25th July

Well it's been a few days since we have caught up with everyone, so here is an update of what we have been doing in the last few days.

On Saturday 23rd July we packed up at Uluru and made our to Alice Springs, arriving at around 3 o'clock. We made a bee line for the supermarket to stock up on a few supplies then back to the caravan for an early night.

On Sunday 24th we had pancakes for breakfast, provided by the caravan park, very yummy, it included tea or coffee. We then headed down town to the Todd Mall Market, a small but interesting market with a variety of stall holders from different cultures as well as the locals.


Then it was off to the Road Transport Hall of Fame. Here there were 4 large sheds full of cars but mainly trucks from the early times to the latest model. Some interesting information on the history of transport in the area. We had afternoon tea and headed back to the caravan park to have a rest as all the travelling was catching up with us.

In the evening there was a demo of didgeridoo player, he was very good and involved some kids who had a go at playing, they were not too bad either. Great end to a long day.









Monday 25th, time to explore West Macdonnell Ranges. We drove out to the furthest point of interest to then work our way back.

First stop was a place called Ormiston Gorge and Pound, we choose an hour walk into a near permanent water hole this was a relatively easy walk with the red walls and fantastic scenery was worth every step we took. This was one of our favorite places on this part of our adventure.

Next onto a little known spot called the Ochre Pits, this was an important place for the Aboriginal people who used it as a place to mine ochre. this was then used for paintings and ceremonial events. The cliffs held amazing colors and you could see where the Aborigines got their colors from.


After the Ochre Pits we moved onto Stanley Chasm, even though we missed the midday viewing where the walls go red from the suns reflection over head, the experience was still amazing. It felt like we were in a Harrison Ford movie going into the secret valley looking for treasure. We found it at the end of the1.5km walk just breathtaking. There was water on the valley floor and there were small animals in the pools developing fast before the water dries up.

Our next stop on the way was Simpsons Gap, this attraction was the closest to town and even though there were several walks to choose from with all the walking we had done that day we chose to do the shortest of these walks a 15 minute walk along the river bed that showed of the Gost Gums that I have become so fond of.


Our last stop for the day was the resting place for Rev John Flynn. This is a memorial monument to commemorate the life of this amazing man and the work that he had done in this community. His ashes were scattered here and over the mountain ranges above as were his wishes, but this was not without controversy. The stone that is there is not the first stone to be placed there. The first stone was one from the sacred sight of the Marbles, taken without the permission given from the indigenous people from that area. After some negotiation between these people and the people from this area the original stone was returned and another from a site from with in this area was put there.