Adventures in the Outback
Jan 8-12
After leaving Adelaide, our first stop was Rawnsley Park Station, a working sheep farm that was one of the original settlements in the Flinders Ranges north of Adelaide. Over the years, the Station had attracted tourists and had eventually added a campground on the property which is also home to several species of wild kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
This was our first taste of the Outback and it didn’t disappoint. Even though we were only a few hours from Adelaide, we felt like we were in the middle of nowhere with nothing but mountains and desolate plains for as far as the eye could see. Kangaroos were a dime a dozen and even hopped lazily around the campground without paying any attention to us. It was bloody hot! The mercury hit 37 degrees Celsius when we arrived and we were very happy to see that there was a pool. Even with the air conditioner going full blast in our cabin all night long, the temperature was barely tolerable.
Because of the stifling heat, it was not recommended to hike in the heat of the day, so Claude decided to do a sunrise hike to the top of Rawnsley Bluff (12km return). The kids clamoured to go, too, and he promised to wake them at 4:30AM to join him (not expecting them to actually get up). When the time came though, Simon leapt out of bed, excited to go on an adventure with Daddy while Alexa just moaned and pulled her pillow over her head.
So my boys set off on their escapade while Alexa and I snoozed for another hour before we, too, got up to enjoy the sunrise with the kangaroos. Claude and Simon returned flushed and triumphant at 9AM and Simon proudly declared that he hadn’t whined once – even when he bonked his head on an overhanging rock. Claude confirmed that he had been a real trooper and had completed the trek like a seasoned pro and they the pictures to prove it.
We spent the rest of the day exploring the Flinders Ranges and saw some truly amazing scenery and loads of wildlife (check out our web album). We stopped for a delicious wild game lunch at the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna
where we tried kangaroo and emu before heading back to our cabin for a swim.
The next morning we set off early for Coober Pedy, the “Opal Mining Capital of Australia” (or maybe even the world), and made it there by mid-afternoon, just as the temperature hit 42 degrees. We quickly looked for somewhere cool to shelter from the heat and settled on Radecka’s Underground Backpackers where we had nice cool room carved out of the hillside (about 50% of CP’s residents live underground).
The owner even introduced the kids to his pet lizards who took a real liking to Simon.
Later, while Alexa and Claude took a nap, Simon and I went for a walk to explore the town and ended up admiring the opals in a small shop where the owner, an odd chain-smoking fellow, took a liking to us and took us into his workshop to show us how to cut opals. He even let Simon choose some rough uncut stones to take home with him. Of course, I ended up looking at his selection of black opals and he said he was prepared to make me good deal (because he liked me, of course). I told him I’d think about it and come back the next morning. Later, I asked the owner of Radecka’s for his opinion of the guy and his response was, “I don’t say nothin’ about no one ‘cause I don’t wanna get blown up!”
He then proceed to show me a binder full of articles dating back to the 70’s about various unsolved explosions that had taken place in Coober Pedy businesses and mines over the past thirty years. Apparently there’s a little too much ammunition lying around and some of the residents have a very short fuse. When I went back to the opal shop with Claude the next morning, he made a comment about shopping around a little more before making a purchase. When the shopkeeper heard this, he whipped his stones off the counter and said, “You know what? I liked you and I was going to make you a very good deal, but I don’t feel like doing business with you anymore! Goodbye!”
Then he turned on his heel and stormed into his workshop. As we slunk out of the store, I whispered to Claude, “Make sure you check under the car before you start it.”
Then we went next-door and I bought myself a lovely boulder opal from a very nice lady. Of course we had to do a tour of the Old Timers Opal Mine before leaving town and the kids had fun “noodling” for opal fragments. We also met a crazy Chinaman from Hong Kong and his version of “art,”
and Simon was thrilled to pose for a picture on one of the props from the movie “Pitch Black.”
Even after only one day in Coober Pedy, with its odd cast of characters, we felt like we were starting to lose touch with reality and decided to move on to Kings Canyon and Uluru (Ayers Rock). As we drove away from Coober Pedy, we felt like ants in a city of anthills as the mounds of dirt from the opal mines dotted the landscape as far as the eye could see
and I could see why this strange place had been used as the backdrop for so many futuristic sci-fi films.
To see the rest of our Outback photos, visit our web album:
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| Adelaide to Darwin |
Tags: Australia, Travel
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