We didn’t
get time to explore the East MacDonald Ranges last time we were in Alice and it
was something that definitely was on our to do list. The trip out to the East MacDonald Ranges
wasn’t as long a drive as it was to do the Larapinta Lap that takes in the West
MacDonald Ranges so we figured that as long as we got away by 9.30am we should
manage to see all that we wanted to see.
We had
planned to go out to explore Arltunga, which is now the remnants of a gold
mining ghost town, but in the end we really did run out of time, as it was an
extra 33kms on dirt road from the Ross River Resort which was already 100kms
from Alice Springs.
The drive
out along the Ross Highway through the East MacDonald Ranges was quite s[spectacular in itself, although the highway narrows to one lane and it's not much fun having to get off onto the dirt edges to let cars pass. There are some amazing ridges, and mountain
ranges along this drive and in most places you drive pretty close to them.
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This row of trees is appears to be growing along a rock ridge |
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Amazing patterns of rock ridges along these hills |
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Reminds me of a fortress high on a hill. All natural rock formations. |
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Spinfex growing along the rock ridges on this hill - really very pretty. |
Our plan of
attack for the day was to go out to the furthest gorge and work our way back
into Alice Springs, so our first stop for the day was Trephina Gorge which was about 78 kms out from Alice
Springs. Everyone we had spoken too had
recommended the gorge so we were all keen to go and check it out. We got there just before 11am so decided to
have morning tea before we did the walk.
At least that way we could walk off the Lemon Cake we had made the night
before for our morning tea.
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Morning Tea at Trephina Gorge |
We decided
to do the Trephina Gorge Rim Walk which was a level 3 walk of about 2.5 kms. Level 3
means it is a moderate walk which means that there are usually some
short steep hill sections with rough surfaces and many steps. I had already managed a few Level 3 walks so
decided to give this one a go. Well it
was steep alright and many many steps but the views were fantasic, and I feel
pretty proud of myself that I made it up to the top of the gorge and then back
down again onto the creek floor. I am so
glad that I did the walk as I really enjoyed it. I
didn’t mind the steps of rock climbing to the top, but I did feel a little
nervous when I had to climb back down over rocks and rough steps, and I also
found the walking along the sandy creek bed pretty hard going.
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The rim walk at Trephina Gorge |
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Barb and I ready to head out on the Trephina Gorge rim walk |
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So the walk begins... |
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it is pretty much uphill on surfaces like this... |
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Steve heading up to me with the walking Stick he made for me. |
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Amazing rock ledges |
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Amazing colours - amazing scenery |
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The rim of the gorge |
Steve was very good to me. As we had come out with Ian and Kathy in their car today, we had forgotten to bring our walking sticks which are kept in our car. Steve knew that I could quite possibly have trouble walking down hill so he found a really good branch and fashioned a walking stick out of it for me to use. I was so grateful and thankful as it really do help particularly when coming down off the top of the gorge.
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My walking stick even had a handle.... |
We didn’t
notice as many wild flowers on this walk, but it was a popular walk because
lots of people passed us on the track…
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Looked a little like a holly leaf. Kind of like a bush holly |
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At the time of the gorge |
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The others having a rest |
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Ian and I before our descent down onto the creek bed. |
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Trephina Gorge
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We
did sit and have a break in the shade on one of the rocky ledges before heading
further down onto the creek bed.
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Barb and John were wise - they remembered their fly nets. |
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The hardest part of the walk for me was coming down off the top of the rim. |
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Yah I made it. |
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Homeless or What????? |
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break time |
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Thirsty work.... |
The
walk as a whole probably took us close to a couple of hours as we stopped to
photograph and enjoy all that was around us.
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Yah!!!!! We are down into the creek bed... |
We did see
quite a bit of bird life in the gorge especially lots of finches and Steve
managed to photograph a flight of them leaving one of the trees.
It was when
we got back to the cars and it was close to 1pm that we realized we really didn’t
have time to go out to Arltunga and have a good look around. It would need to be left for another
visit.
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Barb and John at home |
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The rails are all made from train tracks.. |
The Ross
River Homestead and Restort was only another 12 kms further on, so we decided
to head out there for a toilet stop and also to have lunch out there. It was a lovely old original homestead, and
they did have a lovely restaurant which
was all made from old railway sleepers, rail tracks and corrugated iron.
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Lunch menu at Ross River Resort |
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Ordering our lunch... |
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dining area. |
We had a
light lunch, steak pies, (except for John who had his sausage roll) and a bowl of
chips between the lot of us. We also had
one of the best Lemon Lime and Bitter drinks we have had so far this
holiday. It was huge, and lunch out here
was very reasonably priced. The steak
pies were the best I have ever tasted.
We thought they were home made they tasted that good, but one of the
waitresses assured us that they weren’t, and that they actually came out from
Alice Springs.
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Lunch at Ross River Resort |
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Lunch at Ross River Resort... |
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Someone is enjoying her drink.. |
We should have asked her
what Bakery they came from. In
hindsight, it is probably good that we didn’t as it probably saved us a few
kilos on our waistline.
We took some
photos of John and Barb out here as it was their namesake, and we left here
probably around 2.30pm to head back towards Alice Springs and check out the
other attractions on the way back into Alice.
Our first
stop after lunch was Corroboree Rock, a
sacred Aboriginal sight. It was an
amazing shaped rock that in parts you could see straight through. We did a half hour walk around the rock
reading the different signs along the track.
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Corroboree Rock |
From here we
headed into Jessie Gap.
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Of course we had to take a photo. Barb has a daughter called Jessie... |
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Jessie Gap |
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Termite mound hacked into.. |
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Amazing trees with so much character. |
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Such character |
Jessie Gap is
directly on the highway and only a very short walk into the Gap. It was really lovely and we saw some amazing
trees growing in this gap. I am amazed
at how many trees grown straight off the rock surfaces. We had a walk through the gap and then headed
back to the cars. By now it was around
4pm and we still had Emily Gap to check out before going home.
Emily Gap
was also pretty close to the Highway and I was tempted not to bother going for
the walk into the gorge but am so glad that I did.
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Kathy in the middle of the Gorge |
There was quite a bit of Aboriginal art in
this gorge. Aboriginal art is more about telling a story... they use this sort of art to communicate and teach...
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We thought this painting actually looked like a radiator |
We had a great
day out exploring the East MacDonald Ranges, and I think I really enjoyed it
more than the West MacDonald Ranges. It
might also be because we had more time to explore them fully.
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We were really amazed at how these trees can find a crack and grow on solid rock. |
Before
leaving this morning, I had put some
chicken on to cook in the slow cooker, so it was nice to come home to a cooked
dinner all ready for us.
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Dinner on to cook before we left home... |
We were all
pretty tired by the time we got home, so didn’t spend as much time sitting
around chatting tonight. The cold was
also setting in again. Alice Springs is
lovely during the day but gets very cold at night and first thing in the
morning. I did spend some time sorting
photos and catching up on some of my blog posts….
We have
another chilled out day planned for tomorrow.
We have had to stay a few extra days in Alice Springs as Ian and Kathy
are having a few air conditioning problems with their car. Since we are heading north into the
heat, they want to make sure that they
have air con once again. The boys all
have jobs they want to do, Steve wants
to repair his chair, attach a clothes line to the awning for me. John is looking at setting up the reversing
camera on his caravan, and Ian wanted to get some new brighter LED lights
installed in their van. Us girls will be
just happy to chill out with books, chatting and crocheting our termite mound
clothing…
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