Got into Western Australia

---

Hi All,

I see it is a month since the last blog. Just been to busy. And all the sights we have seen have made an impossible list to put on one blog. In Adelaide we were joined by John and Sue - good friends from Auckland who accompanied us to Darwin. We proceeded to do the York and Eyre Peninsulas and then moved north to Woomera and Roxbury Downs. From there we split: we took the backroad/ 4x4 route on the Oodnadatta Track and John and Sue doubled back on the tar seal. The Oodnadatta track follows the original Ghan rail route and though poor and muddy in places the caravan handeled very well. The town of Oodnadatta boasts with a PINK roadhouse. I think they picked up the pink paint at a sale!

After the track we met up again at Coober Pedy (meaning white man's houses under ground. That is the Opal capital of the world and famous for its underground houses. Then it was north and into the Northern Territory and Uluru. The photo of Uluru with Liesel and I in the front was taken a good 6 or 7 Km from the rock. It is much bigger than I imagined. Photos just do not do it justice. We also did 2 trips out to the Olgas, a group of 36 rocks covering 30 sq km, about 100 km from Uluru by road. That was almost more amasing than Uluru.

Alice Springs was next for 3 days with a visit to the Flying Doctor, the Ghan Meuseum and the School of the Air. All very interesting, but the highlight was a day trip out to the Alice Springs Gorges. There are a number of "cuttings" through the McDonnell Mountains to the west of Alice and they are absolutely awsum. I have attached a couple of photos.

Two days north of Alice we stopped over night at The Devils Marbles. Just a mass of round boulders covering probably 4 or 5 sq km. The campsite was very full but we pushed in - lots of people had to turn elsewhere. I must have taken 200 photos afternoon and the next morning. Just different light and different angles. Will sort them when we get home.

From there it was 2 days to Katherine and then 1 day to Darwin. We spent 3 nights in Darwin and caught the Thursday night Mindil Market on Mindil Beach - a must see. They reckon it draws 20,000 people and one of the attractions is watching the sunset. The food is fantastic - We had our old favrouite: Green pawpaw salad for straters. A lot of Asian influence in the food presented.

We left Darwin and took 2 days to Kununurra, just in Western Australia. We are staying 3 nights here and then leave for Derby and Broome, going via the Gibb River Road. Very outback - no Mob Phone and renown for wrecking vehicles. I am told a guy took his 2 month old caravan on the Gibb and it was a total write off at the end as it had vibrated apart on the trip. Ours is built for the Dirt Road and so far it has certainly proved its self so I am not worried. Just take it slow. 665km and I am planning for 6 days. Hope we don't get too bored. Before leaving I am doing the plane trip - 2 hours down to the Bungle Bungles and back. I cannot walk the Bungle Bungles so am going to see them from the air!

That is all the news. Cheers and catch you all later with another episode - hopefully not so long in waiting. Liesel and Clayton

---