18/3/2012

Today we woke to no rain but very overcast skies and a little wind (Not from me). Even though we got up early and had very little to pack up it seemed to take ages to get ready. I suppose the holiday mode has kicked in and we are doing everything in slow motion. I usually do that in the afternoon after some bourbons, not in the mornings. However we did eventually hit the road about 9.20am and drove for nearly 2 hours and stopped for morning tea at the 41 Mile Bore Rest Area. We enjoyed the company of Dave and Linda who we first met in Camooweal a couple of days ago and they also spent the night at Barkly Roadhouse with us. We are all heading for the Three Ways Roadhouse and Tennant Creek tonight. The 41 Mile Bore Rest area would be a great place to spend a night if the sun was shining as there are plenty of places to set up. Also it was on a dirt road. It was time to leave and continue along the Barkly Highway and off we went with the sound of country music blasting into the surrounding burnt out landscape. As you can guess Karen was riding with Mary-Anne and I was alone and able to play with all my electronic toys without fear of being told to keep my eyes on the road every couple of seconds. YAHOO!!! We eventually arrived at the Threeways Road House at about 11.45am and again met up with Dave and Linda. We were all a little disappointed because we assumed that the Threeways was at the T Junction (where the Barkly and the Stuart Highways meet) but we had to head a short way north of the junction to see it. We refuelled just because we could and we like paying $1.90 a litre. Then we headed south towards Tennant Creek. Before we got there we had three diversions. The first was to The Pebbles which were very disappointing from a touristy point of view. There were a couple of granite boulders heaped up and that was that. There are more granite boulders outside Stanthorpe that are more inspiring for me. On the other hand, if there wasn't the threat of rain it would be a great place to free camp. Then it was onto the Old Tennant Creek Telegraph Repeater Station about 200 metres from the turn off to the Pebbles. What a great example of pioneer architecture. It appears that renovation work is presently underway and it would have been great to see the buildings fully restored. It was a short drive from the Telegraph Station to the Mary Ann Dam. Is there anything familiar with that name? How many brothers have a sister who has a dam named after her? (I am unique!) It was a short drive from the dam to the town of Tennant Creek. We took a drive through town without incident and started looking for the turnoff to the Juno Bush Camp. As you could expect we passed it without spotting the sign and had to turn around on a narrow road. The drive to Juno's was very picturesque with the McDouall Ranges to our right. However Juno's looked like a Nazi concentration camp run by Arab Terrorists. I convinced Mary-Anne and Karen, with little argument, that a caravan park I had spotted on the drive to Juno's was more salubrious and we again turned around. This time on an even narrower road. We eventually arrived at the Outback Caravan Park which was like an oasis in the wilderness. We will spend another very relaxing night in air conditioned comfort again!!!

19/3/2012

We all saw something very unusual when we came out of the caravans this morning. There was a strange colour to the sky and there was a bright yellow light shining. Hell, we thought, it was armageddon but, no, it was cloudless skies and the sun was shining. It has been a week since we have seen anything resembling fine weather. So far it has not been very solar panel friendly weather for much of the trip. After standing and gazing in amazement for half an hour it was time to pack up before the clouds found where we were. We eventually headed south after Karen and Mary-Anne ran the gauntlet through the Monday morning Centrelink crowd to get to the local foodstore for fruit and emergency supplies. It was my job to guard the cars and caravans, on my own, so we didn't have to hire a car to come home (if you know what I mean). Our next stop was the Devil's Marbles. Now if you have ever seen a beat up old car one day and the next day you see a magnificent 120 Prado you get a mental image of the difference between the Pebbles, that we saw yesterday, and the DEVIL'S MARBLES. They are huge and majestic. It was great to be able to walk through, around and over some of the large granite boulders. (Stanthorpe, eat your heart out today). We drove to a camping area within the National Park and had lunch after I persuaded a resident dingo to share a shaded picnic table under a covered shelter. The dingo stayed close just in case something was dropped from our plates. I kept our babies (the Prado and the Nissan) under close observation while we ate so the dingo would not run away with them. It was very hard to keep one eye on the dingo and the other on the Devil's Marbles but I am used to doing two things at once. Our next stop down the Stuart Highway was Wycliffe Well, the UFO capital of Australia. You are greeted by aliens and a space ship as you walk to the shop. Once inside, the walls are lined with newspaper clippings of everything UFO and aliens. Karen even bought me an alien BBQ apron. I think someone should tell her I'm not an alien, even though men are supposed to be from Mars. We found a great free camping spot at Taylor Creek Rest Area. It is about 290kms north of Alice Springs and, like all the places we stay at, it is out in the middle of nowhere. There is no noise and even though we are right next to the Stuart Highway there is bugger all traffic. Occasionally we hear a cow moo as there is a creek bed near. We will have a cook up tonight of lamb chops, sausages, boiled potatoes, pumpkin and peas, and then after a few bourbons an early night. 

                                                       The unspectactular pebbles

                                                    Tennant Creek Telegraph Station

                                The Telegraph Station buildings are being renovated at present

                                                 I DON'T have a dam named after me!!!

                              Our caravan sites at the Outback Caravan Park Tennant Creek

                                 Now that's more like it.  The Devil's Marbles are not pebbles

                                       Karen was like a jack rabbit climbing over everything

                                               There really are aliens at Wycliffe Well