We had really enjoyed Coober Pedy and were sad to leave…the Oasis caravan park had great amenities and was located close to everything….but it was time to hit the road again!

As we were driving all unsealed roads today, taping up vents was a must….Ruth was really enthusiastic with the tape….and Stephie thought she’d try out driving the Prado!

Farewell mines of Coober Pedy …on to William Creek Road on the way to the Oodnadatta track and Coward Springs….but not after letting down the tyres.

The road to William Creek went past more opal mines, some very desolate country, the dog fence and Woomera army area….

We had lunch at William Creek where there was a pub and not much else….just some random artifacts….Then along the Oodnadatta track which was in surprisingly good condition….no road we have been on has been nearly as bad as the Quobba/ Gnaraloo road – that took the cake!!

We passed the ruins of Beresford, one of the many sidings for the old Ghan railway….and marvelled at how people survived out in such a harsh environment in the 1800’s…The arid landscape was broken up by the occasional mesa and salt pan…

At Coward Springs we set up our camp for the night and then had a dip in the natural spa which was warm and great for a foot or back massage! We explored the restored engine drivers house and read about the history of the area which once was a holiday destination for people from Marree…and was a siding for the Old Ghan train route. We had happy hour around the fire and watched an amazing sunset

The day started out with a drive out to the Breakaways – an area about 20ks from Coober Pedy which was more like a lunar or Martian landscape than earth!Along the way we passed many mine claims and houses built into the hills.

Erosion had left peaks, mesas and hills of all different colours and sizes. Films such as Mad Max beyond Thunderdome and Red Planet were filmed in this area- it was easy to see why!Trev nearly vanished..the photo is like a “Where’s Wally” picture…There were 2 dome like hills called the 2 dogs..or the castles….The colours of the rocks were amazing…Despite being a desert where temperatures can soar into the 50s there was some beautiful desert flowers in bloom….

Out beyond the Breakaways was the dog fence – the longest fence in the world (it is longer than the great wall of China) built to keep dingoes out of the farming areas.

We then drove past the part of the desert area that looks exactly like the Mars landscape.

Back to Coober Pedy for lunch then we visited the Catacomb Church – an underground Anglican church. We met John, a BCA nomad who showed us around the church and told us about the ministry there and the work he does with the BCA Nomads.The church was really unique and has a good ministry to the people of Coober Pedy. The 2 large airvents provided an unusual photo op that apparently is a bit of a tradition with visitors according to John.

We left the church, did some shopping and saw some more random sights…. …..then toured the underground hotel and pub.

Dinner that night was at the famous Johns Pizza Bar and Restaurant much to Trev and Andrew’s delight!

First stop the info centre to get some advice as to what to see in Coober Pedy…..so much choice! The town is really interesting  with its opal mines everywhere and underground shops pubs and houses.

We went to the museum  and discovered much of the history ot the area including the geology, discovery of opal and developemnt of the opal industry. Anyone can apply for a mining permit and you can self sekect a claim of 50 x 50 square metres to mine. Previously mining was all done by hand but now tunnelling ,achines are used to drill core samples and shafts…once opal is seen in the diggings, machinery is stopped and opal is dug out by hand. Rudi an 80yr old miner shared some of his stories from the old days…seems the town ran on cash, opals and the beer economy and opal mining has proven very lucrative to quite a number of people…We saw some beautiful opals samples and jewellery….and decided to come back for the mine tour at 2pm.

Morning tea was waffles, pancakes and coffee at the local coffee shop run by Jimmy an old Scottish engineer who had been mining in Coober Pedy for more than 36 yrs and had more interesting tales and photos…..

On to Kate’s underground house for a tour…this house was hand dug by 3 women in the 1970’s and included an indoor swimming pool! The underground houses are the preferred accommodation in Coober Pedy as the temperature underground is a consistent 22–25 degrees all year round ….outside the range can be from -4 to 45….highest recorded temp 55 degrees! The swimming pool is not used much as the temperature of the water is a consistent 20 degrees…too cold for some! Ventilation shafts are dug for airflow….the pipes coming out of the hills all around Coober Pedy indicate airshafts going into the houses and underground shops.

At the Big Winch lookout we had a great 360 degree view over the town which gave a real picture of exactly what Coober  Pedy looks like…..some things come here to stay and never leave!!

Back for the mine tour…really fascinating the way the mines were dug by hand in the early days….the mine was a maze of tunnels.

After the tour we decided to try our hand at noodling….the only way to search for opals without a mining license. There was a public noodling area in town where hills of old mine rock was located….you can fossick amongst the piles and keep any opal you find. After an hour or so we had found quite a lot of quartz crystals and other interesting rocks. I found a couple of small pieces of rock with seams of opal in them….nothing big or impressive but opal nevertheless!

Dinner that night at the Outback Bar and Grill…. $12 schnitzel night!!

Leaving Uluru we intended to drive as far as Marla today then to Coober Pedy the next day however we changed our itinerary and decided to go straight to Coober Pedy….best decision ever made as there was nothing  at Marla…it was a dive!

The landscape along the Stuart Highway became more arid again south of Erldunda…As Trev drove along nearly at Marla…potential disaster…a large bolt dropped onto his foot ?? from the steering wheel…Branch kindly held onto it until we could stop at Marla to sort out the issue…fortunately it was just off the trim not anything important and easily remedied.

After a quick lunch stop in Marla…we continued on…the road straight and land arid on both sides. We passed the commencement of the Oodnadatta track and continued south determined to make Coober Pedy before nightfall.

As we drove into town at sunset the landscape was very surreal…..almost lunar…with conical mounds of sandy dirt from all the opal mining!

Driving through Coober Pedy to the caravan park we got the impression that this place was a very different and unique environment!!730kms done today!

First stop today was the camel farm…lots of familiar names including that of certain camels at the farm…..

Stephie was stinging for a camel ride but once we got on she said it was scary…in particular since Joe and Leanne’s camel “Norseman” was snorting and growling behind her….and her camel “Meryl ” (aka feral Meryl) was growling and sniffing my butt….We all enjoyed the camel ride …and then looked around the farm….they had a baby water buffalo, baby camel and and emu at the farm as well…

We then drove out to Kata Tjuta aka the Olgas and had lunch….then did the spectacular Valley of the Winds walk…..feeling very small and insignificant in the presence of such giant formations!!

Trev came to Leanne’s rescue when she froze going up a steep slope…Trev tried his hand at rock climbing…..

After the walk we returned to the resort coffee shop then went on to dinner….and farewelled Leanne and Joe who were getting up at 4am the next day to go to Kings Canyon….and we were travelling on to Coober Pedy.

An early morning drive out to Uluru was beautiful at sunrise…we could also see the Olgas in the distance….

We arrived at the cultural centre where we were hiring bikes to cycle around Uluru. The guy who owned the cycle hire business was really helpful and we started out on the 15 km ride at 0800.

Ayers Rock (Uluru) was more spectacular than we expected and also much larger….there were amazing eroded areas, waterfall tracts, cracks and even a waterhole at the bottom of a crevice.

The formation known as the brain was a perfect fit for Trev and there was also areas reminiscent of vertebrae and various organs…There was a wave rock to surf…The cycle round was great exercise and we got to see the rock in detail….including some amazing rock art…People were allowed to climb that day so Trev and Andrew decided to climb the rock…Trev made it the whole way…spectacular view from the top….and he met a firie mate Brian he had worked with up there!

On the way back we stopped for another photo op..Branch got in on the act!

That night we met at Joe and Leanne’s apartment….Trev was ecstatic to see some carpet…..it had been 10 weeks….

We were going on the Field of Lights tour…..a 7 football stadia area of fibre optic lights like a field of poppies….the night was freezing, it was a full moon but the lights were beautiful…hard to capture in a photo…

We left Kings Canyon Resort early to drive to Uluru…the temperature at 10 o’clock was only 13 degrees…..Branch was in shock…just a few hundred ks south and we had gone from 32 to 13!O n the way we stopped to take a look at Mt Connor….very impressive

As we got back in the car the Coopers had an issue that Branch could not wait to deal with..their loose tap had almost come off again!

Uluru came into sight…absolutely stunning….more spectacular than we expected!

After checking in to Ayers Rock Campground we went to the shopping centre at Yulara and who should we meet but Joe and Leanne who had flown in the day before…We worked out what we were going to see over the next 2 days and then went up to the lookout to watch the sunset on Uluru….amazing spectrum of colours.

Kata Tjutu …aka The Olgas was also visible in the distance…

Our day was spent at Kings Canyon…we decided to do the long walk…the rim walk as well as the shorter walk into the Garden of Eden. The day was cool and very windy but the sun was shining so out of the wind was warm

We ascended the 500 stone steps up to the top of the canyon with amazing views along the way.The countryside was beautiful with plenty of native plants in flower and lovely coolibah trees with their white trunks a great contrast against the red rock, greenery and blue sky.

The Mereenie sandstone formations at Kings Canyon were reminiscent of the beehives of the Bungle Bungles.The rock formations and patterns were striking and the canyon itself was spectacular with its sheer cliff faces.Trev was unaware that he had a crack issue 

We had a snack at the Garden of Eden which was in the bottom of the canyon..a permanent watersource with beautiful cycads and gums….a haven for wildlife in an arid place.

Back at camp a couple of mangy dingoes were scrounging for scraps….Sturts Desert Pea was in full bloom!

After the day’s walk we went up to the lookout platform at the resort to watch sunset over the ranges…another gorgeous end to an amazing day.

We met a lovely retired Christian couple Peter and Gerie who Trev in particular spent a lot of time chatting to…. as Gordie would say another “old mate”….it was encouraging to hear about their life story and their travelling adventures around Australia.

We were glad to be leaving Alice Springs today as everyone was rolling in for the Finke Desert Race this coming weekend…the caravan park was packed with big race rigs….huge buses towing race bikes/ vehicles etc…

We had a quick stop to pick up a new battery for the Prado and then were on our way. We had debated which way to go to Kings Canyon….the Mereenie Loop had been our planned option but we had been advised that the 198k section of unsealed road was really bad….we could also have gone the Edward Giles unsealed road that was about 1 hr shorter but again apparently after the wet it was in poor condition so we opted for the longer distance but all sealed road just to spare our vehicles and vans…..

Bad call!! A speeding 4WD overtook us 800m from Ebenezer Roadhouse and kicked up a rock which cracked the Prado’s windscreen …and the guy stopped at the Ebenezer Roadhouse (as did we) ….such an unnecessary overtake!!! Branch insepcted the damage very sympathetically…..such a disappointment after so many unsealed roads etc for us to get a cracked windscreen on a sealed main road!

The irony was it happened at Ebenezer…the definition of which is “the rock of remembrance”!! Definitely a rock to remember…and the crack has now enlarged to about 40cm long…..

The landscape out to Kings Canyon was very green (surprisingly) with trees that looked like she-oaks. An amazing cloud bank near the mountains looked like snow capped peaks!

We settled in to Kings Canyon Resort…..not a recommended place to stay…expensive, cold showers, no toilet paper, broken soap dispensers, small awkward sites…..but who is complaining!

The early morning start was slightly hampered by a couple of things….Andrews car alarm woke everyone and would not stop ….then we went to start the Prado…..flat battery again…..much to Branch’s delight there was some remedial action using Andrews car…then during this process Trev detected that Andrews battery was so loose it was ready to fall off….Branch was there – ably assisted by Stephie his new partner in crime 

We set off with our first destination the town of Hermannsburg  the place of a Lutheran Mission to the local aboriginals  commenced in the late 1800s…and the place of a reportedly legendary apple strudel.

The mission was an amazing place…such a testament to a positive effect that these particular early missionaries had on the local indigenous people, treating them as equal, sharing the Gospel with them, teaching and training them as well as supporting them to become independant…the historic buildings and the pictures and documents were fascinating.

The famous aboriginal artist Albert Namatjira grew up and lived in Hermannsburg and there was lots of his work and that of his relatives on display.

We saw beautiful artwork by many indigenous artists on display and for sale including the renowned Hermannsburg Potters whose unique pottery is widely sought after.

After a few hours and delicious coffee and home made strudel we left, letand drove out along the unsealed road/river bed to Palm Valley in the Finke Gorge. The drive out was really great 4WDing with sand, pebbly areas, river crossings, boulders….you name it…..1 hr to drive 24kms!

There was amazing landscapes on the way, brumbies and Stephie thought the ride was just like a roller coaster!

We walked the Palm Valley track and again saw beautiful red cabbage palms along the Finke Gorge….very unique in such a dry arid area…

Back to camp just before dark after a long but enjoyable day….strawberry pancakes to top it off 

That night I caught up with Francesca, one of the nurses I had worked with at STG ICU who now works at Alice Springs ICU….it was great to catch up with her and she took Trev and I on a tour of the new Alice Springs ICU….really great 10 bedded very busy unit!