Oz is big, really big.......keep the
quote going....but maybe substitute a milk bar and chicko roll in
there. It really is a vast country and we can see but a small part of
it. But let's get things in order.
We did go to the pub. It WAS a scream.
Trevor the owner (of the whole town) upgraded us to a
suite.......really a bigger tin can in the desert......Rose the
indomitable bar maid complained about everything but made sure we had
cool drinks and our meal was to our liking, the other guests were
also interesting.......the Sydney couple who got bogged on the track
and stayed an extra night.......the motor bike riders going Melbourne
Darwin, one of whom blew up his brand new BMW, the tough looking guy
from Ferntree Gully going back to visit his opal mining mates with
his dog 'feather duster' and his silent step son, John and Jane on a
three month trek out of Katherine....... I actually had three beers,
Marjan only had one but here, in this place, at this time it would
have been a travesty NOT to have a beer. Especially as Trevor played
it all up by playing Slim Dusty.......several times. The cook was
late, she was on a flight back from Coober Pedy that had taken out
some Japanese girls. When asked if she had been shopping, she
answered
'Nah! Visiting my parole officer.”
None of us doubted the veracity of her statement. Anyway we had a
really nice meal, and we booked a flight to Lake Eyre with Matt the
pilot and handyman. He and Trevor were working into the night. They
ended up moving us because there was a smell in our room. Turned out
to be a rabbit fallen into the septic and rotting.
When we woke though, and went to the
airfield at 7:00am, there was Matt, taxiing, fuelling and cleaning
the aircraft. John and Jane had joined us for the flight and Trevor
had decided that we should also see the Painted Hills, so had
extended the flight for us. Off we went.
Lake Eyre is big, really
big.........The entire 1:30 hour flight , except whilst over the
lake, was over Anna Creek Station. It is apparently about the size of
Israel and can carry 30,000 cattle, but currently only 14,000 with 14
staff. Anna Creek is big......really big. Anyway we got to the
Painted Hills and silently thanked Trevor for taking over our
itinerary. Truly stunning, every colour of the yellow to red palette.
Apparently the station keeps the place quiet to protect it and the
only way currently to see it is by air. When we got out of the plane,
Marjan, who had come along because I wanted to do this, merely said
“Wow!”. Trevor shouted us a coffee whilst we got fuel and
ice......and off we went. Bye William Creek, population 12, outback
hospitality 100.
The road was still marked as 4WD only
but we were determined, so off we went.
An early highlight was some red dunes.
Really red red dunes though, not just reddy brown, or yellow with a
little orange. I mean red. The road was a lot better than yesterday
and we were making a little headway. Unfortunately this patch has
less to see. I mean how many old railway sidings, ruins, red sand
dunes, red claypans , water courses and gibber fields can you stop
at.
Slowly the road got challenging again
and Marjan ground her teeth a little. It really was hard work,
concentrating on the road. Apart from it being rocky or sandy, there
are innumerable dips, creeks, watercourses and floodways. Whilst the
odd one was simple, many were a challenge in finding the right line
to keep from swamping or bogging the car. Not quite as challenging as
yesterday, but after the first half hour it was hard work. At one
point we did 30Km in 65 minutes.
We did manage to find a lovely picnic
spot near one of the bigger creeks, overlooking some water and the
Algebuckina Bridge. This is one of the few bridges on the old Ghan
that was never washed away. This is because it is about 600m long and
covers the whole of the creek floodway. The iron was forged in
Scotland and shipped out. Anyway, whilst there we saw pelicans,
spoonbills, whistling kites, avocets and a bunch of other birds
enjoying the temporary water.
Back on the road and some more creek
crossing, muddy slides etc Did I tell you that OZ is big? It really
really is. Did I tell you it has got hot? 37C. How much water is
enough? A lot.
We got into Oodnadatta, after quite a
long muddy crossing just out of town, some time after three. We had
had a few breaks along the way, the lunch break would have been close
to an hour, but we were on the road from 9 till 3 to cover 200km. I
think seeing the countryside here after rain is awesome, but truly
hard work. I suspect a 4WD may have made it simpler, but we met one
couple in a 4WD that had been bogged for four hours till they got
pulled out. He just took the wrong line. It was a spot we found a bit
hairy as well. We must have got lucky and the bog had dried a bit in
24 hours.
If that sounds like a whinge,
sorry......I do not mean it that way. This is magnificent country. We
feel privileged to see it. But we are dog tired when we get in of an
afternoon. I have been writing this in bed at the Oodnadatta's famous
Pink Roadhouse, lying under the air-conditioner. We really do not
have the energy to look around town. Mostly closed anyway as it is
Sunday. The only dinner on is at the roadhouse at 5:30 because they
close at 6 and the pub is closed on Sundays as it is an aboriginal
run establishment.
We were a little enlivened by a bunch
of good news from home. Love you all.
Marjan mentioned that aerial views reminded her of aboriginal paintings. I tricked this one up a bit to illustrate her observation
We did not really shoot the mud or creek crossings...too busy doing it. However, one of Marjan scraping off inches of mud after a crossing back at the tree line behind the car.....dry here, absolute bog back 200 metres.
and when the bog dried it made patterns
