May 22-25 Alice to Mataranka

On Monday, we said farewell to Emily as she flew back to cold old Melbourne. It was great to catch up with her and to reunite the family for a couple of days in Alice. That won't happen again for a while now.


The sign says "welcome" but its actually farewell for Emily, Judith & Robert

First stop for us was Devil's Marbles. What a great place! There's a camping ground off the main road right in the middle of the rocks. We arrived late in the day about 4:30pm after a long drive from Alice (well we only left about midday - we don't do early any more). There were over 30 caravans already set up for the night. We were lucky to get one of the last available spots. But we loved the place. No restrictions about where you can walk and photograph, unlike Ayers Rock. Dogs were allowed in the camping area but not around the rocks, which is fair enough.
We were lucky to enjoy both the sunset and the sunrise.

A crowded camping ground at the Devil's Marbles

Another view of the camping ground taken from a large marble

As we awoke the next morning, this was the exceptional view of the sunrise over the marbles as seen through the van window

Great little walks amongst the marbles

They reckon the marbles were formed by weathering.
Hard to believe that such rounded shapes were once a solid layer of rock

The dogs were feeling left out (again) so we snuck them in for a quick photo

After Devil's Marbles, we drove on to Tennant Creek. We had heard mixed reports about this town - mostly bad. "Just get your petrol and keep driving." But some of the travel guides made it sound good. We were pleasantly surprised. We found a little Oasis called Lake Mary Ann just outside the dirty miserable town. A few travellers pulled in. We actually met up again with some nice folks that we met in Alice - Paula and Don from Cairns. After being in Alice for a while, you don't expect to see large amounts of fresh water and large green grassy picnic areas. And to add to that, they had free hot showers in the amenities block.

Mary Ann Dam just outside of Tennant Creek

Wow, green grass and a big lake of water (behind)

The dogs enjoy a lookout view across the plains surrounding Tenant Creek.
Some good advice on the sign - it says "Don't be a tosser." I often say that too.

After Tennant Creek, we drove on for a few hundred more kilometers. We stopped by the side of the road about 40km south of Elliot. We found an old track that went into the bush  and then into an opening where we could set up camp. Nice and secluded as well as quiet. Had a great night's sleep there.

Next day we passed through Elliot - a very serious contender for the worst town in Australia. Just keep driving...

A feature of the landscape around this area is the termite mounds. They come in all shapes and sizes and are quite fascinating.

Example of a termite mound - could easily fit a few dogs inside

Some interesting shapes made by the artistic little termites

We drove on to Mataranka. This is the town setting for the great Australian book "We of the Never Never", that neither Judith or I have read. The town is also famous for it natural hot springs. We checked them out on arrival, but there were about 50 people in a relatively small pool of water with another coach load of bloody tourists just arriving - not our idea of fun. We found a camp site about 10km out of town on the road to the Elsey Cemetery. Many of the characters who feature in the book are buried in this cemetery. This was an even better camping spot - secluded and very quiet. another great night's sleep.

Our camp site off the road to the Elsey Cemetery

In the morning, we went back to the springs in the hope that it would be a little less populated than the previous afternoon. We enjoyed an hour or so in the water with only one other couple (elderly German tourists). Very, very relaxing.

The natural hot springs at Mataranka - a very pleasant 34 degrees and pure fresh spring water

We are now looking out for a copy of the "We of the Never Never" DVD.