Alice Springs to Darwin
Jan 15-19
Once again, no pictures, just visit our web album.
My only regret as we left Uluru was that the weather had been cloudy and rainy while we were there and, while that made for slightly more tolerable temperatures, we weren’t able to enjoy watching the famous rock change colours as the sun rose or set. The rain continued on and off throughout our drive to Alice Springs where we stayed for a few days before commencing our final run up the middle to Darwin. The further north we went, the more it rained, at times in torrents that blinded us and forced us to slow to a crawl as the baked clay refused to absorb the deluge which instead formed small rivers across the highway and threatened to swallow our car. We stopped for lunch at Wycliffe Well, a tiny outpost that is famous for its well-documented UFO sightings. The walls of the diner were plastered with newspaper and magazine articles detailing the many flashing lights and floating objects that had been spotted in the sky and there was a journal in which travelers cold document their own personal sightings. The kids were delighted with the tacky life-size aliens and spaceship that adorned the parking lot and Alexa begged to stay at the campground so we could watch for UFO’s in the night sky. Unfortunately, we still had miles to go before nightfall and had to hit the road, which was still very much under water.
Along the way, we stopped to see the famous “Devil’s Marbles,” which, according to Aboriginal legend, are the eggs of a giant serpent, but it was raining too hard to do anything but take a few photos and move on. As the afternoon wore on, we started to look for a place to sleep and found that the roadside choices were either too expensive or completely unacceptable. Around 5PM, dusk was beginning to fall and the kangaroos were getting active so we decided to get off the road before we ended up with one in our grill. We took the Daly Waters turnoff and, about 3km down the road, discovered the Daly Waters Pub which had $50 rooms for the night. It turns out that the Daly Waters Pub is a popular bar which has a rich and storied past. During World War II, the town had an active airstrip and the pub was kept busy entertaining the visiting airmen. Since then, it has become a favourite stop for travelers and even bus tours due to its authentic atmosphere, live entertainment and excellent food. Luckily for us, it was the “Wet” season and traffic was down so we were able to enjoy the charms of the place without the crowds. According to the barmaid, when they have bands playing during the “Dry” season, it gets so packed that patrons have to bring their own chair. The walls and ceiling of the pub are completely covered with memorabilia dating back 100 years. Everything from flags, to T-shirts, bras and underwear and ID’s cover every inch of space. It’s like everyone who visits feels the need to leave a little something of him or herself behind. The pillars around the bar are also covered in various coins and paper money from all over the world. We enjoyed a hearty meal of lamb shank and mashed potatoes ($8) and the kids played darts until bedtime. Claude and I took turns hanging out at the bar and met a wide cast of characters that included locals and travelers from far and wide. The next morning, after a hearty breakfast, we took some photos and hit the road. We were so glad we had taken that turnoff and discovered this little outpost of Aussie hospitality.
Over the next few days, we visited Kakadu National Park, made famous by the movie, Crocodile Dundee, where we saw some incredibly huge termite mounds and Aboriginal cave art. Unfortunately, during the Wet season, Much of Kakadu is inaccessible and we weren’t able to get off the main roads, so we decided to head for Darwin where we had to sell our car before leaving.
Tags: Australia, Travel
tambour
Sorry, accidentally deleted this comment so am reposting:
Hi guys,
Sorry for not writing you earlier. We’ve been following your adventures
regularly and I must say that I’m a bit jealous, which is a good thing because
we will want to do it with our kids too.
Looking at the Cambodia pictures, it looks a little warm. It was so stinkin hot
and dusty when we were there. Glad to see that everybody look healty on the
pictures.
Not much new here in Edmonton. I (Marc) have been off on parental leave for the
past month and a half. It’s been great spending all this time with the kids
(sometimes too much time). Amy is back at work full time for 2 months, just to
get re-qualified in her unit at the hospital. That’s what she is telling me
anyway, but I think she wanted to get away from the kids a little and make me
feel how it is to be a “stay at home mom”.
I’ll leave this short and hope you’ll enjoy your second half of your trip.
We think of you guys often and are always looking forward to seeing more
pictures of your trip.
Love and good travel, the Gagnon Family