31/7/11 HMAS Coonawarra Open Day

Sunday in Darwin is market day.  After breakfast we went to the market at (suburb) Rapid Creek.  It has lots of Asian cooking and vegetables for sale. I do not recognise most of the the herbs and vegetables, let alone known how to prepare them for eating.  The mango smoothies were delicious.  Next we went to the (suburb) Nightcliff market.  It has lots of nick nacks and brightly coloured tropical clothing.  We enjoyed yummy savoury crepes. We watched an aboriginal man working on a beautiful intricate painting.

It was an open day at the Naval station, HMAS Coonawarra.  We wandered around looking at the displays in the base and watched a display of  precision marching.  We drove to the harbour and went aboard HMAS Darwin.  We watched a sailor being lowered from a naval helicopter.

  

In the evening we went to Mindil Beach for the sunset market.  We bought some food and sat on the beach with hundreds of others to watch the sky changing colour and the big glowing orb of the sun dipping down into the sea.
  

30/7/11 Fossil hunting at Gunn Point

Today we got up early, dressed tidily and drove to church, but no one was there. A notice on the gate invited people to attend  the Northern Australian  Conference camp meeting some distance away.  We drove back to our camp, changed into casual clothes, made a picnic lunch and headed up to Gunn Point, about 60 km north of Darwin to hunt for 6,000 year old lobster fossils. On the way the roadside vegetation was getting its annual burn off and hundreds of kites were soaring above the smoke waiting to catch insects and maybe lizards which were trying to escape the flames.

At Gunn Point we did find some "good" fossils.  We also collected some shells.  When I picked up shells in which hermit crabs were living and held them up in the air, the hermit crabs jumped ship.  (I wonder if that is an escape mechanism if they are caught and carried skywards by birds.)  Anyhow all the hermit crabs, except for one, preferred to start house hunting rather than stay with me. That one crab stayed undetected, deep in a shell until we got back to Darwin when it came out and scooted around the floor of the camper.  It was so determined to keep the shell it had chosen and not pop put like the others had done that we let it keep its home and drove down to the local beach to set it free.

28/7/11 Adelaide River War Cemetery and Mindil Beach Market, Darwin

This morning before leaving Adelaide River we visited the War Cemetery.  It is a beautifully manicured garden.  Almost all the men buried there were young, from 18years old to early 20s. It is a very sombre place. I cried when we found the headstone of a 16 years old!

After setting up at Lee Point C.Van Park in Darwin, we went into the city and collected our mail. Thank you Jesse and Dustyn for collecting it for us. In the evening we went to the Mindil Beach market,  bought food, and watched the sun set over the ocean, along with hundreds (thousands?) of others.

   

27/7/11 Douglas Hot Springs (Tjuwaliyn) and Robin Falls

Today we took the scenic route parallel to the Stuart H.way and called in at Douglas Hot Springs.  Hot water (plus 55 degrees celsius) bubbles out of the ground and flows into the cold water of the Douglas River. People lie in the warm pools along the sandy river bed. There are also Barramundi  in the river waiting to be caught.

We continued on to Robin Falls. After a picnic lunch we followed the creek up stream to the waterfall.  The sun was in the wrong direction to get good pictures.  Better photos would be taken in the morning light.

26/7/11 Pine Creek, Umbrawarra Gorge

We hiked te length of Umbrawarra Gorge.  It is a small gorge with a shallow creek running through it and towering, red sandstone cliffs.  It was worth travelling 30 km one way on a gravel road.  

24th and 25/7/11 Edith Falls

We spent two nights at Edith Falls (aboriginal name is Leliyn).  The rocks change colour over the course of the day. They are grey in the daytime and glow red as the sun sets.

Gerd swam in the plunge pool at sunset with a water monitor.

The top pools are accessed by a hike up the escapement which takes about half an hour each way, but they are well worth the effort.

23/7/11 Nitmiluk - Katherine Gorge

Today we spent the afternoon on a boat trip along Katherine Gorge - which has reverted to its aboriginal name, Nitmiluk.  The gorge is cut into section by rock falls which raise the level of the water from one section to the next.  We traversed 3 sections. At the end of each section you get out of the boat, walk a short distance across the rock barrier and get into another boat to travel in the next upstream section.  In the third section there was an opportunity to swim at the base of a small waterfall. Gerd went for a swim but I took pictures.  

The yellowish light of late afternoon is the best time to photograph the colours and water reflections in the gorge.

22/7/11 Katherine

Springvale Homestead is the oldest original homestead in the Northern Territory.  The station was established in 1878 by the ex-Overland Telegraph linesman Alfred Giles.

21/7/11 Dunmarra to Mataranka

We stopped at Larrimah to view Larrimah's unique "Pink Panther" Hotel and its free zoo which features many birds, pythons, and 3 fresh water crocodiles and one "saltie."  It was worth stopping.  Just down the road we stopped at a house advertising fresh pies but since those were all gone we settled for  a small apple/blackberry pie with some cream  and a cold drink.    After eating them we found out that the small pies were $8 each and the drinks were $6 each.  Having eaten we paid without comment, but that snack certainly helped the economy in the far north and it has given us another story to tell!

We pulled in at Mataranka and set up camp then went to photograph Bitter Springs and Mataranka Springs.  

20/7/11 Barkly Homestead Roadhouse to Dumarra

A long day of travelling across a mostly flat savannah type landscape.  The most interesting feature was Lubras Lookout near Renner Springs.  

18/7/11 Crossing from Qld. to NT.

At Camooweal we ate a picnic lunch. Gerd fed the Whistling Kites with some of his sandwich.  A kite came down and pecked some bread out of his hand.  Eventually 17 Kites were soaring around wanting to be fed, just like seagulls do.

16-18/7/11 Mount Isa

On Saturday afternoon (16th/7/11) we visited Lake Moondarra, the local water supply and recreation area. The lake is stocked with barramundi.  I'm told that it also has a population of fresh water crocodiles.

On Sunday (17th/7/11) we investigated the disused Mary Kathleen uranium mine site. The pit is filled with cobalt blue water.  All that remains on the site where the township used to be are paved roads, footpaths and curb and guttering in the middle of the bush, but no houses.

       

On Monday (18th/7/121) we went along a 4WD track to view the "Poison Hole" in the old Robin copper mine.  The minerals have turned the water in this pit to green.

Friday 15/7/11 From Richmond to Mt Isa

Yesterday we went fossil hunting near Richmond. This morning I took my find into the curators at Kronosaurus Korner, the fossil museum,  to verify what I had found.  They said that it was part of an Ichthyosaur snout, "most likely half of the top jaw as no teeth were displayed."  They took my picture to put on their web site.  The animal was probably about 5m long. 

We travelled towards Mt Isa.   On a designated over taking section we were over taking a road train (prime mover plus four trailers) when another road train came from the front.  It is quite an experience being sandwiched between two of these metal monsters

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Wednesday 13/7/11 Western sunset

Today we drove up Mt Walker to view the sunset.  Western sunsets can be spectacular.

12/7/11 Porcupine Gorge near Hughenden

Today we walked down into Porcupine Gorge.  It is Gorge _ous!  I would like to come back and spend several days hiking along the creek bed.

10/7/11 Mt Surprise to Charters Towers

Today we travelled from Mt Surprise to  Charters Towers.  On the way we saw LOTS of road kill including kangaroos, cockatoos, pigs and cattle.   This picture shows the pretty colours in one road cutting.

28/6/11 Granite Gorge, Mareeba

Pulled into Granite Gorge C'van Park.  After setting up we decided to explore the gorge so we got a "mud  map" from the office and set off.  Unfortunately the weather deteriorated and it started to sprinkle.   The rocks became excessively slippery.  Gerd's backside was covered with scum and mud and I managed to slip right down into a crevice and ended up with my feet in the creek.  It was getting late and we were worried about being caught in the dark and having to spend a cold wet night under a rock.   Finally we managed to retrace our path and get back to a hot shower and dry clothes.

Friday 8/7/11 Cobbold Gorge, south of George Town

In the afternoon we had a guided tour  of the sandstone area surrounding Cobbold Gorge and then we went on a boat with a small solar charged electric motor up the gorge for about 600m.  It is very narrow.  We saw 2 fresh water crocs, and lots of small fish.  The gorge is very pretty and was well worth the rough road trip to get there.

Wednes 6/7/11 Undarra Lava Tubes

Today we had a guided tour of the Undara Lava Tubes.  In ancient times lava flowed from Undara volcano down the gullies for more than 100 km.  The outside crust cooled and formed a "tube".  The hot, molten lave inside the "tubes" continued to flow until it emptied out leaving the hollow cave.  These tubes are enormous structures.  They are not beautiful like limestone caves but they are certainly one of Australia's wonders.

Tues 5/7/11 Copperfield Gorge at Einasleigh

Drove along rough dirt road to Einasleigh to see Copperfield Gorge.  It is formed from a lava flow from an ancient volcano which was split either by earth movement or water weathering to form a stunningly beautiful gorge.

Sun 3/7/11 Atherton to Mt Surprise

We stopped at the Innot Hot Springs and walked along the creek.  In places the sand was hot enough to burn your feet.  People had dug out holes in the sand along the creek bed and were lying in pools of warm water.

About 50km before the Undara turn off we were stopped by a serious single car accident. There were 4 ambulances and 6 police cars all flashing their lights.  A rescue helicopter was in the middle of the road and after it took off a second one arrived.  While an accident is a terrible thing, it was good to see the amount of services available.

We turned over 110,000km on the car today.

Mon 4/7/11 O'Brien's Creek near Mt Surprise

Drove out to O'Briens Creek Camp Ground which is the start of the gem fossicking area, but Glenda considered the creek too deep to cross in our little car.

Friday 1st July

It rained and the wind gusted all night so we slept in.  After breakfast we went into Atherton and I took a punt on a hair dresser shop. See the result!  Gerd got a haircut yesterday so now both of us are shorn.  After that we visited the historic Chinese temple (a tin shed with bits and pieces of heritage items).  We spent some time getting a new fuse for the cigarette lighter - Gerd blew it while using the compressor to pump up the car tyres, and also a new bulb for one of the fog lights on the car. After that we went to the local lookout to see a rainbow forming across the storm clouds.