"Tomorrow I'll wake up and have breakfast. Half of Africa won't. Tell me, is that fair?"
Mick Malthouse (AFL football coach) responding to a question about Collingwood only having 6 days befoere they play the Adelaide Crows who will have 8 days break before the match).
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Geiki Gorge (Darnghu)
Along the track a number of folks commented on Geiki Gorge. For them it was a place well worth visiting. Having taken the short detour in to the gorge we agree.
After the Bungles Bungles we spent a couple of nights at Halls Creek, and checked out China Wall. The other sites recommended at the Visitor Centre were a few too many km's further along the unsealed road.
How one row of rocks is quartz, while the rest is the standard rust red of the area is one of those 'freaks of nature' (or the creativity of a quirky designer).
Another bit of creativity was evident with a photo friendly Gilberts Dragon.
The next day we made it to Fitzroy Crossing, and invested a day exploring Geiki Gorge. We plenty of time to explore, rest and read. Apart from taking the 2 km walk we also took to cruise - a one hour round trip along the Fitzroy River. During the wet the water running through the Gorge would fill Sydney Harbour in under a day - or that is the claim. Seeing the markers that reveal the various floods levels in the last 20 years I can believe it.
Easily accessible, and relatively cheap, the cruise up the gorge in the afternoon was well worth the wait.
After the Bungles Bungles we spent a couple of nights at Halls Creek, and checked out China Wall. The other sites recommended at the Visitor Centre were a few too many km's further along the unsealed road.
How one row of rocks is quartz, while the rest is the standard rust red of the area is one of those 'freaks of nature' (or the creativity of a quirky designer).Another bit of creativity was evident with a photo friendly Gilberts Dragon.
The next day we made it to Fitzroy Crossing, and invested a day exploring Geiki Gorge. We plenty of time to explore, rest and read. Apart from taking the 2 km walk we also took to cruise - a one hour round trip along the Fitzroy River. During the wet the water running through the Gorge would fill Sydney Harbour in under a day - or that is the claim. Seeing the markers that reveal the various floods levels in the last 20 years I can believe it.
Easily accessible, and relatively cheap, the cruise up the gorge in the afternoon was well worth the wait.
Bungle Bungles and Beyond
Australia's unique landscape is on show in the Kimberleys.
A day at the Bungle Bungles (a.k.a. Purnululu) was time and money well spent.Not having a 4WD a one day tour was a good option for us. Fourteen hours from go to whoa...with a 5.30 a.m. start it was a BIG day, but it was time well spent.
The road in was rough - and it took two hours to cover the 50 or so kilometers of unsealed road to the National Park. Corrugations, creek crossings, bulldust, and numerous corners and crests made driving slow, and wisely our hosts organised for morning and afternoon tea breaks to be taken along this road.
Echidna Chasm and Cathedral Cave were the two sites visited during the day, and we shared an excellent lunch in between the hours we spent walking underneath the hot sun.
What can you say about this area? A visit is really the only way to appreciate it...and our photos do not do it justice.If you get a chance to visit, do it.
We had no choice but to spend the money for an organised tour. Others who drove their 4WD's spoke about the challenge of the road, and more than a few have had to spent money on their vehicles AFTER driving them in the the park. Freedom to choose your own way comes with its own costs.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Welcome to the West
The trek West continues - and the weather remains warmer than is really comfortable. Estimates have this on target as the warmest August on record in this area. If you are living in a small caravan, with no air-con, it is not always comfortable. If you can find a swimming pool or safe water-hole it is OK.
Since hitting WA...
Lake Argyle - a magnificent man made lake that is over 10 times the size of Sydney Harbour.
We only saw one end, and that was big enough. The damming of the Ord River (and a couple of other smaller ones that I can't remember) has set the scene for the irrigation of a large fertile area of land. Ironically about 30% of it is now given over to sandalwood plantations.
Kununurra - centre of the Ord Irrigation area and downstream from Lake Argyle.
A smallish town with a two supermarkets and four large caravan parks. The sports arenas are green and lush, the rest of the town is a litle bit dry and dusty at this time of year (just like much of the rest of the area). The swimming pool and the Diversion Dam were well used while we were there, and Ivanhoe Crossing was an interesting place to visit. Unfortunately the large salty taht had been reported as camping aat the crossing wasn't in sight when we dropped in. We didn't bother to cross in our low slung 2WD,
especially as the other side was a 4WD track.
Around the town are a couple of neat look outs and a small national park. Ironically we saw more wildlife in of from the caravan park, including this friendly frill necked lizard, than we did anywhere else in the area.
Wyndham - the port town on the Cambridge gulf.
Magnificent views over the gulf from Five Rivers Lookout, and some neat bird and croc watching at Marglo Lagoon.
It is the closest I have been to a croc in the wild. The ones in the lagoon are freshies - and the birds didn't seem to be too worried by their presence.
In a small area of water we saw three, but there were a few more around I'm sure.
Add a jabiru, some spoonbills, egrets and assorted other birds and it was a nice way to spend the morning.
We took our time through this part of the world, and stopped at the Grotto on the way to Wyndham. A couple of water monitors sunning themselves made the climb down to the plunge pool worthwhile. Lack of flow at this time of year meant it was never going to be a swimming hole for us. It doesn't take too much imagination to figure out that it would be a very different place in the wet season.
We needed to fill in a few days before we shared in a birthday gift at Warmun (a.k.a. Turkey Creek), and managed to use up our time fairly easily....reading by the pool isn't really a difficult thing to do. Sure beats sitting around a heater in the middle of winter in Melbourne.
Since hitting WA...
Lake Argyle - a magnificent man made lake that is over 10 times the size of Sydney Harbour.We only saw one end, and that was big enough. The damming of the Ord River (and a couple of other smaller ones that I can't remember) has set the scene for the irrigation of a large fertile area of land. Ironically about 30% of it is now given over to sandalwood plantations.
Kununurra - centre of the Ord Irrigation area and downstream from Lake Argyle.
A smallish town with a two supermarkets and four large caravan parks. The sports arenas are green and lush, the rest of the town is a litle bit dry and dusty at this time of year (just like much of the rest of the area). The swimming pool and the Diversion Dam were well used while we were there, and Ivanhoe Crossing was an interesting place to visit. Unfortunately the large salty taht had been reported as camping aat the crossing wasn't in sight when we dropped in. We didn't bother to cross in our low slung 2WD,
especially as the other side was a 4WD track.Around the town are a couple of neat look outs and a small national park. Ironically we saw more wildlife in of from the caravan park, including this friendly frill necked lizard, than we did anywhere else in the area.
Wyndham - the port town on the Cambridge gulf.
Magnificent views over the gulf from Five Rivers Lookout, and some neat bird and croc watching at Marglo Lagoon. It is the closest I have been to a croc in the wild. The ones in the lagoon are freshies - and the birds didn't seem to be too worried by their presence.
In a small area of water we saw three, but there were a few more around I'm sure.
Add a jabiru, some spoonbills, egrets and assorted other birds and it was a nice way to spend the morning.We took our time through this part of the world, and stopped at the Grotto on the way to Wyndham. A couple of water monitors sunning themselves made the climb down to the plunge pool worthwhile. Lack of flow at this time of year meant it was never going to be a swimming hole for us. It doesn't take too much imagination to figure out that it would be a very different place in the wet season.
We needed to fill in a few days before we shared in a birthday gift at Warmun (a.k.a. Turkey Creek), and managed to use up our time fairly easily....reading by the pool isn't really a difficult thing to do. Sure beats sitting around a heater in the middle of winter in Melbourne.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Secrets to Keep
The next day was anti-climactic, with a few walks near the Gregory National Park, before a night at Big Horse Campground. There we caught up with our friends from Sullivans Creek - and spent a bit of time reminiscing over the events of the night and exchanging a few more details...... fortunately the night had no such dramas and we slept well.
Keep River National Park is one of the smallest parks in the territory, and a nice little spot about 20 kms off the main road. More walks, two more snakes spotted, and some magnificent scenery in this 'transition' area.
Now the rangers and wildlife experts tell you that snakes will hide when the hear us coming, and move to sanctuary. The first one did...the second one, a much larger black snake, seemed like he wanted to check out the tourists! I was walking behind Beth and was alongside this reptile before I spotted him sunning himself alongside the path - a whole 50 cms from where we had both walked. As Beth and I stopped a couple of meters away to check him out he thought he might just check us out! We kept on walking backwards for a while, as he weaved across the path watching us. None of my pictures of this snake are actually in focus, and I know why. Neither I nor the snake were still enough for long enough!
O what a night!
A bonfire, a series of 'midnight flits', and a visit from some of NT's finest This all took place at a peaceful roadside stop called Sullivans Creek, a nice little roadside stop run by NT Parks.
At dusk there were eight vans or campers at the stop, and we retired early, as is usual on the road. A few hours later we were awakened by some of our fellow travellers - who let us know they were moving on. One van had already left, and a couple of German tourists in a little hired Getz went as well. They all a little were scared! - for themselves and for their equipment.
While we had slept peacefully one fellow (a lone traveller) had continued drinking, and then began to behave in a bizarre fashion. He had prowled the campsite and then progressed to lighting fires, adding a dash of petrol, and enjoying the result. Those parked nearby took the decision that discretion was the better part of valour.
By the time I emerged from the van he had fires on each side of his own vehicle - a Ford van. Soon the fires had ignited the front of the guys own vehicle and nothing that was going to douse the flames. No reticulated water here, and the nearest fire brigade was about 180 kms away, and it was close to midnight.
Fortunately the night was still, and the fire did not go more than just a few feet. My next hour and a half was spent watching it burn, and chatting to an intoxicated owner who did not really seem to comprehend what had just taken place. Some aspects of the conversation were quite memorable - and quite sad as well.
I guess it was years of experience dealing with people with problems, but I never felt threatened. Then again I had not been around before he started lighting the fires, and our van was at least 75 metres from his, not just next door.
As we watched and talked the other campers all departed and it looked like I was going to be watching over this guy all night. He would not rest, and decided to walk to the next stop. Now I was worried that some poor truckie would find this guy in his headlights before he had time to stop! Aside from that Beth and I felt a little more at ease, but still not comfortable enough to sleep. We passed the time watching the fire die, and chatting quietly under the stars.
Just after 2 a.m. a vehicle stopped down the road some distance, and we could hear voices. Shortly after the police van rolled into Sullivans Creek, with our friend in the cage and two polite officers going about their duty.
Forty five minutes later they were on their way to Katherine to find some suitable accommodation for their guest, and maybe to get some rest themselves. It was at least another 45 minutes before we got back to sleep.
In the morning our policemen friends dropped in and tidied up the scene, before heading to their station at Timber Creek.
O what a night!
We were grateful that the first campers to leave took the time to call the police, that the police responded, and we were able to get a few hours sleep before the sun signalled the start of another day - hopefully with less drama than the last one.
At dusk there were eight vans or campers at the stop, and we retired early, as is usual on the road. A few hours later we were awakened by some of our fellow travellers - who let us know they were moving on. One van had already left, and a couple of German tourists in a little hired Getz went as well. They all a little were scared! - for themselves and for their equipment.While we had slept peacefully one fellow (a lone traveller) had continued drinking, and then began to behave in a bizarre fashion. He had prowled the campsite and then progressed to lighting fires, adding a dash of petrol, and enjoying the result. Those parked nearby took the decision that discretion was the better part of valour.
By the time I emerged from the van he had fires on each side of his own vehicle - a Ford van. Soon the fires had ignited the front of the guys own vehicle and nothing that was going to douse the flames. No reticulated water here, and the nearest fire brigade was about 180 kms away, and it was close to midnight.Fortunately the night was still, and the fire did not go more than just a few feet. My next hour and a half was spent watching it burn, and chatting to an intoxicated owner who did not really seem to comprehend what had just taken place. Some aspects of the conversation were quite memorable - and quite sad as well.
I guess it was years of experience dealing with people with problems, but I never felt threatened. Then again I had not been around before he started lighting the fires, and our van was at least 75 metres from his, not just next door.
As we watched and talked the other campers all departed and it looked like I was going to be watching over this guy all night. He would not rest, and decided to walk to the next stop. Now I was worried that some poor truckie would find this guy in his headlights before he had time to stop! Aside from that Beth and I felt a little more at ease, but still not comfortable enough to sleep. We passed the time watching the fire die, and chatting quietly under the stars.Just after 2 a.m. a vehicle stopped down the road some distance, and we could hear voices. Shortly after the police van rolled into Sullivans Creek, with our friend in the cage and two polite officers going about their duty.
Forty five minutes later they were on their way to Katherine to find some suitable accommodation for their guest, and maybe to get some rest themselves. It was at least another 45 minutes before we got back to sleep.In the morning our policemen friends dropped in and tidied up the scene, before heading to their station at Timber Creek.
O what a night!
We were grateful that the first campers to leave took the time to call the police, that the police responded, and we were able to get a few hours sleep before the sun signalled the start of another day - hopefully with less drama than the last one.
Back to Katherine
To head west from Darwin you have to head south.Time to shop, refuel, and find a spot to watch the footy...Crows vs. Collingwood. Aagh! Not enough goals when the pressure was on. Add to that a loss by Geelong, a last minute free and goal that gave the Lions a draw and the Crows are now looking squarely at an elimination final for the third year in a row!
Even in the dry it gets a bit warm here, so the next morning was the time to explore. A good walk to the bottom of the second gorge next day (it must have been about 8 kilometres or more) eliminated some of my pent up frustration - and we saw our first live snake of the season.Next day we began our trek west.
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