An Australian Outback Adventure

The Australian Outback; a vast expanse in the central part of Australia. We had lived in Australia (in Sydney) for 2 years and visited several places there during that period. I had heard a bit about the famous Australian Outback; its arid climate, red soil, vast stretches without human settlements, roads that go straight without a single turn for hundreds of kilometers etc. But never in our wildest dreams had we thought we would undertake a camping cum road trip in the Australian Outback. Well that is exactly what we ended up doing in April of 2016.

It was during July 2015 that our close friends from Sydney told us about a camping cum road trip that was being planned in April 2016 in the Australian Outback and inquired if we wanted to have our daughter join them in the trip as she would be on her break after having finished her 10th class board examination. But as we got more details about the plan as well as read up on experiences of people who had undertaken trips our enthusiasm to also join the trip increased. So it was not too long before we confirmed to our friends our decision to join in 🙂 .

The Outback road trip was to be for 9 days including flying in and out of Alice Springs to Sydney. The high level plan was

• Day 1 : Fly from Sydney to Alice Springs, explore Alice Springs Desert Park, Overnight stay in Alice Springs
• Day 2 : Drive to Ormiston Gorge, explore Simpsons Gap, Standley’s Chasm, Ellery Creek Big Hole enroute and finally camp overnight in Ormiston Gorge
• Day 3 : Explore Ormiston Gorge and then drive to Palm Valley; explore Comet Crater enroute and finally camp overnight in Palm Valley
• Day 4 : Drive to Kings Canyon, explore around Kings Canyon; camp overnight in Kings Canyon
• Day 5 : Do the Rim Walk and the Kings Creek Walk in Kings Canyon; camp overnight in Kings Canyon
• Day 6 : Drive to Yulara, explore Yulara, see the Field of Lights in the evening; camping in Yulara
• Day 7 : Visit the sunrise viewpoint for for the Olgas, do the Valley of the Winds Walk at the Olgas, Visit the sunset viewing point of the Ayers Rock (Uluru); camping in Yulara
• Day 8 : Visit the sunrise viewing point of the Ayers Rock, do the Uluru Base Walk, drive back to Alice Springs, overnight stay at Alice Springs
• Day 9 : Fly back to Sydney from Alice Springs

For most parts we would be following the Red Centre Way as in the below map:

It was going to be five families doing the trip together; each family having a daughter and son.

Being on her break after exams our daughter flew a week earlier into Sydney to spent extra time with our friends and their children. The rest of us flew in three days before the planned departure to Alice Springs; enough to get over the jet lag.

Day 1 : The Journey Begins

Finally the day  to start this trip arrived . The plan was for all the families to meet up at the Sydney Airport. We got introduced to Rob, Eva, Richard, Heidi, Paramvir, Nila and their  children as we were meeting for the first time. Check-in formalities completed and after grabbing breakfast we ready to board the flight.

The flight was uneventful. All of us were looking forward to starting the road trip; technically I guess we already had. After collecting our luggage upon landing in Alice Springs we hired taxis to take us to Desert Palm Resort, the hotel in which we would be staying overnight. Once at the hotel one member from each family headed to the car rental office to collect the vehicle and the camping gear. It was in town centre. We decided to walk to the office. It was not far and it would also give us a good “lay of the land”.

Each family was renting a 4WD. Though the more expensive option we had decided on it as it would allow us to visit places that were possible only with a 4WD (like Palm Valley). The camping gear included chairs, table, cooking stove, a gas cylinder, cutlery, dishes, cleaning material and a large can of drinking water. Each family also hired a refrigerator. Two satellite phones were also hired as there would be no mobile network available in the outback. Paper work completed and vehicles collected we drove back to the hotel. We picked up our families and headed to Desert Park.

All of us thoroughly enjoyed Desert Park. You get a good introduction to the outback including the wildlife. You also get to meet several of them. The bird show was particularly a big hit where one gets to see the birds up close and exhibits some of its characteristic behaviours. The noctornal house was another attraction that had us all enthralled. It houses creatures that thrive in the night and would usually be difficult to see, like the Thorny Devils, the Bilby and the Tawny Frogmouth; what amazing creatures! Everyone of course loved the walk within the Kangaroo enclosure where you could even feed them. You can get more information about Desert Park here.

 It was evening by the time we had finished the Desert Park tour. We all headed back to the hotel for a quick a change. The plan was to catch an early dinner at a restaurant in town. Bookings had been made at the Casa Nostra Pizza & Spaghetti House. All of us were famished and eagerly dug into the food once it came.

In between I noticed that my daughter had gone out. Wondering what she was up to I went out to look for her. I found here admiring the beautiful evening sky that had presented itself. Below is a poor attempt to capture it.

Back at the hotel once the children were settled in we took a brief stroll out in the night before we retired to bed.

Day 2 : Hitting the Road

We went to collect the shopping supplies that had been ordered as well as pick up breakfast. Back at the hotel after tucking into the food we loaded the vehicles with the our luggage, checked out of the hotel and then settled ourselves into the vehicle. It was going to be our trusty “steed” over the next 8 days.

Our first stop was the Flynn’s Grave Historical Reserve. It is the resting place for the ashes of the Reverend John Flynn, founder of the Flying Doctor Service and the Australian Inland Mission. It is on a low hill at the foot of the MacDonnell Ranges.

It also marks the start (if you can call it that as it a loop) of the Red Centre Way.

Our next stop was Simpsons Gap. We parked our cars and walked all the way to the Gap, all the way admiring the natural beauty around us.

The sun was hot but having a breeze blowing made it a pleasant walk. The water body at the Gap was soothing and the area was cool.

On our walk back to the car park we were lucky to see a Black-footed Rock-wallaby, a not see easy mammal to find.

The next pit stop was Standley Chasm. It is bordered by the West MacDonnell National Park. Standley Chasm cuts through tough quartzite to form a beautiful natural chasm. The walk to the chasm was on a rough terrain but easily doable. The sight at the end was well worth the effort.

How can one not take more photographs when the natural beauty on offer is fantastic!

It was around noon. So we decided to catch lunch at the kiosk near the car park.

Tummies filled we headed off towards Ormiston Gorge. Our last stop before it was the Ellery Creek Big Hole. There was a large water body in which could see a number of people swimming.  None of us however got into the water as we were wanting to move on to final destination for the day. We wanted to get their so as to get a decent spot in the camp ground.

We reached the campground at Ormiston Gorge later than what we had wanted to. The Richard and Parmavir’s family had reached ahead. So they had blocked a couple of spots at the campground for us. It is important to reach and set up the tent before night falls. Ideally one should also do much of the cooking when it there is still light. It was evening when we reached. So we had reasonably good time to set up the tent. It was the first time that I was ever putting up a tent. Pradhyot was however a pro at it. He had organised for a large tent that could accommodate both our families. He had even practiced setting it up before the trip. So I just followed the instructions he gave. The children also pitched in when asked. Soon we had the tent up.

Soon after the ladies had the dinner going. A little after night fall we all sat together and had dinner. The night sky was clear. So we spent a bit of time admiring it. It was not much later that we all called it a night. I guess having other campers already sleeping did not give us an option of staying up late as it would be disturbing to them.

Day 3 : Off-roading with 4WDs

Morning was bright and early. First was to explore the area around Ormiston Gorge. Owing to its beauty as well as its accessibility it is supposedly the most photographed gorge in entire outback. It was indeed beautiful.

We also explored the hills around the gorge. It gave us some splendid views from up above.

Next was breakfast followed by packing up all the camping gear and loading back onto the vehicles. This was to be the routine for the next several days. We left Ormiston Gorge and headed towards the destination for the day; Palm Valley.

Our first stop enroute was the lookout point for Mt Sonder. The lookout was a short drive up a steep hill. It suddenly ends in a flat clearing with plenty of space for parking vehicles and a shaded lookout. We used this opportunity to capture a few photos of the entire group.

Out next stop was Redbank Gorge. This is western-most gorge in the West MacDonnells. We parked our cars at the designated spot and walked to the gorge. It was roughly a 1km walk through a mix of terrain; sand and rocky. At the gorge many from the group including my two children took a swim. The water was colder than expected I heard. A while later once everyone had dried themselves we all headed back to the car park to move ahead.

Next was Tylers Pass Lookout. From here we could get a good Gosse Bluff (Tnorala), a comet crater dating back to about 140 million years ago.

We then drove to the Gosse Bluff itself. The path is rough, rocky with sandy patches and requiring high clearance. Hence this can be accessed only with a 4WD vehicle. As we walked around it was difficult to come to terms that we were actually walking in a crater formed by the impact of an object from space!

Before we were to go to Palm Valley, our final destination for the day, we headed to town of Hermannburg. We would stop to fill fuel  in our vehicles as well as pick some provisions. The stopover was a short one. Soon we were traveling back to the entrance of Palm Valley. Only 4WD vehicles were allowed on the path leading to Palm Valley. Soon after turning onto the path we stopped. We were going to collect some firewood in a bid to have a bonfire in the evening. Unfortunately this was to stop almost immediately. Richard when jumping and trying to break a fallen tree branch slipped and fell. Almost immediately we could see that something had gone awfully wrong. He was in great pain. Someone had a crepe bandage and made a sling to hold his hurt arm. We then all drove back to Hermannburg in order to seek medical attention. The clinic that we had seen during our first visit was closed. Everyone gathered together to discuss the next course of action. Richard clearly needed medical help. Weighing the different options it was decided collectively that it was best to have Richard taken back to Alice Springs for medical help. Heidi would drive back. Paramvir and family would also accompany them to Alice Springs. The rest of us (three families) would head to Palm Valley. We would connect over satellite phone in the evening to get the update on Richard as well as the next plans.

We drove off to Palm Valley. I could see why it was necessary to have a 4WD vehicle to get to it; the path was truly adventurous with having rocky stretches, large patches of sand, a river crossing etc. Once there we picked up our camping spots. This was a much larger campground compared to Ormiston Gorge. There were a few other campers; there were still plenty of slots free.

Our first activity was to unload the camping gear and then set up the tent. The ladies got the dinner going. Dusk was just beginning to fall when we ate our dinner. Dinner done we then had the luxury of being able to take warm water showers. It is  amazing how things we take for granted otherwise can become luxuries out in desolate places like the outback. I must say that the camping sites that we were staying at were well maintained.

Once everything was wrapped up we all sat around chatting. We got an update on Richard’s arm; his shoulder had been dislocated. He would need to rest it for some days and hence it was put in a sling. Good news was that they were to join us.

The stars were starting to make their appearance in the night sky. All of us were soon admiring their beauty and the number of stars shining away in the night. Rob commented that what we were seeing was only a fraction of what one would see when the Milky Way came into “full view”. That certainly got the kids and me excited. I got to hear my daughter making plans to wake up at 3AM in a bid to see it as the moon would have set by then. I certainly wanted to see it as well.

I shall never forget the visual treat that I saw that night. I could hear the low voices of the Ricky and my daughter as they made their way out of the tent. I was unable to decide if I should indeed go out. It was so cozy inside the sleeping bag. The oohs and aahs that i heard coming from outside made the decision easy. I joined them in about a minute. And boy-oh-boy was I glad I came out. The night sky was “exploding” with stars, if I can use the term. I could never have imagined that it would look like what I was seeing. We all took in the beauty of what we were seeing. Once we were satisfied the three of us returned to the comfort of the tent and our sleeping bags.

Day 4 : Un-intended “Excitement”

We woke up as dawn was breaking. We wanted to enjoy the different colours in the sky as it happened. Boy was it spectacular!; the colours changed every 5 – 10 minutes. Here is a photograph of one that I managed to capture:

The morning air was crisp and refreshing. Of course nothing like having a nice cup of tea or coffee!

Soon it was time to do the routine tasks; fold all the camping gear including the tent and load everything onto the vehicles. All loaded including ourselves we bid goodbye to Palm Valley.

The final destination was Kings Canyon. There were no planned stops enroute today. So off we went, the three families convoying. And we were glad we did. Much of the road to Kings Canyon from Palm Valley was unsealed (meaning not tarred). The road was rough but given that that we had 4WD we were all going around 100 Kmph; the road was empty and the distance we had to cover was fairly long. Rob was leading up front. The first incident was when I noticed that the roof rack on his car had started to shift backwards and was in danger of falling off! We had agreed earlier that we would flash our headlights in case of some emergency and that is what I did. He pulled over to the side in a bit and in good time; one set of holders were off the rail. We shifted much of the luggage from his roof rack to Pradhyot’s and mine.

Rob also tied the roof rack onto the body with some extra rope that he had handy.  Once satisfied with the temporary fix we headed on, this time my vehicle was up in the front, followed by Rob’s and Pradhyot’s. Some time later I felt that my car was skidding. I could not understand why as there was no water or slush on the road. I decided to stop. One of the rear tyres had a blow-out! It was indeed a good idea to have stopped to inspect. The ever-helping Rob and I got down to changing the tyre. Now I knew why each car had been given 2 spare tyres.

The remaining part of the drive to Kings Canyon without any further “excitements”. By the time we reached, Richard’s and Paramvir’s families were already there. They had managed to get a nice spot on the campground for all us.

After unloading the camp gear and then setting it up we decided to explore. The facilities at Kings Canyon Resort were luxurious; several washrooms, swimming pool, kitchen, restaurant, provision store. There was a marked trail that we decided to explore in the evening. The sun was bright. However it was worthwhile walk.

We ended by going to the sunset viewing deck. Here is a picture that I took of the view from there.

Day 5 : Exploring Kings Canyon

We would be spending one more night at Kings Canyon. So we had the whole day to explore the spots around. The most famous and the most spectacular is the Rim Walk. It is a Must-Do. One has to be reasonably fit walkers as it is around 6 kms and there is an initial climb of around 1000 steps to the top. But the views that it will offer is to die for. Of course if gets too adventurous and try to take selfies right at the edges, it will literally be “to die” for. So one has to be careful and most importantly sensible especially at the edges.

We were at the base of the starting steps by around 6AM. Most in the group were regular walkers/hikers. We did not want to hold them back in their pace. We were going to do the walk at our own pace. There was no risk of getting lost as the path was well marked. Being in smaller groups or being in just one’s family also helps manage the kids better 🙂 . So off we went. We thoroughly enjoyed the walk. It was a great way to also share our experiences so far in the trip as a family. The sights on offer were of course spectacular. Walking along the canyon one gets a reminder of how minuscule one is the large scheme of nature. Here are some pictures captured during the walk:

We finished the walk a good one hour before the estimated time. It had not been exerting except for the initial climb. There were longer walks planned in Uluru. Based on how we as a family had done in this walk we got the confidence that we would able to do those as well, especially the kids that we had not been sure about.

Back at the camp the rest of the morning and afternoon were spent lazing around and an occasional splash in the swimming pool. The plan for the evening was to do the Kings Creek Walk, a 2.6 km walk. This was an easy walk. Here are some pictures taken during the walk:

Day 6 : Uluru, here we come!

Today we were to drive all way to Yulara. This is the town where most people stay when visiting the famous Uluru also known as Ayers Rock. We were to camp there for two nights and then return to Alice Springs. Once all the camp gear and all belonging were loaded onto the vehicles we all set off on the drive.

It was a straight drive except for the one planned stop at a roadside rest area before Curtin Springs. This served as our stop for a quick lunch as well as getting good views of Mt. Conner. Seemingly Mt. Conner s also called as “FOOL-URU” by the locals as its tricks people into thinking it is Uluru. Here is a picture we took of it from the rest area.

Opposite the rest area was a sand dune. A few of u climbed that and were rewarded with an excellent view of a magnificent salt lake. Here is a picture I took.

Here is a picture of the side opposite to the salt lakeside from atop the dune. You can see Mt. Conner in the distance.

Upon reaching Yulara we headed to the Ayers Rock Resort, completed the check-in formalities and then set up the camp gear within the campground. Once settled in we went a quick drive around the town.

The evening was to be spent at a visual experience called the Field of Lights. It is essentially an art installation by the artist Bruce Munro. The installation consists of more than 50000 slender stems crowned with frosted-glass spheres lighted up in different colours spread over an area of over seven football fields. We were picked up from the bus stop near the campground and transported to the place of the installation. Dusk had not fallen when we reached the initially viewing platform. The rest of the evening was indeed visual treat with the ever changing shades of the sky and then the walk through the Field of Lights. We also got our first views of the Uluru. Here are some pictures from the evening:

Day 7 : Exploring around Uluru

Today we were going to be doing our second longest walk in the trip; the Valley of the Winds Walk. This walk was at Kata Tjuta, also known as the Olgas (more info here). But first on the itinerary was to catch a view of the rock from the sunrise viewing point.

We were going to do the full circuit of The Valley of the Wings Walk. It was a distance of 7.4km. Most of the walk is unshaded. So we wanted to do it before it got too hot. Hence we drove to the starting point right after seeing the rocks from the sunrise viewing point. This walk was through rough terrain and over undulating land. The entire walk took us around 3 hours to complete, doing it at a leisurely pace. Below are some pictures from it:

The walk and the sights from the walk were invigorating!

Once back at Yulara it was time to relax for a bit. A little later we decided to explore the town centre. Here we got introduced to the aborginal culture through a short talk and various art displays. Another exciting experience was learning (or at least trying) to play the didgeridoo. It looked simple to play but is a whole different aspects when one actually does try 🙂 . We also watched a short film in the afternoon.

Evening was to be spent at the sunset viewing point of Uluru. We left there around 4pm as we had heard that getting a good parking spot can be challenging if one reaches late; a good decision. We all managed to get spots close to each other. We spent the time till dusk soaking in the beauty of the Uluru.

Day 8 : Uluru and the Journey Back

Today was the day for doing the Uluru Base Walk. But first we wanted to catch the morning views of the Uluru at sunrise. So we first went to the sunrise viewing point. It looked so different in the morning light from what we had seen in the previous evening at sunset.

Once satisfied with the viewing we drove off to the starting point for the Base Walk. We had chosen to start the walk from Kuniya carpark. At the car park we decided that we would all form our own smaller groups. That way each could walk at their own pace. The distance of the Base Walk was 10.6 kms. We were to meet back at the Kuniya car park upon completion. Our kids went off together with some of the other kids and adults. So it was just my wife and I together in our group. We soaked in the beauty surrounding us and also enjoyed the serenity of being by ourselves. Here are some of the pictures we took during the walk:

Again we were to finish the walk in less than the indicated time-frame, that too at an easy pace. The walk was not difficult at all as it was all through on level ground. It is only the distance that can be a deterrent for people who are not reasonably fit.

Back at the campground Pradhyot, the kids and I went about packing up camp gear and loading them on to the vehicles. The ladies in the meanwhile went to the town centre  and got us all breakfast. Breakfast done it was time to say goodbye to Yulara and head back to Alice Springs.

The drive to Alice Springs was uneventful and without any stops for sightseeing. The first stop was for fuel. It was here that we bid goodbye to Richard, Paramvir, Rob and their families. There were going to Rainbow Valley for the night and would be heading back to Alice Springs the next day. Our next stop was to grab a quick bite. We reached Alice Springs around evening. We stayed at the Hilton DoubleTree Suites for the night. The evening was spent re-organising the luggage, accounting for the rented equipment, reminiscing the moments of the trip during dinner and finally winding down from the trip.

Day 9 : Heading back to Sydney

It was time to return the rented vehicles and camping gear. Pradhyot and I drove off to the rental agency post breakfast. There was a fuel station besides their office. So it made it easy to tank up before returning them. Formalities done and due settled the owner drove us back to the hotel from where we picked up our families and went to the Alice Springs airport. The flight to Sydney was on time. We finally reached back at our friend’s home later afternoon, thus bringing an end to our Outback trip.

Looking back at the trip it was really well planned and organised. All the logistics and worthwhile stops enroute had all been identified. There were activities that we all did together as a group. At the same time each family also got their own space and time together. The kids, at least ours, experienced having to contribute to the chores and not just let the parents do them all 🙂 . The kids also saw how people supported each other as well as took logical decisions when faced with accidents and unexpected incidents. The holiday had also not just been about lazing around at the campgrounds but about experiencing the place through the various walks. All in all the trip will surely stay etched in our memories forever. We will always be indebted to our friends Pradhyot and Chinmayee for allowing us to join them for the trip as well as the others in the group who were very welcoming and supportive through out.