Outback South Australia

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3rd September 2012

We left our Ayers Rock Resort campsite just after 8am. We fueled up at Erldunda and continued to the NT/SA border rest area, where we met Mum and Dad as planned. They have travelled down slowly from Alice Springs since having their hitch repaired the day we drove to Kings Canyon. We continued south, camping in the rest area 35km south of Marla. The rest areas in South Australia are not as well set up as those in the Northern Territory, as the NT ones usually had water, picnic tables and toilets and the SA ones do not. However we found a fairly quiet spot and had a campfire. Mum made golden syrup dumplings for dessert.



4th September 2012

We continued towards Coober Pedy, across vast flat desert land with sparse, low vegetation. As we got nearer to Coober Pedy, we could see mounds of earth everwhere from mining, and dust whipped into the air by the strong wind. We arrived in town mid morning. We had a look in one opal shop, bought a few groceries and checked in to Riba's underground campsite (where you can pitch a tent underground, or park a van or camper under a shadecloth shelter, very welcome in today's wind. Coober Pedy is a unique looking place, or at least appears that way through the dust haze. Underground houses and businesses, opal shops everywhere and very few plants. Water is apparently very expensive here.

We had lunch, then went on a tour of the Old Timers Mine, which was very interesting. The tour included a demonstration of a blower, which sucks rocks from underground and emits a lot of dust at the surface, and free "noodling" for opals in a box of mine leavings. When we got back to camp, we found Uncle Kevan and Aunty Jillian had caught up with us and are camping here too. Mum and Dad joined us for dinner at John's Pizza & Restuarant, which was quite nice. There was grit under my eyelids when I shut them and we were woken in the night by the wind howling even stronger and the camper rattling around us.



5th September 2012

The wind stopped at 6:30am, then whipped right back up by about 7am. We were on the road at just after 8am. A long straight road, along desert from skyline to skyline, sometimes without a tree in sight, just scrubby grass. A dust haze was visible on the horizon. Often there were small yellow wildflowers by the road. We saw two groups of emus and a wedge tail eagle. We had lunch at Lake Hart, a salt lake once used I think to test launch missiles. Today it took two hands and all my strength to close the car door.

We arrived at Woomera in the early afternoon and visited the rocket park, a display of rockets, missiles and other space items. We also went to a museum near the visitor information area and drove around town. It's very neat and tidy here, effort has been made to grow sizable trees and the gardens are mulched. It looks like some houses have been removed (I think the population here in the 1960s-1970s was around 6000 and it's now about 250, so very quiet). The caravan park has recycled an apartment block into an office, amenitiies and proprietor's house, which is interesting. The whole place has a very 60s vibe.





6^th September 2012

The wind calmed overnight and we woke to a calm blue morning. We left Woomera and headed south on the Stuart Highway, seeing several groups of emus. The landscape started out flat and treeless again, reminding us that SA is the driest state in the driest inhabited continent. Then we saw a few straggly sheep, and some shrubs. Around Port Augusta we green fields against the blue ocean, a big change in scenery. We drove through to our campsite in the Mount Remarkable National Park. The Mambray Creek campground we are in has huge river redgums overhead, and a variety of small or larger campsites ($26 a night for us). There are toilets and showers.



After we had ascertained there were vacant sites I drove back to the park entrance with the camping fees, and on the way back I saw two bearded dragons and a perentie (large goanna). While we were setting up the camper, an emu walked very close to Mum and Dad’s van and across near our van. A kookaburra came up to Mum looking for food scraps. After lunch we did the 8km return walk to Sugar Gum lookout, and on the way we saw a grey butcher bird, a perentie sunning himself (herself) on a log, kangaroos and yellow footed rock wallabies. It was awesome to see so much wildlife. The scenery was very nice, along a creek bed lined with large gums and flowering wattles. As we returned it clouded over and later started to rain. We had a campfire and Mike cooked some lamb on the fire.

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Photos

Riba's campground
Showing underground office etc, Coober Pedy.

Rest area north of Woomera
Treeless horizon in front of us!

Bearded Dragons
Mount Remarkable