Streaky Bay and onwards…..

We’ve been on the road for six months now.  At times, it seems like it, but mostly it doesn’t feel like it at all.  This trip is something we’ve been wanting to do for so long and I’m still pinching myself.  I don’t know what we did in the previous life to deserve this, but I for one, am very grateful.

The beauty of this country never ceases to amaze me.  Today we were scouting Streaky Bay and came across these things…

These monoliths are called Murphy’s Haystacks.  They sit all by themselves on the top of a hill in the middle of somebody’s paddock.  Of course, the original owner was Murphy, but I’m not sure who owns these now.

A colony of sea lions at Point Labatt.  Col counted around 50 of them.  Most were asleep, but there were a few who still wanted to have fun and a bit of a swim.

 

A Frilly neck lizard, who was very bold and letting us know that we were not welcome at his house.

 

 

 

Granite boulders in the azure blue sea.

 

 

 

 

Streaky Bay is a small fishing village discovered in the mid 1800’s.  The town was named after the bay itself.  The rugged beauty is awesome and the native wildlife is abundant.  We were fortunate in that the cloudy mornings usually gave way to a bright clear afternoon.

I also recently discovered some photos that didn’t get uploaded from Flinder’s Ranges.  One included a Yellow Footed Rock Wallaby, who is normally very shy and protected by the park agencies. 

And,.. I now no longer have a problem with upload restrictions, so there will be more photos on the “SLIDESHOW” link at the right.  I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I have enjoyed taking them.

Stopover in Port Augusta and then on to the Nullabour.

It doesn’t seem that long ago that we were in Coober Pedy waiting for that part to arrive.  Waiting for 9 days.  And now look.  We’ve made it through the opal fields, through the desert, flew over Lake Eyre, wandered around the Flinder’s Ranges and here we are, back in Port Augusta.

The caravan has been washed inside ( finally ) and out.  The mud has been washed away from the car.  And tomorrow we re-stock the larder for the next leg of our journey.

Heading over to the Nullabour Plains, we’ll cover more scrub, more paddocks of dry grass, a few more ruins, and then the great Nullabour itself.

These past two weeks have been great.  I really loved the Flinder’s Ranges and could have stayed there a bit more, but with limited time now, we needed to be on our way.  We discussed that this was something to see again, and we’ve thought about coming back on the Canning Stock route trip. (2010)  So with that thought in mind, we pulled into Port Augusta today.

The sun finally made a showing today as well.  But with the sun, came the cold winds, coming up from the Antarctic.  The temperatures falling to around 10C/52F at night.  As it’s only autumn at the moment, it makes me realize that winter is on it’s way and we’ll be heading further south.  The flannel sheets have come out, along with the heavy doona, and the heater.  But somehow, I don’t think I’ll ever be prepared for what’s about to hit us.

Today as we came in to Port Augusta, we saw some Corellas.  There must have been close to 1000 birds.  Flying low in a waving path across the hills.  It was the most unusual thing I’ve seen in a long time.

If you look closely, you’ll notice that the birds in the background are moving in a pattern as they fly very close to the ground heading over the hills.  Most unusual.

Anyway, it’s getting late in the evening and we’ve a big day ahead, so I’ll bid you adieu.

An “Off-roader’s” Paradise…

yesterday we headed off to a place called Willow Springs.  Chris was talking to a young couple and they couldn’t say enough about it.  So we decided to head out over there to have a look.  We also had another couple join us, Ross and Elaine, in their Toyota Landcruiser.

Willow Springs Station has 70,000 acres of ground in the beautiful Flinder’s Ranges.  They opened they’re property up in 1995 for those who enjoy four wheel driving.  The track takes roughly six hours to complete, so you need to remember to bring some food and water with you.  There is a fee that you pay at the Caretaker’s house, and you’re given a map to follow the trail around the property.  So we passed through the gate and headed out.

The roads at this stage weren’t too bad as we followed the ravine with the large white gums.

 

 

 

Because this is a working station, you come across herds of sheep in between gates on the property.  Number one rule, is to remember to shut the gates!

 

Moxan’s hut.  Before the current family bought this property in ‘52, there used to be a permanent sheep herder living in this hut.  Dirt floors and mud filled walls, and camp beds.  There was even a fire place for cooking with a meat storage locker close by.  Notice in the back ground the out house?..this is still available for the public.

And of course, in the bush, there’s abundant wildlife.  Here is an eagle’s nest.  We could some a couple of them flying high on the updrafts, but there wasn’t anybody home today.

 

The mountains ran along each side of us as the trail snaked it’s way through the ravines and valleys.

 

 

 

And as we made our way out of the canyon, the road turned into a “serious” off road experience.  The road became a bed of rocks that looked more like a goat track.

We climbed to the top of the mountains where the vista was magnificent.  The only thing to spoil the view was a lack of sun to bring  out the spectacular colour display that you would normally see.

 

Even though the weather turned in the afternoon, this track was extremely fun.  We all as a group, decided that this was a place to be revisited, except on a SUNNY day next time.

For those who enjoy some serious off roading? THIS is TRULY a wonderful and magical place. 

The Flight over Lake Eyre

Well, we had our flight over Lake Eyre yesterday afternoon.  The lake was massive.  But the thing that struck me, was the land, having been under ocean millions of years ago, looked like it was just emptied last month.  You can see where the water has drained and dried up in puddles.  Last year in July when we saw Lake Eyre last, it was a lake of white salt.  Now, with the waters coming down from the northern part of the continent, the lake fills up, turning what was once white, into a brown colour. 

And the sky yesterday was filled with clouds which reflected on the water’s surface.  This making it difficult to distinguish what was up or down.  The horizon sometimes disappearing.

 

 

 

 

We saw pelicans there on some of the islands getting ready for their mating season.  There were a few hundred, but many more will come as the waters fill the lake.

 

Our flight ended a little after 5pm.  So once finished, we left William Creek heading towards Coward Springs.  But we didn’t get very far, as Col’s radiator hose had a sprung a leak.  So ten kilometres out of William Creek, we stopped for the night.

 

 

 

 

 

And this morning, we’re all up early as we have a long day’s drive ahead of us.  So with that in mind, I better grab a bowl of cereal so we can be on our.

We made it to William Creek.

We pulled up in front of the pub at William Creek and the billowing dust settled back down.  Chris went in to organize a couple of nights at the caravan park and I waited for him in the car away from the flies that accost you each time you step out.

We settled the van into our spot opposite Col and Margaret.  When I opened the van door, the sight that met my eyes was depressing.  The van looked like it had aged 50 years.  There was an inch of red dust on EVERYTHING.

My first response was to sit down and cry, but when I sat on the cushion, a cloud of red dust met my nose and the sneezing bout started. Then,  i didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

i started cleaning one of the cupboards, but gave up when i realized that there’s a lot more dusty road to cover yet.  The dust was still coming in from the door, still coming in from the back window. …and still coming in from the hatch.  And we found a new spot in the bathroom as well.

So between the dust and the super affectionate flies, we’re trying to prove how capable we really are.  We’ve donned our hats with the nets for outside work and armed ourselves with fly spray for the inside jobs.

Chris is busy trying to “FIX” all the holes where the dust is coming in, while trying to keep his wife humoured and still in a good mood.  I’m trying to be philosophical about it as well, but the sand and grit in my teeth is starting to get to me.  We have steaks ordered at the pub tonight and the air flight ordered for Monday.  So we’ll be here for a couple of days and with that thought in my mind, I might clean up gradually as needed.  Like washing  up some glasses, so we can have a drink.

It’s HERE!!! Yeah!

Do you hear that?   That ringing is the bells we have on as we leave Coober Pedy.

Now, don’t get me wrong.  Coober Pedy is a VERY interesting place, but you can cover the whole town in 3 days.  So when we were forced into staying here for 9 day while waiting for that hitch to arrive, it became a bit much.  Let’s face it.  There’s really not much to do here in the small town of Coober Pedy.  There’s no parks, no malls, no cinemas…BUT!  They DO have LOTS of Opal shops! 

But it’s all behind us now.  We’re continuing our journey on to William Creek.  There’s a possibility we’ll be offline for a couple of days.  But we’ll see.

Gotta go!

Another day…..yes,(sigh)..in Coober Pedy.

Okay, here we are, wondering if we’re ever going to leave Coober Pedy.  The part that Chris is waiting on, is still yet to arrive.  He came back from the Post Office this morning  with his head hanging.  And Margaret and I both started unpacking for another day.

At morning tea we started talking about when the package SHOULD arrive and what to do if it DOESN’T arrive again.  We’re now talking about camping out at William Creek and leaving the vans here.  However, with rain predicted any day now, it’s probably not a good idea either.    So we’ll leave that for another option.

                                                             

Chris and I both took a ‘day’ trip around the “hood”.   Not much happening out there as we drove …and drove….and drove.  But, it cleared our heads and made us feel better.

Shall we go on to Oodnadatta today?…okay maybe not.  It’s a bit far. (around 300klms)

So we headed back to the van to wait the day out.  Resigning ourselves to the fact that another day is passing by.  Chris continued reading his book and I played on the computer and even fitted a “nanny” nap in.

Well, tomorrow is another day.  Keep our fingers crossed and hope for the best.  Otherwise, we’re going to have to look at different alternatives. 

To leave or not to leave,..that is the question.

We’re now on D-day in the desert.  Has the part arrived?  As we wait in anticipation, we’re watching others who came in last night towing boats.  They’re already packing up this morning, heading somewhere.  And with our noses plastered to the Perspex windows, we watch longingly as the last of their crew drive off, hoping against hope that we too will be able to leave today.

So we’ve started packing up like we really ARE leaving.  (How’s that for positive thinking?)  We have to wait for the mail bus to come in at 10:30 to find out.  Otherwise, it could be another night in Coober Pedy.

To pass the time away, we’ve been reading books, playing on the computer, and sipping Iced Tea.  Or just making excuses to go into town to the local petrol station, come grocery shop, come hardware shop, come electric shop, come plumbing shop, come stationary shop, come post office. Oh! and don’t forget opal shop!

We even had a smidgen of rain yesterday which in itself wasn’t so bad, but it was the dust that came in behind it as the winds picked up.  But it only lasted for a minute or two.  “Well, (clapping the dust off my hands) that’s the end of our rainstorm”.  But in reality, we really don’t want to be here if it seriously rained.  We’d be stuck for days as the roads would turn into a quagmire of mud.  There’s only one bitumen road and that’s the main street itself.  All of the other roads are dirt, including the one heading out to William Creek and Lake Eyre.

So in the meantime, as Chris packs up what he can on the outside, I’ve packed up the inside.  I might have a cuppa while we wait.

The natives are getting restless….

We’ve been in Coober Pedy for five days now.   it only took three days to see what Coober Pedy had to offer.  And that included looking at opals, checking out the mines and underground houses.

But today being Easter Monday, we’re starting to get bored while waiting for this part to arrive.  I’m hoping it will be here by Wednesday.  Tuesday would be better, but it’s due on Wednesday.

We’re all down to reading books at the moment and watching B-grade movies.

We’ve also missed the last few nights for the sunset, but tonight!  we made it!  And what a sunset it was.

We got there early this evening as we donned our hats and nets to ward the flies off.  And they were thick tonight too.

 

 

Col, our friend who’s travelling with us, put his thermometer outside to check the temperature.  It got to 62 degrees C.  which is about 125 deg. F.  Well,…in fact it really wasn’t QUITE that hot.  It did get around 33 today.  The cool breeze helps, but there’s a stifling heat here.  I made Iced Tea this morning and some cornbread.  My favourite for a hot summer day.  The tea was refreshing.

I washed clothes while Chris put water in our tanks.  And then we picked up some more groceries for the next few days.  So we’re set to go as soon as that part arrives.

The desert has a certain beauty to it as you will see when you click on “More Photos” in the right hand column.   Enjoy.

A tour in Coober Pedy.

Margaret and I headed off to the office yesterday morning to book our tour for Sunday.  However, they DID have a tour available that started at two o’clock in the afternoon.  So we opted for that, considering that was the hottest part of the day and we weren’t really doing anything.

So at 2pm we headed off by Coaster bus to learn about opals and the general local knowledge.  Our driver was not only a local, but he had been a miner for 12 years before injuring himself. 

Our first stop was the jewellery shop, so he could show us all the different aspects of opals.  After our demonstration, we headed out to see the area.

 

Our first stop,..the local golf course.  For those who enjoy a game of golf, an 18 hole golf course in the middle of the desert.  It’s also sponsored by the St. Andrews golf club in Scotland.  Once again, water is at a premium here, so artificial turf is used for tee offs.  You’re given a piece of it to hang around your neck for those tee offs.

If you look quickly, you could almost be forgiven for thinking that these look like pyramids.

A shaft is driven down to create a hole where they then start blasting their way through the dirt.

This is the ‘Noodle” machine which sifts through those mounds of rubble that’s sitting above ground.  None of the holes are filled once they’ve completed.  Each of the holes created are an “asset” for the miners, so they never fill them in.

We’re sitting on top of the Breakaways.  Similar to the “Painted Hills”, this area was once covered by ocean millions of years ago.

 

 

Sacred Aboriginal land, this place is called Two Dingoes.  A white one and a brown one. 

 

It doesn’t show up well here, but this is one of the underground houses used.  This is a 3 bedroom place and if you go downstairs you can continue mining your claim.

 

These steps were created underneath the above loungeroom.  A catacomb of caves were down here for mining more opal.

Most of the buildings here are underground.  there are a few above ground, but for the 25% above ground, there’s another 75% underground.

Truly one of a kind, this Serbian Orthodox church is the ONLY underground church in the world.

Made by the locals, whose artistry is comparable to the architecture of Old World cathedrals.

The man who carved these pictures had cancer and managed to finish them before he passed.  The arched ceiling giving wonderful acoustics for the singers.  And as with many churches, the sense of peace you get when you enter is magical.

We ended the day with a stopover at the local underground hotel whereby the driver “shouted” (bought) us with drinks.  It was a wonderful end to a really great tour.

Here we are in beautiful downtown Coober Pedy.

Here we are in beautiful downtown Coober Pedy.  Home of the Australian Opal, where water is at a premium price, along with petrol.  And almost every business is for sale. 

 

And then there’s the flies.  One of the locals told Chris,” don’t kill one, cause a thousand will come to the funeral” in that slow country drawl.  Reprieve of the flies occurs in the early morning hours and dusk.

We’ll be staying here for a week while we wait for a part to arrive via Melbourne.  In the meantime,  we’ll take a tour of the town, a tour of a mine shaft, and wander around a few shops.

Books are plentiful, and we have many DVD’s we haven’t seen yet.  Siestas are the order of the day as the temperatures soar to 39 deg. C in the sun. (out of the sun 29 deg.C)

It’s amazing to see the locals living under the ground, as they enclose the front entrances with makeshift doors and windows.

Rocks, which are plentiful around here have been used as landscape and rockery gardens filled with cactus and desert plants.

 

 

 

But not all houses have nice gardens and neat yards.  This one as you can see has a spanish flair to it.

 

 

 

 

Wide dirt roads, mounds of rubble every where, with air vents and TV antennas sticking out of the ground.

 

 

This place in reality should have been called Quarry City, as this is what it looks like.   But there is a reason for living underground.  As the summer temperatures here reach up to 50 deg C and the winters can drop below 10 deg C. and the underground temperature stays at a moderate 21 deg.

 

Today, we only drove around the town itself and filled up with groceries.  It’s Easter Weekend and everything will be shut up, so most people stock up for the long weekend.

It’s a unique town with mounds of dirt dotting the countryside.  And the town is aptly named by the Aboriginals “ kupa piti”, which means “white man in hole”.

On our way to Coober Pedy.

We left our spot in Warren Gorge and headed out.  We decided to take the scenic route.

 

 

 

Here is Col and Margaret coming up the road where we stopped at a grave site for a young man named Proby.  He died in a flood trying to get the sheep to safety.  It doesn’t rain very often, but when it does, the rivers run wide and fast.

We stopped at this river for morning tea.  Chris tasted the water and it was SALTY!! Just like the ocean!  Chris found some wild melons and we played Bowls for a few minutes before continuing on.

This was the site of a hotel.  The railway WAS going here and two buildings went up straight away.  The hotel and the general store.  Unfortunately, the government decided to put the railroad somewhere else, so these buildings were then abandoned. 

As the day wore on, we stopped in for supplies at Port Augusta and headed north.  That’s also when I found out that we were dragging in dust from the road.  This is my stovetop.  There was an inch of dust on everything!  So a cleaning day is coming up very soon.  But I may have to wait until we’re out of this part of the country.  Chris is going to try and fix the leaks.

 

As we travelled further up the road, we searched for a spot that had toilets AND phone reception, but there was nothing.  So, we opted for phone reception.  However, as we landed here late in the day, phone reception was out of the question.  Here on this” Island Lagoon Lookout”, the winds were blasting across the desert.  We are once again on the ‘gibber’ plains.  A place where there are NO trees, NO grass, NO buildings, ….only rocks….oh!..and WIND!!!

As you can see from this picture.  This is our little rest stop oasis.

 

 

 

 

And where did they get the name, the Island Lagoon?

Most of the lakes here in the desert are salt water lakes.  Can you see the island?..Now you know where the name came from.

 

 

We dragged the coats and beanies out as the night crept in.  The winds are strong, but the desolate beauty of this place is a sight that no one should miss.  Big Sky country and with that, the moon is working on becoming full once more.

Side trip around Port Augusta.

We left Port Augusta heading towards the Southern Flinders Ranges.  Going off road!…how exciting!

We headed to a little town called Wilmington and on the way there we saw Hancock’s Lookout.  It was just off the road a bit, past a farm house and an open paddock with horses in it.

The trees were spectacular.  The colour variations in this area is an artist’s paradise.

 

And as we left,..those horses?…well, they decided to go walkabout.  So there they are,..all 6 of them ( 3 behind and 3 in front)  trotting down the road.  We tried to shoo them into a neighbouring yard.

And we stopped into Wilmington, dropped the caravans off and went up into Alligator Gorge, where the rock formations were interesting.

We had morning tea there and headed back so we could check out the museum.  The yard was filled with old Landrovers  and various other old gems.  Inside however, there was a toy museum that everyone raved about.  Of course, there WAS mention of the layer of dust on the articles too. 

So after our ice cream, we headed up to a little place called Quorn and out the other side to Warren Gorge, where we decided to call it a night.  And once again, we found a nice little niche.

Tucked away inside a dry river bed, away from the prevailing winds.  As the sun set over these rocks, the red colour deepened against the shadows.

 

 

 

 

 

We left later the next  morning heading out towards Coober Pedy, famous mining town. (Opals)

The Scout Convention is over and we say our goodbyes.

All of those who represented each of the states lined their cars up.  Twenty-two Scouts.  Some were missing in this picture, as some lagged behind, and my camera just couldn’t fit a couple more in.

The 2009 Scout Convention has finished.  There won’t be another one now until 2011, and that one will be in the Blue Mountains behind Sydney.

We’ve met some terrific people here and had a great time.  We’ve gone on convoys around the place having a look at the general area.

The sparkling waters of Boston Bay  that surrounded Port Lincoln were awesome.  This is truly a place where the desert meets the sea.

This sandy beach of Coffin Bay led us to one of the large sea birds you’ll see.

 

A Sea Eagle taking off in flight, once it discovered we were planning on staying there……

 

 

 

to a large Emu nursery.  Also known as “Bush chooks” (translation: Bush chickens)...these birds which are similar to ostriches, blend into their surroundings instead of standing out.

 

Yes, it’s been loads of fun and while Col gets his scout worked on tomorrow, we’ll head out to a few places and do some last minute touring.  Friday we head north to Flinder’s Ranges and Lake Eyre.  We now are heading into ‘desert’ country.  No more leafy green bushes or tropical settings for a while. 

And for those who only want to see photos, I currently have them on  the “My Space” link.  Tomorrow, I’ll have some more on the “More photos” link.