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Published: September 26th 2006
bush tucker
who would have ever thought i would eat 'roo, emu, and camel?Saying goodbye is my least favorite activity. But, it has to be done. After a teary-eyed farewell to The Nunnery, Tom & I made our departure. We met my friend/roommate from Colorado, Avi in the airport and flew to Adelaide where we began our 14 day journey through the Outback. We were picked up by our tour group at a ridiculously early time the next morning. We drove through the beautiful Clare Valley wine region, through the Flinders Ranges until we reached Parachilna, a small, quaint town with all of three permanent inhabitants! Further up the road we stopped at an opal mining town, (90% of the worlds opals are from here) Coober Pedy. The most interesting aspect of Coober Pedy is that 70% of the population lives in underground caves because it is too hot to live above ground. The other 30% include the Aborigines who regard mining and underground living as peculiar and so the town means, ‘white fella’s hole in the ground.’
Travelling deeper into the Outback we finally reach the center. Uluru, also known as Ayer’s Rock is the world’s largest monolith. Basically, it is a massive red rock that is at least 1 million years old
and stands alone on an empty plain. We viewed the magnificent structure @ sunset & sunrise. It sent chills up my spine.
Crossing the border from South Australia into the Northern Territory is quite humorous. The terrain begins to get to you. You begin to feel empty, lonely, & thoughtless. The desert is so still and barren and this monotony begins to cast the biggest spell of boredom over you that you have ever experienced! The most exciting thing on the road was the occasional road kill (sadly usually our friend Skippy, the kangaroo). As Bill Bryson, author of In a Sunburnt Country, wrote, “The great virtue about driving through emptiness is that when you come to anything, anything at all-that might be called a diversion-you get disproportionately excited.”
Running from Adelaide to Darwin is the longest straight stretch of railroad track in the world (297 miles). The world’s longest man made structure, the dog fence, which keeps the dingo separate from the cattle, also runs through the center. We spent some time exploring Kings Canyon and interesting rock formations @ the Olgas.
After a few days rest in Alice Springs we were back on the road, waking up before
the sun. We stopped at the stunning, crystal clear thermal hot springs of Mataranka and later at Edith Falls where we swam in crocodile infested waters (the freshwater crocs/freshies are not dangerous to humans). Australia is the proud home to countless unique species. On the trip I saw: kangaroos, emus, wild camels (brought from the Middle East back in the day to transport people from one end of the railroad to another before it was completed), dingos, lizards, frogs, wild pigs, buffalo, crocodiles, numerous birds, & brumbys (wild horses). 80% of all that lives in Oz, plants & animals, lives nowhere else!
Cruised into Darwin and began our final stretch up to Kakadu National Park. Highlight: Mary River Cruise into the most crocodile infested body of water in the world. I couldn’t believe how close we were to them and it seemed very fitting as a tribute to the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Erwin, who died in a scuba diving accident just days before. My other favourite part of Kakadu was visiting the Aboriginal rock art sites. It is really special to have the privilege of viewing their history, as shown through the paintings, because as a whole Aboriginals are very
secretive. It’s bizarre to stand in front of the oldest art in the world. Aboriginal people are said to be between 40,000-50,000 years old, the oldest race on earth!
I will miss falling asleep at night in my swag (foam mattress inside a canvas cover that encloses both the bedding and the sleeper) underneath the Southern Cross, comets, and the vast ocean of stars. But I know there will be more brilliant adventures in store for me. Thailand here I come!
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Kev
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great gallars
Thats good blogging Rach, liked the Uluru bit and great to see some familiar sights again, enjoy the east coast too - and Thailand! I loved it - some of the friendliest people those thai folk. Miss Melbourne of course and all you guys, blighty is just not the same.. take care mate and keep up the slang..