Awoke at 5am to our friendly (or not?) dingo family prowling and howling around our tent. Too squibby, or sensible to poke our heads out and see how many there were but I could discern at least 4 and it sounded like there were also pups in tow – either way they made quite a racket.
It was a freezing night so was hard to step out of our warm bed but we managed it and were breakfasted and heading to the canyon just a few minutes after sunrise.
Next big decision was which walk to do. After much examination of the routes and the relative difficulty warnings we decided on the south rim walk – rated as 4.8km moderate (sounded more like us than 6km extremely difficult in places). We will do the canyon floor walk tomorrow. Being a ‘rim’ walk the first 500m or so was pretty much straight up- a bit of scrambling involved and some narrow ledges but mostly one long rock staircase albeit uneven. It was another thing altogether coming down of course.
The climb was definitely worth it – with every new turn revealing another view, and there’s no doubt that when it comes to views, higher is better. David was in photography heaven – his only remit was no photos of me from behind as I scrambled over rocks.
Where, where, where, where’s Naomi? (image desc shows Naomi. Half hidden on rock face)
Image desc: shows stone steps leading up side of canyon with sheer drop
Image desc: sheer orange rock face looking down into canyon
Made it! (Image desc- Naomi hiking stick in hand looking gorgeous as usual standing at top of canyon)
After the walk and a quick lunch at the Thirsty Dingo Hotel (gotta love outback names) we managed to secure one impromptu spot on a helicopter flight over the canyon- David went due to his superior photography skills and my preference to keep my feet on the ground. It was over in just a few minutes but he did the pictures proud.
Image Des- aerial photo of large red desert with canyon ridge in the distance
Image desc: aerial view directly down on canyon
Dinner once again at the Kings Creek Station eatery, at 5 with all the others needing to dive back to camp before sunset.
Naomi disguised on steps of Kings Creek Station general store tucking into caeser salad
Said goodbye to both Ruth and Uluṟu this morning (at least for now) and started on the next leg of our adventure – to Kings Canyon.
We left Ayer’s Rock Resort at around 10.30 after inhaling one last ‘real’ coffee. It was about a 300 km drive- on tarmac but narrow with few places to stop.
We did find a place to pull over and photograph Mount Connor- yet another large table-like rock looming purple out of nowhere.
And of course we stopped for a brief roadside picnic. But otherwise it was full steam ahead.
The landscape was much more vegetated and undulating than we expected (we had expected uninterrupted red earth expanses).
Arrived at Kings Creek station (beef & camel farm) around 2pm. The station seems to be the gathering place for the whole region. The general store is the only one within 330k and the only fuel source.
After checking in to our tented camp – beautiful canvas sided cabins with mesh sides to keep things cool- we set off on our first walk. Picked a shorty – 3.5km return to to Catherine Springs-as we had to be back to the general store for dinner and then back to our tent by sunset (rental cars are only insured to drive between sunrise and sunset here).
Dinner (at 5pm) was a chicken burger the size of Texas – decided I couldn’t go the camel burger when all its buddies were calling to me over the fence.
Am now sitting on the verandah of our tent with the sun gone down and a glass of red to ward off the looming cold listening to the howls of a pack of what we think are dingos. Definitely zipping the tent tonight.
No early sunrise, slept in and headed off on the dot of 9am to explore Kata Tjuṯa (formerly the Olga’s).
First glimpse of Karta Tjuta purple in the morning light
The ‘don’t risk your life’ sign was a bit off-putting but there’s safety in numbers and there were three of us so….
Took the falsely named ‘easier walk’ to the Waḻpa Gorge. A lot of mountain goating required but thankfully no ankle injuries- the hiking poles did their job.
A relatively easy, flat start- what could possibly go wrong?
Flush with success we went on to the supposedly harder Valley of the Winds walk which was a cinch – at least to the first lookout- after seeing the steep rock face to the second we bailed.
Home for a quick regroup we put on all the clothes we owned – on top of r leach other- and off to the posh dinner (our one indulgence of the trip). Picked up from our hotel at 5. First stop was bubbles and canapés at the rock at sunset, followed by three course fine dining under the desert stars. Menu included most of the wildlife Aus has to offer, infused with lemon myrtle, wattle-seed, saltbush and the like.
We were treated to live didgeridoo and a guided star gazing session. But by far the most magical part of the night was walking through the field of lights- a light installation by Bruce Munro (British artist) which is literally an enormous field of 55,000 solar LED lights. Amazing!
Another 5.40 alarm this morning to join the procession out to the rock to watch the sunrise. Some of the most spectacular views were from the car on the way there- we had underestimated the time it would take us to get through the park gates etc. But even with the sun almost up the rock was magnificent.- changing colour with each new ray of light.
Just to prove we were there
From there we struck an early start to the Ularu base walk. When driving to the Mala carpark to the start off the walk we put our sun visas down to shield our eyes from the rising sun- only to have a MASSIVE spider drop in my lap. After not too much screaming we realised it was plastic! No doubt left by the very cheeky previous car renters!
EEK!
After brief CPR, two (N&D) set off on the base walk while the other (R) did the two waterhole walks. ironically we all ended up doing the same number of steps.
It was amazing getting up so close to the rock and definitely worth the 3.5 hour walk.
Amazing textures up close
I knew I had long legs in an alternate universe
This rock looked a bit like an elephants face
Bush fuschia- so delicate
You can’t really capture the scale of these sheer rock faces
Came back mid-afternoon to join the free didgeridoo lesson in the town square.. only males were allowed to actually play a didgeridoo due to cultural taboos but undeterred Ruth and I blurted our lips and managed to make a better sound than many of those that actually had a didgeridoo.
Determined not to let a second of the day go to waste we did a quick turnaround and headed back to the rock for sunset. We joined a cast of thousands all vying for prime position armed with cameras and tritrpods. Sadly the sun didn’t show her colours tonight but we had great photos nonetheless.
Some people will do anything to get a good view
We realised after the guy who took this photo was more interested in featuring his own camera equipment!
Honestly there’s no such thing as too many photos of this thing!
Finished the day once again with our baked potato all you can eat feast at the Outback hotel with follow up dessert in the poolside restaurant at our hotel from the ridiculous to the sublime.
Five- thirtywake up and after a seamless ride to the airport arrived 2.5 hours early and joined the long wait for our flight (which ended up being delayed a further 1 1/2 hours).
Bright and fresh and ready to go
Eventually got on the plane and left Ruth in her palatial Row 1 seat while David and I languished with the masses in the southern-most corners of the plane.
David and I napped our way through the flight while Ruth chatted up the young 27yo next to her who said he had been working towards visiting the rock for 20 years. He couldn’t quite fathom our collective 180+ years of waiting.
Landed in Yulara around 2, picked up our vehicle (sadly not the cute little 2 door Jeep but the way more sensible Mitsubishi parked next to it).
We’re staying at Sails in the desert- beautiful spot with the nicest and most welcoming staff we’ve encountered in a long while.
Capitalised on the free local shuttle bus to stock up on breakfast supplies, finally got our first look at the rock at the Naninga Lookout a short climb up from the AR campground.
Looking magnificent even from 20k away
And Kata Tjuṯa (the Olga’s) on display
Then on to the Outback Hotel /youth hostel where we have just partaken on the all you can eat baked potato and salad bar under the enormous canopy of the outdoor bar. Definite outback vibe here.
The place is filling up fast with live music due to start any minute. The staff are lighting gas heaters so it seems the desert freeze is about to roll in.
Hearty food, puffa jackets, wine and music – all bases covered!
Well got to almost 6-oh before attending a music festival and so glad this was on my bucket list. No internet or phone at Mundi Mundi so no real time blog posts possible. I’ll try to capture the essence…here goes…
Roll in… joined the long convoy out of BH to the bash. CB radio was buzzing with excitement. Took about 2 hours to do the 20 k into the Mundi Mundi Station ((most on the last 1k).
Plenty of time to get out and look around
Our site- we were allocated a great site, right on a pathway to the main action which meant it was near impossible to get lost (phew) but also a bit like a fish bowl to the passing foot traffic, most of whom stopped for a chat or to comment on what we were cooking. Definitely can’t step out in our undies to make morning coffee (of course I do that all the time- not!). But provided us with great entertainment in the late evening as the lost souls go by again….and again… looking for their sites in the dark.
Our little set up
The people– the general demographic is a mix of people our age or olderr and young families- kids everywhere on bikes – total absence of teens who either don’t want be seen dead with all these oldies or can’t miss school. Everyone extremely chatty- feels a bit like old home week.
Cowboy hats, flannel shirts and bluestones are mandatory attire regardless of gender (I tick 2 of the three two boxes).
Just after competing in the Nutbush World Record Attempt
The food– we had the best intentions to cook each night, and did a couple, but with main gig between 4 & 8.30 this made firing up the camp stove difficult. Food vans were way better than expected great (almost) healthy options and GF- all hallaciously expensive but hey- we’re in the outback.
The facilities– hmmm what can I say here- no running water & composting/long drop style toilets- I’ll leave the rest to the imagination but let’s just say I learned very quickly not to look back as some things just can’t be unseen! Dettol wipes were our friend! And apart from a brief few minutes where I found myself locked in a less than sanitary cubicle (thank heavens there were people outside to wrench the lock open)- all pretty straight forward although definitely not the highlight of the experience.
Walls literally paper thinHmmmm – bot sure about the validity of this promose
Music- sensational from start to finish- from the back ups through to the main draws- there’s something about watching live music under the outback sky- even if it does leave you coated in red dust!
Quite a backdrop
Our particular favourites were Casey Chambers and Jon Stevens. The Ouls were- well, The Oils and in a particularly political form as you no doubt heard in the news. Jimmy Barnes made our ears bleed and of course Bjorn Again released my inner Abba. By the end of each day we literally fell into bed exhausted. Most mornings woke up to ice on the tent.
Roll out looked like it was going to be uneventful until we tried to turn over the engine and found our battery was dead flat- but hey, you’re never short of solutions when you’re around serious 4WD’ers. Went over to the camp site with the the biggest 4WD we could see and before we could say ‘Jack Robinson’ they were at our site jumper leads in hand.
Took about an hour to get off the station and on the road to start the long journey home- can’t believe our holiday is coming to an end.
Spending the night in Curlwaa- a small town on the Murray that happens to have a little caravan park with hot showers and flushing toilets! Bliss!
The trip from Orroroo to Broken Hill was long (just over 300k), flat and pretty much uninterrupted desert views. A couple of tiny towns along the way – and we stopped in one (Olay) for a tostie at the pub – but really an excuse to use the facilities(along with nearly every other caravan/camper making the trek) . The publican told us he bought the pub 6 months ago which had closed 6 years earlier. I’d say it is pretty much as it was when he bought it but he said he has been flat out since he opened feeding and watering the passing travellers. We passed loads of roadworks en route- they’re widening the road to accomodate road trains- so the next journey may not be so pleasant.
We arrived in BH just after 1pm but took almost an hour to get into the camp ground with the general mayhem of mass arrivals. Volunteers are working overtime to keep things on track (I suspect the whole town is involved). We are finally settled at pre- bash camping at the Broken Hill race course. Nestled on the grass under the shelter of the heritage (and soon to be renovated) grand stand we are a little away from the masses in caravans but close enough to hear the buzz. A climb to the top of the stand gave an indication of how many will be in the early-entry convoy tomorrow. We have done the absolute minimum unpack- just opened up enough to get in to the bed, hoping to make it a speedy getaway in the morning.
Have done a once around the town and clearly this is somewhere we need to come back to with dedicated time – there is so much history and loads of art galleries – including the Pro Hart gallery- none of which are open today (Monday), so they’ll have to either be at the end or next time. Did buy myself two western shirts from a shop called Sitting Bull- great fabrics that hopefully I’ll still want to wear at home but I’ll definitely look the part as I boot scoot my way through the next couple of days.
The Street names in BH get this old chemist’s juices flowing as we gradually weave our way around the periodic table – silver, sulphide, chloride, bromide and so forth.
Now sitting in the dark outside our tent listening to two competing playlists from neighbouring vans that somehow don’t seem to clash., and a teenage girl sitting in the grandstand talking to her mates on her mobile (I’m learning lots). Might need the ear plugs tonight.
I internet from here on in – so it will be a case of what happens at Broken Hill stays at Broken Hill.
After a heavy nights rain we awoke to clearer skies so set off determined to make the most of our last day at Wilpena.
Started with the Arkaroo rock walk. This relatively short walk was nonetheless a test for the lungs (going up)and the legs (coming down)- was glad to have the ankle brace in place as we negotiated the loose rock surfaces on the way down.
A real mountain woman!
Arkaroo rock, or Akurra Adnya is an aboriginal rock shelter containing ochre and charcoal drawings- amazingly preserved – a bit of an indictment on humans that they need to be kept behind bars but a privilege to be able to visit this important site.
After the long scramble down we did the Bunyeroo Gorge scenic drive on the way back.
Cooked a sensational (if I may say so myself) chicken risotto on the camp oven last night- or perhaps it just tasted delicious because we were starving.
Yummier than it looks
Was a gorgeous calm and clear evening and perfect for a campfire and star gazing.
Sunday
Woke up/packed up before the sun showed her face and started the journey over to Broken Hill.
The morning view from our porch
At every stop we’ve run into ‘Bashers’ en route (shoot me if I ever use the term to describe myself!). Now feeling a mixture of excitement and trepidation of what’s to come never having been to one of these events.
We’ve stooped for the night in a little caravan park in Orroroo – a gorgeous and thriving little town full of sandstone cottages about 300k west of Broken Hill. It’s our last chance to stock up with food before BH. We’ve been careful not to buy any fruit mind you, in anticipation of the full body search that our number plate will invoke as we exit SA.
And now- confession…….. with a healthy slice of of guilt we’ve booked into a cabin – albeit very rudimentary! Decided we needed a good shower and to reorganise the car/gear etc before heading into 5 days without showers, heaters or creature comforts. A cop out I know- now looking at the 12inch TV wondering whether to turn on the news or not….
Woke up to a very different view this morning, wind had subsided but light rain had set in enveloping the ranges in thick cloud.
We set off for Wilpena Pound determined to still do our walk – or at least one of us (DB) was. But by the time we got there the mist had turned to solid rain and the visitor info centre were advising people not to walk as paths were too slippery. ….. bummer…
So headed off on a drive instead.
Drove north back up towards Blinman again but this time on the other side of the ranges (last time we’d cut across through one of the gorges). While it was tarmac all the way already water was starting to accumulate in the dips in the road- we could see how flash flooding could sneak up quickly in this area. Driving past the entrance to the road to Arkaroola we saw some of the roads were showing ‘closed’ signs- so good decision to leave early the other day (mind you I can think of worse places to be stuck)!
Resisted the call of the Blinman pie shop for lunch and instead opted for the pub this time. Very quirky quintessential outback pub- old, rusty roofed, and like a rabbit warren inside and relying totally on alcohol consumption for warmth- we kept our puffas on. Food was hearty. I broke my ‘never eat seafood of you’re more than 200 k from the water’ rule and ordered the salt and pepper squid- which was yummy despite its 1000km journey o get to me. And it came with a lovely bowl of fresh salad- fresh greens aren’t easy to get up this way so nice to have the crunch
As we drove back the rain and cloud cleared as suddenly as it had come so we were able to navigate the tracks up to a couple of lookouts – it’s impossible to get sick of the views here.
Cloud literally liftingSo-called wall of chin (camera cant do it justice)parked on top of the word
And because today was more about the food than anything else we glammed up (which means damp cloth to the middy Blundstones, putting a scarf on top of my black merino undershirt and brushing my hair) and went to the woodshed for dinner. A beautiful fine dining restaurant (this one with roaring fires) set in the heart of the station we are staying on – I’ll spare you the blow by blow details of what we ate but let’s just say we will need to walk a few miles tomorrow.
Drove the couple of k back to our tent at about 20k/hr with kangaroos zinging left and right- managed to avoid them all thankfully (we are meeting plenty of people who have been less lucky).
Now back in our tent- curled up in our warm bed listening to the rain teaming down once more but the locals assure us it will be clear tomorrow.
Spent the night feeling like we were in the bowels of a sailing ship- rocking side to side, canvas flapping and poles creaking. But woke up in one piece although a little sleep deprived (me). Of course David slept like a log as always oblivious to it all.
Short drive only today from Hawker to Rawnsley Park Station.
Gorgeous views just outside of hawker
We are off grid camping at Rawnsley and sites are beautifully secluded. While neighbours are probably about 30m away you have to look to find them.
Set up camp in gorgeous sunshine and howling gales- took a couple of times to get the direction right so we didn’t become airborne in the process.
Our little pach
We have absolutely million dollar views from our ‘front porch’,
Uninterrupted view from our camp site
Too windy for a fire tonight but upside is that washing has dried in 3 minutes flat- although David’s jeans did do a turn around the neighbourhood.
David just dashed down to the little store before it closes to see if they sell guy ropes – thinking we may need some extra tonight. Meanwhile I’m brewing coffee and plotting out our walks for the morning. It’s due to rain tomorrow but we’ve decided we’ll walk anyway- let’s see if our resolve holds in the face of reality!
