Days 11, 12 & 13
Day 11
Today we left Kings Canyon and drove to Alice Springs, another boring drive. We passed the t-shirt tree-again! We stopped off at Jim’s Place which I think was at a place called “Stuarts Well” but the only thing there was Jim’s Place. Jim has a singing dingo – when they play music he howls along to the tune. There are also camel rides, emus, petrol and food. We got an icy pole and just looked at the rest – we are on a budget. Jim is the son of the man who made the road out to Kings Canyon and started taking tourists out there. The truck he used to make the road is there and billboards with the story, fairly interesting. Kids thought the animals were better. Arrived Alice Springs set up camp and went swimming in pool – around 33 degrees. Drove into town to get some food and take in the town. Bought some groceries and got out fast – had to teach Matthew not to stop, stand and stare with his mouth wide open. On our walk at Kings Canyon the guide taught the kids the Indigenous code of law – women settle arguments with digging sticks (last one standing wins) and men get a spear in their thigh as punishment for a serious crime. There were 3 large groups of Aborigines and some women arguing and Matt thought they might pull out the digging sticks but we didn’t let him hang around to see. Camp has a huge jumping pillow right opposite our site so the kids spend a lot of time there and we supervise from the van. It’s a win-win.
Day 12
Kids on jumping pillow again. Another family they met at Kings Canyon has arrived so kids very happy. They were heading out to Serpentine Gorge and we were going to Hermannsburg and then Ormiston Gorge so Chris started sulking because he wanted to go where they went. In hindsight (a wonderful thing) and given his behavior at the Cultural Centre at Uluru (where we should have learnt a lesson) Hermannsburg, given his mood, was an unwise choice. 1. It was educational, 2. It involved reading about aboriginals and history and 3. It did not involve swimming or playing with other kids. He had a “face of thunder” on the whole way there (around 130kms) and was heard to mutter “Do you even know where we are?” Once we arrived he derided everything we saw, kicked the dust and was basically rude so we didn’t stay long. We headed on to the Gorge and rather than retrace our steps we decided to buy a permit and drive on the dirt road through the Aboriginal lands. About 40kms in we were wondering if it was such a good idea. Road was a little rough, Madi was starting to feel sick (lucky Lachy wasn’t with us) and we had no idea where we were. Anyway we persevered, the signs saying how far to Kings Canyon were a little disconcerting but we stuck it out found our turn off and made it the Gorge eventually. Chris’ friends had decided to go there and were just leaving when we got to the swimming hole. Needless to say there are no pictures of Chris smiling at Ormiston Gorge even though it is one of the most beautiful natural swimming holes I have ever seen. We drove back through driving rain, lots of floodways; it was a bit like the Wild West ride at Movie World but over and over again. Madi started to feel sick again and we had to pass her Lachy’s emergency sick bag but luckily she didn’t have to use it. When we got back to camp it hadn’t rained yet so we had dinner, played on the jumping castle, made everything secure and waited for the downpour. It was very heavy and rained most of the night. I understand they don’t get a lot of rain and that when it comes it is very heavy but seriously they could put more thought into drainage – everything basically floods and then eventually either dries up or drains away, which is ok long term but a pain short term.
Day 13
We woke up to find we had no power. Something had tripped the surge protector overnight and it wouldn’t stop tripping even when we disconnected every appliance in the van. We had to put in a service call and sit around and wait for the technician to arrive. 4 hours later he came and spent 10 minutes max with us replacing the faulty surge protector and getting an $88 call out fee for his trouble (the part was under warranty). Just after he left it started to pour again so having spent the morning, while waiting, in the van playing cards, chess, checkers, etc we then spent the afternoon doing the same and watching DVDs. Good news is I taught Nick some new card games. One I thought was appropriate, although somewhat politically incorrect, was one my Grandmother taught us when we were younger- Coon Can You Can – don’t know what the name has to do with the game but Nick now knows how to play.
Clark Griswald moment – Andrew disappeared and we weren’t sure where he was for a couple of hours. When he reappeared he was showered and his facial hair growth had been trimmed and tidied. We have now decided that it is just an excuse for him to spend inordinate amounts of time staring at himself in the mirror. You will notice in future pictures that he has changed its shape. Kids and I are not sure if this is in response to disparaging comments received via the blog or because Chris told him he could use some “Grey for men”!
Another Clark Griswald moment – about 4pm Andrew’s phone rang. It was the woman who we booked the service call through. She wanted to know what time Andrew was coming down to sign the paperwork. He asked why the technician hadn’t bought it with him when he came and she replied that’s not how we do it. He replied that for$88 he would be happy to drive in and sign the page for her. She came back with we are only 100 metres from your park it won’t take you long. He came back with that makes it even worse why don’t you come out in the rain and bring it to me if you want it signed. She pleaded that if he didn’t sign the book she couldn’t claim the warranty fee back from Jayco, he replied that was her problem not his. It went back and forth like that for a while and he was heard to give her advice on how a proper service department should be run (TFG was used as a model), ask if he would still be expected to sign her book if he was 400 kms away, blah blah blah. At about 5pm we drove over and he signed the book and finished the business lecture.
Day 14
We are now back on the Stuart Highway heading towards Devils Marbles and probably to Tennant Creek to overnight. We didn’t think much of Alice Springs itself but the landscape surrounding it is quite spectacular. The Macdonnell Ranges run East and West and you enter Alice Springs through a pass between the two. I could imagine the Great Wall of China being built along the top of them. There is also a lot of beautiful gorges and walks in the area.
