Oz Tour - June to August 2011

Home again, home again...

2011-08-13T10:00:00.012+10:00

With nothing left on the itinerary, and the focus firmly on home, yesterday we undertook our longest day of driving for the entire trip. 1200km and about 18 hours from start to finish (with breaks.) Consequently we had the luxury of waking up in our own beds this morning, even if it was after only a couple of hours sleep.

Now... the clean up begins!

Brissie or bust!

2011-08-12T17:10:00.007+10:00

A sad departure from Molongle Creek at 9am, marked the end of our 9-week holiday.

Stopped in Proserpine to fill a script at the pharmacy for Dave. He has still not improved (& has now started getting worse) from his sore throat from 4 weeks ago.

Lunch at: Sarina.
Afternoon tea: Rockhampton
Dinner at: Gin Gin
Arrived home: 2.30am (13 August)

A big thanks to Mike & Lydia who had gone to our place in the afternoon & cleaned up our mess. Whilst away, we took the opportunity & had Mike revamp our walk in wardrobe. This meant everything had to dumped on various beds throughout the house.

Distance travelled: 1244km
Hours on road: 17.5hrs

Dave drove all the way except for a 2.5hr stint between Gin Gin & Gympie. With all the driving he has done & the little I have done, I have not built up the same stamina. Even this short stint I struggled with towards the end. Perhaps it was the hours between 10pm & 12.30pm that made it difficult.

For our biggest drive yet, I have to say that the kids were amazing. Perhaps now that the mystery & excitement of "Where to next?" was now gone we were all slipping back into reality.

Molongle Creek

2011-08-11T17:13:00.001+10:00

According to Wen

I treated myself to an early morning fish in the canal & was rewarded with a good sized flathead. Later in the morning, while Ewy & Dec played in the mud at the creek & Niamh made cupcakes with G'ma, Connor went to check the crab pots with Papa. 3 muddies & a good sized Flowery Cod. Needless to say, they were cooked & eaten for lunch - my absolute favourite. After lunch, Wen took the boys out pumping yabbies & late afternoon we all walked to Molongle Creek for a fish. Unfortunately nothing to bring home but all had fun.

Fish for dinner.

With all kids in bed, Papa & Wen went for a fish in the canal. Caught an under-sized barramundi.

11 August

Papa took Wen out in the boat to Armstrong Bay for a fish early this morning - 3 hours, 1 bite & 1 flathead. On our way back we picked up all the kids fishing in the canal. Niamh made some more cupcakes with G'ma & Connor & Ewy went to check the crab pots with Papa - only 1 crab today. The boys went out again pumping yabbies & Wen & the boys went fishing again in the creek.

Burdekin River to Molongle Creek

2011-08-09T20:16:00.000+10:00

Happy Birthday Connor!

We all thoroughly enjoyed surprising G'ma & Papa on our arrival at Molongle Creek. After all the excited banter subsided Papa took the boys to put in a couple of crab pots. With pots set the kids were then keen to get down to go down for a fish. All armed with a rod & rigged with a squidgy, we strolled down to the creek. G'ma caught a barramundi, but as we were not really intending on actually catching anything, no other gear was brought down (including a measuring tape). After much debate Papa was not prepared to call this one legal & it was thrown back - much to G'ma's disappointment. Turns out it was half a cm too small. Other than a couple of little barracudas, nothing else was caught.

The caravan park is located alongside the canal which runs parallel to Molongle Creek. The canal is literally 20m from our front door, so very handy for a quick fish when the tide is right. Papa had a fish here tonight & caught 2 undersized barramundis.

"Just a lazy 8 hours in the car today, kids"

2011-08-08T22:40:00.024+10:00

Everything is relative!

I still don't know how we managed to make 8 hours in a car seem like a reward for having spent 14 hours in the car yesterday... but we did!

Once again the "highlights" amount to very little, but just so that we can remember in future just how boring today was, here they are again:

9:05am - Departed campsite
Fuel at Julia Creek
Lunch at Hughenden (very pleasant little place)
Fuel at Charters Towers
Dinner & camp: Burdekin River (15km east of Charters)

And the stats:

Distance travelled: 638km
Fights adjudicated: 1
Brolgas spotted in flight: 2 (between Julia Creek & Richmond - kind of felt like we were back in Kakadu)
Water drums filled: 5.5
Emergency treats dispensed: 0
Spelling tests: 2
iPods confiscated: 1
Parents' sanity level:
Overall satisfaction: 95%

The "Monster Drive Day" - Back into Qld

2011-08-07T22:34:00.001+10:00

This was the one we'd been prepping the kids for. The lure of a Molongle Creek visit at the end of the next 3 days had them keen, and with time to absorb the enormity of it all, they were reasonably accepting. Still, one of the most boring days possible on a trip like this. Driving, driving, driving...

Nothing particularly newsworthy, as you can tell from the day's highlights:

8:30am - Departed campsite
Fuel at Elliot
Fuel & lunch at Threeways (just north of Tennant Creek)
Fuel at Camooweal (NT/Qld border)
Dinner at Split Rock Bore (huge Southern Cross windmill by the side of the road)
Campsite - along the front fence of a property called 'Balaclava' close to the highway (50km East of Cloncurry)

Vital stats at the end of the day:

Distance travelled: 1,120km
Hours on the road: 13.5hrs
Fights adjudicated: 3
Emergency treats dispensed: 4
Spelling tests: 4
iPods confiscated: 1
Parents' sanity level: 83%
Overall satisfaction: 91%

Last night sleeping with very little covering - tonight all rugged up.

Darwin - the Top End whirlwind tour continues...

2011-08-03T23:43:00.001+10:00

You know it's all going too fast when the kids ask you twice in one afternoon: "Where are we again?"

The in-vehicle time hasn't been crippling (yet!) and we've still been seeing and doing plenty of things. But the tempo has definitely ramped up a notch. Last night, after our Yellow Waters boat cruise, and dinner on the run, we basically headed west from Kakadu and fluked it ("manufactured luck" I like to think) into a very nice camp site in the Mary River National Park. But it was pretty much the end of the line for driving. Had the park not been there, we would have pitched camp on the side of the road.

(We did pass one small tent-and-car combo who had taken that option, parked just off the shoulder of the highway. Not a lot of traffic on the Arnhem Highway, but still enough to make for a very ordinary night's sleep at close proximity. Very glad we didn't have to resort to that!)

As it was, waking kids to setup the camper at 10pm, and then getting them to go back to sleep again afterwards... As I say: the tempo has gone up a notch. It's a bit disappointing, but we've got a lot of kilometres between here and home. Definite end-of-holiday feelings amongst the troops.

Today, with Darwin in striking distance from the start, we took a leisurely Jumping Croc tour on the Adelaide River, which was really very good! The tired, sardonic kiwi conducting the Yellow Waters cruise in Kakadu the evening before was a disappointment compared with my memories of 24 years ago. By contrast, the old salt running the Jumping Croc show was extremely entertaining, as were the crocs themselves. Very good indeed. And the kids loved it, too.

From there the priority turned towards Darwin GPO where I was able to collect the replacement stub axle for the trailer. It'll be good to switch back from the spare one so that we have brakes on both sides again. Can't say we've really needed them (thankfully!) but it makes it a lot easier to setup camp if you don't need to rumage around for chocks to stop the trailer from rolling away while you're putting the tent up.

The trailer also has to get new shock absorbers. It's probably a related injury, because the one which failed was on the same side as the axle which gave way, but it was a pretty spectacular failure in its own right. Can't say we noticed anything while driving, but somewhere along the 40km of pretty savage corrugations on the way into the Gunlom campsite at Kakadu, the right hand shockie separated into two pieces, the lower of which was dragged along the ground for the remainder of the trip. It was a nicely burnished bit of metal when we setup camp that evening!

So now we're poised for a day of mechanical repairs and servicing tomorrow. I've got the alarm set for bright and early to:

drop the trailer at the trailer suspension shop by about 7am (nobody there, so I've got to just unhitch it and leave it there)
drive to the Toyota service shop and leave the Rocket there for the 150000km service (shop opens 7:30am.)
pick up a loan vehicle from Toyota and drive back to the trailer shop to brief the bloke there at about 8:30
drive back to the motel to pick up the rest of the family and ... spend a day around Darwin!

Then, of course, in the afternoon there is something similar happening in reverse, only without the benefit of a motel to offload family before doing the rounds of mechanics shops.

Now, if you were the betting type, I reckon there'd be enough openings in that itinerary to have a flutter on anything from a significant setback in plans, to a major catastrophe. Lucky I don't bet, hey!

Here's hoping the next blog entry is a happy one...

Kakadu - Merl Campground / Ubirr / Bowali Visitor Centre / Yellow Water Cruise

2011-08-02T22:15:00.009+10:00

According to Wen
Initially our thoughts were to stay another night at Merl campground but noone was interested in being eaten alive once again. Niamh's legs are continuously bleeding from scratching her mozzie bites. So we decamped & went to visit Ubirr, several fascinating Aboriginal rock art sites & a steepish climb to the top of a rocky lookout that offers superb views over the floodplain. This type of scenery was how I had imagined Kakadu to be but it is so much more diverse.

Went into Jabiru for fuel, & with a local bakery, couldn't go past a fresh vienna loaf. We usually buy 5 or 6 loaves at a time with our grocery shops, so by the last couple of loaves they are getting a bit stale.

The plan was to spend the rest of the afternoon at the Bowali Visitor Centre but, as Dave had such good memories of the Yellow Water Cruise we decided to aim for the last tour of the day at 4.30pm. So with just a quick visit back to Bowali we then backtracked south for 40 mins to the lodge at Cooinda - stepping off point for the cruise. Yellow Water is part of the South Alligator River floodplain. The cruise is a nature & culture cruise & is a great opportunity to see the varied birdlife of the Kakadu wetlands. The types of birds we saw included Jabirus (Black-necked Storks, apparently soon to be changed to the Red Legged Stork), White Breasted Sea Eagles, Whistling Kites, Jacanas, Lesser & Greater Egrets, Rainbow Bee-eaters, Spoonbills, Ibis, Darter birds, Cormorants, Rufous Night Herons & Whistling Ducks. And of course, several estuarine crocodiles.

These last minute change in plans usually means a disruption to our general routine. Finishing the cruise at 6.45pm, we cooked up a quick dinner of fresh pasta (in the resort carpark) & availed ourselves of their resort pool & cold shower. We did check for all possible signs & there were none that said "No cooking dinner in carpark" nor did the pool rules state facilities were for guests only. Not wanting to give the kids the wrong idea we did explain we had checked for all the appropriate signs...... your honour!

Not knowing where to stay for the night we just drove until we were out of Kakadu & found the nearest flat piece of land. Turns out we found such a place at Mary River Billabong & only 1 other camper. A late night but all in bed by midnight.

Nitmiluk - Katherine Gorge

2011-07-29T11:03:00.000+10:00

As soon as we set foot outside Kununurra we lost email again. So much for my predictions of a couple of days of contact...

We had a great day-and-a-bit at Lake Argyle. We arrived in time for the afternoon boat cruise on the lake, and all the kids can now say that they've swum in Australia's largest body of fresh water, complete with estimated 35000 crocs (albeit only freshies.)

The following day, after checkout from the (heinously expensive) caravan park, we treated ourselves to a morning at the picnic grounds below the dam and ... a car and trailer wash! We had dirt and dust all the way from Carnarvon Gorge, I'm sure, and so many layers it was an archaeological dig to find the paint work. The effect was quite stunning. Apart from finding that we have been travelling round in a very good looking rig, we found that doors and latches now open and close with less blackboard-scratching shrieks of protest, and you can actually touch things on the camper without requiring a full hose-down afterwards.

From there we hot-footed back across the WA/NT border. Time is running out for our travels and we've still got plenty of things to do and see. I think we'll be taking the red pen out some time soon...

Today we're in Katherine Gorge, about to embark on a half-day canoe trip, which has everybody quite excited.

Tomorrow we're off to Beswick to see the Walking with Spirits production - more excited anticipation there, too.

After that we're in Darwin mid next week - probably the next time we'll be "on air" so hopefully there will be more to read for you then.

We survived the Gibb River Road...

2011-07-24T23:03:00.000+10:00

... Not entirely without dramas. We'll spend some time in Kununurra trying to coordinate some repairs to the trailer (sheared a couple of bolts holding the right hand wheel hub onto the chassis. Good thing the TrakShak ships with a spare hub!)

For the most part - the vast and overwhelming majority - we'd have to say the experience was pretty sensational! Our focus was all gorges and waterfalls and it never ceased to amaze me how different they could be. Each of them absolutely stunning in its own right. Equally amazingly, the kids all got into good spirits and stayed there. There were a couple of quite long and difficult walks to get into these gorges, but never a whimper of discontent from anyone. Occasionally Niamh hinted towards despair at the end of one long day, as we talked about the next one, but after a good night's sleep she bounced right back into the mood.

I keep hinting at more commentary to come, and I assure you it's on its way. The journallers are scribbling as I type (I can hear them talking in the tent next to me.) However it sounds like they're anything from one to two weeks in arrears, so the more current information may be still be a while getting posted...

Be that as it may, I'll avoid stealing anybody else's thunder at this stage and wrap it up here. Suffice to say we're back on email and phone for a couple of days now, so should be able to catch up all round.

Into Derby - and out again!

2011-07-16T09:12:00.001+10:00

We're in Derby now. Telstra (email and internet) but no vodafone (phones.) Seems to be a bit of that, but I can't say it's affected us too badly.

We put the high-rise vehicle through a few paces yesterday - inadvertently, really. Faced with a long back-track down the Cape Leveque road towards Broome, we opted for a "short-cut" (very dotted line) which cut a huge corner off our travels. Very interesting! Huge variety of terrain, from deep, dry sand, to (happily) dry, rough clay and mud. Lots of corrugations, but lots of very good bits, too. In the end I think the time was about the same as the backtrack route would have been, but the scenery and "something different" factor was very positive. And the car swept across the top of it all very well!

Not particularly impressed with Derby (first impressions being everything.) We were really hoping for a "just outside town, quiet dirt road, open patch of ground" option instead of coming all the way in. It's a recipe we've attempted with surprising success in the past. However darkness last night caught us a bit unaware and we ended up pushing through to the Kimberley Entrance Caravan Park (for the use of their laundry as much as anything) as a Plan B.

Well - Friday night in Derby. What a rowdy bunch! And the downside of a "centrally located" caravan park means you get to hear it from all directions! Still, laundry is done. Bodies all washed and polished. We'll fuel up, grocery up and be out of here this morning. Next stop: Windjana Gorge on the Gibb River Road. (I think we're all looking forward to this bit immensely....)

Unlikely to be any news or updates till we hit Kununurra or thereabouts. Catch up with you then!

Gambanan

2011-07-15T09:33:00.002+10:00

We've heard mixed messages about Cape Leveque - the northern end of the Dampier Peninsula, about 3 hours out of Broome. It seems to be another area struggling to find a place in the new tourist-centric model of the region with various reports of idyllic (and not-so-idyllic) camping spots.

As it turns out, we found one of the idyllic ones!

Gambanan is on the western side of the cape, so lacking in some of the (allegedly) stunning sandy beaches. However it made up for that with its own scenery and spectacle. And a short walk along from our camp was a small sandy beach - Squeaky Beach - where we managed to spend the best part of the last two days.

Weather superb. No idea of the vital statistics, but a pleasant, cooling breeze takes the bite out of otherwise very warm, sunny days. And the nights are strictly top-of-the-sleeping bag.

A great place. A fabulous couple of days. And if the journallers ever get back on track, there will be some stories to follow in due course.

About now we're thinking of Derby. (Whether or not we get there today could be another story.) Thereafter, the Gibb River Road. Looking forward to it!

D'oh!!

2011-07-12T10:47:00.000+10:00

It was fated to happen. I knew it at the time. I don't know why I'm feeling cheated now.

Yesterday morning was the appointed time for suspension repairs to the cruiser. Despite my mildly bitter feelings towards air bag suspension, I walked into the mechanic's shop saying to myself: "Just replace the ruptured air bag. Just replace the ruptured air bag..." Well. In addition to being a huge workshop teeming with blokes working on all sorts of 4WD's and other vehicles, the place was also a major ARB and Repco dealer. By the time I'd made it to the front counter I'd been dazzled by all manner of off-road uber-gear and accessories. I'm sure the bloke saw me coming because within 2 minutes of speaking with him, he'd talked me into replacement rear springs and suspension elevation.

(For those who remember the ad, it was a classic case of: "5 Cougars please!" For those who don't remember the ad, that's probably just as well...)

Anyway, I left the vehicle with them and went back to camp for our planned top-deck bus tour of Broome. Very good. I enjoy those sorts of things anyway, but I think the kids quite enjoyed it too.

Upon conclusion of the tour it was back to collect the vehicle. {Sigh...}

Let me say that I'm sure our impending travel along the Gibb River Road will be a vastly more satisfactory drive than it would have been limping along on one air bag. There is now no chance at all of touching ground with any part of the chassis. Ever. And the now elevated view from the cockpit should be truly inspiring, assuming we can enjoy it without oxygen.

It is going to get tedious, however, hitching up and removing the ladders to allow the kids access into the vehicle, and there will be no access to the roof rack without safety harnesses and scaffolding.

There is also no chance whatsoever of the vehicle fitting into our garage at home. It was a paint-scaring exercise with a full tank of fuel before we left.

Considering our exit strategy, however, we could continue our trip east from Mt Isa on the way home. I believe there is still a large Italian community in Mareeba. With an outrageous paint job, some flashing lights and a set of air horns to play La Cucaracha, I'm sure we'd clear enough funds to fly home from Cairns in style!

All part of the adventure...

Geikie Gorge, then heading for Broome

2011-07-09T21:35:00.000+10:00

According to Declan
Today we were going for Geikie Gorge. We had lunch before walking. When we got there, there was a steep bank that we jumped down. The gorge was beautiful & it looked like this. (Dec has stuck a postcard of the gorge in his journal).

One of my favourite things was the mud cover over the sand, we would get a stick & crack the mud then we would throw it in the water. We stayed there for a bit longer then we left to the car & hit the road. We stayed at a cow bog for the night. We had a GREAT fire that night.

Catching up.... Done!

2011-07-09T10:31:00.000+10:00

I'm sure we'll confuse everyone by failing to observe the "strictly chronological" convention for blogging, but such are the vagaries of intermittent connectivity!

Taking advantage of a surprise Telstra presence in Fitzroy Crossing, last night I uploaded a swag of photos (as in, I set them uploading last night and they were all there this morning!) Consequently, I've been back through many of the blog posts and added a splash of colour.

As for the journallers: I think it's fair to say that they are getting less descriptive and more succinct with their prose. Niamh, for example, seems to capture the essence of each day in a single sentence, including origin, destination, and the presence or absence of meals. The scribes are also falling behind a bit - so I've lapped them! Still, with a couple of relatively quiet days in Broome, we should have some more reading material to go with the photos.

All good on the road. Enjoying the warm weather and the far more sensible daylight times in WA. In NT it felt like permamant daylight saving time, with very late sunrise and sunset. Don't ask me why - we're working on sunlight, not clocks - but we somehow seem to make better use of the day when sunrise is around 6 to 6:30, as it is where we are now.

With blogs updated, kids rested, fed, wrestled and the first tearful disaster out of the way, we're now off to make the most of today at Geikie Gorge National Park, then a bit of a dash further west in readiness for an early arrival (caravan park queue jump!) in Broome tomorrow.

Bungle Bungles to Fitzroy Crossing

2011-07-08T15:47:00.001+10:00

We finished our two-day stay at the Bungle Bungles with a helicopter flight this morning. Sensational!

We've been struggling with a suspension problem for the last week or so now. In the Bungle Bungles I took some time out to positively identify a ruptured air bag in the rear air bag suspension. It's a technology I've wondered about, I must admit. All very good for poncing around suburbia saying "yes, we've got air bag suspension" but the lurking questions remain: "Do the air bags ever burst? What happens then?"

The answers are: "Yes" and "You end up dragging the back end of the vehicle along like its trying to climb out of a hole, and all your trailer wiring gets scraped off on the ground when you go through a steep dip."

Suffice to say that between previous running repairs at Henbury Meteorite Craters (that was just unfortunately low-hanging trailer wiring - not quite the same) and the major reconstructive surgery at the Bungle Bungle campsite yesterday, I'm getting quite a bit of auto electrical experience this holiday! Happily, with some research, a phone card and the yellow pages at the Bungle Bungle visitor centre yesterday afternoon, we look to have secured a suspension repair job at Broome on Monday, so hopefully I can put the wire strippers away for a while after that.

For now, we're back in Halls Creek for lunch, refuel, brief email catchup and a very quick shop. Then we're heading to Fitzroy Crossing to a recommended caravan park to test out their laundry and shower facilities. Thereafter, it's Broome or Bust!!

According to Connor
Everyone was up around 6:00am buzzing with excitement because today we were going on our helicopter ride over the Bungle Bungle. We set off for the air strip at about 8:10am after we had packed up ready to leave. Our chopper tour was booked at 8:30am so while we were waiting in that time, we saw one chopper take off & a different one land. We were escorted out to the chopper by Jeff (reception guy). Niamh got to sit in the co=pilot's seat next tour awesome pilot Tim. Dec & Ewan got to sit behind Niamh & Tim facing backwards & Mum, Dad & I sat at the back with Dad in the middle & Mum & I had our doors off. This was really exciting because it was my first time in a chopper & first time airborne since I was a baby.

We had our seatbelts & headphones on ready for take-off. Take=off was extreme because you went into the air slowly, hovered for a moment, then sped off into the distance.

I can't think of a word to describe the view. It was better than wicked, better than fantastic, better than awesome. We flew over near Cathedral Gorge (the walk we did yesterday) & whenver we did a bit more than a slight turn left I would have to hold onto the roof because it felt like I was going to fall out.

After an 18min flight we came back to land & Tim noted jokingly, "Someone stole me park". Jeff cam back out to escort us back. When we took our headphones/ear muffs off, our ears started popping crazily & we had to readjust to the loud rotor sounds. The only thing bad about the flight was that it was cloudy, but that wasn't too bad.

I drifted off on the journey back out of the Bungle Bungle & woke up when we arrived at Halls Creek. We parked in exactly the same spot as when we were here last time (maybe a few centimetres difference). After lunch, Mum & I did the grocery shop this time while the others played.

We left for Fitzroy Crossing at 2:50pm. Close to the end of the drove we passed an amazing set of clouds. Down bottom, the clouds had fiery colours while up op was pink.

The campground was massive & had so much green grass which is strange in this part. We also saw our neighbours from the Bungle Bungle there as well. We set up on a nice patch of lawn (not green) & it was the usual from there.

According to Ewan
We all go up early & excited for the helicopter tour of Purnululu. It was very entertaining as we saw the choppers.go straight up & straight across.

According to Declan
Today we were going on a helicopter flight over the Bungle Bungles with no doors. When we arrived we signed in then we headed for the chopper. We were given head sets. Ewan & me sat together & Niamh sat with the pilot (Tim). Connor, Mum & Dad sat opposite me & Ewan. We flew about 1.5km in the air (max). When we landed I learnt alot of things. That day we left to Fitzroy Crossing. It was a 7.5hr drive. When we arrived it had green grass, it was heaven. we'd just had a big day so we had a shower & a good dinner & went to bed.

Bungle Bungles

2011-07-07T22:16:00.001+10:00

According to Ewan
We did a few walks in the morning to & around the Bungle Bungle. The sites were spectacular. All the rings of black I learnt was where bacteria grew. We came back along the riverbed but only Connor & Dec took the long route back through some more little domes because the rest of us were with Niamh & they got ahead. We had lunch there & when we got home Dad had a look at the suspension in the car while we just played cards. Later on we had a look in at the Visitor's Centre for a booking at Broome to get the car fixed.

According to Declan
Today we went on a walk through the Bungle Bungle. We walked for a km until we came to Piccininny Lookout. I had an apple & an energy bar then we set off for Cathedral Gorge. On the way we realised what we were walking on was a river because it had calved longholes. We stopped by a waterhole & splashed our face. When we got there, Connor & me hid from Niamh & Ewan. They found us after 10mins. We came back for lunch then we went back to camp & made piklets while the kids played cards in the tent. That night we had a great dinner - sausages, yummy!

We've crossed the Tanami

2011-07-06T15:24:00.002+10:00

A very pleasant couple of days, for the most part. Road condition: Variable.

We made our first camp just past Tilmouth Well, pulling onto a small side track on a whim. It looked like a gravel stockpile area, probably for use on the roadworks and upgrades - virtually the entire road from Alice Springs was sealed and of remarkably good quality. Anyway, the impromptu campsite was a wide open, level area tucked under quite a prominent hill, which the boys took no hesitation in climbing. Quite an adventure!

The night was warm, clear and very quiet! Bliss!

Our second day on the track was a long one. We fuelled up at Yuendumu, as planned, and then just settled in for a long drive. A surprising variety of terrain and vegetation - all a riot of colour and health. We made it to the WA border - our goal for the day - and then proceeded to find a campsite for the night. Took a bit longer than expected, again prospecting down an unmarked sidetrack (few and far between!) but we eventually found another suitable spot and pitched camp.

Another very warm evening - quite a contrast from the Red Centre, which doesn't seem that far behind. Basically quiet, too, except that we managed to attract the interest of a lone dingo which was bold, hungry and bored enough to consider us worth monitoring. I woke in the early hours to the sounds of a dog chewing on a bone. Closer investigation found that the dingo had pilfered one of my leather shoes and destroyed it, as well as pulling out a tent peg (used for our shower) and devouring about 5 metres of green, synthetic rope!

Strange animal behaviours aside, the evening was again pleasant, and courtesy of dingo-spotting, we were up early and back on "the track." Our next stop was Billiluna, to top up with fuel before Hall's Creek. $2.60/l for diesel prompted us to push our luck a bit, with a 30 litre purchase to tide us over. Turns out we could have made it with 20!

The Tanami Track from Billiluna to Great Western Highway near Hall's Creek was truly tough going. Violent corrugations and very rough gravel. Still, we made it without too much real concern, and only one false alarm: For several miles I was unable to change into 2nd or 4th gears. I couldn't tell, while driving, whether it was a synchro problem, but the lever refused to move "south" of the half way line. With confirmed access to 3rd and 5th I was keen to push on for as far as possible - not really knowing if first gear was going to be accessible, the idea of stopping and then not starting again was a bit of a concern.

There were already vague undertones of Mad Max, having passed more than the occasional burnt-out car wreck on the side of the track, plus what looked like a more recent tragedy. A camper trailer had apparently suffered a flat tyre. It had been left on the side of the track - presumably while the owners drove to Hall's Creek for repairs. When we found it early in the morning, the trailer had been opened up and ransacked and the remaining tyre taken, too. Very sad sight!

Happily, when cries of "stop I need a wee!" became unbearable, I pulled over (on a downhill slope) to defuel the passengers. While stationary, I began working through the gears and discovered ... well buried under the pile of rags and cloths and pillows and battery chargers and assorted other kludge which passes as "necessary accessories" on the centre console ... Niamh's recently completed breakfast dish, firmly wedged in the lower portion of the gear lever housing. Transmission problem solved!

We knuckled down and endured the last of the dirt to the highway, then hit Hall's Creek. Fuel, lunch, shops and a bit of emailing and blogging. Now we're off to the Bungle Bungles for walks tomorrow and a helicopter flight on Friday! Woohoo!

According to Connor
At about 5:00am the dingo that we saw that night had woken all of us us howling. After the howls, we started hearing scratching & chewing sounds & later when we went to investigate, it had chewed through the ropes holding the shower poles up & started chewing on one of Dad's shoes.

It was an early start to get back on the Tanami & keep moving. Set off at about 7:00am.

At 9:00am we arrived at Billiluna where we had a small break while we were in the line for diesel.

Lunch was at Halls Creek but before that we went to the information centre. Here, we went & filled up our empty water drums & made a small donation to the Royal Flying Doctors Service for using their water. Also, went to the toilet.

After lunch, Ewan & Dec were wrestling on the grass we parked beside while Mum & Niamh went to the IGA to stock up.

Finally back on the road at 2:15pm heading for Purnululu (aka Bungle Bungle). We arrived at the turnoff for Purnululu at 3.35pm & from there we didn't have to drove far but took just over 2 hours because of terrible corrugation.

We eventually found a good spot & got to bed at 10:00pm.

According to Ewan
Thankfullly we finished the Tanami today. We're heading to the Bungle Bungle for the night. We stopped at Halls Creek for lunch & stocked up on a few things before we head off again. As we arrived I thought all the driving was over but after awhile I asked Mum how much longer, & when she said 1.5 hours I had to find something to do quick. Otherwise, I was going to explode. At the time of arrival it was dark & as we were trying to find a spot & a guy from Belgium came over & said that they had room near them. So that's where we stayed & just as dinner was being made Mum heard a rustle & as I came out I saw it was a brown snake. We definitely stayed away from the bushes & long grass for that evening. The dingoes went berserk.

According to Declan
Today was so exciting because we were going to the Bungle Bungle (Purnululu N.P.). We packed up camp & headed for the Bungle Bngle. When we came to Purnululu NP it was so B U M P Y. We passed through water crossings too. We finally arrived at 6.30pm, set up camp & we had dinner, played cards then we went to bed for a big walk tomorrow.

"Somewhere" over the WA border

2011-07-05T22:07:00.003+10:00

According to Connor
This morning we continued up the Tanami. We stopped for fuel at Yuendumu. This is populated mostly by aboriginals & everything looked trashed. So after, we came to the Western Australian (WA) border & decided it was time to find camp. We eventually found somewhere on a side track at some crossroads where we set up & did all the usual.

According to Ewan
Today was probably the least entertaining day so far. All it was, was driving, setting up & having a fire & doing all the jobs for the night.

According to Declan
Our second day on the Tanami. Another big drive. After we crossed the WA border we set up camp, had a DELICIOUS dinner, had a cold shower & snuggled into bed.

"Somewhere" near Tilmouth Well

2011-07-04T22:04:00.002+10:00

According to Ewan
Today we're heading for the Tanami track via Alice Springs. There we went to K-Mart, did some fruit & veg shopping, filled up on petrol & on the way out we stopped at the butcher to pick up some meat & hit the road. It wasn't long before we got to the Tanami & we were up for a lot of rough road. As we stopped it was all the same putting up the camper but we set up on a turn-off leading to a mine. That afternoon Connor, Declan & I climbed a huge hill with sharp plants like spinifex 2 feet high & a few rocks. There were a few verticles as well but for the view & challenge it was definitely worth it. We achieved our goal to get down before dark & sat around the fire with a snack for our efforts.

According to Declan
We were planning to get on the Tanami Track after we stocked up at Alice Springs. We drove for 2 hours until we arrived at our first stop on the Tanami. It was just past Tilmouth Well. That afternoon me, Ewan & Connor climbed a big prickly range. When we came back down we started to make a campfire. We had beef casserole for dinner then we had a shower & went to bed.

Ellery Creek Big Hole to Yuendumu (via Alice)

2011-07-04T14:04:00.001+10:00

According to Dave
Well, we're on holidays, I suppose. Still, it is a source of some amazement that after psyching everybody up for a big day's drive, with an early start ... we managed to hit the road at the crack of 10:30am!

Alice Springs again, for chores:

Fuel
Water
K-Mart (sandshoes and thongs for Connor)
Fruit shop
Laundromat (amazingly located right next door to the fruit shop!)
Butcher to pick up pre-ordered cryo-packed meat
... then north by north-west!

A pretty ambitious schedule, it must be said. So no real surprises that we've added an impromptu lunch (outside the aforementioned fruit shop and laundromat) before setting off up the Tanami Track.

We may or may not make it as far as Yuendumu this afternoon. On observed fuel consumption we should be able to make the 600km gap from Yuendumu to Billiluna without too much hassle, but we absolutely must fill up at Yuendumu and they keep some pretty quirky hours, apparently. Could be tomorrow morning after all.

Anyway ... enough typing. We're off!

Chat to you again on the "other side"...

According to Connor
This morning we packed up, said goodbye to the water hole & left for Alice Springs. We did a smaller shop than before & I went with Mum to Kmart to get some new thongs & sandshoes. After, we went for a quick grocery shop then at 2.30pm headed for the Tanami Track.

When is was getting time to find camp, we found a dirt track off to the side & set up where no one was going to notice.

When everything was set up, there was still enough light to climb up the mountain we parked next to. Ewan, Declan & I set off on a run to get to the base. It was a really hard climb because you had to walk through massive amounts of prickle bushes, which was painful.

Through the bushes was about 3/4 up the mountain, the last 1/4 was verticle rock. It was a bit challenging but nowhere near as hard as the prickles.

We got up the top awhile before sunset & stayed up there for about 20mins before we decided to go back down. We went down before sunset & arrived back at dusk.

Ellery Ck Big Hole, Standley Chasm, Simpsons Gap, Alice Springs

2011-07-03T22:43:00.006+10:00

According to Wen
Happy 8th B'day Dec! No presents but the promise of a few at home waiting for him.

Dave was keen to pack up & move to another place for our last night in the West Macdonnell Ranges but the kids & I were happy to just stay here again. The decision was then made to visit a couple more gorges. Standley Chasm - rough, narrow & over crowded, but pretty. Simpsons Gap - very few people & absolutely stunning. The kids spent a long while clambering over the rocks while we lay on the sand around the waterhole - very pleasant.

Then decided (now being only 20km from Alice Springs) to celebrate Dec's b'day with takeaway & cake in Alice. He decided on Indian & I went to Coles for a few party items. We dined on top of Anzac Hill overlooking the town. He thought is was awesome!

We also took advantage of the key timing of bottle shops to purchase cask wine (can only do this after 6pm in Alice). Can only buy 1 cask per person & you need to show ID. Had a chat with the security guard outside Coles (these guys are commonplace outside most major retail outlets) who informed me of the 2 rivalry Aboriginal families in town who make it so dangerous here. So the story goes, 2 young mates (1 from each family) were travelling together by car. They were in an accident & the passenger died. His family sought revenge & killed one of the other family members. In an attempt to find peace, the government sent one of the families down to Adelaide. It did not last long & they were returned soon thereafter.

According to Connor
Today, first up, we recognised it was Declan's 8th birthday. Also today, we decided to stay one more night so we could another walk in the Macdonnell Ranges.

First up, we drove for a bit to get to Standley Chasm. We arrived & it was chaos. It was swarming with people at the camp & info centre. Niamh was still asleep so Mum stayed behind & all the boys stared the walk. Along the walk, occasionally to the side of the path was a fallen tree. We would (for fun) walk across the little creek on top of the logs.

The chasm was about 5m wide & about 50m long. We found a crack in the wall which was big enough to fit a small way in. We went down to the sign at the end which told ou to go no further. We were sitting on a rock waiting for Mum & Niamh but they took too long so we started going back & bumped into them along the way.

After lunch, we headed for Simpson's Gap. Simpson's Gap was by far the best. At the start of the track, there were 2 paths you could take. One was to the beach & walk along that, or, the path higher on the hill. I was so glad we took the beach path because there were so many great climbing trees. There were 3 we went on.

At the end of the walk was the main icon. We went down onto the sand close to the creek where all us kids went & hopped across the stones to ge to the other side. This side was awesome because heaps of boulders had fallen down on top of each other & it was a great climb. We were only allowed up a certain distance but we found a great set of rocks which we could go inside & do heaps of exploring.

We stayed quite a while at Simpson's Gap but there was still enough light to go to John Flynn's grave. John Flynn is famous for starting the Royal Flying Doctors Service & as you know he is also on the 20 dollar note.

Because at John Flynn's grave we were so close to Alice Springs we decided to go in & get take-away for Declan's b'day. He chose Indian. We went to an oval to muck around while Dad ordered dinner.

When it got dark, we headed to the Indian restaurant where we had to wait another 15mins before we could leave. When we did leave, we went up to Anzac Hill to party. We had a few party poppers & even got a ladybird cake.

About halfway through the drive back to Ellery Creek Big Hole we passed a controlled burn out of all the dead grass & the rest.

(Wen here: as I type up the kids' entries in the car, we often have discussions about spelling, correct use of words etc. I mentioned to Connor that the correct terminology for burning grass was called a "burn off". When I asked the kids what if they knew what a "burn out" was, Ewy's quick response was "Isn't that a type of dance move?").

According to Ewan
Today was a bit different because we were driving but having fun as well, which is really unusual. Anyway, it was Dec's birthday today so we visited a few places like Standley Chasm, Simpsons Gap, which I really admired, John Flynns's grave, he started the Royal Flying Doctor Service, & the last place was Alice Springs which is where we ran around on an oval while Mum was shopping. After that we ordered takeaway for Declan & celebrated his birthday with mini-crackers, cake & we even saw some leftover fireworks from NT day. It was an hour back to camp & on the way be saw a controlled burn -off.

According to Declan
MY BIRTHDAY. My birthday, finally! Today we did a hole lot of side stops. First we stopped at Standley Chasm. It was a 1km hike to get there, It was packed. It was about 5 feet wide & 80m long. We climbed up on the sticking out ramp (rocky) & Ewan fell off. We headed back & we passed Niamh & Mum & they were going to the chasm. We came back for lunch then we drove off to Simpsons Gap. We went on the walk along the waterhold then we came to a rocky place (like Devil's Marbles but smaller) & we played in the gaps of the rocks for 1 hour. After that we went to John Flynn's grave, the man who started the Royal Flying Doctor Service. We also read that the marker of John Flynn's grave was one of the samll Devil's Marbles. We drove into Alice Springs for Indian takeaway for my birthday. We went up on Anzac Hill for a party & a cake. I had the best day ever & we got fireworks that night left over from NT Day, then we went to bed.

Ellery Creek Big Hole

2011-07-02T22:41:00.005+10:00

According to Wen
Awoke at 2am this morning to the chorus of a few dingos - one in the campground & the others at a distance. Niamh mentioned this morning that she heard them & was worried that the camper might not have been zipped up properly.

Dave set off for Alice at 8am. No luck with the oil change so arrived back at 2.30pm with oil, drum etc to do it himself. The kids & I had a leisurely morning playing in the dirt & exploring the waterhole. Again even more dead fish here. Apparently a natural phenomena during the winter when protozoa in the gills of the fish starve them of oxygen. Great place just to platy around & explore. Ewy, Dec & Niamh spent the rest of the day going to & from the waterhole.

Today was the first overcast day since Carnarvon Gorge, but by late afternoon all clouds had disappeared. Saw a few Port Lincoln Ringneck parrots around the campsite. Spectacular irridescent colouring.

Ewy & Dec made a damper for after dinner.

According to Connor
Early this morning, at about 2:00am, Mum, Dad & Niamh were up to hear a dingo right outside the door howling to another dingo in the distance.

Later, at about 7:00am, Dad had to drive to Alice Springs to get an oil change & fill up on certain needs.

At about 10:00am everyone finally went down to the waterhole. It was a great place to muck around, great place to explore & the whole area smelled of dead fish.

According to Ewan
Dad left early this morning to go to Alice Springs to organise an oil change & do some shopping. The kids & I just played at the waterhole & camp for the day..

According to Declan
Today I woke up when I saw Dad leaving to Alice Springs to change the oil on the car & to stock up on supplies. All that day we played at the waterhole. Connor & Mum were reading when Dad arrived, so we pretended to be asleep. Then Ewan & I went down to the waterhole again while the rest made damper & dinner. We came back for dinner, then had damper for dessert then we lined up for a camp shower & went to bed.

King's Canyon to West MacDonnell Ranges

2011-07-01T22:38:00.004+10:00

According to Wen
The kids first words this morning were "Happy B'day Aunty Sue". Must have a been a slightly warmer night as I had to take of my gloves & beanie.

Left Kings Canyon, heading for the West Macdonnell Ranges via the Mereenie Loop. You are required to purchase a permit for this section of the road on which you are permitted to stop in only 1 location. Permit $5.50, UHT milk $3.50/L, a small box of weet-bix $6 & Diesel fuel $2.19/L.

Stopped in to Gosse Bluff then continued on to find somewhere to set up camp. Drove onto Glen Helen Gorge - full of vans so moved onto Ormiston Gorge. Again, seemed pretty full with vans but we parked & wandered down to the nearby waterhole. Very pretty but with alot of dead fish. Saw 2 rare black footed rock wallabies.

Dave decided he would take the 4WD into Alice Springs tomorrow for a 5000km oil change so we found a lovely spot at Ellery Creek Big Hole late in the afternoon. Flushing toilets & antiseptic gel for washing - what more could you ask for!

Dec well now except he is nursing a sore left shoulder. Wondering now if it's just how he's sleeping.

According to Connor
"Pinch & a punch for the 1st day of the month". It is also Aunty Sue's birthday. Today we drove. We drove from Kings Canyon Resort to Ellery Creek Big Hole. Gosse Bluff was where we had lunch. This was a place where a comet (huge ball of ice) had hit. It was said that the comet itself had a 1km diameter but its outside crater had a diameter of 20km.

We were planning to stay at Ormiston Gorge but when we got there, the place was practically full. We went down & had a short walk into the gorge where we climbed a tall tree, went into a cave & even saw some rock wallabies.

At Glen Helen all the schoolies were there & that's how we ended up at Ellery Creek Big Hole.

According to Ewan
"Pinch & a Punch", it's the first again, hope you guys are geting each other good. We're moving on today to get to a camping spot in the Macdonnell Ranges. Our first stop was at Gosse Bluff. It is a crater from what seems to have been a comet that they say would have been felt all around the globe around 140 million years ago. That's about 1 million times more enerty release than the Hiroshima bomb. It was just the centre that we saw because the outside crater rim had eroded & disappeared. Our next stop was Glen Helen Gorge. We drove straight in & straight out because there were busloads of kids that we saw at Uluru (really annoying). We kept going to Ormiston Gorge & had a look at the waterhole. There was heaps & heaps of dead fish. We saw some black-footed rock wallabies & climbed through a cave. When we left we were a bit sad because we were having so much fun but when we arrived it all changed. It was Ellery Creek Big Hole where we arrived & after we set up the camp we asked if we could go but it was too late.. We were fiddling with stones & sticks & I was holding a stone then threw it down & it hit another stone & it was dark so I saw a big red spark. I thought my eyes were tricking me but agagin, when I was throwing a stone away out of the corner of my eye I saw a flash of red. So I got 2 stones & wacked them together & there was the spark. Soon everyone knew & that was the highlight of the night.

According to Dec
Today driving all the way to Glen Helen Gorge but it was filled so we went down to Ormiston Gorge. Again packed, so we walked down to the gorge & climbed on the rocks & saw rock wallabies. We wandered around when we found a good place called Ellery Creek Big Hole. We settled in & set up camp. We had a great dinner & after dinner we found flint.

King's Canyon

2011-06-30T22:36:00.004+10:00

According to Wen
Late morning we set off for the Kings Canyon Rim Walk. The scenery at all these places are different but always spectacular. A 3.5hr (6km) walk turned into a leisurely 5 for us. Half way round we stopped for an hour's lunch break at the waterhole. The crazy foreign tourists who swam thre said it freezing.

Dec was in good form today & made it easily. The steepest & hardest part was at the beginning which was good for Niamh. It was much easier to keep her going on this one.

On the whole, it is getting harder to motivate the kids to leave for these walks but once we are there they love it. In Connor's words "it's like having to get out of the bed for school, it's hard, but once you're there is's great".

Kids had a lovely afternoon in the playground, kicking a soccer ball, chasing mice & just doing "their thing".

According to Connor
This morning we went on the Rim Walk around Kings Canyon. The start of the walk was quite hard where you had to climb for about 15mins up rock stairs. It was a lot of hopping from rock to rock & the view was awesome.

At the waterhole, we stopped for lunch (after passing alll the schoolies). It was really cold so none of us went swimming. There were a few friendly Spinifex Pigeons (normal pigeons except orange & bigger crests) who were weaving inbetween our legs pecking at leftover breadcrumbs.

Overall, the walk was 6km long & took us about 5hrs to complete it. When we arrived back home, we just went off to the park, chased mice & kicked a footy.

According to Ewan
Another leisurely get up for the big walk around the rim of the canyon. At the start of the walk I got ahead with Connor & Declan. A while later we decided to stop & wait for the others at a tree. Soon we saw Mum , then Dad & Niamh so we continued with them along the track. Soon we came to a lookout & Dad & I tried to figure out how far away the other side of the canyon was by timing the sound of the echo to get back, assuming that sound travels at 300m/second away. So we continued to a waterhole for lunch & finished the walk afterward.

According to Declan
Today we did the Rim Walk at Kings Canyon. Our 3 major stops were at the waterhole (having lunch), at the Rim lookout & the top of a BIG climb. We walked about 5km. When we came back I was Exhausted. We left back to camp for dinner. We had a great afternoon kicking the soccer ball, chasing mice & to top it off a burger for dinner.

Yulara to King's Canyon

2011-06-29T22:34:00.001+10:00

According to Wen
Went to the park boundary just to check one last time if the climb was open. Ewy & Connor were devastated. So with that, we turned around & set off for Kings Canyon.

I spent the whole trip on the computer typing in the kids' journal.

Kings Canyon is another major resort. Petrol station, convenience store, taveern, eatery, swimming pool & live entertainment 6 nights a week. Campground busy here also but found a very pleasant spot near the playground, amenities etc. The school group was already here.

Amenities blocks are fitted with gates to keep the dingos out. Saw 2 wandering through the campgrounds this afternoon. Ewy has been kept extremely busy chasing mice.

Went "out" that evening to watch "The Roadies" perform - very Aussie but very entertaining for all ages - they got everyone involved. They even got Ewy up to do another guitar solo, which he thoroughly enjoyed. Dave even had to get up & be judged on a dance solo with a cow bell. He did not win. Another late night but kids had a ball.

According to Connor
This morning we packed up & drove one last time to the park boundary to check if we could climb Uluru. It was closed, again. That was the most disappointing part of our stay at Yulara, so we wet off for Kings Canyon.

We stopped at a place (who knows what it was called) & had lunch.

When we arrived, all the usual stuff happened & that night we had dinner & at 7.30pm we set off on foot to this bar around the corner to watch "The Roadies". It was 2 people (man & woman) who were very, very funny, talking & getting certain people to do certain crazy things like: put on funny wigs & sing or, jingle a cowbell to a tune or get the kids on stage to clap clappers & clap thongs, play small toy violins & even play a pipe from the sewer. It was GREAT!

According to Niamh
We went to Kings Canyon. We had lunch & dinner.

According to Ewan
We were planning on climbing Uluru today but it wasn't open so we set off for Kings Canyon. We arrived at mid afternoon & started getting used to the place. That night we kicked the footy & continued our favourite hobby of chasing birds & mice.

According to Declan
Today we started to pack up to go to Kings Canyon. On the way (after 1.5hrs) we stopped at Gosse Bluff for lunch. After lunch we walked up a hill & saw the meteor crater around us. After 2 hours in the car we arrived at Watarrka National Park (Kings Canyon) & we drove into Kings Canyon Resort, set up camp & went to a Roadies show that we were told about earlier on. We came back & had a shower & went to bed at 10pm.

Catching up.... not quite!

2011-06-28T23:21:00.001+10:00

Hello Readers!

Finding it difficult to both "live the dream" and write about it at the same time, so sorry for the long dark spells and the (as yet) incomplete catch up.

It has been a bit breezy here at Yulara and the Uluru climb has been closed for the last 3 days or so. Likely to be the case again tomorrow, in which case we'll miss it. :-(

Still, we're off to King's Canyon for some more wonderful scenery. :-)

Great to get your comments. Hope you enjoy the latest additions, with promises of more to come (depending upon Telstra mobile internet coverage as we head back into the boondocks...)

Cheers,
Dave

Kata Tjuta

2011-06-28T21:48:00.004+10:00

According to Wen
Uluru/Kata-tjuta (Olgas)

The Rock was closed again for climbing so we set out for "The Valley of the Winds" walk at Kata-tjuta. With a 40-min drive from the campground we started the walk around 11am. It is a 7.4km walk & rated difficult in places. Estimated time 3hrs, we took 4.5. It was a magical walk but Dec was suffereing by about half way & Niamh too struggled at the same point (perhaps out of sympathy??). The difficult part was after halfway which is not good for the younger 2.

Back at Yulara, the kids played in the playground while I went to the IGA with Niamh asleep in the car. 2 bags of groceries - $197 !!

According to Connor
Today we went on the walk throught The Valley of the Winds at Kata-tjuta or the Olgas. It was about a 7.4km walk. First we went to the first lookout. We were on a mountain & all the trees looked like grass & the real grass, called spinifex, was growing in odd spots on the huge walls.

The second lookout was almost exactly the same view & we also had lunch there. From that mountain we had to descend some steep stone stairs to get among the trees & keep following the track.

The last part of the walk was a really tiring & water needing walk because now we were in the sun with about 2 small clouds in the sky, no trees, limited water & about 3km to cover on foot.

At the end of the walk we filled water bottles & there were also heapsof schoolies arriving in coaches.

When we got to Yulara, Mum & Niamh went to the IGA, Ewan & Declan went to the playground, Dad did work & I spent the rest of the afternoon in bed reading.

According to Ewan
Today we did the "Valley of the Winds" walk through the Olgas. It was very amazing at the lookouts how green the desert was. That afternoon we played on teh playground & had burgers for dinner.

According to Declan
We woke up early to do the Valley of the Winds walk through the Olgas & overall we walked about 6km. The lookout had an amazingly big view. When we got back we played at the playground then we came back for dinner. We had steak burgers for dinner. They were really yummy.

Uluru

2011-06-27T21:46:00.004+10:00

According to Ewan
Uluru wasn't open for the climb today because of strong winds at the summit so we set off for the Olgas. We stopped at the Information Centre. We all got so interested we stayed too long & in the end we didn't have enough time to do the walk. We drove home & had a late lunch. After that we went to a waterhole on a walk around the base of Uluru. We walked back half way & went on a different walk to where Dad had parked the car. When we'd finished that we went as fast as we could to the Uluru sunset viewing area. There as a huge difference in the colour of the rock from when the sun was up & when the sun was down.

According to Declan
I woke up & had a shower & I headed off with Dad to the medical centre. When we arrived, Pat (the Doctor) looked in my ear & mouth, then she got a themometere (that's Dec's attempt at the word) & put it in my mouth. After the medical centre we had a late breakfast then set off to the cultural centre. When we arrived at the cutural centre I got an Uluru hat badge. We didn't get to climb Uluru but we were planning to do the Lungkata & Kuniya walks in the afternoon but we stayed at the cultural centre a bit too long so we couldn't do the Valley of the Winds walk (which we were planning to do earlier) so we headed off back to camp to have lunch then we hit the road to do the Lungkata & Kuniya walks. When we arrived we started doing the Kuniya walk to the Mutitjulu Waterhole. We stopped off on the side stops. When we arrived at the waterhole it was packed but then after about 5 minutes it was empty. Then we did the Lungkata walk & met Dad who parked the car earlier on then walked another 4.8km then we drove back to camp, had chicken for dinner & went to bed.

Henbury to Yulara

2011-06-26T21:46:00.005+10:00

According to Ewan
This morning we left for Uluru & we stopped at Mt Conner Lookout. It is most often mistaken as Uluru. There was a sand dune on the other side of the road & on the other side of it was a salt pan. At first I thought it was another claypan. We ran down the dune dodging & leaping poles. We had lunch there & then left for Yulara. There was no point in collecting firewood because you weren't allowed fires there.

According to Niamh
We drove to Uluru & went to the Olgas. We did not get to climb Uluru.

According to Declan
Today we drove (obviously) 1.5hrs & then stopped at Mt Conner Lookout for lunch. We climbed up a sand dune & saw a salt pan on the other side, so we had Mt Conner on one side & the salt pan on the other. Mt Conner looked so much like Uluru. We drove for another 2hrs until we arrived at Yulara. We were told to go to Unit 3 to camp & we set up around 4pm. We had dinner, a shower then I went to bed.

Henbury Meteorite Craters

2011-06-25T21:44:00.004+10:00

According to Ewan
We drove here to the Henbury Meteorite Craters & arrived at around 3pm. Connor & I ran off & went round the craters. These craters were from a meteorite that split into 12 small pieces. That night Connor & I had made a new hobby. It was grabbing or throwing rocks at mice.

According to Niamh
We had lunch & dinner. We went on a big walk.

According to Declan
We woke up early to head off to Henbury Meteorite Craters. We stopped for lunch at a side stop on the Finke River & met some people who told us about Kings Canyon & how many mice were there. After lunch we drove for another hour to get to the Henbury Craters. When we arrived we set up camp but I didn't because I wasn't feeling well. Then I went to bed while everyone else went to the Craters & had Red Wine & Beef stew for dinner.

Chambers Pillar

2011-06-24T21:44:00.004+10:00

According to Ewan
We're driving to Chambers Pillar. Too bad we're only going to stay there for 1 night. We arrived at about 3.30pm. We went for a walk up & around it. I learnt about the Pillar & who discovered it. We went to the sunset viewing spot & saw the Pillar in the sunset. So far Declan has been sick for 3 days now & we are starting to get worried. It's gone from Connor being sick to me & now Dec's got it. Connor & I only had it for a about 2 days but it was only headaches. Now Dec's vomitting & it's not clearing up. That night it was freezing. We all basically went straight to bed because the fire wasn't strong enough & we had no wood left.

According to Declan
This morning Mum saw ice all over the table. We had boiled eggs on toast for breakfast then we got dressed, packed up the camper & left for Chambers Pillar. When we arrived at Chambers Pillar (after 3 hours) we set up camp then we walked over to the Pillar & climbed up a million steps & we saw names of significant people who'd carved their names into the rock. If you carve your name into it now you have to pay a $5000 fine. After that we went to the sunset viewing area for half an hour then we ran back & started making a fire. We had tuna & cheese on toast & for dessert we toasted Twisties over the fire. We had a great day climbing the Pillar & after dessert we went to bed at 8pm FREEZING!

According to Niamh
We went to Chambers Pillar. We went up a hill then we went to the Henbury Meteorite Craters.

Rainbow Valley

2011-06-23T21:43:00.004+10:00

According to Wen
A very leisurely morning with a few odd jobs being done. The kids had a good dose of mania in the camper - this usually follows a big day of driving.

A very easy walk to the Valley's free-standing cliffs (which form part of the James Range) & Mushroom Rock. Gorgeous rainbow bands in the sandstone cliffs. Kids & Wen climbed to the top of a ridge where we could view 3 clay pans (significant Aboriginal sites). Here we sat for some tme & soaked up the view.

Decided to make the most of the daylight hours & cooked our main meal for lunch. Ewy & Dave made a savoury damper to follow. Cups of chicken noodle soups for dinner which nobody liked. Might as well throw out the many boxes we still have.

Connor & Ewy are old hands at building fires now & love the whole routine. Sunset was quite spectacular against the sandstone cliffs.

The mice are plentiful at night & the kids took great delight in trying to catch one.

Hot water system now working so all had showers. Wen was last & it decided to pack up at this point. 4 days since our last shower so she was desperate - it was freezing!!

According to Connor
Today we went on a walk through Rainbow Valley. We got to climb up the big rock face & after headed down to Mushroom Rock. Here I made some small dot towers out of sand & water & we also each snacked on an apple.

We headed off the track from Mushroom Rock & climbing up the mountain & sat on the overhang for awhile looking at the tremendous view.

After we headed back to camp to have lunch, it was about 4pm when we ate. So dinner wasn't big & we had a nice fire to sit around.

After dinner, Ewan & I were throwing rocks to try & hit all the mice.

According to Declan
This morning we went on a big walk around & through Rainbow Valley. We got to a big mountain built out of sandstone. We climbed to the top & climbed on an overhang & we started throwing stones down the mountain & timing how long it took to get to the bottom. Time it took 3 seconds. We climbed back down & continued onto Mushroom Rock. At Mushroom Rock Connor made towers with water & the rock dust. After we played round at Mushroom Rock we started walking back to camp. When we got back we whipped up a damper & had dinner for lunch & lunch for dinner. At 7.30pm we started hunting for mice.

Devils Marbles, Alice Springs and Rainbow Valley

2011-06-22T21:40:00.002+10:00

According to Wen

An early start to watch the sunrise over the Marbles. I wish someone had of told us what time sunrise actually was. We climbed the rocks at 6.30am only to wait until 7.18am before the sun came up. It was freezing.

Dave fixed the solar panel wiring and we departed around 10.30am. Wen drove the distance to Alice Springs while Dave immersed himself into the end of year accounting.Arriving at Alice around 3pm, Wen, Niamh, Dec & Ewy were dropped off at the shopping centre to stock up while Dave & Connor went to fuel up and visit the Information Centre. Once again, we could not purhcase any cask wine - 6pm was opening hour for the "locked up" stock. The whole stock up expedition took longer than expected, so didn't get back on the road until 5.30pm.

Dave didn't enjoy the 2 1/2 hour "Alice" experience. Not a great place for parking with a trailer or walking around the streets with young children - fairly ordinary language amongst the locals.

In our haste to leave Alice we forgot to get water & firewood so stopped again, en route, to replenish. Here we had our first encounter with our small brown furry rodents.

Tennant Creek and Devils Marbles

2011-06-21T21:34:00.002+10:00

According to Wen

A leisurely departure from Wonarah Bore at 10am & arrived at Tennant Creek at 12.30pm. Had a wander through the Information Centre & lunched at Lake Mary Anne (just outside). A calculated move as we were in need of a wash and clean clothes. (Last night we had all the kids lined up, naked, shivering & squealing, ready for a shower, only to find out the hot water system battery was flat - kids happy they didn't have to endure the cold.) Togs on at the lake & a quick dip sufficed for a clean up.

Dave dropped Niamh & I off to the laundromat & they passed the time with a wander around town. In need of replenishing the cask wine, we found the bottle shop across the road, only to find out they are not licenced to sell them before 4pm. A policy they have adopted to try & limit the drinking hours of the indigenous people. Bulk cheap wine during the day, not good for town life.

Solar panel wires had broken so Dave & the boys off to the hardware.

With 2 loads of wet washing, a new water drum & wire repair kit, we set off for the Devil's Marbles.

An afternoon of clambering over the Marbles followed by a spectacular sunset and a good fire set the scene for a beautiful evening. With Niamh in bed early we climbed the rocks again & topped it all off with some star gazing. 3 shooting stars & 2 satellites were spotted.

Mt Isa underground - then over the NT border

2011-06-20T21:30:00.007+10:00

According to Dave

With the 9:00am underground mine tour booked and paid for, we had every incentive to get up, pack up, and get out of the caravan park. The tour goes into the Hard Times mine - a training mine about 40m deep right outside the tourist information centre. Apparently John Campbell Miles, the prospector who discovered Mt Isa in February 1923, had a horse called Hard Times - hence the name of the mine. The mine is now used for training, including underground search and rescue. And it makes for a very authentic experience for tourists!

We all decked out in overalls drawn from the full range of underground colours - bright orange or faded orange. Belts for battery packs, and hardhats with miners lights. Quite the picture! The trip underground in the "cage" lift, and through the mine in a battery-powered, enclosed rail car, straight out of the main Enterprise mine, were the real deal. As was our tour guide, Shane.

The Barkly Highway heading west of Camooweal was an absolute picture. I have vague memories of this part of the world from the last time I was here, in 1987, but none of them include the extraordinary range of colours we saw today. The country has come alive with the rains of the past year and a half. The few cattle we saw were fat and shiny and looking remarkably relaxed - possibly because their diaries were clear of the prospect of a one-way boat trip to Indonesia? Possibly because they were quite enjoying the view, too.

The vista outside both windows, as far as the eye could see, was lush, verdant acacias with the occasional eucalypt protruding above the head-high blanket of green. And flowers! I've given up trying to tell my mulga from my gidyea, or any of the other dozens of types of acacia, but at least one of these species was in full bloom, with every tree heavy with gold. Some of the eucalypts were so heavy with their own pale, white flowers that they looked more like giant heads of cauliflower than trees.

We made it to Wonarah Bore in the fading daylight. I must admit I'm looking forward to slowing down the pace a bit so that we can setup camp without the need for torches. Having said that, we're getting pretty good at it. Evening setup invariably follows on from a long day of driving, so it's a bit of a double-whammy for the kids, but for the most part they chip in and help. They seem to have devised some sort of roster system for whoever's turn it is to go totally crazy and feral, so it we don't "lose" all of them at once.

Another thing I don't recall about the Barkly Highway from 24 years ago is the large number of road trains. As yet they've not posed us any problems while driving, but they are pretty loud and frequent when you're camped at a roadside stop overnight. Still, the truckies seem like a friendly bunch, many of them blowing their horns cheerfully as they passed during the night.

Mt Isa

2011-06-19T23:19:00.001+10:00

According to Connor...

This morning was really relaxing. We all had breakfast and freshly squeezed orange juice. At about midday we headed for the underground mine tour. Dad had phoned around 9:00am to ask about the tour, only to discover that you had to be 7 years or older. Niamh is only 6. So instead we went there at midday, mum went in and told them that Niamh was 7 - and they told her that the tour was full!

After that unfortunate news, we booked a tour of the mine for tomorrow and then headed for a tour of the underground hospital. The underground hospital was built in 1942 when Darwin was being bombed by the Japanese. Mt Isa built this hospital because they thought that the Japanese would bomb them next. The underground hospital would fit the capacity of the normal hospital - about 30-40 patients. We learned heaps of new stuff about tools, medicines and what they did. The kids that were in there all received a little tin with 10 toy soldiers and a marble inside. They would line up the soldiers on the floor and then flick the marble to knock them over. This was called "skittles."

After the underground hospital museum, we went to Lake Moondarra and walked across the dam wall. Later we went to a little park below the dam, called Warrina Park. We barbecued sausages for dinner and fed the peacocks and peahens.

After dinner, we went up to the Mt Isa lookout and watched the sun set over the horizon and saw the silhouettes of all 3 smoke stacks. This lookout also had a sign pointing to the north and south poles and other various cities around the world. Brisbane was 1576 km.

Mt Isa - here we come!

2011-06-18T11:00:00.010+10:00

According to Connor

This we were planning to get on the road by 8:00am, but made it at 8:45 because everyone wanted breakfast.

We were going to Mt Isa and stopped at two places on the way. First was Winton, second was McKinlay. At Winton we had morning tea and went to have a look at the home of Waltzing Matilda. There was a statue of Banjo Paterson outside.

At McKinlay we had lunch and a play at the little park outside the smallest public library in Queensland. I also found my favourite petrol station. It only had one bowser.

At about 6:15pm we arrived at Mt Isa and set up camp, had showers, had dinner, then went to bed.

Quick Code (for Ewy's friends)

2011-06-17T21:00:00.000+10:00

THELECA RELDB OAELR D TUELBEL EFULELL OELFC OTTELON WOOELLDIDELN' ELTWOEL RKEL. IELGOTELB URNELTBELY THEL EFLELYINE LGEMELBEE LRSE LANELDI ELTELL EAELKEDO ELILANELDTHA ELTBURELNTA SWELELL(BELUTNO ELTMEL E). AELDCOELME ELNT S.

Longreach

2011-06-17T16:19:00.002+10:00

According to Niamh
We were heading to Longreach on Wednesday. We saw an echidna walking across the road. We saw lots of kangaroos. When we went to the toilet, we saw a dead toad. We went in the 747 and we saw a plane take off. We got a photo in the engine. We looked in the front of the plane.

We are heading to Winton and Mt Isa.

Declan enjoys some "windows down" time

... according to Ewan
Getting to Longreach was just another big day of driving, but I soon found out how entertaining it can be just looking out the window, watchins as every 3 seconds the same tree goes past and the hillside background never changes. And the long straight road has about 5 bends before the next town.

We stayed at Longreach for 3 days and left this morning. Yesterday was my mum's birthday. She said that the trip was the best birthday present and she couldn't ask for anything more. We had a great time fishing in the Thomson River, collecting firewood, and especially the building of the fire each night. Now we're in the car driving, driving.... and driving (from Longreach to Mt Isa.)

Happy Birthday to Mum

2011-06-17T14:30:00.001+10:00

A fresh-baked sponge cake from the local bakery in Longreach, a singing candle that just refuses to die (been in the camping tubs for about a decade now!) and a bunch of happy kids. What more could you ask for on your 40th birthday!

Happy Birthday, Wen. Consider the moment well marked!

Carnarvon Gorge

2011-06-14T23:17:00.002+10:00

Click photo for more

The story according to Niamh
We got in the car. It took 11 hours to get us to Carnarvon Gorge. When we got there, we put up the tent. After we put up the tent we played games. At night, we had dinner. The next day we went up a steep hill. We had two sleeps at Carnarvon Gorge.

At the top of the gorge we went to the Amphitheatre, the Moss Gardens, Ward's Canyon and the Art Gallery. We saw Fred the ranger. He gave me an autograph. He said: "To my little friend, Niamh." Fred let us hold a boomerang, a nulla nulla, a woomera, a coolamon and a bull roarer. We got to pat a kangaroo. We drank some fresh water out of a beautiful little creek.

... according to Ewan

Today we went for a huge walk. Overall we walked about 17km in 6 hours. The whole family did it and we saw some spectacular views and had a great.day. Everyone at the end of the day was very tired, and almost everyone had very sore legs. It was a ripper!

... according to Declan

At Carnarvon Gorge, we arrived at sunset and set up the trailer. Freezing we changed into PJ's and went to bed.

The next day we went on a big walk. Connor and I were the only ones who got to see all of the side stops (Ward's Canyon, the Amphitheatre and the Moss Gardens) because Niamh had a hissy fit and mum had to wait with her, and Dad and Ewan got lost, so they missed the Moss Gardens because they were talking too much.

At Ward's Canyon we discovered that Carnarvon Gorge is the only place that the King Fern lives in central Queensland. All the rest live on the coast. Ward's Canyon had a huge canyon - each rock about 10 metres tall. There was a little waterfall trickling through it.

At the Amphitheatre, it was like Ward's Canyon, but you had to climb up a ladder to get to the entrance. It's like you enter a new world when you enter the Amphitheatre.

and ... according to Connor
TOday the kids were up at about 7:40am playing Super Farmer (a board game.) We all had breakfast at about 8 am. We soon after set off for a big walk through Carnarvon Gorge.

The walk started at the information centre. We all found some kangaroos and even got to pat a mother kangaroo. In the information centre there were a few puzzles and books on the wildlife around the area (like platypus.) In the middle of the circular room was a huge 3D map of Carnarvon Gorge, with labels on where certain spots were.

The first part of the walk we walked down a couple of stone steps and saw a river crossing, which was really cool. It was the river and there were some big rocks to jump on to get over.

The plan was to go straight to the Art Gallery which was a bit over half way up the track, and about 7km from the start. The Art Gallery is an outdoor gallery with heaps of Aboriginal art on the rock of the cliff face. On the way, we bumped into the ranger (Fred Conway) and he gave us permission to use some old Aboriginal tools like rhythm sticks, a coolamon and a nulla nulla.

After that, the plan was to go back the way we came, except stop in at three other places. The first place was Ward's Canyon. This had to be my favourite place on the walk because there were two big rocks with about a 2m gap between them, and we got to walk up the stairs and into the bottom of the canyon and see a creek trickling back the way we came. It was running over rocks with a red moss / algae.

We also got to go in a worn out section of the cliff and we could go under the overhang. We also found that the King Fern grows there, and Carnarvon Gorge is the only place in central Queensland where King Fern's grow. The other places are all on the coast.

Next up, we went to the Amphitheatre. The Amphitheatre was very old and had an awesom way of being formed. It was formed with two rocks, and rock in the middle. Water got in cracks and kept swirling until it eroded away the rock and left a beautiful garden behind.

To get into the Amphitheatre, you had to climb up a really steep ladder and then squeeze through the two rocks and hop on a few stones to get across the water. Once you got inside, it was very beautiful and big.

The Moss Garden was last and, as you can tell, it was very mossy! What would happen is that water on top would soak into the sandstone and then go out over the shale (type of rock) when it reached it.

After the Moss Garden, everyone kept going the way we came, crossing over all the creek crossings and then made it back to the visitors' area. After that, we drove the short drive back to camp, had dinner, and then went to bed.

Brisbane - here we go!

2011-06-13T04:54:00.000+10:00

The bags are packed. The roof rack's on. The trailer is chockers. I think we're ready!

If all goes according to plan (and so far it's done pretty well) we'll be hitting the road around 4:30 am tomorrow, bound for Carnarvon Gorge. Thereafter, all points west.

I don't know how things will pan out technology-wise, but we're going to try to keep people apprised of our travels on this blog. Check it out if you're wondering what we're up to. (It's a bit sketchy right now, but I'll spend a bit more time on it as we go...)