OODNADATTA TRACK VIA FLINDERS RANGES TO COWARD SPRINGS

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May 4th 2023

Published: May 8th 2023

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John and Gloria Travels

RAWNSLEY PARK STATION

A grand entry

After arriving back to the van in Gawler, kept safe by Angie and Simon, after doing shopping for the trip north we were spoilt by Angie with gorgeous home made pizzas! Soo yummy! Thursday saw us get away by 10am....destination Rawnsley Park Station on the southern side of the Flinders Ranges not far from Wilpena! Lovely drive up took 6 hours with 3 stops along the way. Stopped for late lunch at Orroroo, lovely town, Gumtree Cafe was our choice with just the best home made pies ever washed down with a coffee. The scenery was always changing...with the Flinders Ranges always in our view! Pulled into Hawker to fill up 208.9 a litre, then only 25klms to the turnoff into the station, 4klms in we arrived at our camp for the next two nights! Rawnsley Station was a nice spot and then easy to explore Flinders Ranges from there. One night we took biscuits and cheese and some beers up to a little lookout on the station to see the sunset and the moon rise....quite magical! We then took the road on the eastern side of the Flinders Ranges north onto Blinman, an old copper mine site! On parking up

ORROROO

Gumtree Cafe best pies ever

the van I said to John, "there's Michelle, the lady with the yellow hair", a lady who was on the Ghan trip and Outback Spirit! Small world, especially as Blinman is in the middle of nowhere, Michelle had been to Marree to take a flight over Lake Eyre! Had a good chat and then went to the General Store for one of their famous Cornish Pasties....delicious! Then made our way over the Flinders Ranges to Parachilna, stopping off at Parachilna Gorge, gee another place you could spend a lot of time exploring is the Flinders Ranges. Onto Parachilna and the Prairie Hotel, legendary place well known for its food and gorgeous accommodation! Owned by Jane and Ross Fargher who also own Nilpena Station, lucky enough to meet up with them and Jane showed us around! Their son has created a brewery at the pub which is going well. We had pre dinner drinks listening to John O'Dea a sort of local down the road from Orroroo, he was brilliant and then had our much awaited FMG feral mixed grill... it was delicious, enjoyed every mouthfull as well we ordered a kangaroo schnitzel which was also delish. I had emailed ahead

FLINDERS RANGES

The famous Cazneuax Tree photographed in 1937 by Harold Cazneuaux and he called it "Spirit of Endurance", a might River Red Gum

and though they don't allow camping there we were allowed to park in the yard of the workers accom. Definitely a place to visit if you are in the area. Then onto Marree which is the end of sealed roads, had a bit of a look around and toilet stop and as we were pulling back onto the road noticed someone we knew, filling up at the service station, Gus our licensee from Bonnie Doon, how does this happen just run into people! Stopped and had a good old yarn, Gus had just been up to their new pub at Mungerannie on the Birdsville Track, doing some work with a couple of tradies from Bonnie Doon, we were turning left to head up the Oodnadatta Track. Next stop Coward Springs for two nights 134klm on dirt roads. Wasn't too far out we hit the bottom end of Lake Eyre, drone up for a few shots, amazing area having seen its expanse when we flew over it in small plane in early 2000s, its unbelievable that the Lake Eyre basin takes up about 22 percent of Australia! The roads are not too bad odd parts with severe corrugations but on the

FLINDERS RANGES

Birdlife is phenomenal

whole OK! A few more klms on come across Mutonia Sculpture Park......some kooky person got bored one day! Weird as! Around 3pm limped into Coward Springs another little quirky place was once a stop on the old Ghan with mineral springs and a pub, now springs are still here but no pub just a heritage listed area with camp spots with a coffee van and souvenir shop! They along grow dates, so date icecream(to die for) date scones and fresh dates! Still intact is the station masters residence which is now the owners home and also the train drivers cottage which had a bedroom and kitchen which is now their little Museum! Blowing a bit of a gale too! So parked up, cooked dinner and had an early night! Last day drove out to Mound Springs including the Bubbler, its totally amazing the mineral springs that just bubble up in the desert in this artesian basin! Then had a dip in "thespa" Coward Springs style! Sunset drinks with our neighbours for the night, a gorgeous young couple from Gisborne, into their 7th month in their van around Australia, Josh and Nicky! Dinner of spicy Chow Mein...yummy as the nights are

FLINDERS RANGES

Such a gorgeous part of the world

cool here! Off to The Pink Roadhouse tomorrow!

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Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name...more history