Our Travels

TO DARWIN & BACK 2ND JULY – 14TH AUGUST 2007

We have been looking forward to this trip for about 15mths. I have been to a lot of the places at the age of 17.(the year that Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin).Owen hasn't been to any of them. I am sure that I won't remember too much as I there will have been lots of changes. We will be travelling with our friends Rick and Yvonnne. Yvonne has seen the sites in her teenage years also but not Rick. Our rig is a 1997 Red Ford F150 and a Jayco Heritage Poptop Caravan approx 18'11. Our friends drive a 5 yo Grey Landrover Discovery and tow a Jayco Freedom Poptop van approx 17ft. Our departure date is July 2nd.

We're off.

2nd July
We left home at 8.35 and had a good run to Beaufort where we had arranged to meet up with our friends. We chatted on the CB’s from about Ballan to discover we were only about 5 mins apart. Had a fuel and food stop at Beufort and the sun shone beautifully. We stopped again at Kaniva for another fuel and food stop. Got to Keith and decided to continue on to Murray Bridge as we had gained ½ hour with crossing the border and it was only 2.30pm. Got lots of rain and wind after that and arrived in Murray Bridge approx 4.30, missed the Caravan Park we were looking for and ended up through town and stayed at the Oz Parks c/p. Facilities good, drive through site and we decided not to unhitch for the night. Both guys tired and we went to bed early.

3rd & 4th July
Decided to head for Port Augusta and decide from there whether to carry on or not. Got away from Murray Bridge about 8.30 and struck some fog on the freeway.Had a great run through the suburbs of Adelaide to Highway 1 and stopped at Port Wakefield for an early lunch. Arrived Port Augusta approx 1.30 fuelled up and pressed on to Woomera arriving at 3.45. Got ourselves set up and then it bucketed and blew. We were grateful we weren’t driving in it.
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Woomera
We stayed here for 2 nights seeing we made up some time and went to Roxby Downs and Andamooka before coming back to look at the museum here at Woomera.Roxby Downs is very much built for the employees. It has most of what you need. Not a huge place, mostly portable homes. We had our internet fix at the library and then went out to Andamooka. What a great little town. Probably a younger version of Coober Pedy. There was something about the place that we all liked. Wouldn’t like to be there in summer though. 40-50deg heat. Spent a couple of hours there and then headed back to Woomera to the museum with all the history on the Rocket Range. Very good. The caravan park has a bar which opens from 5-9 with outdoor tables. Unfortunately the wind was awful again today so not many people ventured over but there was about 10 of us for about an hour and we got lots of ideas and tales. As is most usual, the barman was a wealth of information. He used to work here in the detention centre till it closed down. Other than the weather it has been a good stay.

5th & 6th July
Coober Pedy
Travelled to Coober Pedy hoping the wind had died down a bit. Lots of others travelling there that day too.Arrived and had lunch then went down to the main street and to the tourist info place. We split up with Rick & Von and we went to the Old Timers Mine and did a tour underground and into their opal shop. We drove around to get a feel for the place. It certainly is a unique place but is a bit commercial. The vans, mobile homes, campers etc rolled in thick and fast and until quite late. We aren’t used to travelling in such peak times. Went out to visit more sites the next day and also had a bit of r & r although we haven’t been able to sit outside as it has been too cool and windy. Number of pipes = number of rooms

7th July
Left early this morning as we knew that many others are travelling the same way and realised that if we wanted a powered site at Erldunda we would need to get there early. We stopped at Marla for a fuel and morning tea stop and then again at Kulgera for fuel. We arrived Erldunda around 1.30 and from then on in there was a steady stream of vans, mobile homes and campers. They were squeezing them in, in the end. We only have a short trip to Yulara tomorrow.

8th July
Bloomin’ cold when we got up this morning. Glad I had a shower the night before! Rick picked up a hitch-hiker just as we left Erldunda. He was a French trainee doctor who needed a lift to Uluru as he was transporting a Mobile home back to Darwin and they charge them if they go off the main rd. So he hitched a ride into the rock to do the walk around the base and then he would hitch back out to Erldunda to get the mobile home again.We arrived at lunchtime and got set up. Our sites are close to the facilities so that was a bonus. We went out to Uluru and to the Cultural Centre. Still lots of people climbing the rock even though they STRONGLY encourage that you don’t. Owen went up partway and was surprised how hard it was. I came away from the Cultural Centre with a very strong feeling of “WE DON’T WANT YOU HERE!”The Rock is a very majestic sight and so is the Olgas. We have opted to watch the sunset from a lookout at the caravan park. It is going to be a cold night and morning again.


9th July
Today we went to the Olgas and decided to walk the Valley of the Winds. Didn’t expect to do it all but did. It took Owen & I, 3 hours to do the trek of a 9-10kms. It was very varied and challenging at times. I certainly felt a sense of achievement but the after effects killed off the rest of the day. There was another gorge walk but by then we had had enough. Just relaxed and let the body rest for the rest of the day. Rick & Von did the other gorge walk.

10th July
We left Yulara around 8.15 to travel to Kings Canyon Resort but decided on the way if we could get 2 powered sites for 2 nights we would stay at Kings Creek Station instead. We arrived around 11am and were fortunate enough to get some of the last sites with power. Many others were turned away. By afternoon there were no sites left and there mustn’t have been any at Kings Canyon Resort. What a great place this is. It is set up like you are in the bush and even have campfires which are constantly burning so therefore you only have to add wood. Lots of red dust though! Lots of bird life.
We had always said we would probably do a helicopter flight over Kings Canyon. The helicopter pad was just here and at 1.40pm we took off on a 35min flight over the Peterson pound, and the Canyon and lots of other bits. Weather was great and we could see Mt Connor, Uluru and the Olgas in the distance. It was the first time Owen or I have been in a helicopter and we decided that we wouldn’t bother with small planes after today.
Rick and Von went up after us and we must have all been feeling adventurous so we booked an hour on a Quad bike tour. Well what can I say. Owen wants one, me I enjoyed it but it took me a while to get the hang of it and just when I thought I had, I hadn't. It was a great experience and I would repeat it if it didn’t cost quite so much. I am sure the kids will laugh when they see the photos. We even saw sunset whilst out and had to come back in the dusk and dark. Lots of campfires going tonight and the stars are just amazing.

Well we are now in Alice Springs and it is Sat evening. We went out to Hermannsburg and Palm Valley yesterday and also Standley Chasm. Today went travelling around the town and then to the Camel Cup.. Went to the Sunday market in the mall and bought a couple of new hats. Saw the Ghan leave for Adelaide on Monday and lined up with lots of others to watch it come through Heavitree Gap. We also went to a Reptile place and spent a couple of hours there. We could handle a few different reptiles and I held a lizard. Opted out of handling a snake. Watched as the handlers fed two snakes; one was the 2nd deadliest snake in the world, the brown snake. Interesting and fascinating.
Hoping to get to slightly warmer weather soon. We leave here on Tuesday and should be in Darwin by Friday.

Well our time here at Alice is coming to an end. We have enjoyed ourselves thus far but haven't seen as much as we would like to but also want a holiday not go, go, go all the time. Looking forward to moving on and getting slightly warmer weather although today has been good. We are going to Tennant Creek tomorrow and then 2 nights at Mataranka and then on to Darwin.

We stopped at Devil's Marbles for lunch. It is an interesting place. Owen decided to do some climbing and ended up having a bit of a tumble. Scraped his left elbow, left thigh, knee and took a few chunks off his fingers. A bit sore and stiff by the time we got to Tennant Crk.

Tennant Creek was good. There is a guy there named Jimmy Hooker. Been doing a show 7 nights a week in peak times for 7 years. A real outback character and quite funny. We arrived on the tea and damper night. He cooked 3 dampers and lemon grass tea in the billy. He told stories and poems and kept us entertained for a couple of hours. Every so often he would say "bugger me" and it was so funny when it came out, so when we think of him we will remember him as "Jimmy Bugger Me". There had to have been at least 100 people at his show and it cost us $3 each. Good fun.

Then we arrived in Mataranka the following day. It was our longest day for a while. We stopped at Daly Waters Pub for lunch. What a unique place and it is only word of mouth that gets this place it's custom as it is 7 kms off the highway. I will try to put in some pics soon. This place reminded me of the 'Lil Abner cartoon.
We had booked ahead and opted for an ensuite and there was heaps of room to park and spread out. We had lots of company with peacocks and lots of other birds. It was much warmer here but quite pleasant although a bit breezy at times.
The following day we went to see the feeding of the Barramundi at the C/P we were in. The guy feeds them and catches them by the mouth. They don't have teeth and their mouth is enormous. Everywhere from Alice up you can have Barra & chips as a specialty. Anyway that was different and then we went to the Homestead with our "togs" to swim in the thermal springs. "ooh lovely" Perfect temperature, shaded and even though we all looked like "beached whales" in our bathers we really enjoyed ourselves.
We then went and veged out for the afternoon and had dinner at the c/p restaurant where of course Barrumundi was on the menu. 3 of us had it with smorgasbord of veges and salad and it was very nice.

20th July
Well left Mataranka at 8am this morning headed for Darwin. We seemed to have to climb up and down hills a lot. We fuelled up at Katherine and it seems like quite a modern town. It is their show this weekend but we had already decided to stop at Katherine on our way back down.

We stopped at Hayes Creek for an early lunch. My hamburger was so high, I am sure it was at least 6inches and they had a knife stabbed in the middle to hold it together so you can imagine me trying to eat it.

We arrived in Howard Springs around1.3opm. It looked nice and shady and is but we have been put in a different area because we said we were together and we are not totally happy with our site but will grin and bear it. We got such a shock when we stepped out of the cars to the heat. Wow. It will take us a few days to get used to it. I put the flannelette pj's away at Tennant Creek and now I think the doona might get the flick whilst we are up here in Darwin.

We went for a drive into Darwin. We are approx 24kms out but central to lots of other things we want to do. We drove around Fanny Bay and out to the East Point and into the wharf area. There is lots of building going on and alterations. Their wharf area seems to be getting a major facelift. We got to the Tourist Information shop and got a good map for all the streets so we could find the Mobil petrol stations. From Elliott up they have been telling us that there will no longer be any Mobil petrol stations in the NT. The guy from the one we found at Darwin said that as of the 29th they will be changed over and then he proceeded to tell us that in a few months there would be no Mobil Servos in Australia. So there goes the petrol discount!

I think I forgot to mention that we met up with a school family at Tennant Creek. They were on their way back home from Katherine. It is amazing who you meet up with and even how many others we speak to in shops etc that used to live in Melbourne.

Well where did we get up to.Owen decided to wash the truck and then he got enthusiastic and gave the engine bay a rinse to get off the dust. Well that was a mistake! The next day we had a miss in the engine. We tootled off to Ford to see about getting it put on the dyno but they couldn’t find the right spot to attach to seeing it was a converted vehicle. A mechanic went for a drive with Owen to see what he thought and by that stage they decided it was probably plugs or leads. So we had to find somewhere with shade so Owen could try to get one plug out so he could see what ones to buy.
The truck seemed to be better when it warmed up so we went off to pick up mum and John. We parked at their hotel and went to a cafe for lunch. It was quite warm. After lunch we went to the Australian Aviation Heritage Museum which housed a B52 bomber. It was donated to Darwin by the American Airforce. What a sight it is. You know from pics etc that it is big but until you see it up close! Fifty six metre wing span. All the other planes and bits were arranged underneath and around the wings and fuselage.
We then went to Cullen Bay to look for a seafood restaurant for dinner but didn’t find what we were looking for, so went to the Casino to have a look, cool down with a drink and book for dinner there. They had a seafood buffet for $19.95. So we booked and then went back to mum’s room to get changed etc and then back again to the Casino for dinner. Whilst waiting to go in for dinner we had a little flutter and between Owen & I we made enough for our dinner and after dinner a little more. It was fun for a short time and at least we came of with $65 of their money.
Wednesday 25th,Owen repaired the truck and found the problem by the fourth plug.
We then went out to Mary River and Humpty Doo and were glad we had decided not to go to Kakudu. Once again it was very hot. We stopped at Windows on the wetlands which was very good and set up very well. Built on a hill and great views over the area.

Thursday 26th
we finally went in to the Pearling exhibition and the WW2 Oil storage tunnels then back home for lunch and a rest and swim. None of us had slept very well as it was warm. We boarded the bus to go to the Mindil Markets which everyone says ‘Ooh you must go it is fabulous!” Yes it is nice, the sunset was nice (but you could go on any night to see it), lots of food stalls and other stalls. Not sure if it might be bigger normally as the Darwin Show started that day and apparently it is usually a lot harder to get around. If that is the case, we were fortunate because it wouldn’t have been very pleasant being wall to wall people. Don’t get me wrong there still were lots and when we saw the numbers of cars we were glad we came by bus. But in the end “a market is still a market!” The bus driver gave us some good commentary on the way home and it was enjoyable.

Friday 27th – We were all ready to leave Darwin behind. None of slept well again. We were hoping to get a little bit cooler in Katherine but not to be. Quite hot again and their pool was “freezing” But the nights in Katherine are cooler. We arrived in Katherine around 11am and the caravan park is great. Very spacious and people very friendly. We are behind a fifth wheeler and when we had nearly set up, we got to meet the neighbours and ended up looking inside. This guy Geoff Evans built his own fifth wheeler and it was lovely. So of course we checked it out thoroughly. They are a very friendly couple and we spent a long time chatting. In the afternoon we went to book our cruise up the Gorge. Managed to get 4 seats on the 8am, 2hr cruise. Drove around Katherine and back to the pool and dinner and entertainment.

Sat: Got up early. It is 30kms out to the Nitimulik National Park for the cruises. The sun was right in our face as we drove. We had a young Aboriginal man doing the cruise and he was very much like Ernie Dingo with his accent and wit. Made it a very enjoyable 2 hrs. We were glad we had done the early cruise as it was getting quite hot by the time we got back. We went into town and had a look around some shops and then we vegged out in the afternoon. We looked where were might stay for the next night as we called in at Daly Waters on the way up and don’t really want to stay there on the way back.

Sorry this has not been kept up to date and it is slow in coming but access is not always easy & expensive and you chew up time waiting for pages to load.

Well, off early next morning (8am) and nothing really exciting happened. We decided to go on to Three Ways where we were turning left to go across to Mt Isa. We have picked up a day so will use it along the way if we somewhere we want to stay longer.

Three ways was fine and we all slept better as the nights now are cooler.(thank goodness). We stopped at Barkley Homestead Roadhouse for fuel and drink, then on to Camooweal for lunch. Lots of cars, caravans, campers and roadtrains but quite a good road except for one small section before Camooweal. We fuelled up and went to the butcher to buy some good meat(we hoped) and then down to the river to have lunch. We arrived Mt Isa approx 3.30 and were told to set our van up later and come for afternoon tea. Each day at the C/P there is afternoon tea mostly for people who have just arrived to have a chat etc. It was nice. The guys were tired and we stayed in that night.

Tuesday 31st: We got going around 9am down to the information centre to see if we could book a tour for the mine. We were in luck and one left at 11am. We drove around looking for a specific shop and then it was time to go on the 2hr Surface mine tour. It was quite good. The mine is very deep but now they are turning it into an open cut mine and it is going to be HUGE. There is plenty of work here for many years to come. We went out for lunch and relaxed for the afternoon.
Owen & I went to speak to a couple who had a chev Silverado and fifth wheeler. Lovely people and quite willing to chat. You will have to ask me about them.

Wednesday 1/8: Two weeks until I go back to work !!!! L We were up bright and early again.(or at least I was). The last couple of nights have been quite fresh and we have now resorted to putting the doona back on, but we have slept better.
We drove through Cloncurry and stopped for fuel and a cuppa at McInlay. Anyone interested the business is for sale.
We then went on to Kynuna and stopped at the Blue Heeler pub. Interesting place. They don’t bother to paint the walls on the outside or inside as people have been writing on them for years. Quite an old guy behind the bar and very basic food indeed. Apparently a good night can be had if you stay there in the van park. It was quite an interesting place.
Then on to Winton. The road was not great. Lots of bumps and bounces. We arrived around 2.30 and went to the c/p to set up and it is very basic. Mostly gravel and they put people in every which way and place they can. If it gets too busy they are in the road ways as well. We went off to the Matilda Museum and it was quite good. Rick & Von opted out and after doing a bit of shopping they went back for a swim in the “very invigorating” pool. We had a walk around Winton after the museum and fuelled up. We ended up going out for dinner again and it was worth going. Lovely meal and very good value. In peak times the park put on a beef roast & veges and then afterwards there is a bush poet.

Well we are in Longreach now and I am having all sorts of problems with getting this uploaded.
We went to the Qantas museum and on a tour of a 747 jumbo jet and then around the town. Today Friday we have been to the Stockman's Hall of Fame and we are going to relax for the afternoon. Just over a week till the end.

Off to Charleville, Bourke, Cobar, Griffith & Home from there.

From Charleville on
We left Longreach before 8am the next morning. We went through Ilfracombe 27km from Longreach and it was a lovely little town and very neat and would have been a good alternative to staying in Longreach if you couldn’t get in. We then went through Bardcaldine but didn’t stop and stopped at Blackall for morning tea and a pit stop. On to Tambo & Augathella where we got fuel and arrived in Charlieville around 2.30. Luckily we had phoned through and booked as they didn’t have any powered sites left.

Had a little drive around Charleville but didn’t do a lot.Longreach is on the Tropic of Capricorn line and by the time we arrived in Charleville we were finding our warmer tops and I was back to flannelette pj’s. The night was very cold.
From Charleville we stopped at Cunnamulla for fuel and on to Bourke. We had lots of people say to stay at the Kidman Camp 6kms out of Bourke. It was a lovely place. Set up very well. Good sites, facilities and a nice place to relax. We arrived on a Sunday and after we had set up we went for a drive into town. We were very surprised and disappointed. We expected a more historical main street and were very disappointed to see how most of the town was boarded up and hardly any windows showing. Rick & Von went into the bottle shop area of the supermarket and the person serving was in a cage with only a small opening to serve through.
There is such a problem with the “indigenous” population. Talking to some locals the problem is drugs. They train up the 3-6year olds to steal and break the windows etc and they can’t be prosecuted because they are under 10yo. It is killing off tourism.

From Bourke through to Cobar. We had originally been going to stay at Cobar but stopped at the Tourist information and had morning tea and a pit stop only.
We decided to go on to Griffith. We stopped for lunch and ate our tomatoes & fruit and dumped what we couldn’t eat as we could not take them into the area, then stopped at Hillston for fuel. We arrived in Griffith around 3.30. We opted for an ensuite and it is great. We went down the street and it is one of the longest main streets of shops & buildings. It is quite a large town, part of the Riverina area. Lots of fruit growing.

We went to a fruit salad farm for a tour and tastings in the afternoon. It is called a fruit salad farm because they grow lots of different fruits.It was well worth the visit. We were there for 3hrs, got to sample olives, mandarins, blood orange, almonds, mustards, jams, pickles, wines, dried and fresh prunes and lots more. Joe explained so much about his farm and it’s workings. The irrigation system, drying the prunes, the grapes and wine. Etc. It was quite an enjoyable afternoon and of course we brought our own samples for home.

Days and places are starting to get mixed up because we aren’t staying long enough or nothing memorable stands out. We are close to home now and we are looking forward to going home.We have decided to move on again closer to home for a shorter run on the last day.

We travelled through Jerilderie to Finley where we stopped for morning tea. We arrived in Cobram around 11.30am at the RACV Cobram resort. It is a nice place, quiet at the moment and very spacious.Out for our final dinner together and it was very nice. Chinese at a pub.

It has been a good journey with not too many problems. Rick & Von have both copped severe colds and Von is not shaking hers very well.
Owen & I don’t feel a need to go up the centre again in a hurry. We would rather go around the coast and inland from there a little. I don’t think I want to do the west coast driving for a while. We feel we would like to be able to do it all a slower pace and stay in places for a longer time to appreciate the area.

We should have named this blog “ 5 Aussie states in 6 weeks”. It took me till 2/3rds of the way for that to become a light bulb thought in my head. I was thinking more of the towns we would visit rather than how many states we were actually going to be travelling through. It has been great to get out and see our wonderful, everchanging, vast country.
We have really enjoyed the beautiful strong outback colours It has been good to see a lot of it is green not all dry as it has been in recent times.
People mostly have been very friendly and the guys want to by a hand that you put on the dash & waves, as you can get rsi from waving to fellow travellers; there are so many at this time of year.

We have met some lovely people, had lots of chats and got lots of good information and ideas. I am sure it won't be long before we are itching to go somewhere again soon.

Owen & Lyn