The Red Centre

Small salt water crocodile

5.5m long saltie

With temperatures in the north rising rapidly, and the approach of the wet season rains we decided to start on the long drive south, but not before seeing a salt water crocodile. So before leaving Darwin we booked an evening cruise in a nature reserve. This huge area of interconnected waterways is a bit like the Norfolk Broads and has a huge amount of birdlife, including beautiful sea eagles. Our first sighting was of a small salt water crocodile around 2.5m long, but later we came across this huge 5.5m long adult resting on the bank. Salt water crocodiles weigh up to two tons and  can be very aggressive, causing the deaths of several people each year. Our only route was to pass right behind him which made for an exciting moment.



The Devils Marbles

From Darwin to Alice Springs is 1500kms along a relatively straight and flat tarmac road, which can become quite monotonous. As there is little traffic drivers are looking for any distraction so always wave to passing motorists. There are a few landmarks en route and we made a point of stopping at one each day, including a sandstone gorge at Katherine, some freshwater springs in the middle of the desert, surrounded by palms housing hundreds of bats, and further south various rock formations significant to the aborigines such as the devils Marbles.



Chain of Ponds gorge in McDonnel Range

Around 1000kms south of Darwin, as we approached the dryer centre,  we were relieved to discover that night-time temperatures were much lower making it easier to sleep.
Passing the geographical centre of Australia and just south of the Tropic of Capricorn is Alice Springs (of a Town like Alice fame) which now boasts a wide range of modern and upmarket facilities for travellers and tourists. It is the largest town for over 1000 kms in any direction and sits in the middle of the

180 degree panorama from Kings Canyon rim walk

Uluru - Ayres Rock

McDonnel range of mountains. These are red sandstone outcrops which run for several hundred kms across the centre of Australia and are cut by deep gorges which often have cool swimming waterholes year round. On one exploratory walk we came across Emma and her daughter Emily from the UK who are travelling round Australia for a year. After spending a very pleasant evening exchanging experiences we went our separate ways only to bump into each other in various places over the next couple of weeks. It was always great to meet and chat.


Kata Tjuta
 

After exploring some of the gorges we headed south stopping at the stunning Kings canyon, where we walked the canyon rim in the early morning as they close it if the temperature rises above 36 degrees, The walk is stunning. After climbing up several 100m to pass through beehive like formations, it run along the rim with sheer vertical sandstone faces 300m high dropping into the gorge.


Kata Tjuta

Everywhere the rock is red, and the sand and dust are red - hence the name of the Red centre, but there is a covering of tufts of prickly spinifex grass and small shrubs and trees providing a surprising amount of greenery.
Uluru (or Ayres Rock) rose from the flat plain as we approached and is every bit as impressive as it is made out to be. This red sandstone monolith which towers 350m above the plain has no erosion scree or debris with the smoothed rock sides dropping almost vertically to the desert plain below. An extraordinary sight. They have just announced that in two years time people will be prohibited from  from climbing Uluru, but the public are already asked not to climb it as it is sacred to the Aboriginies. However on the days we were there the rock was closed anyway as it was too windy. It is also closed when the temperature rises above 36 degrees, or if it is raining or low cloud.

Painted Desert

50kms away is another extraordinary rock outcrop Kata Tjuta - a series of rounded conglomerate domes rising 500m from the desert, with narrow passageways between them. Paths wind through the outcrops giving a sense of just how large these outcrops are.

Part of 5000km long dog fence

Having spent 10 days around Alice and Uluru we needed to be on the move again to make sure we reach Melbourne for the end of November. After a couple of long days driving we pulled off the Stewart Highway and headed 100kms east along a dirt road to the Painted Desert - an area of beautiful coloured weathered rock which looks like an artists mixing palate. We were the only people on the road, and here is true desert, no vegetation, just a dry stony surface cut by rain channels. Our route took us through the dog fence, a 5000km long fence round south Australia to keep dingoes out and protect the sheep industry, and through the opal fields near Coober Pedy.

Opal mining spoil heaps

This extraordinary town has been responsible for the mining of 80% of the worlds opal. When first discovered there were hundreds of claims and the spoil heaps from the workings are scattered across the desert.

Underground church Coober Pedy

The town developed despite the lack of water and the fierce summer heat when temperatures can reach 50 degrees, and the sub zero winter nights. To overcome this many of the houses, and even the churches are cut into the soft rock where the temperature summer and winter is around 23 degrees. A really quirky town which still is home to many characters and a lot of old mining junk in yards round the town. Our visit coincided with a tremendous thunderstorm and pouring rain, very unusual in this town which sometimes does not see rain for several years.

Quirky Opal Bug in Coober Pedy

Our final stretch of the Stuart Highway took us through Woomera rocket testing range, where the British tested the Blue Streak rockets in the 1960's which has several large white salt lakes either side of the road.  We eventually pulled in to the RV park in Port Augusta, which sits on the southern coast, to be welcomed once again by Emma and Emily

 



McDonnel Range Gorge                                                                                      Ghost Gum

 

 

Pair of Sea Eagles                                            Inquisitive Wallaby

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Big Heat and the Top End

Camel Riders on Cable Beach Broome

As we have travelled north so the temperatures have increased, until here near Darwin they are an uncomfortable 40 degrees during the day, and generally not dropping below around 28 degrees at night. Hence we tend to visit places morning and evening and travel during the middle of the day when the car's air-conditioning provides relief from the heat.

Deserted outback road

From Karijini National park we headed to Broome on the coast for a couple of day's relaxation and enjoyed lovely coastal scenery and visited the 100 year old outdoor cinema where the latest Hollywood blockbusters can be enjoyed under the stars.

Beautiful peaceful Windjana Gorge

Freshwater Crocodile

Having stocked up on food we headed north to the Kimberley which has some spectacular rugged sandstone scenery, with red vertical cliffs rising out of the plains and cascading waterfalls into deep cool plunge pools, many offering a chance to cool off.




The sandstone heights are frequently cut by deep narrow gorges which remain shaded and cool during the day. NW Australia is the home of the Boab tree - very similar to the Baobab of Africa with huge bloated trunks supporting a few short branches. The trees are just coming into leaf heralding the start of the wet season. Our first stop from Broome was Windjana Gorge where we enjoyed a spectacular thunderstorm overnight, followed by a glorious clear day when we walked through this peaceful gorge in an ancient Devonian barrier reef. The river through the gorge is inhabited by dozens of small (up to 3m long) freshwater crocodiles (freshies), which are claimed to be relatively harmless, unlike their bigger cousins the saltwater crocs (salties) which grow to 7m and can be very aggressive. Further along the same road is Tunnel creek - a natural river tunnel which winds 750m through the barrier reef which can be walked and waded through provided you have a good torch.

Wolfe Creek Meteorite Crater

A detour took us to Wolfe Creek crater - the second largest meteorite crater in the world which is almost perfectly circular and rises out of a completely flat plain. It must have been a huge impact. 

Purnulu National Park is home to the Bungle Bungles, which provide some strange rock formations with banded black and red sandstone domes rising from the plain. The sandstone is fissured providing a number of canyons ranging from the intimate Echidna Canyon which in places is only 1m wide, to Cathedral canyon which opens to a wide amphitheatre with a dramatic overhang under a wet season waterfall.

The Bungle Bungles



Echidna Gorge

Cathedral Gorge

Pentecost River Crossing - Gibb River Road

North again is El Questro Park with a series of stunning swimming holes set in deep sandstone canyons and encompassing several large rivers including Pentecost River which the Gibb River road crosses in a 200m long ford. From Western Australia we have crossed into Northern territories and headed north to Darwin, a reasonably large city in the "Top End" which has an amazing number of WW2 airfields and defences, as well as being adjacent to the Litchfield and Kakadu National Parks.

Aboriginal Rock Art in Kakadu

Litchfield has some lovely walking trails through lush tropical valleys, while UNESCO listed Kakadu spans a wide range of habitats from coast, through swamp and floodplain to sandstone cliffs. Two excellent sites containing a lot of ancient Aboriginal rock art are set in the Park providing a glimpse of ancient Aboriginal culture, and the rock shelters they used for millennia.

 

One feaure of the NW is the number of birds of prey and the prolific and spectacular bird life in general, from the beautiful to the ugly.


The beautiful Comb Crested Jacana

Masked Lapwing

Having caught our breath in Darwin we are planning to head south through the centre to Alice Springs and Uluru.

Too hot for Kites

A friendly spider trying to eat a beetle

 

Driving hazard - 60m long road trains

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

G'Day Australia

Pastoral SW Australia

Arriving in Perth after 5 months in Indonesia came as a shock. Not only are the roads incredibly good, there is no litter, the supermarkets are loaded with western goods, with especially good meat, and wine, and the weather is cool - in fact at times cold. Spring is just arriving and the weather has just turned from cold and wet to more Spring like resulting in the spring flowers being at their best. While waiting for the container to arrive we hired a car and have spent a couple of weeks exploring the south west corner of Australia, which in places looks just like the UK - rolling green hills where sheep graze, with small woodlands, and further inland large areas of wheat and a very rural feel.

Kangaroos grazing

It is only when you look closely at the trees and realise they are mainly eucalypts of some sort, and when kangaroos hop across in front of you, or graze in the evening light in the fields that you realise this is Australia. The weather has been fantastic, warm sunny days and cool nights - we even had a frost! September is the beginning of the whale migration along the coast so we have spent several days walking the coastal areas along empty sandy beaches and through colourful coastal scrub keeping an eye out for the tell tale whale blow, or splash when one has breached.

Whales

Lookout Tree

We were fortunate to see one a couple of hundred metres off the headland where we were chatting to volunteers who perform an annual whale migration census. This SW corner of Australia was once covered in eucalyptus forest much of which has been cleared to plant wheat, but large areas have been kept in National Parks where some of the huge 400 year old trees can still be seen. We passed on the opportunity to climb 65 metres up metal spikes driven into a tree to reach a fire lookout, and instead walked round the valley of giants where particularly large trees are more abundant.

Tulips in Botanic Garden

A week ago we returned to Perth as the container arrived and we wanted to be on hand, however customs randomly selected our container for X-Ray so it was delayed on the wharf by 4 working days, and we have spent the time using the excellent public transport system to visit some of the sights in and around Perth and Freemantle, including the botanic gardens, which had fine displays of tulips and banksia trees in flower. Last Friday the container was eventually released and has been cleared by Customs, so we are now waiting for an appointment with Quarantine inspectors so we can unpack it and they can inspect for cleanliness - hopefully today or tomorrow. They frequently request additional cleaning before it is released and we can take it for its roadworthiness inspection. So we will likely have to spend another week in or around Perth.


 

Banksia Flower

SW Coast

Emu

Heading North in Australia

Stockyard Gully Tunnel

Our vehicle was eventually released to us after being held by customs for 10 days for a random check, and then after a 5 minute examination by the quarantine officer we were declared clear. The final pieces of the jigsaw were to get the car serviced and then tested by the Dept of Transport, who also OK'd it so we were then free to drive. Having provisioned ourselves we immediately set off north from Perth and have spent the last 10 days visiting many of their fabulous National Parks en route. We spent the first night in the van in nearly six weeks in Yanchep NP, 70kms N of Perth where we were entertained by a pair of male kangaroos fighting. From there we have visited Pinnacles NP, where remarkable limestone pillars have been left in a sandy desert, Leseur NP to see the Spring flowers, Stockyard Gully where we walked through a 250m long natural limestone tunnel, once used by herders to hold their cattle.


Natures Window Kalbarri NP

Following the Indian Coast Road has meant we have been able to cut off to the coast to camp and enjoy the long sandy coastline. As we progressed north sections of the coast have become rocky with some spectacular headlands and cliffs. We drove to the most westerly point of Mainland Australia at Steep Point crossing a couple of sand dunes en route, but were alos rewarded with visiting some fantastic blowholes in the cliffs  where we could hear the air being forced up from 100 ft below. When there is a real swell in the sea at high tide they discharge fountains of water, despite being 100ft above sea level.   

Heading N back into the Tropics

We have become very conscious of just how big Australia is, the roads are excellent with relatively little traffic, a real contrast to Indonesia, but the distances are huge. Communities are separated by 100's of kms so it is essential to keep a close eye on fuel levels, it may be 150kms to the next fuel station, even on a main road. The landscape also changes slowly with large areas of scrubland, and as we have travelled further north increasingly arid landscapes with sparse grass and small trees / shrubs. It is amazing that these areas are used for grazing with cattle and sheep straying over 10's of kms

Western Tip of Australia

One highlight was an evening whale watching trip from Exmouth where we were privileged to see around a dozen humpback whales, many with calves, displaying most of their antics, breaching, fin and tail slapping and beautiful tail fin dives. I was fantastic to be near to these huge and docile creatures. From a population of fewer than 1000 migrating along this coast in the early 1960's there are now around 30,000, with the population still growing.

Breaching humpback whale

The following day we were sitting in a beach car park about to have lunch when a group of 3 kangaroos decided to rest in the shade of our van, it was the only shade around, so we ate lunch while these inquisitive visitors watched or snoozed around 3 ft away. We have now travelled sround 200kms inland and spent the day in Karijini NP - a huge area of undulating scrubland cut by numerous deep and often narrow gorges. Trails wind down into the gorges where there are several tranquil pools ideal for swimming.
A fantastic country with lots to see and do, but also huge distances to cover.

Blowholes



Chilled Kangaroo

Canyons in Karijini NP

Walking a narrow canyon

   

Goodbye Indonesia

Back in Surabaya we have spent the last two weeks thoroughly cleaning the van in preparation for shipping it to Australia. Australia have very strict bio-security regulations and the vehicles are thoroughly inspected by a special team looking for any insect or soil / dust contamination. Thorough cleaning involved taking everything out, including anything relatively easily unboltable like the fridge, front seats and flooring and the front bull bars. These were all thoroughly cleaned before being replaced and after having the outside of the van cleaned by a local company spent two days underneath with a pressure washer before the whole of the underside was undersealed to make it look like new.
Every item removed from the van was cleaned and then replaced. Eventually after nearly two weeks it was all back together and we carefully drove it to the shipping yard where it was loaded into a 40ft container which was then fumigated. By now it should be safely loaded onto the ship and on its way to Perth via Singapore.
We now have a couple of weeks before the van arrives in Perth so once we have collected the carnet and bill of lading we are heading to Australia to enjoy some cooler weather.

Reflections on Indonesia - a fantastically varied country both in terms of scenery and cultures. Lasting impressions are: soaring volcanoes; crashing waves on empty sandy beaches; intense agriculture, and high population density on Java and Bali, but miles of empty undeveloped places on Sumatra, Sumbawa and Flores; extraordinary wildlife on Sumatra and Java; vast cultural differences on different islands, Islam on Java, South Sumatra and Lombok, Hinduism on Bali and Christianity on Flores and North Sumatra; a huge programme of building mosques; traffic congestion; motorbikes everywhere; friendly inquisitive people; heat and humidity on low ground;
An extraordinary country where we have only really scratched the surface, there is so much more to explore.   

Fabulous Flores

 

 
Flores, named by the Portuguese "flowers", is a wonderful varied island which is just seeing the development of tourism, particularly at the western end near to Komodo Island (home of the Komodo Dragons). Our two weeks on the island enabled us to explore places off the beaten track, which we had not visited on our previous visit three years ago. The trans Flores highway runs the length of the island and twists and turns up and down the mountains which form the backbone of the island. It has been rebuilt over the past three years, joins the main towns and now provides a relatively easy, though not fast, route across Flores. To either side of this main route the roads have not been maintained and so few tourists venture into these areas. Having our own vehicle enabled us to explore some of these areas.
The south coast of Flores consists of rocky shores where the mountains meet the sea, with occasional white sandy beaches facing the crashing surf from the southern ocean. These are virtually completely deserted offering that Robinson Crusoe feeling of only seeing your own footprints in the sand. We spent several nights by one beach at Repi where each evening the local water buffalo walked along the beach to their overnight resting place amongst the dunes.
Camping by other beaches it was fascinating to watch the morning arrival of the fishing boats to offload their catches, some at formal jetties, others by young boys swimming from the boats with large barrels of loose fish which they passed to waiting motorbikes, or small pickups for onward transport to market. All along this south coast fishing is a significant occupation.
The central mountains are home to many small villages and we visited both a traditional village built on a fantastic hillside location, and the cave where the Flores Hobbit (an early hominid Homo Floriensis from 60,000 to 100,000 years ago) was discovered in 2003. There is still much debate over this dwarf Hominid and whether it represents a dwarf Homo Sapiens of a separate branch of Hominid. Although there is a little museum (sadly closed) it was easy to imaging the hominids living in the cave and exploiting the fruits and wildlife of the valley, which is still relatively undeveloped.


Heading further north the mountains become steeper, and the once tarmacked roads considerably worse (thank goodness for, high clearance, 4 wheel drive and low ratio gears) with some steeply terraced hillsides for rice production, until to the north of the mountains the scenery suddenly becomes very dry. This is another undeveloped area where the government is just starting to put in irrigation to allow year round crops and the relocation programme is bringing in people from Java and Bali. The coast is mainly mangrove interspersed with undeveloped sandy beaches facing a very gentle sea lapping at the shore. Again few people and very peaceful.
One feature of all these beaches is the variety of shells and on Flores in particular beautiful coloured sea washed stones in greens, blues and reds. They are so attractive we ended up collecting lots of extra ballast for the van, which we will need to ruthlessly sort before long.


All along Flores are volcanoes and we revisited Kelimutu which has three craters each containing a different coloured lake. We had planned to camp in the car park to climb and see the sunrise, but were told we were not allowed to, so had to settle for the sunset from the top and sunrise from part way down - but still a beautiful sight.

Flores has presented the most spectacular sunsets, with fantastic colours most evening ranging through beautiful pastel colours to vivid orange and red skies.
So now we have taken a 26 hour ferry ride back to Surabaya on Java (the city where we entered Indonesia) and have booked for the van to be shipped to Perth Australia in two weeks time, so we will have to spend the next fortnight cleaning the van inside and out to be like new. Australia has very stringent bio security requirements so there must be no grease, oil or dust, or insects etc anywhere.