G'day all. Hope this all finds you safe and well. To date we have travelled just over 12,000 km's and are looking forward to the next leg of our journey with Lib's parents back up through FNQLD. Enjoy...

Ormiston Gorge

01/09/16 Day 97 (Th). On Monday we drove back into Alice Springs to the Heritage CP where we were lucky enough to get three sites together. They are unpowered but close to the camp kitchen so Mum and Dad Jeffree were able to run their lead to power. It was another rainy day and so the afternoon was spent chilling in camp.

Selfie @ Ormiston Gorge

Tuesday was another rest day and it poured down. Lib, my Mum and I drove into town and did the grocery shopping. When we got back to the CP there was a lake around Bess and we had to get out our second step to make stepping stones from dryish land to get into Bess without wading through the water. In the afternoon we played cards and ate nibblies, trying to stay as dry as possible.

Ormiston Gorge

On Wednesday we left the dogs with Lib’s parents and we drove out to the Mac Donnell Ranges NP. We drove half way to Ellery Creek Big Hole where we planned to camp the night. Lib was feeling very poorly and so Mum and I left Lib in camp and then continued on to Ormiston Gorge. It was spectacular, being one of few permanent waterholes in the area. We completed the loop walk in two hours which takes you up to the lookout and then down to return via the creek bed. The first half of the walk is by a reasonably easy marked trail, but the return leg via the creek bed is harder with no marked trail. It is basically blaze your own trail through patches of sand though most of it is over large boulders in the creek bed itself as the walls of the gorge are sheer drops on both sides.

Ormiston Gorge

Ormiston Gorge

After returning to the car we had a sandwich and ice cream each in the shade of nice big shelter provided by the NP. As we were eating lunch we saw another type of Bronze Wing pigeon that we had not seen before. It is the Spinifex Bronze Wing and it has distinctive red eyes and a luminescent green patch on its wing tips.

Ormiston Gorge

Ormiston Gorge

We then continued on to the Ochre Pits where Aboriginals have been mining for ochre for thousands of years. The colour in the creek bed is amazing with reds, yellows, greys and white. They used it in their daily life for painting, ceremony and medicines. But even today they are still mining it in this location for use in ceremonies. You can’t take any from the site with the fine for those caught being $5000. As we were returning to the van Mum pulled me up short as she had spotted a turquoise Splendid Fairy Wren. Another first and the colours of its plumage were so bright when it alighted on a branch in the sun. A very beautiful bird indeed.

Ochre Pits

We then returned to camp to find Lib still feeling pretty crook and so as the sun was setting Mum cooked dinner and then we ate under an amazing sky filled with stars. It is truly incredible how many are up there that we can see when there is no ambient light or smog to block them out.

Today we had a relaxed start to the day and checked out the waterhole at Ellery Creek Big Hole which is beautiful in itself being one if the permanent waterholes.

Ochre Pits

Starry night @ Ellery Creek Camp Ground

After packing up camp we made the return journey back to Alice via Standley Chasm and Simpsons Gap. Lib was still feeling poorly and so we left her with the van. Standley Chasm is not in the NP. It is on Aboriginal owned land and they charge a fee to visit the site. At $12 it is very reasonable as they have gone into a lot of effort to make the walk up to the chasm an easy one. On site they also provide a grassy picnic area, a café, gift shop and clean amenities. The chasm itself is spectacular. We were there right at lunch time with the sun right overhead. It was a partly cloudy day and so we had to wait our chances for the sun to shine down on the rocks to get the full effect of the beauty of this place.

Ellery Creek Big Hole

At Simpsons Gap we had lunch and then strolled through the dry sandy creek bed to see the gap. The area is also home to the Black Footed Rock Wallaby which we were fortunate enough to see bounding through the rocks. They are very well camouflaged and it is not until they move that they are able to be seen. They are small, only growing to a height of 50 cm. We were even lucky enough to see a female with a joey poking its head out of the pouch. After watching for a while we returned to the vehicles to drive back into town.

Ellery Creek Big Hole

Not long after driving back into Alice it started bloody raining again. I don’t know what it is with this town but we seem to only get rainy days here. We’ve driven into town three times now and every time the weather has greeted us with rain. When we leave town we get sunshine. Who knows?

Ellery Creek Big Hole

Ellery Creek Big Hole

04/09/16 Day 100 (Su). On Friday Lib was still feeling unwell and it was still raining. After a sleep in and a late start Mum and I went into town to check out the Todd St Mall. There are plenty of gift shops and Aboriginal art galleries. Mum bought some gifts for people at home and a new scarf as the hat band for her hat which had Aboriginal designs on it. Afterwards we went back to the CP for lunch and then in the afternoon at around 1500, Lib and I took Bess to a mechanic we’d been recommended to discuss putting thermos fans on Bess. He had some good ideas but he said he wouldn’t be able to do the work until the week after next. That doesn’t really suit our time frame as we don’t want to be sitting around Alice for another two weeks. We thanked him and went on our way and decided that we would spend an extra night in Alice and try some other mechanics on Monday to see if someone could do the work sooner. If not we may have to keep travelling and try our luck in Mt Isa.

Standley Chasm

Standley Chasm

@ Standley Chasm

Simpsons Gap

Simpsons Gap

This weekend the Red Centre Nats is on. It is awesome to see all the hotted up cars driving round the streets. And when you can’t see them you can certainly hear them.

Spinifex Bronze Wing

Turquoise Splendid Fairy Wren @ The Ochre Pits

Blackfooted Rock Wallabies @ Simpsons Gap

Blackfooted Rock Wallabies @ Simpsons Gap

Yesterday we all went out at around 1000 except for Barry, who was feeling under the weather. We went to check out the Cultural Precinct where there is an art gallery and the Craft Centre. There were some amazing pieces and some very creative designs. I bought Mum a gift of earrings which she had pointed out to me that she particularly liked. To get away to buy them I had to make the excuse that I was “going to the toilet”. They were of Aboriginal design. Afterwards we drove up to the Anzac Hill Lookout which is the location of the Alice Springs Cenotaph. It has an amazing 360 degree vista over the township. We picked a good time of day to go as the sun had managed to peek out from behind the clouds for a little while which also brought a little heat to the day.

Arts Centre @ Alice Springs

Craft Centre @ Alice Springs

In the afternoon we took Herbie to the car wash to give it a wash and then returned to the CP to finish off cleaning the inside and Mum began packing her things for her return journey back to the Blue Mountains. We needed to give the van a good scrub because the cleaning fee the hire company charged for returning it in an “unacceptable state” is $300. They must pay their cleaners extremely well.

Arts Centre @ Alice Springs

Overlander Steakhouse @ Alice Springs

In the evening we went out for dinner to the Overlander Steakhouse. It is a fantastic establishment with an awesome décor of exposed timber beams coupled with wall panes of corrugated iron. From the beams hang lots of horse tack e.g. saddles. On the walls are lots of skins including beef, camel and crocodile. Of particular note was a replica windmill which had been signed by visiting notorieties. We had a massive meal including Spinach and Ricotta Crepes, Crocodile Vul-e-vants, Mushrooms Kilpatrick, Surf and Turf, the Steakhouse Beef Chop (500g Rib Eye on the bone) and of course dessert. We were well stuffed at the end.

Overlander Steakhouse @ Alice Springs

Today was very low key and it was sad too, as the time grew nearer for Mum to catch the freedom bird home. After a relaxed start to the day we took Herbie back to the depot at around 1030 and then chilled out in the CP until it was time to take Mum to the airport for her flight at 1330. After many hugs Lib and I watched her walk and disappear into the plane before we dragged ourselves away and returned to the CP.

Overlander Steakhouse @ Alice Springs

Lib had forgotten that today was Father’s Day and so feeling very bad and very guilty she decided to detour on our return journey via the bottle shop to buy her dad a nice bottle of port. But with the crazy licencing laws in the NT we had no luck. So far we have discovered that on Monday to Friday the bottle shops in Alice do not open until 1400. On the weekends they open at 1000. Today, being Sunday there are only two places open to buy grog but low and behold there is one shelf that you cannot make purchases from until 1800. The one with the port, sherry and cask wine. You can buy everything else including beer and spirits before that time. It truly boggles the mind.

Cenotaph @ Anzac Hill, Alice Springs

We returned to the CP empty handed and relaxed for the rest of the day.

We have had such a truly great and fantastic time over the last five weeks discovering and traveling through the NT with my Mum. It was an awesome experience to be able to share with her such an amazing part of the country and to be able to introduce her to this type of travel and to living life on the road. We have too many awesome memories to count. Thank you Mum for sharing this incredible journey with us and we look forward to next time. Have a nightcap for us eh?

Anzac Hill, Alice Springs