We had three days in Alice Springs where we got a good feel of an outback town. We explored the galleries of aboriginal art and even bought a piece. There are many aboriginals in Alice and they are often seem wandering the dry river bed, sitting in groups in the parks or selling their art on the main commercial street (Todd Mall). Interestingly, none of them seem to be employed in any of the aboriginal art galleries. One day, we went for a few hikes in the East and West MacDonnell Ranges but the hikes into chasms and along dry streambeds had to be short ones since the days continued to be in the high 30s. We explored the various restaurants with our favourite being an Indian/Thai place at our hotel. Go figure! Each night we had an evening walk after dinner and the temperature was still very warm. At our hotel we saw a peacock that has moved in as well as a variety of wild parrots. On our trip to the MacDonnell Range we came across a dingo but as soon as he saw us he took off before the camera was aimed.

The drive from Alice to Kings Canyon, about 400+ km, showed us the variety of landscape in the “Red Centre” – long stretches of uninhabited land or ranches and an amazing variety of small trees and bushes that somehow manage to survive in this hot dry land. We saw many shades of red and its easy to see how this area got its name. I spent my time looking for wildlife but all I saw that day were more than a dozen kangaroo carcasses along the roadside. At Kings Creek Station, a working cattle ranch with tourist facilities, we stayed in a canvas cabin. All it contained was two twin beds, a light and a fan. The toilets, etc. were in a separate building nearby and there was a communal kitchen area. For dinner we were able to purchase food (a mixed grill and salad) and there was an Australian Barbie for us (husband) to cook on. We tried to eat outside but the flies drove us into the screened eating area. Initially we were the only guests in the cabin area but a busload of French tourists joined us later. Too bad they had to be up at 5:30 a.m. for their tour of Kings Canyon and their return to Alice. Their English was about as good as our French, so we didn’t learn too much about their itinerary. During the night, the winds came up and the cabins shook and the canvas flapped and at times it felt like we were about to go airborne. None of us had a good sleep that night.

The next morning began with a bushman’s breakfast (included with our accommodation) before we explored areas of Kings Canyon. We did all the hikes except the canyon rim because the temperature was already too high for a 3-4 hour hike in full sun. We are consuming water like its going out of style (good thing we brought our cooler – called an Eskie in Oz - with us) and we have got real good at slapping on the sun screen and wearing a hat. Of course, that means I will be returning home with my usual pale tone.
Husband is adapting to driving on the left, although at times he still turns on the windshield wipers instead of the turn signal when he wants to make a turn. Otherwise, he hasn’t pulled out into on-coming traffic yet.

After our morning hikes around Kings Canyon, we drove to Yalaru (near Uluru/Ayres Rock) to explore this area for a couple of days before we headed off to Cairns.

G’day mates until next time.