Outback
October 1 -
October 17
Written by PeteDriving to Alice Springs
After leaving Townsville, we traveled more or less due west across the middle of the country for 600 miles. After about fours days of that the Barkley Highway ended at a small town ingeniously named "Three Ways" where the north-south Stuart Highway takes over. We hung a left and headed south for 300 miles. As I drove these endless "Ks" (kilometers) I felt like the van was my ship and we were sailing across a great ocean. In fact without realizing it I sometimes referred to our next stop by asking Karen, "What is the next island?" and I tend to refer to the back of the van as the stern.We entered the state called the Northern Territory (NT) on October 4th. The speed limit is "unlimited" on the highway, but for us we only putter along at our usual top speed of 100 KPH (60 MPH). Anything over that and the engine begins to really scream with pain and we are afraid it begin to overheat from the strain. If we overheat the engine out here there is no help for up to 90 miles depending on where the breakdown happens. Each time we pass through a station (another name for a ranch), roadhouse (a combination that could include as much as a gas station with restrooms and showers, campground, motel, restaurant, and general store) or town we top off our fuel tank.
During our time in the Outback we never let it get below half a
tank, because it is usually a long time before the next opportunity for gas.
Another familiar sign of being in the Outback is the "road train". When these
suckers get up to four cars long, "watch out" as they pass you.When we stop for gas, we usually also take a short rest. This helps to keep the engine temp down. Of course, the water temp gauge is broken so if we are getting hot we won't know it until it is too late. As we crossed into the NT we saw a lone live kangaroo along side the road just sitting there staring at us. He seemed to be welcoming us to NT. What a nice welcome; our first roo on the road that was not "road kill". For the whole time that we were driving west from Townsville, we would see a dead roo about every mile or two along the road. We also spotted about a dozen dead cows along the way.
Some Aussies in Queensland have told us that the Outback is hot and barren. People tend to talk about it as a desolate and horrible place. We have found the Outback very beautiful and full of life, both plants and animals but especially (and unfortunately) flies. The scenery changes from dried white long grass to tall shrubs, to small trees. Sometimes hilly, sometimes a little rolly. As for temperatures, it does get pretty warm during the day (95F/30C), but at night the temperature really drops (about 55F) as you might expect in a desert terrain.
Devil's Marbles
Before reaching Alice Springs our first
real tourist stop in the Outback (four days after entering into the Outback!)
was at "Devil's Marbles". Devil's Marbles are a genuine geological oddity of
huge red rounded granite boulders. Some are standing alone while others appear
to have been piled up by a giant. The boulders are about the size of cars and
buses. The Aboriginal people believe the rocks are the eggs of their mythical
creator the "Rainbow Serpent". Actually, the boulders began to form about 1700
million years ago by water seeping into a cross section of cracks in the
granite while underground.
Then
over the ages as time exposed the granite it left behind round boulders.
Interesting!Karen and I climbed on top of one of the piles and watched the sunset. The sky was a brilliant fiery red at first then it changed to rose, yellow, and then finally white. Beautiful! Against the setting of these marbles it was a magical moment that we will remember for a long time to come.
As the
sun faded we gazed at the stars as they made their appearance in the darkening
sky. We counted one falling star and three satellites. We commented that the
stars do not seem as bright as they do when in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Maybe the sky is distorted or dulled due to the cooling of the heat off the
land.We heard that to live in the Outback you would have to be "different". Well, that's very true for one of the stations, Wycliffe Well, that we stopped at to top off our tank. The residents, probably 20 or so, claim that Wycliffe Well is landing zone for UFO's. They even erected a sign stating so. The restaurant walls are adorned with all sorts of regional and national newspaper articles interviewing locals who claim to have seen UFO's. I wonder if these wackos feel any kinship with the residents in Nevada living near "Area 51". Hhmmm??
The Van Saga Continues
Almost to Alice Springs in fact only 42 miles (70K) and the van began to jump, spit and sputter like a wounded animal. We had made it almost 900 miles (1500K) into the fabled desolate Outback without any problems. We spent tons of time and even more money making sure this damn van would make the whole trip in and out and it chooses the middle of the country to act up on us. One of our thoughts was that at least it had the courtesy to wait until we were near the largest city in the Outback, Alice Springs population 25,000. As our heads are lurched back and forth from the motion of the van we surmise our problem could be one of two things. More problems with the "carbi" or we got bad fuel at our last stop. The manual choke does not seem to help stem the problem so it likely is not a problem with the "carbi".We decide to continue driving thinking, "What the hell? Let's get as close to town as we can". There is plenty of traffic coming in and out of town. So we do not feel that we would not be stranded should the van stop completely. We managed to limp into the edge of town eyeing the motor vehicle registration building and laughed out loud to each other. Remember the whole reason we decided to come to the Northern Territory and Alice Springs was to get the van to pass a road worthiness test and therefore properly registered in our names. On the other side of the street we see our salvation, a mechanics shop. As we pull into the front with our loud spitting vehicle our ship decided that she did not want another man touching her and began to act normal again. This bothered me more than anything. It must have been bad gas after all.
With the van now in presumably good shape we decided to go back to the other side of the road and inquire about getting the van registered in our name. The process is simple. We need to have the state inspect the van in their own inspection station alongside the building. One stop shopping. Sweating profusely, not the from the heat, we pull into the inspection bay praying the van will not choose this moment to begin its spitting fits again or come down with a new ailment. Our inspector looked our van over very carefully - looking at the engine, seatbelts, brakes, lights, etc. At one point he was examining some apparent body work on the structural frame where the door meets the windscreen (windshield). At a glance it is easy to see that there has been some work done to the rust and it is not quality work. He knocks on it a few times and hears the solid "thud, thud" of body filler.
I try to keep the look of shock on my face hidden as the inspector asks, "Did this work use metal or body filler, because that effects the structural integrity of the roof?" Having no clue since the work was done before we bought the van and this issue had never come up before I gave him the answer I thought he might be leading me to and he would be willing to believe, "No worries, mate, that's metal". To which he responds, "Oh good. It just sounded funny". So I knock a few times on my side of the van were the same repairs are clearly visible and say, "Yep, that's metal mate". Without saying a word he continued with the inspection while we continued to hold our breath.
Next he is underneath the van while we are inside it and we hear and smell him using a can of spray paint. I think to myself, "What now?" but do not dare to ask any questions.
At the end of the inspection he announces, "You passed, but there are few things you should be ware of. Your hand brake is a little weak and there is a hole in your muffler. I sprayed the hole with white paint so you can find it."
The tales of easy inspections in NT are true! Despite the fact that we still have the wrong size tires on the stern, there is small crack on the helmsman's side of the windscreen, and the door on the outside for the gas for the gas stove is still missing we passed. Now we legally own the van and the registration is good till March 02. That should be good enough to unload her on the next backpackers.
Exploring Alice and the Local Area
Alice Springs is a large town by Outback standards of 25,000 people crazy enough to live in the middle of nowhere. Everything here is much more expensive than the East Coast of Queensland. In fact, we saw the prices gradually rising as sailed across the Outback. Alice Springs is conveniently located near the more famous Ayers Rock (240 miles or 400K), which makes it a major tourist destination in the Outback and as a result there are bus loads and bus loads of tourists all over the place.We spent a day exploring the West MacDonnell Ranges which are right next to Alice Springs. Through the ages water has cut its way into several places along the ranges. They call these cuts gaps, chasms, gorges and pits. We stopped at a few and walked around a bit. We visited Simpsons Gap, Standley Chasm, Ellery Creek Big Hole, Serpentine Gorge, Ochre Pits and Ormiston Gorge. At Ellery Creek Big Hole, I went swimming in possibly the coldest water I have ever been in. The swimming hole is spring fed and never seems to get warm despite the heat during the day. These are even warnings about the water temperature in the guide books. At Ochre Pits we took a walk that lasted only a couple of hours, but seemed much longer. The flies seemed especially annoying. Flies in the Outback are some kind of special breed. They are the most persistent little pests. One would land on my nose. I would shoo it away. It would land on my sunglasses. I would shoo it away. It would land near my mouth. I would shoo it away. It would land on my nose and the cycle would begin again. While walking the flies would hitch a ride on our hats and backs where they would rest until attacking our faces again. At one pint I counted 33 flies on Karen's back and hat and got a picture to prove it. Also during this walk we saw a 3 foot long and 1 foot tall lizard. Later research revealed it to be a pygmy mulga monitor, who would have known. Holy cow! My first thought was I hope he is full grown because if he is just the baby then mommy must be classified as a dragon. It turns out he was just as shocked to see us as we were to see him and he scampered away while Karen and I argued about the actual size of him. That night we stayed at Ormiston Gorge where a notice was posted in the bathrooms stated that we should not feed the dingoes that usually visit the campsite. We are really in the wilderness now. Feeding dingoes is a stupid as feeding bears back home. Sooner or later someone will be screaming, " That dingo ate my baby".
Ayer's Rock
We spent four days in the Ayer's Rock area. Heck after driving all this way to get here, we better spend some time here. Actually one of the reasons we spent so much time here was that we wanted to do the "Sounds of Silence dinner" for our 10 year wedding anniversary which was five days away and we needed good, clear weather for it. We arrived on Monday afternoon. Tuesday, it rained on and off all day. Wednesday it rained all day. Thursday was a clear, beautiful day and night. What luck! Many of you may not realize that the reason we chose this time to take a year off was to celebrate our 10 years of marriage. We look forward to many more years together.
Tuesday, we walked around Ayer's Rock. It is much larger than it
appears in all the photos. It took us two and half hours to get around it. The
climb to the top was closed due to inclement weather. Actually the Aborigines
who "own" the rock strongly ask that you don't climb it out of respect for the
rock's cultural significance. Still 70% of the people who visit Ayer's Rock
attempt to climb it.
That
evening we drove to the sunset viewing area even though the sky was overcast.
We were in luck. About 15 minutes before sunset the skies near the setting sun
cleared and we had a beautiful sun set. The color changes on the rock during
sunset are magnificent. I had no idea that there was such a range of colors
between red and brown. All that driving to get here was worth it. It was
magical.Wednesday, it rained all day so we just did some laundry, FREE emails at the library and reading. Thursday dawned bright and clear. It was a gorgeous day. We drove to the Olgas about 50 k away from Ayer's Rock but still part of the same national park and did the Valley of the Winds walk.
That evening we celebrated our anniversary by attending the "Sounds of Silence" dinner. A bus picked us up from the campground then it continued on to the other hotels and gathered 100 other people. Next we got off the bus at our own private (with 100 other people) sunset viewing area near Ayer's Rock.
We had
champagne and canapés while listening to a man play a didgeridoo and
watch the colors change on Ayer's Rock again as the sun set. Next we walked
over the hill and down to the eating area. The whole experience is in the
Outback. There were 10 white clothed tables with candles. Waiters served us
pumpkin soup then we went to the buffet table for the main course which
consisted of barrimundi (very tasty fish), kangaroo, emu sausage, crocodile
(looks like chicken but surprisingly does not taste like it), potatoes, veggies
and salads. It was all excellent. After out plates were cleared, the candles
were extinguished. An astronomer pointed out the constellations of the
Australian sky. Then we sat in "silence" to view the beautiful ceiling of this
outdoor restaurant. The candles were re-lit and we went to the buffet for
dessert. After dessert the bus reappeared and we were transported back to the
campground. It was a fantastic way to celebrate our 10th anniversary even
though it was one day early.
King's Canyon
On Friday, the 12th we left Ayer's Rock and drove 3 hours to King's Canyon. If you ever visit the Outback, you have to come to it. It was awesome! Our walk took us around the top ridge and down into a place called the "Garden of Eden". The Garden of Eden is a secluded area of pools and palm trees. Truly an Outback paradise. The walls of the Canyon are multicolored whites, browns and reds. Along the ridge we walked among colorful sandstone layers that were formed from an ancient lake.The Drive to Adelaide
It took us two and half days to get from King's Canyon to Adelaide on the southern coast. We put in two very long days of driving, mainly because there is absolutely no reason or place to stop. Most of this drive is in the state of South Australia. This part of the Outback is much more harsh than the drive to Alice Springs. During this drive there was no trees just scrub and sand. Luckily it was overcast for the two days of driving so we didn't have too worry about over heating as much.The first night we stayed in Coober Pedy, a town known for two things - most of Oz's (and the world) opals are mined here and most of the people live underground because it is so hot. Also Mad Max Beyond the Thunderdome was filmed near here. You know the scenes where it looks like Tina Turner and Mel Gibson are on the moon, that's near Coober Pedy. It is very stark here. We thought it took a special person to live in Alice, while this places makes Alice look very normal. We spent as little time as possible here and quickly continued our trek south.
The second night we stayed in Mt. Remarkable National Park just south of Port Augusta. It was teeming with wildlife. We got there at dusk. As we were driving to the campground area, a female emu and her four young were in the dirt road in front of us. We got closer and they started to run down the road in front of us The mother was in back and her whole body was shaking as she ran. It looked like a grass skirt swaying. They finally ran off the road. Next a huge rabbit jumped into the bushes. Then four rock wallabies (look like small roos) jumped across the road. Further along a small roo was eating along the road side. A few meters more, a large roo was munching away. As we pulled in to the camping area, three emus were eating along the side. The campground is located along a small stream. What a great place to spend the night.
Next Steps
We made it out of the Outback with no problems, mates and a van registered in my name. We are in Adelaide, which is freezing cold with max temps at 70F/21C. For the past couple of days we have been long sleeves and pants. This is the first time we have had to do this since leaving the States on 12 March. I am ready to head back to the South Pacific. We'll write a little more about Adelaide later. We'll spend the rest of our time in Oz around the southern and eastern coasts.