Week 2: Outback South Australia to Central Australia - 1631 kms
Day 8 was consumed with discovering Lake Eyre. In the morning we drove down to Halligan and ABC Bays and walked to the edge of the lake. Lake Eyre only totally fills once every 20+ years and only has water in it about once every 6+ years. Lake Eyre is the largest salt lake in Australia and the third largest in the world. It is also the lowest point of Australia at 15m below sea level. The visit to Lake Eyre involved a 75 minute drive from William Creek down a very good condition 4wd track and then a 200m walk to the edge of the lake, There was an amazing number of small sardine like fish and grasshoppers dead on the sand, obviously caught by the evaporating lake, of course Fred and Tavi had great delight in chasing Adelaide around with the dead fish. The water was very salty. The weather was terrible we were all rugged up in coats and beanies, the wind felt like it was coming straight off Antarctica not the Strzelecki Desert. The afternoon saw us discover Lake Eyre by air in a tiny eight seater with a pilot who looked too young to legally drink. Pete took the seat next to the pilot and the rest of us piled into the back. Octavia who suffers motion sickness and hates any form of scary ride put on a very brave face, closed her eyes a lot and finally put herself to sleep to avoid throwing up. Fred got very sick of the headphones and kicked them off 5 minutes into the 1 hour flight and probably now has hearing damage. The view from the air was great, you really did get a great appreciation of the size of the lake. We were also very luck to see a flock of pelicans who take refugee on an island in the middle of the lake. From the air you also got the sense of how it is in the middle of nowhere not a house to be seen for miles and just flat dirt plains with little vegetation. The evening was spent having a great meal at the William Creek Hotel and retiring to our peaceful hotel room where we slept by the noise of the diesel powered electricity generator all night. News from Mt Martha was as good as it could be, with news that Dad was recovering slowly, however the long term position has got worse and thus I have made the decision to break up my trip and fly home from Alice springs for 12 days and catch up with Pete and the children in Darwin.
We took the opportunity to make Day 9 a rest day and catch up on a few items which needed completing. The first part of the day involved driving back from William Creek to Coober Pedy, buying provisions including post cards, followed by doing some minor running repairs to the van and packing it up ready for our biggest day of travel to date. The second part of the day involved moving into our underground house which was to be home for the night. The house is run as a B&B and was exceptionally comfortable, it was great to have a proper shower and toilet (which we didn’t have to share) and to not feel cold for the first time since leaving Shepparton (for the children the highlight was having a TV and being able to watch Packed to the Rafters, unfortunately MasterChef was not being shown).Underground houses maintain a constant temperature between 18-23degC which is great for an area where the temperatures can vary greatly from below zero to the low, if not high 40’s. Post cards to home and diaries were then written.
Day 10 was a long slog, 736kms and just under 10 hours, to travel from Coober Pedy to Ayers Rock (Yulura -the town that provides the necessary infrastructure for Ayers Rock). We decided to not break the trip and avoid going through the whole set up process again in towns which really have nothing to offer. The drive until Ulura came into site was just long, although it was fascinating to see the landscape change from flat dust dessert to more heavily vegetated sand dunes. One highlight was definitely crossing the border into the Northern Territory, as this meant that for both Adelaide and I that we have now been to every state and territory in Australia. Pete had achieved this feat some time ago and the little two just have Western Australia and the ACT to go! The sight of Ulura in the distance is really quite magical, it is even more beautiful than the pictures. Ayers Rock Resort in Yulura is a mini city with everything from camping to 5 star accommodation and restaurants’, a medical centre, police station, a little shopping village. Camping in the camp ground gives you access to the whole resort. This was home for the next three nights. It was beautiful to watch the sunset over Ayers Rock with a glass of wine in hand.
Days 11 and 12 were spent exploring the Ulura-Kata Tjuta National Park. Day 11 was a visit to the rock, unfortunately the rock climb was closed (apparently it is now very rarely open as safety precautions imposed due to wind, temperature and rain take precedent. In fact it had only been open for 2 hours in the last 2 weeks) due to high winds and thus we settled for completing the rock base walk of 10.6 kms. The walk was just a flat circuit and in many places over 100m away from the edge of the rock and thus quite boring. Due to the numerous scared sites around the rock, photographing in many areas is prohibited. Due to the monotonous nature of the walk it was very hard to keep the children interested, however promises of snack treats at certain intervals kept them going. Fred walked all the way and only whined a little, a real miracle for the child who still wishes that he could fit in a pram. The cultural centre established next to the rock is very interesting with a great history of the local Aboriginals and the flora and fauna found in the area. Day 12 was spent at the Olgas completing the 7.4kms Valley of the Wind walk. This was a beautiful walk through the domes, up and down the valleys, much more strenuous than the rock base walk, however all made it without any complaint. If you only have time for one walk – do the Olgas.
Day 13 saw us move from Yulura to Kings Canyon Resort and take a rest from the walking, much to Fred’s relief, although this was short lived when a compulsory 2 hour homework session was enforced, although who can complain when the class room looked over the George Gill range. The children also caught up with some friends they had made at Ayers Rock Resort and thus had a lovely time running a muck, The caravan park was just beautiful as the back drop of the George Gill range was gorgeous. Wi;d dingoes roamed the parks. The evening saw us watching and participating in a local show put on by the Roadies, a duo, who during the day manned reception at the resort and who wouldn’t last more than 10 seconds on Red Faces and thus as you can imagine was world class. The children loved it to such an extent that they made me re-live it the next night, some how Pete managed to escape.
Day 14 was again a hiking a day, this time taking on the Kings Canyon Rim Walk, a leisurely 6 km walk with a 100m climb at the start just to get the heart going. This was a beautiful walk around the rim of the canyon with spectacular views and a beautiful detour down to a beautiful billabong. It is a pity that the weather is so cold as the water looked very inviting. Tavi, Adelaide and I felt that we hadn’t quite done enough walking for the day and also completed the 2km Kings Creek Walk. Adelaide still had enough walking and decided to accompany Pete on a 1 hour walk around the resort, oh to be young! Dinner was spent watching the sunset over Kings Canyon – that’s living the dream
Monday, July 26, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Day 2 ( The way Dick saw it)
Day 2 [how dick saw it]
Today we went on a paddle steamer called the Melbourne PS. We passed thought a loch. At lunch it stared to rain. It dried up and then we had a milkshake and a hot chocolate.
Today we went on a paddle steamer called the Melbourne PS. We passed thought a loch. At lunch it stared to rain. It dried up and then we had a milkshake and a hot chocolate.
Week 1 - Shepp to Coober Pedy
LIVING THE DREAM - 81 days of pure bliss!
Week 1: Shepparton to Outback South Australia – 2,140kms
Wow, week 1has already passed, only 11 to go. The first week has seen us travel from Shepparton to William Creek, which is on the edge of Lake Eyre, outback South Australia.
In typically Griswold style or I should say in Pete’s style, the start of the trip commenced about 3 hours behind schedule. The family was packed and all ready to go by 8.30am, but Pete just had to squeeze in a few more hours of work and get a last minute check on the caravan done, of course all jobs which should have been completed the week before. At 11am, the Living the Dream adventure commenced.
Day 1 saw us travel from Shepparton to Mildura, which was home for the first two nights. The cold weather was definitely not left behind with Mildura having a maximum day time temperature of only 7 degC. Thankfully we had the foresight to take along a couple of fan heaters, which has made life in the caravan very comfortable. The first of many caravan set-ups went without a hitch, however it did take its toll on us that we needed to eat out.
Day 2 was spent exploring Mildura. Pete had visited numerous times previously to see grape and orange growers, but it was a first time visit for the rest of us. The morning saw us tour the mighty Murray River on the last steam driven paddle ship the PS Melbourne. Both Pete and I were amazed by the loch system, with levels being controlled in excessive of 3 meters along this part of the river. The afternoon was spent topping up on supplies, a microwave dish to cook porridge and buying nuts to replace the one already lost on one of the stabliser legs (it must have shaken loose), Pete visiting an Orange buyer for old time sake and the rest of us indulging in hot chocolate and playing board games on a cold and wet afternoon. With more time to prepare the first of many caravan park meals was prepared and cooked without issue.
Day 3 saw us on the road again travelling to Broken Hill. The sight seeing stops included the junction where the Murray and Darling rivers combine in Wentworth and the Perry Sand Hills, an unique sand hill formation in the middle of nowhere which were formed some 40,000 years ago. The sand hills were definitely a highlight for the children who just loved to run up and roll down the orange sanded dunes. Broken Hill was a stark contrast to tree lined Mildura, just dirt everywhere, not a tree in sight and only small scrubs less than 0.5m high in the middle of dirt fields. For a city which has been responsible for so much of Australia’s wealth, the town looked very poor, lots of corrugated iron houses with old couches on the front verandahs and empty retail fronts. This is with the exception of the main street which has a number of beautiful late 1880’s & 1890’s buildings which have been fully restored.
Day 4 was consumed exploring Broken Hill and the surrounding area. Broken Hill to make up for the decline in mining has turned itself into a very interesting tourist town with plenty of art, history and countryside to explore. First visit for the day was the Living Desert, where we visited the Sculpture Symposium (in 1987 12 sculptures from around the world were invite to carve a sculpture from local rock representing an aspect of local Aboriginal life). We saw Sturt’s Desert Pea (hopefully it will grow in Shepparton and become a feature of the Clarke Crt garden) and other native flowers. Next was a visit to the (Kevin) Pro Hart gallery, a hit for the whole family. Through the great advertising medium of TV the children are familiar with his work and were fascinated to see the dragon fly that Pro Hart painted on the carpet for the carpet cleaner ad and that his grandson now emulates on the latest ad. Pro Hart’s work has many different styles, all which I truly enjoy. The children kept commenting how Aunty Andrea would have enjoyed the gallery {especially the large female derriere painting). Next it was onto Silverton, an old ghost town which was a very wealthy area before the bigger deposits of silver, zinc and lead were found in Broken Hill. Silverton has also featured in many movies including Mad Max 2 and A Town Like Alice. The finally stop for the day was the Miners Memorial a terrific tribute to those who have lost their lives mining in the area. A great reminder on how dangerous mining was - there were so many cave ins, electrocutions, and falls. Fred was excited to see some many miners called Frederick.
Day 5 was again a travel day leaving Broken Hill behind for Woomera. The planned stop was Port Augusta but given we had made good time, Port Augusta became our lunch spot and we pushed through to Woomera. Our pre-packing in preparation for an early get away really paid off. The landscape was bare and really offered no interesting stops, although the bush toilet stops are causing lots of angst. Woomera was established to be a rocket testing facility for the defence force just after the second world war, in collaboration with the English forces, Over the years it has had a very interesting history developing rockets, bombs and satellites’ in joint ventures with other nations, Today there are very little programs in process due to costs, however as late as June the area was closed as a Japanese satellite re-entered earth and landed in the surrounding area. As a contrast to Broken Hill, Woomera is exceptionally well kept, very neat and tidy. It is amazing what a difference government dollars make. Woomera has a great rocket park and museum and I would recommend a visit to all.
Day 6 Woomera to Coober Pedy.
Once again we started early and made it to Coober Pedy just prior to lunch. The only stop was a very quick photo of Lake Hart. Coober Pedy is a real outback town; very run down, very little there and our first sighting of Aboriginals’ just hanging around town. The landscape is very bleak lots of dirt sand hills everywhere and no vegetation at all. The afternoon was spent learning about Coober Pedy’s history at the Umoona mine and museum. The tour was fantastic and to date has been a family highlight. The tour involved exploring a miner’s underground house as it would have been in the 1950’s, a modern day underground house and then a mine tour where the evolution of opal mining techniques were explained. An opal seam was also shown on the tour. The tour concluded with a film on how opals were formed. The museum was also excellent explaining the discovery of opals and the creation of Coober Pedy as it is today. In addition, it housed a collection of fossils which were found just outside of Coober Pedy in the 1970’s of a plesiosaurs.
Day 7 saw us continue our exploration of Coober Pedy, with a visit to two underground churches, to a noddling area to try and find our own opals and finally a demonstration of the equipment the miners use to excavate and recover the opals. Unfortunately as we were taking our lunch break bad news was received from Mt Martha, Dad had taken a turn for the worse and was rushed to hospital, he had developed an infection. The next 6 hours were just a waiting game as we waited to hear whether or not the antibiotics were going to be effective. We decided as there was nothing we could as we waited for news, that we would continue with our planned itinerary and headed out to William Creek (after we confirmed what flights were available out of Coober Pedy the following day). William Creek is the smallest town in South Australia with a population which ranges between 6 and 12 and is one of the gate ways for Lake Eyre north. William Creek has a charming pub, with great outback character and is always full of outback adventurers, just like us. The children were amazed at the lack of facilities, no shops, no drinking water or mobile phone reception and only a couple of houses. The lack of mobile phone reception was a real issue as I was desperate for news from home, but thankfully there was one public phone booth and I managed to make the dreaded call and found out that Dad was as good as he could be but the next couple of days would tell. We spent the evening tucked up in our cabin playing board games and having a wonderful family time, that’s living the dream.
Week 1: Shepparton to Outback South Australia – 2,140kms
Wow, week 1has already passed, only 11 to go. The first week has seen us travel from Shepparton to William Creek, which is on the edge of Lake Eyre, outback South Australia.
In typically Griswold style or I should say in Pete’s style, the start of the trip commenced about 3 hours behind schedule. The family was packed and all ready to go by 8.30am, but Pete just had to squeeze in a few more hours of work and get a last minute check on the caravan done, of course all jobs which should have been completed the week before. At 11am, the Living the Dream adventure commenced.
Day 1 saw us travel from Shepparton to Mildura, which was home for the first two nights. The cold weather was definitely not left behind with Mildura having a maximum day time temperature of only 7 degC. Thankfully we had the foresight to take along a couple of fan heaters, which has made life in the caravan very comfortable. The first of many caravan set-ups went without a hitch, however it did take its toll on us that we needed to eat out.
Day 2 was spent exploring Mildura. Pete had visited numerous times previously to see grape and orange growers, but it was a first time visit for the rest of us. The morning saw us tour the mighty Murray River on the last steam driven paddle ship the PS Melbourne. Both Pete and I were amazed by the loch system, with levels being controlled in excessive of 3 meters along this part of the river. The afternoon was spent topping up on supplies, a microwave dish to cook porridge and buying nuts to replace the one already lost on one of the stabliser legs (it must have shaken loose), Pete visiting an Orange buyer for old time sake and the rest of us indulging in hot chocolate and playing board games on a cold and wet afternoon. With more time to prepare the first of many caravan park meals was prepared and cooked without issue.
Day 3 saw us on the road again travelling to Broken Hill. The sight seeing stops included the junction where the Murray and Darling rivers combine in Wentworth and the Perry Sand Hills, an unique sand hill formation in the middle of nowhere which were formed some 40,000 years ago. The sand hills were definitely a highlight for the children who just loved to run up and roll down the orange sanded dunes. Broken Hill was a stark contrast to tree lined Mildura, just dirt everywhere, not a tree in sight and only small scrubs less than 0.5m high in the middle of dirt fields. For a city which has been responsible for so much of Australia’s wealth, the town looked very poor, lots of corrugated iron houses with old couches on the front verandahs and empty retail fronts. This is with the exception of the main street which has a number of beautiful late 1880’s & 1890’s buildings which have been fully restored.
Day 4 was consumed exploring Broken Hill and the surrounding area. Broken Hill to make up for the decline in mining has turned itself into a very interesting tourist town with plenty of art, history and countryside to explore. First visit for the day was the Living Desert, where we visited the Sculpture Symposium (in 1987 12 sculptures from around the world were invite to carve a sculpture from local rock representing an aspect of local Aboriginal life). We saw Sturt’s Desert Pea (hopefully it will grow in Shepparton and become a feature of the Clarke Crt garden) and other native flowers. Next was a visit to the (Kevin) Pro Hart gallery, a hit for the whole family. Through the great advertising medium of TV the children are familiar with his work and were fascinated to see the dragon fly that Pro Hart painted on the carpet for the carpet cleaner ad and that his grandson now emulates on the latest ad. Pro Hart’s work has many different styles, all which I truly enjoy. The children kept commenting how Aunty Andrea would have enjoyed the gallery {especially the large female derriere painting). Next it was onto Silverton, an old ghost town which was a very wealthy area before the bigger deposits of silver, zinc and lead were found in Broken Hill. Silverton has also featured in many movies including Mad Max 2 and A Town Like Alice. The finally stop for the day was the Miners Memorial a terrific tribute to those who have lost their lives mining in the area. A great reminder on how dangerous mining was - there were so many cave ins, electrocutions, and falls. Fred was excited to see some many miners called Frederick.
Day 5 was again a travel day leaving Broken Hill behind for Woomera. The planned stop was Port Augusta but given we had made good time, Port Augusta became our lunch spot and we pushed through to Woomera. Our pre-packing in preparation for an early get away really paid off. The landscape was bare and really offered no interesting stops, although the bush toilet stops are causing lots of angst. Woomera was established to be a rocket testing facility for the defence force just after the second world war, in collaboration with the English forces, Over the years it has had a very interesting history developing rockets, bombs and satellites’ in joint ventures with other nations, Today there are very little programs in process due to costs, however as late as June the area was closed as a Japanese satellite re-entered earth and landed in the surrounding area. As a contrast to Broken Hill, Woomera is exceptionally well kept, very neat and tidy. It is amazing what a difference government dollars make. Woomera has a great rocket park and museum and I would recommend a visit to all.
Day 6 Woomera to Coober Pedy.
Once again we started early and made it to Coober Pedy just prior to lunch. The only stop was a very quick photo of Lake Hart. Coober Pedy is a real outback town; very run down, very little there and our first sighting of Aboriginals’ just hanging around town. The landscape is very bleak lots of dirt sand hills everywhere and no vegetation at all. The afternoon was spent learning about Coober Pedy’s history at the Umoona mine and museum. The tour was fantastic and to date has been a family highlight. The tour involved exploring a miner’s underground house as it would have been in the 1950’s, a modern day underground house and then a mine tour where the evolution of opal mining techniques were explained. An opal seam was also shown on the tour. The tour concluded with a film on how opals were formed. The museum was also excellent explaining the discovery of opals and the creation of Coober Pedy as it is today. In addition, it housed a collection of fossils which were found just outside of Coober Pedy in the 1970’s of a plesiosaurs.
Day 7 saw us continue our exploration of Coober Pedy, with a visit to two underground churches, to a noddling area to try and find our own opals and finally a demonstration of the equipment the miners use to excavate and recover the opals. Unfortunately as we were taking our lunch break bad news was received from Mt Martha, Dad had taken a turn for the worse and was rushed to hospital, he had developed an infection. The next 6 hours were just a waiting game as we waited to hear whether or not the antibiotics were going to be effective. We decided as there was nothing we could as we waited for news, that we would continue with our planned itinerary and headed out to William Creek (after we confirmed what flights were available out of Coober Pedy the following day). William Creek is the smallest town in South Australia with a population which ranges between 6 and 12 and is one of the gate ways for Lake Eyre north. William Creek has a charming pub, with great outback character and is always full of outback adventurers, just like us. The children were amazed at the lack of facilities, no shops, no drinking water or mobile phone reception and only a couple of houses. The lack of mobile phone reception was a real issue as I was desperate for news from home, but thankfully there was one public phone booth and I managed to make the dreaded call and found out that Dad was as good as he could be but the next couple of days would tell. We spent the evening tucked up in our cabin playing board games and having a wonderful family time, that’s living the dream.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Day 1 (The way Wednesday saw it)
This morning we did the final packing for our around Australia adventure. Around 10:30AM we finally left clarke crt. On our way we stopped at Cohuna for a leg strech, the next stop was in Swan Hill for lunch at a park on the Murray River and finally on to Mildura.When we finally arrive in Mildura the power went out, but thats living the dream!
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