seen before. Cat, of course, had his usual problem in staying on the track and had to be removed from signage, rocks and trees along the way.

Climb Every Mountain ...

15th June – Monday

A “bucket list” day today – Les and Cat climbed Ayers Rock! Cloudy and windy this morning, but not as cold as yesterday. Only needed a skivvy and windcheater today, not the skivvy, woollen jumper, polar fleece jacket and gloves of yesterday! Cat decided to stay with the fur coat.

Headed straight to the climb this morning and the boys prepared themselves for the long, steep climb ahead – lots of water, jungle jellies and dinosaurs went into the pack, along with the two way radio and telephone. I was quite happy to sit in the car, watch the people and read a book for two hours. They eventually reappeared over the ridge and started down. I was following with the binoculars and looked away for ten seconds and during that time Les disappeared. Bit of a panic, couldn’t see him at the bottom of the rock, so called on the two way. He had decided to have a little lay down in a hollow! Jelly legs were the order of the day following the return to desert level.

We headed out to the Olgas, about 50 km away. These are just as stunning as Ayers Rock, only different. Stopped for the obligatory photo shoot before heading to the first car park and the site of the only toilets at the Olgas. Toilets are very few and far between, considering the large number of tourists. There is only one site at Ayers Rock as well and after walking around the base of the Rock for 3 ½ hours, Cat definitely had his legs crossed!

We had lunch at the car park for the Walpa Gorge Walk, before setting out on this one hour walk along the bottom of the gorge. The going was fairly rough and uneven, with a bit of a climb to start with (and 873,291 flies for company) before we entered the shade of the steep walls. There was a small stream and rock pools, along with vegetation and two birds. The lack of wild life has been quite amazing.

Returned to Yulara for a bit of a rest (for some), talked to Diane, then the whiskey bottle appeared!

Tomorrow we are off to Kings Canyon.

Sunrise

14th June – Sunday

A very cold night, which meant clear skies, which meant everyone was up at 6.00am to watch the sun rise at Ayers Rock. It was so cold (3 degrees) that the ice warning sounded in the car! We stood around in the dark with hundreds of other people, taking photos of each other, because we couldn’t see the Rock. Then as it gradually started to lighten, the colours started to change. What an incredible sight! As the sun finally rose above the horizon, the Rock was the most amazing shade, almost pulsating with colour and light. Well worth the early rise and cold. Breakfast, and coffee, was most welcome when we returned to the caravan.

Then it was back to the Rock, this time for a walk right around the base – it took us 3 ½ hours, but was flat all the way, fortunately. The light and shadow on the rock formations was extraordinary, however, the light at times didn’t make for good photography as it was too bright. There were many signs at sacred sights forbidding photography and entry. Whilst respecting the Aboriginal culture, I had no problem with the no entry, but photographs could be taken from the road, where there were no signs. I’m afraid the camera button may have been pushed accidently at times.

It was still very cold by lunchtime, so we looked for a sheltered spot to sit, out of the wind. We choose a rock on the edge of the path, with a well-trodden track around it. Not long after settling down (Cat needed a rest by this stage), a young, female ranger, with a foreign accent, walked by and told us we were on a sacred site and to move. Not happy with her attitude, as we were definitely not on a sacred site – we had carefully checked on the map provided before sitting down. She followed us for quite some time and when Les asked her what she was doing, said she was looking for graffiti. Left us alone after that!

There is a large waterhole on the southern side, with a nice patch of green bush around it. It was also in this area where we were able to see some rock paintings.

We have found it remarkable that we have not seen any indigenous people in the area or working at Uluru. Nor have we seen any wildlife, apart from a few pied butcherbirds and magpies.

Returned to Yulara via the resort’s gift shops, ready to put our feet up for a few hours. Cat was quite “stuffed” after such a long walk.

Ayers Rock

13th June – Saturday

A BIG day today!

Warm night, cloudy morning and no wind, which was a great help to the day’s fuel consumption. Fuel did become a bit of a problem today as when we went to fill up at Erldunda Roadhouse (where we had spent the night), we were told there was no diesel left!!! The closest was at Mt Ebernezer, 56 kms away on the road to Yulara. We had enough in the tank to travel 120 kms, so set out in the hope that Mt Ebernezer still had diesel. They did – at $1.90 a litre not many people buy it there. We bought enough to get us to Yulara, as did a number of others behind us.

Tension in the car increased after Mt Ebernezer (Cat decided to sleep in the caravan) as the navigator decided it was time to learn how to tow a caravan. Pilot realised it had to happen and did cope for 70 kms. Pilot has sort of accepted that it is going to occur every day now.

An unexpected sight was Mt Connor rising out of the desert – such a huge mountain all on its own. At first, we thought it was Ayers Rock, but quickly realised it wasn’t.

Shortly before reaching Yulara, we were flagged down by a caravan heading the other way. There was plenty of vehicles on the road, so Les walked back to find out what the problem was as we couldn’t make sense of what they were saying on the two-way. The man offered to sell us his pass into Uluru for a few dollars less than he had paid for it. It all sounded rather suss, so I told him I had used all my cash to purchase diesel at Mt Ebernezer.

Arrived at Yulara Resort at 12.15pm, checked in ($38 a night here) and was given a site that had a large fire hose in the middle of the area where an awning would go. Big walk back to reception to ask for another site, was given the choice of two at the back of the park, so moved the caravan and then had another big walk to let reception know which site we were on. No grass, just red dirt and a small concrete slab. We have been issued with passes to allow us to purchase alcohol at the resort. (Alcohol and pornography and not permitted on the Aboriginal land here.) There is also an IGA supermarket here, thank goodness, so we were able to stock up on fresh food again. Fuel is also much cheaper than Mt Ebernezer!

Headed into Uluru for some orientation, and pay our entrance fee of $25 each for three days. Ayers Rock (or Uluru) is absolutely amazing, as are the prices in the gift shop! We returned to watch the sunset, along with many, many others. It was just fantastic to watch the colours change – will have to get someone out of bed bright and early now to watch the sunrise!

I think we will be “rocked out” by the time we leave here on Tuesday.

He can't fly ...

12 June – Friday

Cloudy start to the day, which accounted for the warm night. The day quickly cleared, become quite warm by lunch time – probably about 23 degrees. Some of the clothing layers have definitely been removed and thoughts of swapping the wardrobe around are starting to emerge. The sandals were also dug out from the back of the shoe cupboard!

The journey to Erldunda was relatively short, less than three hours travelling time from Marla. The countryside was similar to the previous day, although a slight change in the wildlife Today we saw six horses, lots of eagles, crows and a flock of red-tailed black cockatoos. We also crossed the border into the Northern Territory.

The caravan park at Erldunda is behind the roadhouse – a nice park with grassy sites but only bore water. Thank goodness are tanks are nearly full (my turn to have a shower tomorrow!). The roadhouse is very much different to the normal roadhouses in that is doesn’t stock supplies for the traveller, only souvenirs and takeaways for tourists. Fortunately, there is an IGA supermarket at Yulara.

We sat around this afternoon attempting to catch up on some reading but spending most of the time chasing flies (Aeroguard seems to be well liked by all the local flies!). This evening we joined a couple from Adelaide for happy hour – so much nicer in warm weather, and the flies weren’t as bad. While we were socialising, a kangaroo hopped into the park for a feed, closely followed by an emu. The emu had a good wander around before taking a liking to Les, who didn’t really take a liking to the emu!!!

The highlight of the day was probably a telephone call from Jack, although it did take him a while to actually overcome his telephone shyness and talk.

Desert Oasis

11th June – Thursday

Left the caravan park bright and early at 8.30am, although we were one of the last to leave, then had to queue for nearly half an hour to fill our water tank at the Council depot. Very slow process that took all our 20 cent pieces. Waved goodbye to the lookout at The Big Winch and thought of the long, steep climb to the top only to find a car park and road coming up from the other side.

The early morning light was just fantastic on the mullock heaps and their beautiful colours varying from white to deep ochre. A cool morning with clear skies, which continued all day – not a cloud to be seen and the temperature starting to increase now to about 20. Fairly windy on the road though. These days have been our worst for fuel consumption, averaging 21-22 litres per 100 kilometres – not good!

The terrain today changed from the bare, stony desert at Coober Pedy to desert with either low bushes or stunted scrub. We saw a large number of eagles today, a few sheep, three horses, some galahs, cockatoos and crows. Oh, and a dead kangaroo. Not much appears to live out here.

We stopped for a short break at the Cadney Roadhouse, a popular spot for travellers, as well as truckies. Like good caravanners, we pulled into the line of parked caravans along the side of the clearing, joining about five or six in front of us, with another one behind. Just as we got back into the car to pull out, a HUGE road train (biggest I have seen!) pulled in and stopped beside the line of caravans. The driver then got out and disappeared, leaving everyone standing open-mouthed. The caravan behind us backed out, then we backed up (with me walking behind the caravan with the two-way) and the ones in front were still standing, staring, when we left.

Our stop for the night is at the Marla Roadhouse – and what a lovely oasis in the middle of the desert. Apart from the service station, there is a small supermarket, a post office, takeaway, restaurant and hotel, of course. The caravan park is behind and actually has grass!!! We were first in, fortunately, as the instructions we received regarding parking were a little confusing. After deciding where we wanted to park as regards sun, it took Les four tries to get into position, driving across the grass each time. Thank goodness no one else was there to see us – it was absolutely appalling! After getting level, connecting the power, setting the jacks in place, etc., we started to wonder if we were actually supposed to be ON the grass. No – we were supposed to park on the road, BESIDE the grass! Another move off the grass before we set up again.

There are a lot of flies here.

Max and Priscilla

10th June – Wednesday

A cold night followed by clear blue skies, no wind and no rain – a warm day, about 20 degrees during the afternoon.

Today we headed for the Breakaways, a chain of mesa to the north west of Coober Pedy. These were the location sites of Mad Max and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The scenery was absolutely stunning; we drove in to the edge of a cliff and the mesas fell away to both sides of us. The colours were just incredible, from white to a rich ochre, the ground either orange or black gravel. We drove along the cliffs before heading to the desert floor – gibber, or stony, desert as far as we could see. It was here that Mad Max was filmed – there is just nothing except stones. Although there is now some gold to be found in the desert – one of my earrings!

Lots of photos taken here to bore the relations when we return.

The track wound around the base of the mesas before emerging alongside the dog, or dingo, fence. This fence stretches over 5,000 kms from Queensland to South Australia and obviously does keep the dingos out, because we didn’t see any! Both Les and Cat kept a sharp eye out.

Our return to Coober Pedy was via the Oodnadatta Track.

Noodling

9th June – Tuesday

A beautiful clear day, no clouds but a cool breeze – no where near as bad as yesterday! I decided to do a load of washing – sheets and towels mainly – before we set out for the day. Put my $5 in the slots, set the machine going and returned with about 5 minutes to go. The machine had stopped with 6 minute left to run, refused to start again and when I removed my washing, discovered it was still dry! Trip to reception to complain – happy to pay for water when it is in short supply, but do expect some in the washing machine. Received a refund and will try again tomorrow.

We started the day with an organised tour of Coober Pedy (run by the caravan park) and we taken first of all to the Serbian Church, underground of course. The church was dug out in an old mining area, along with a large number of residences. Evidently, one can buy a modest dug-out (2 bedrooms) for about $65,000. Of course, if extra rooms are required, all that is required is a pick and shovel and lots of hard work. There is also the possibility of finding opal as well.

We spent some time “noodling” mullocks heaps in the town boundary – these are open to the public and no licences are required. Needless to say, they are noodled every day by tour groups and the chances of finding an opal would be smaller than winning Tattslotto. Cat did enjoy this part of the tour and was very happy scratching around in the gravel.

We drove past the hospital and the Aboriginal community before coming to the golf club. Eighteen holes of gravel with artificial grass at the tees and sump oil on the “greens” to keep the dust under control!

We ended up at an old mine now set up as a tourist attraction and were shown through the caretaker’s quarters, which evidently are still used. The temperature underground is a constant 25 degrees all year, which means no heating or cooling expenses. Approximately half the population live in dug-outs. Of course, the mine tour ended in the obligatory gift shop with a large assortment of opals just waiting for rich tourists. I purchased two post cards, but did spend some time talking to the assistant about the types and qualities of opals. Now all I need is about $9,000 for a pendant!

Had a walk around the main shopping street this afternoon – it is 90% opal shops, a couple of supermarkets and service stations, a very upmarket hotel and a pub. All the tinpot looking opal shops are actually very swish once inside – just like an expensive jewellery story.

The caravan park which was nearly empty by 10.00am is now full again.

It hasn’t rained today!!!

Eagles

8th June – Monday

Our earliest start yet, although there wasn’t much to do in the way of packing up before the long drive to Coober Pedy. Cloudy, breezy but not raining – yet!

Similar countryside to yesterday with red dirt, salt bush and scrubby trees for some way, then the scrubby trees disappeared. We even ended up driving through stony desert, with very little or no vegetation at all.

We have been lucky in that the salt lakes currently have water in them, something that doesn’t happen very often, evidently. Today we passed two large lakes, one in particular was very close to the road with a rest area beside it.

Despite warning signs, we haven’t seen a lot of wild or animal life. Today it was one live and one dead cow, a few sheep and a dead kangaroo. However, the highlight was sighting FIVE wedge tail eagles – two flying, two perched in a roadside tree close to the road and the other was actually sitting on the dead kangaroo at the edge of the bitumen on the left hand side of the road. It was obviously more worried about the crows taking its lunch than us driving close by – just looked at us and didn’t move at all. Absolutely fantastic to get so close to these birds in the wild.

About 35 kms south of Coober Pedy we started to notice opal diggings, which gradually increased in number the closer we got to the town. Coober Pedy appears to be an interesting place, although we haven’t actually looked about yet. The caravan park is quite small and very crowded – we are lucky I booked ahead and have one of the larger sites along the back fence. Gravel site, of course. There is no water available to the site, however, drinking water can be collected from a central point. If we want to fill our tanks (fortunately ours are full!), water can be purchased from the Council – 30 litres for 20 cents, which isn’t too bad. Washing machine is $5 per load and a shower is 20 cents for 2 minutes. Thank goodness we have our own shower.

We haven’t had any rain, yet, today, but it is very windy. The temperature seemed to hover around 13-14 degrees most of the day, with a peak to 19 for a brief period during the afternoon.

We will be here for three nights.

Space Junk

7th June – Sunday

Along with most people in the caravan park, we left Port Augusta bright and early – on the road shortly after 8.30am. We only had a two hour drive north to Woomera, which did take a bit longer, given the number of photo stops on the way.

We are definitely “outback” now and in the desert - red dirt, salt bush, low scrubby trees at times, and caravans galore! I think 80% of the vehicles on the road are either towing a caravan or are motor homes. We are also back in road train territory.

The country is so different from what we have seen so far – flat, stony at times and with large hills/mountains in the distance rising out of the desert. A few hills gave us a view at times, including a couple of large salt lakes with water in them. The road, of course, has very little bends and the trains are very long.

Woomera is an interesting little town, actually a Defence Department base without a guard house at the entrance. About 300 people live here and work for the Federal Government, and there are probably that many tourists as well.

There is a rocket park set up with lots of rockets (naturally!) and a very good information centre, which was well worth a visit. Cat was allowed out of the caravan today as there isn’t a winery in sight. He was a bit hard to control though, once he spotted the rockets! There is even a six lane bowling alley, built by the Americans when they were here in the 1980’s. Cat was not allowed anywhere near this.

We had fine weather today, although very windy. It is now raining again!!!