A Day at Alice Springs

We had a relaxing morning, finally getting away at about 11.00 a.m. I sat outside to have breakfast and coffee.

I had noticed a large dust spot on the camera sensor, and rang up the only camera store in town. They are able to arrange to have cleaned, but we won’t be able to pick it up until about lunchtime on Monday. I dropped it off whilst we were doing grocery shopping.

Stephen has noticed that one of his heels is painful. He rang up regarding a podiatry appointment, the earliest one is on Wednesday.

Therefore, we will defininately have to be here until Monday lunchtime, and if his heel continues to be painful it may be Wednesday. The only slight problem is that our present campsite will close after Sunday due to preparations for an agricultural show to be held here the following week. We are not sure if we will be able to get accommodation in town and may have to make small trips away. Not that we will be bored, there are lots of places to go.

Yesterday our next door neighbour offered to share their water connection with us. They have a tap on the frame of their caravan and we have connected up our hose. Very, very nice having drinking water coming out of our taps.

After shopping we went out to the Telegraph Station Museum. It is beautifully kept and has interesting history, though later was used to house Aboriginal children who were taken from their mothers. That rather spoils it for me.

We came back to enjoy another mild evening sitting outside enjoying the mild temperatures. After sunset it was chilly again, so we have moved inside.

I had forgotten how picturesque Alice Springs is. Obviously not the buildings, but the hills around the town. Essentially, it is a narrow place between steeply sided hills.

The Olgas and another Urulu sunset

Another day in this beautiful landscape. The Olgas, which are quite beautiful at a distance, seemed to become more ordinary as we got really close to them. We stopped at a lookout.

The landscape as a whole is very beautiful, with very interesting and beautiful trees and plants. I realise that the experience is very different in the heat of summer, but I couldn’t help feeling that the people who live here must feel extremely blessed by all of this beauty. Urulu is truly awsome and the setting does much to enhance the overall effect.

Exploring around Uluru

This morning we had a lot of washing to do and I decided to do it using my little twin tub washing machine. At the end of it, the washing machine had to go! I left it in the laundry with a note saying that if someone wanted to give it a new home they were welcome to it. Not one hour later it was gone!

Now we have room in that locker for our picnic table and folding chairs, much more convenient that having them in the overhead bunk. I’ve been wondering for some time if it was worthwhile to keep the washing machine, it feels good to have made that decision. It wasn’t expensive and I’m not sure how long it will last the new owner. Or if that person will hand it on in a few weeks to the next person.

We are heading north, and I’ve decided that handwashing small amounts of washing, supplemented by an occasional big wash in the a campground machine, is the way to go. For at least the next month the climate will get warmer and warmer. Already we are in a very dry area where washing dries quickly.

We went to a film and talk about the night sky. This area was once an inland sea and is too low for astrononmers, but they keep the lights deliberately low in the Resort area and offer night time walks, with telescopes, for people who are interested.

We had a light lunch in one of the Resort hotels, not very expensive and it was delicious. However, this evening I was feeling a bit under the weather and wondering if it was what we had for lunch that caused it. Probably not related.

We had a walk in the sun, that might have caused the problem. Stephen had a slight headache as well.

Nevertheless, we packed up the Winnie and went out for a sunset viewing, this time driving to the base of Uluru. There were far less people in this location, probably due to the time of day, as it offers a short and a long walk around the base, most people would have done that during the day.

Today has been absolutely cloudless and we had quite a different experience in this location being close up and walking along the Marla Walk for a short distance.

We just had a look at the Road Atlas lent to us by David and Lesley. I use Geowiki for finding campsites and navigation, but we also need to get an overview, so the Atlas is proving very useful. We have come a long way – I think over 4,000 kms altogether, and there is a very long way to go, especially if we head north after Alice Springs.

Perhaps better to not look at it, just concentrate on enjoying where we are and anticipating just the next destination.

We have extended our stay for one more night, partly based on our Park Permit, which is for 72 hours, but also because there is so much to do and see here.

Saturday 17th June, 2017

A Travel Day

SA/NT Border Rest Area to Kernot Range Rest Area

Earlier in the trip we thought that we wouldn’t go to Uluru. Too touristy, and off our route. But, as the turnoff came closer, we started to think again. At Erlunda Roadhouse we took a break, checked our emails, had coffee, and decided to go after all.

It’s 250 kms off the Stuart Highway, so adds 500 kms to our trip and 2 – 3 days, which will all seem worth it when we get home and wonder why on earth we wouldn’t go.

We stopped near a roadhouse on the way to have lunch and planned to go to a rest area with a view of Mt Connor, the famous flat topped hill that regularly gets mistaken for Uluru. But, at about 3.00 p.m. when we pulled into a rest area to change drivers we were very taken with this location. It has water (probably not safe to drink, but handy for washing) and clear sites in a grove of desert oaks. The sound of them is enticing.

There were two motorhomes already there, and after we arrived three caravans came quite quickly and settled in as well.

I put up a line and used the provided water to rinse out some shirts and bras. I rigged up a line between a couple of trees to hand out the shirts to drip dry and put the bras discretely in the shower cubicle.

There is a sea of dry grasses waving in the breeze and views of the Mt Ebenezer range and what I think is Mt Connor in the distance from a nearby small hill.

It’s very peaceful, and the presence of other vans means we feel quite safe here.