Red Centre to Kangaroo Island

It seemed like forever, but we’ve just completed travelling the vast stretch of the Stuart Hwy from Mataranka in the mid-Northern Territory to the coast of South Australia. We have just finished looking around Adelaide and surrounds as well as Kangaroo Island. We are now heading towards Melbourne via the coastal road. It’s a relief to see the sea again.



Mataranka to Alice

Taking up from our last blog of about four weeks ago, we were very keen to stay at Mataranka after having read “We of the Never Never” by Jeanne Gunn in 1908 which was based on a cattle station in the area. We visited the site of the original station/homestead and various other historical sites related to the book, which was essentially a biography of just one year in the scrub.

We continued down the Stuart Hwy to Banka Banka, Ti Tree and then on to the Devil’s Marbles via Tennant Creek (which you could drive straight through and not miss anything) before arriving at “The Alice”. See the Mataranka pics here.

Alice and the Macdonnell Ranges


Alice Springs has improved a lot since I was last there in 1980 with a high school excursion. There were none of the ugly disturbing scenes I remembered. Clearly the policies introduced initially by the Howard Government through Mal Brough and then subsequent governments have had a positive impact on reducing social problems in the Aboriginal communities.

Some of the indigenous art work sold on the streets is of very high quality. We couldn’t resist. A lot of the stuff in the galleries is exceptional. Outside town, there are some great flora and fauna parks to visit, and, of course, the Macdonnell Ranges, both the Western and Eastern Ranges, are spectacular sites protruding from this stark Outback landscape.

It has rained more in Alice this year than it did last century. Consequently, the landscape has vast tracts of greenery comprising various grasses and shrubs as well as an abundant array of spring-time wildflowers. We felt lucky to have seen central Australia in this way. See the Alice and ranges pics here.

Uluru, The Olgas and Kings Canyon

They don’t call this part of the Outback “The Red Centre” for nothing. There is more red sand in this part of the world than there are blowflies in a pit dunny. We saw wild horses and camels and so many lizards and birds it seems as if the Outback is itself a wildlife park. Dingoes are harder to spot though (they prefer to come out at night).


The Rock is as impressive as ever and, even though I have seen it before, I marveled at it as much as the family did. Same for the Olgas. There are some enjoyable walks in and around these sites.

Kings Canyon is unassuming as you drive towards it, but it is only by walking along Kings Creek into the canyon that you are able to fully grasp its beauty. However, having to carry Charlie atop my shoulders for most of our walks takes the edge off the serenity. It was usually bloody hot on these walks and carrying an extra 20kg makes it hard going. I have no idea how the early explorers managed what they were up against. See Red Centre pics here.

Stuart Hwy to Adelaide

After leaving Kings Canyon it was a six hour drive of over 450km to Marla, just inside the South Australian boarder. Back to a time zone much closer to home. And from there it was back down the highway to Coober Pedy, that strange town that lives underground. From here the temperature started to decrease sharply, to the point that occasionally we had to dig out our parkas to escape the chill. It is amazing how within only a few hundred kilometers in the Outback the daily temp can drop so much.

At first I wondered where the town was, but there it was, right in front of me, and underneath. It basically looks like a massive pile of dirt, really. It takes on its charm after you’ve had time to absorb the meaning of the place. But you’d have to be mad to dig up countless tonnes of dirt and rock for an essentially semi-precious stone. It’s just like being addicted to gambling, but with much more manual labour involved. I think I’d rather do two-up. But all the locals we met were really friendly and interesting, in a slightly weird sort of way.

It was then “on the road” again via a 550km stretch to Port Augusta, via Woomera, the rocket range place. There are a few old rockets on display in the local park and not much else to see. In this part of the country, the landscape keeps changing every few hundred kilometers. The NT and SA landscapes seem cosmic, as if traveling on Mercury, Pluto, and then Mars. You pass numerous “lakes” (salt pans) and then about 120km from Port Augusta the vast and impressive Flinders Ranges come clearly into view. At first they reminded me of the Blue Mountains. There is none of that gradual incline you get with the Snowy”s, just a rugged protrusion from the harsh flatness.

Adelaide

We spent two nights in Port Augusta, which was twice as long as was needed, then went to Adelaide, our first proper city for nearly four months. Wow, Adelaide is an attractive town – spacious, historic-looking stone buildings everywhere and a picturesque landscape. The place seems to revel in its history yet pulses with a modern vibe. We stayed at a van park on Semaphore beach.

We fell in love with Adelaide and stayed for a week, touring around and doing day trips to the equally impressive Barrossa region and the Adelaide Hills. These areas are only a short drive from the city. The numerous wineries are a joy to visit, and it’s almost impossible to resist buying wine wherever you go. Buying and drinking Barrossa wine in situ has been one of my favourite experiences so far (it seems to taste better that way). Even the kids loved the cellars. We went to Maggie Beer’s farm/café for lunch and found the food selection limited and unsuited for lunch (pate was the main “ingredient”).

Kangaroo Island

About 100km south of Adelaide via a slow, winding country road is Cape Jervis whose only claim to fame is to provide a good ferry service to Kangaroo Island. We left the caravan in the car park and drove on to the ferry for a smooth crossing to the first settlement place in South Australia (SA). Kangaroo Island is like stepping back in time. It reminds me more of country NSW than country SA, which while historic is somehow more modern and chic (or maybe it is just more arty and "food cultured"). There is some great wildlife on this southern, windswept outpost, such as seals on the beach and penguins around the bay. Staying in an apartment for a few nights where you can walk to the toilet without having to go outside made for a comfy break from living in the van. See Coober Pedy to Kangaroo Island pics here.

All in all, we have been very impressed with SA. Now we are travelling east along the coast towards Robe and Mt Gambier. After that we will be in Victoria. See our website blog homepage here and for our photos see our photo website here for all of our albums so far from this trip.

The kids are still really enjoying the trip and have not asked once to go home. To them (and us) this is a great adventure. But for Lizzie and me, knowing we are on our final leg of the journey makes us feel a little more in a hurry than we've been. We've clocked almost 19,000km and expect a few more thousand yet.