Gecko Trek - Adelaide to Alice Springs
DAY 6
Heading down another dusty red road on our way to Uluru, we drove over what I thought was a bit of thin blue rope stretched across the road. Nick slammed on the brakes and I heard him mutter to himself "Ah...of course...its Winter..."
We'd just passed over a line of bright blue hairy caterpillars. The caterpillars were all males searching for one female for a night of caterpillar passion. The strongest caterpillar leads the rest until they get too tired and either die, or leave and re-enter at the back of the queue. Whoever is at the front of the line when they reach the female gets some caterpillar lovin'. The rest, I suppose just sit around and watch. The dirty buggers.
We watched as the leader of one of the lines dropped away and tried to head to the back of the line. He must have heard us guessing that he was a gay caterpillar, a caterpillar who'd probably be much happier behind the lads... because he decided to try and cut back in half way through.
This caused massive confusion as the line behind where he tried to join stopped, which annoyed the rest of the horny caterpillars, who started jolting their heads and tails left and right in frustration. It was really funny to watch especially when the gay caterpillar realised he couldn't get in and crawled away, only to be followed by the rest of the line who hadn't let him in!!
Further down the road, our first glance of Uluru.
I'm gonna have to work out a way of looking heroic or purposeful in photos. I think I need to start pointing or looking thoughtful or something.
This is one side of Uluru. There are various creation stories about the different formations. One of the main stories is about two giant snakes who fought each other. I think this is one snake about to dive down on the other one...
We did the 5km walk around the base of Uluru, which wasn't that interesting as whenever there was a rock formation, or cave painting, it was fenced off and had warning 'DO NOT CROSS' signs all over it. When we got back to near the start, Nick took us closer to a couple of the formations and told us the stories behind them, he also picked some 'Bush Plum' from the surrounding bushes. Bush Plums are about the size of chick peas and taste a bit like a bitter plum.
We then went out to the viewing area for the sunset.
It was weird seeing so many people everywhere. We'd all spent 6 days with one another, then suddenly there were coach-loads of people everywhere. Clean people, who hadn't had to go without showering every other day! They sipped champagne and had hired deck chairs! But hey, it made us feel better as we'd traveled there through the outback. Most of them probably flew into Alice Springs, had an air conditioned coach to the 'Ayres Rock Resort' (nice hotel) and spent most of today by the pool.
Actually, the only thing I begrudged them for was the champagne (and told Nick so afterwards - we paid a thousand dollars each for this trip! How much could a couple of bottles be?!?)
This is looking the other way towards 'The Olgars.'
We spent the night at a campsite just down from the resort and everyone had an early night as we had to be up for Uluru sunrise. Except me. Who just before going to bed blew my nose and started off one of my annual never-ending nosebleeds. This one was a 55 minuter, not my longest but still a sterling effort by my pathetically weak nose.
Up at 5.30am for Sunrise at Uluru.
Uluru used to be called Ayres Rock, but the government felt it 'Politically Correct' to change the name to something more akin to the spirit of the indigenous people. In their wisdom, they renamed the rock after the first black woman they'd ever seen in a position of power on television -the lieutenant from Star Trek.
It looked all nice and calm until I turned the other way to see all the hordes of people doing the same thing as us.
After sunrise, we went to the Olgars.
The Olgars and Uluru are all part of the huge national park (Belgium) that encompasses this part of Australia.
We did a 9km walk through the Olgars which I much preferred to the Uluru walk as, apart from it being visually more interesting, was more fun to climb and get up close to everything.
Another photo which would probably look better if I wasn't in it... Anyway. Afterwards, we walked down that valley and out to the left.
We spent that night at 'Lilla' in Kings Creek, which is some land owned by an aboriginal guy named Keith. As we were a day early (because we missed out the Dalhousie Springs) Keith unfortunately wasn't around to talk to us. Luckily his dog Blacky was. Blacky is one of the friendliest dogs I've ever met and was there to keep the dingoes (with his dog mate Whitey) off Keith's land.
The next morning, we went for a walk down to a water hole on Keith's land, it was surrounded by huge boulders which gave it a nice secluded feel. On our way out, somebody spotted a little snake (at first I thought it was another caterpillar) it was about 8 cm long and was bright orange with black stripes. We decided to leave it alone on the logic that if baby snake was around then mummy snake was probably close too. Well, all except for Vicky who wanted a photo and started digging after where it disappeared with a stick. Her face was funny when Nick was telling us afterwards that baby snakes are just as venomous as fully grown ones!
Nick put a box out about 15-20 meters from us, then showed us how to chuck a traditional Aboriginal spear. You start off with a Woomera, which has a handle at one end and an inverted spike at the other. You then lay the spear in the Woomera and put the spike in the dent at the back of the spear. Then aim and chuck.
It sounds simple, but no one got anywhere near the box. In fact, a couple of the girls managed to get the spear rotating back on itself as they threw it...
We were meant to do boomerang throwing too, but the boomerang was broken.
We went on to do the 7km walk around Kings Canyon.
Heres me sitting on the edge of Kings Canyon.
Ahh, a nice group photo.
This is looking down into the 'Garden of Eden' group of waterholes in Kings Canyon.
This is me in said Waterhole. I was the first into it, and I managed to look both athletic and sexy as I entered the water. I stood close to the edge to dive in, then, unsure of how the rock shelved I stood on the shelf (thinking I'd make my dive from there.) I didn't think about how the rock might be slimy in the natural water/sunlight combo. As I wobbled and waved my hands madly in the air, I slipped to where the shelf ended and then splash, I was in the water. My painfully slow, comedy slide over. I came back up to the sounds of laughter and cheering. Ha bloody Ha.
As I started swimming around, my mind showed me visions of snakes and crocodiles and bears and generally lots of nasty things waiting below the water to kill me. Then my logical brain kicked in (they wouldn't let us in if it wasn't safe) and I really enjoyed my swim in this natural oasis.
Sandra and I were sitting in the front again on the way to Palm Valley. I asked her why she didn't go for a swim in the waterhole (hey, I felt like I missed out, she looks great in a bikini,) she said she didn't fancy it in case there were snakes or crocodiles in there. I tried to pull my best imitation of Nick's 'Stupid Townie' expression and said face it, you don't get crocodiles this far in, and if snakes lived in the water then they wouldn't let you in because its too dangerous. I asked Nick for backup,
Me
"Nick. Seriously, What's the chances of there being a snake in that waterhole back there?"
Nick
(quiet initially)
"You saw a snake?"
Me
"No, of course not. I'm just questioning how likely it is there'd ever be one in there..."
Nick
(not dismissing it the way he usually would)
"Did you see one?..."
Me
"No that's what Im saying, I'm..."
Nick
"...in the Garden of Eden."
Me
(suddenly thinking about the biblical 'Garden of Eden' story)
"No I im just wondering about the likelihood of there being one there... Why? What did you see? Or don't I wanna know?"
Nick
(again quiet for longer than usual)
"Did you see that guy painting the steps back there?"
Me & Sandra
"Yes"
Nick
"Well he reckoned he fished a Taipan out of there yesterday, but I'm not sure if I believe him."
Me
"A Taipan. As in the deadliest snake in the world.?."
Nick
"Well yeah, but I've never seen one this far North before."
Me
"So yesterday, there was a snake, possibly a Taipan, in the waterhole I was just swimming in"
Sandra
"Ha! I was right!"
Nick
"They try and crawl around the rocks, slip in and then can't get out."
Me
"Oh, so it was a narky Taipan who'd been swimming around all day?"
Nick
"Yeah but that's not a problem really, when they're swimming, they're using all their muscle so they can't strike at you..."
I just put my head in my hands. Sandra and I decided it was best not to tell anyone else that story. We knew we had further waterhole swims coming up and I knew I certainly wasn't going anywhere near them!
We camped that night at a camp site at Palm Valley. There was a small river running through it, and there were loads of little frogs clambering about. It'd been years since Nick had last come here, but as we were a day ahead, he had to re-think where we stayed. Last time he was here, it had no facilities and was like the places we'd become used to in the outback. We all moaned as we thought it was a bit too much like civilisation.
There was a shower and toilet block, hot running water, even big metal bowls where we should have our camp fire. We said we might as well have had electric street lights and be done with it. We really had got into doing the whole 'Bush Thing.'
Just after midnight, as I was heading to the toilet block with its electric lighting and and running water, I saw a Sam and Lisa giggling and walking quickly back to the swags. "Theres a big snake by the door to the girls toilets! We're going to get Nick to tell us what it is!" Oh, I thought. Another one.
I may have had a couple of glasses of wine that night so I was easily at the toilets before my brain kicked it what I was doing. You're going to the gents. Which is next to the ladies. On your own. And theres a Snake. I didn't slow down, I just I started shining my torch everywhere as I rounded the corner to where the entrance was. Sure enough, there it sat. Curled around the entrance to the ladies was 3-4ft mottled green and brown snake (I think so anyway - it was dark) I just stopped and looked at it. My bravado gone. I decided to wait for Nick.
I wish I had my camera on me (Sam got a couple of pics, I'll put the link up when I get it) Nick prodded it a bit and it slithered into the store cupboard between the toilet entrances. "I think its a Childrens Python" he said "Its not venomous, its probably just after the frogs." (Children was the guy who found it rather than the recommended age for it as a pet) I've just been doing a bit of research actually and from the looks of it (sorry Nick), you don't get Children's Pythons that far south...
But then the weather has been crazy just recently.
I'm glad there was at least two people between me and the reeds and the river that night. "I wouldn't worry" Nick said, as he does "If they get in your swag, they can't strike at you because they're all straightened out." I did think to question why he told us the next part of the story though... "Theres only one case that I know of where a bushman was killed in his swag, and that was when he put his arm out side and happened to catch a passing snake. It bit him, he died."
We all slept with our arms inside our swags.