Weeks 5 - 8 are at www.downundertour2.blogspot.com

As this blog was getting a bit slow from all the pics, I have started a new blog for subsequent weeks at www.downundertour2.blogspot.com

Week 4

When we left the Barkly Homestead headed for Tennant Creek we knew it would be a long drive but did find the occasional item of interest along the way, including another wild emu eager to run alongside of us for a while. Too bad the road edges are graded so steeply or it would be far easier to stop and get pictures of some of the sights along the way.
In Tennant Creek we spent some time at MaryAnn Dam, which is a beautiful spot just outside of town and the water was warm enough to entice the children in and over to the pontoon, (ref pic). We did not spend too much time in town as we will stop there again to see more once returning north. Just south of town we did go out to see the Devil’s Marbles, which are amazing from a geological perspective. Some of these look very unstable but quite remarkable. There is an easy walk one can do around a section of them which offers a greater perspective of them. The aborigines used this area for rituals and presently manage a campground nearby.
Just a few kms further south we stopped at Wycliffe Well, reportedly the place with the highest number of UFO spottings in Australia. The caravan park certainly plays on the UFO theme and considering that it is a long way from anywhere, they had an astounding array of things to see and do. They have a dam with crayfish and barramundi, the relics of a railroad that once encircled the property, a wide array of animals such as camels, emus, donkeys, birds, rabbits, geese, etc. The alien theme is carried everywhere, even into the “Malien” and “Femailien” toilets. Someone had a vision for this place and they have a function centre, restaurant, pool, and store, complete with everything from liquor to petrol. They are certainly prepared for the tourist rush if it ever comes to Wycliffe Well.
Next stop, Alice Springs, and there is some incredible scenery along the way, from plains and grasslands to mountains. In this pic it looks like the flat-topped mountain is weaing a toupe, with the top section being different than the sloping base. We also got some indication of just how big some of the properties are out here with the access roads over 100 kms in length. Yup, when it comes to being remote, they know how to do it well here in the Northern Territory. You see utes roll into town with 220 litre fuel cans and massive eskies in the back. In the grocery stores some people have multiple shopping carts heaping with provisions. It is incredible to witness. Small wonder they stock up where there is a little bit of competition as in the small remote villages they charge up to $1.85 per litre for fuel and $5 for a loaf of bread!
Alice Springs is an area of contrast in many ways. The views are nothing short of astounding and can be so very different in a 360 degree spin. One can see big red rolling mountains with streaks of green vegetation and sun glinting off the reflective rock, then just a twist of a few degrees one direction may give you flat ground for miles and a few degrees the other direction may offer very jagged mountains that are brown and barren.
This contrast extends to the town’s amenities, where a series of bike paths are thoughtfully placed but relatively unused as there are thousands of pieces of broken beer bottles strewn intermittently along it, threatening any inflatable tyre. It is clear that some in the town are trying to make it inviting while other areas are in apathetic despair. There are many people who appear to be homeless and if one wanted to make the place more desirable to live, it may be a good start to offer free showers, complete with soap. I couldn’t get out of some of the shops we went in to fast enough as a few of the patrons were so foul smelling. Perhaps they should install an “odourometer” at the entrance to the shopping district and if you can gag someone from more than two metres away you must go to the free showers before entering. Though it is a big place, the shopping aisles are still waayyyy too narrow at times.
Though crime and alcohol abuse are obvious problems, there was a strong police presence. Many properties were fenced & gated in an obvious attempt to reduce their exposure to crime.
The caravan park we stayed in had gated, card controlled access while the exit had one way spikes that would flatten tyres if one entered through the exit. The park has some terrific features including a BMX track, BIG jumping pillows that can send one over a metre high, (ten metres if you ask Christian), and three nice pools. The children are enjoying it thoroughly and it offers a way to break up their “school days” to keep life interesting.

From Alice Springs, there are numerous trips that are from a few minutes to a few hours away. We started with the Botanic Garden, which offers short walks with informative plaques along the way.
Emily Gap and Jesse Gap are within an hour of town and are areas where there are gaps in the mountain range. You can see from the pic that over time the rock layers have been pushed nearly vertically!
Corrobee Rock is part of the Bitter Springs formation and is about 800 million years old. It offers a range of colours including black, dark brown, orange and white.


Farther East in the MacDonnel Range one comes to Trephina Gorge. This provides access to a beautiful hike where we climbed to the top rim of the gorge and then back down to the mostly dry riverbed below. This was the first place where we saw flocks of green and yellow budgies as well as finches. The pictures do not capture the vertical nature of the climb very well but we took it at an easy pace and all made it safely.
We have just begun exploring the West MacDonnell Ranges, with only having had a few days there. Simpsons Gap has some more terrific scenery, including some rock wallabies scampering amongst the rugged landscape. We found it humourous that they have no swimming signs up alongside a very dry riverbed, ref. pic.
From there we went to Standley chasm, where we had to pay a “small” entry fee of $23 as it is an Aboriginal managed site, though we only saw one person there that may have been part Aboriginal. It did seem pretty dear for what it had to offer, but we did not want to miss anything and I hope the funds are put to good use considering the obvious need for assistance within the Aboriginal communities for housing, alcohol counseling, and hygiene training.
Ellery Creek was a great stopping point, offering a terrific view but cold water, though some were swimming in it quite happily. I photographed this rock, but that is a natural colouration through the rock, not a painted one!
Glen Helen Gorge was not nearly as spectacular but this is where the Finke river passes through on its way to the Simpson desert. The Finke River is the world's oldest watercourse according to the Northern Territory National Parks officer. (Apparently they have dated it so through fossils found there.) It is classified as a “permanent waterhole” and true to form, there was water there.
Ormiston Gorge was incredible in both scenery and the number of flies by day and mozzies by night. Literally millions of the little critters, and that was just the number on me! Have a look at those pics though! This is one of the prettiest places I have seen, though you hike a bit to get to the best parts. We were like the family in The Sound of Music as we wandered through the “Alps” taking fantastic photos along the way, but do be mindful of the dingoes present in this area. We tried to time dinner for the period between when the flies go the sleep and the mozzies awaken but just couldn’t get it in within that 30 second period so came out second best with the mozzies.
Come nighttime it was hot and we had all of the windows open, though fortunately we have flyscreens. I heard this drone, like you do when you are in a field of flowers full of honeybees, but I know that bees are not active at night. Upon closer inspection, they were mozzies that kept flying into the flyscreens trying to get in. There were also a few inside but it was just too hot to cover up so they got a good feed. In the morning, there they were, so fat and unable to move they were easy victims. We did another walk in the morning, well protected with insect repellent and our flyscreens on our hats.
The Ocre Pits is one of the locations where the Aborigines get the ocre to make the paint they use in artwork and body painting. I use this in present text as they are still used today by the tribes of this area. (For others there is a $5,000 fine for taking ocre.) This is great paint when one considers that some of the Aboriginal artwork is fully exposed to the elements and many generations old.
We are now back in Alice Springs for a couple more school days before heading West again to Ayers Rock (Uluru) and the Olgas, (Kata Tjuta), then on to Kings Canyon, (Watarraka).

Week 3

We began the week with the long trip to Longreach, which in itself was an experience. Aside from the odd termite mound, (ref pic, there were paddocks of them, some as big as a car, and the next pic of the internals of one of them we dissected), there were barren paddocks for as far as the eye could see and a road that stretched into a mirage of heat waves. Even “Eye Spy” became pointless as there was nothing new to include in the inventory of things to spot. Then, on the horizon, an interesting shape emerges; something quite different to all else we had seen.

It was tall and looked even bigger as it sat surrounded by the flat countryside, and then the familiarity began to emerge as we made out the distinctive kangaroo on the tail of the massive QANTAS 747 as it sits alongside the Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Services (QANTAS) Museum. This is an interesting place, documenting the passion and vision of 4 men who 87 years ago began (arguably) the most successful airline in the world.
Two of these men, McGinnis & Fysh, were ex-WW1 pilots who saw the need for an airline to service this remote area of Australia. The third man, McMaster, was the businessman who enabled it to occur and then guided the company as Chairman of the Board for many decades. The fourth man was Baird, an expert aeroplane mechanic who was clever enough to redesign the planes they purchased to meet the harsh conditions of the outback by taking measures such as increasing the sizes of the plane’s radiators so they did not overheat. These four very capable and immensely determined men not only founded the airline but changed the paradigm of the public at the time to have people consider flying as an alternative to coach or rail travel. What a massive feat that must have been! We took the tour of the 747 which covered items of interest such as where the orange “black box” recorders reside on the plane, where the safest seat on the airplane is, (last row, aisle seat), and how the wings can flex so much when they fly. The airplanes were not as technologically advanced as those of today and I was surprised to see that cables controlled the wing flaps and very little was computerised. Have a look at the pic of the flight deck and just think of how challenging it would be to keep track of all of those switches and buttons! We learned a substantial amount about the history of aviation in Australia and some of the planned activities for the museum in the future, such as the return of the first QANTAS 707, built in 1959, to Longreach.

The other major attraction in Longreach is the Stockman’s Hall of Fame. I had heard mixed reports about this before we left, but I must say it was outstanding in the amount and quality of information offered. The Hall of Fame is in 5 sections and begins with the break up and migration of the continents, followed by the archeology showing the further formation of Australia, then to the information on the Aborigines who resided here for tens of thousands of years before a number of explorers from various lands identified it over a period of a few hundred more years before the Europeans migrated here.
It then follows the period of settlement, land ownership, the gold rush, etc. There is a significant amount of information on the development, operation, and transformation of many of the major cattle and sheep stations throughout Australia. What a terrific insight into Australian history!
Longreach has a great distribution of bike paths and the caravan park we stayed at had nightly entertainment from none other than Tom McIvor, noted singer, songwriter, comedian and ex-rodeo legend. This compensated for the dismal park operations, cold showers, etc. which reflected the ineptitude of the management. It never ceases to amaze me how in an area of low water supply and inadequate water heating capabilities one would have high flow shower heads that would spew out 20 litres a minute! I won’t get on the soapbox but the waste is so disappointing to see.
Upon departing Longreach we stopped at Winton to visit the Matilda Centre, Corfield and Fitzmaurice Building (Dinosaur Museum), and Tatts Hotel, where we had lunch.
The Matilda Centre offers an art gallery, quite of bit of information about the history and life of a swagman, a couple of holographic presentations with Australians of significance such as Slim Dusty, John Williamson, and Tommy Emanuel. Also featured was an audio presentation from Banjo Patterson re the song Waltzing Matilda and its history, as well as a brief biography about the life of Banjo Patterson. (Did you know that Waltzing Matilda has been recorded in over 500 versions by a very wide range of artists, including the Mormon Tabernacle Choir? How ‘bout that Banjo Patterson was a solicitor, journalist, war correspondent, and radio announcer?)

There is also an extensive array of exhibits from yesteryear, including a steam train, old tractors & equipment and 1 of only two “Jeffrey Quads”, a truck with 4 wheel drive, 4 wheel steering, and 4 wheel brakes. Pretty clever for its day…





The dinosaur exhibit was very interesting with the Winton area boasting the largest collection of dinosaurs in Australia, including Elliot and Dave. Elliot was a sauropod, the largest species found in Australia, (ref photo), while Dave was a sea dwelling creature with a very long neck that could have plucked a fisho from a boat with ease. (Wouldn’t that put you off deep sea fishing?) These critters were huge, with the part of the thigh bone in the museum shown next to a cow’s thigh bone and dwarfing it!



Lunch at Tatt’s was as terrific as the rumours say and filled us up for the long trip to the Blue Heeler Pub in Kynuna, where we spent the night, met some lovely people, and had a great meal. They still serve steaks that are platter sized and the atmosphere was very entertaining with the thousands of names penned on the walls over the decades, now including ours. This can be done for a small donation to the Royal Flying Doctor’s Service, so it goes to a great cause. (The next time you are through, you will see our names on the dining room wall about chest high.)
From there we went to Cloncurry, where the hottest weather in Australia has been recorded, guaranteeing us a warm welcome. This is where the rail head is so there is a lot of traffic in and out of there as it supports much of the freight traffic from Mount Isa.


Mount Isa is only a short hop further and it is a bustling town of about 27,000 residents. The area is booming since Xtrata took over the mine there and the residents there tell us that house prices have tripled there in the past two years! There were a couple of highlights in Mount Isa. Please see the pics of the crew at the Hard Times Mine and the sunset from the lookout on top of the hill. Shame about the smokestack in the pic but it wouldn’t be Mount Isa without it. We had dinner at the Buffalo Club (now just called Buffs) at the recommendation of a friend of mine who was just there 15 or so years ago. They also have an underground hospital in Mount Isa, in preparation for the attack from the Japanese that never came. (Ref pic of Mariah & Christian inside.)

From Mount Isa we headed further West, landing at the Barkly Homestead for the night. This is a long way from anywhere, 400+ km’s from Mount Isa and 200+ kms to Tennant Creek. That is one of the reasons they can charge $1.65 per litre for diesel and get away with it! It is a busy place with an interesting saloon adorned with a variety of "artwork", including a motorbike mounted on the wall! They also had a number of beautiful caged birds, including a "little corella" that Christian befriended. (Ref pic of him waving.)

Next week we are moving on to Tennant Creek, then to Alice Springs and are quite looking forward to seeing the “red centre” in person. Will be back to you then…