The Northern Territory

The prediction of heavy rain last night did not come true, but we did receive some rain in Camooweal, though it was hardly enough to wet the ground.

There was also a noisy crowd at the pub, which ended in a fight, and the van park where we are staying is attached to the pub. We were kept awake well past midnight with all the drunks in the street. Lesson learned...

We left around 9ish and were soon crossing into the Northern Territory. Most of the creeks for the next 66 km, until we reached Avon Downs, still contained water, and for our entire 376 km journey, the roadside verges were covered with lush, green grass.

We made a quick stop at Wonarah Bore for our morning coffee before stopping at the Barkly Roadhouse for lunch. Two bottles of iced chocolate, a sausage roll, and an egg and bacon roll cost over $23.00. Ouch..

We had planned to continue across the Barkly Tableland past the Three Ways this evening, but once we reached the 41 Mile Bore Rest Area, I decided that was enough for the day and that we needed to stop for the night. The strong headwind we had been driving into all day was another reason for stopping early.

Last year, when we camped here, we spent time collecting eight bags of rubbish and disposing of them in the bins provided. This year, we were pleasantly surprised by how clean the area was, until we walked towards the rear of the site and were utterly disgusted by the amount of toilet paper and faeces scattered on the ground. Soon, free sites like this will be closed all over the country. It may be the backpackers in their flashy vans, Australians who have no idea, or simply those who just don't care.

Several drops of rain fell this afternoon, with more overnight, but again, not as much as had been forecast.
We left just after 8am and, 70 km later, reached the Three Ways before turning north onto the Stuart Highway, which would eventually lead us to Darwin. From there, we continued north towards Daly Waters. Our original plan was to camp for seven days at Longreach Waterhole, but recent rains have led us to believe that the black soil surrounding the waterhole might trap us indefinitely.
As we passed the turnoff, it was clear that the access road was flooded with pools of water, making our decision a wise one.

We arrived in Daly Waters and paid $20 for an unpowered site, with powered sites costing $32.
The campground is a large dirt paddock; a better option is to stay at the Highway Inn Motel and Caravan Park. It's located on the Stuart Highway, not far from Daly Waters, and offers much better facilities, including a swimming pool and lush green grass.

The pubs license has been in continual use since 1930 and it's a little unconventional because over the years many female customers have donated their bras and G-Strings which hang from the ceiling along with all other sorts of memorabilia.

The nearby aerodrome was constructed in 1930. Qantas operated from the facility from 1935 as a refuelling stop for its flights to Darwin and London. The RAAF also utilised the strip during World War II.

It rained intermittently throughout most of the night, but not quite enough to prevent us from leaving the campground, although we did pick up some mud on our tyres.

We continued further north and were surprised by the amount of water along the side of the road and in the spoon drains. I lived in Darwin in the seventies, and the water beside the road reminded me of what it's like during the monsoon season.

We passed through Mataranka before staying for several nights in Katherine. Katherine received 42mm of rain the night before our arrival, and it rained intermittently on our first day. We were there to buy groceries and alcohol to last us for the next two weeks.

Alcohol is now only sold from 2pm onwards, and each outlet has a police officer on duty to ask where you are staying.

As we left Katherine this morning, the skies were dark with storm clouds.
We are now on our way towards Pine Creek and drove through quite heavy rain at several points.

Our original plan was to spend a week in Darwin, but that turned into two weeks. The high temperatures and intensely humid conditions have led to many southerners leaving to return home. We are staying at Hidden Valley Tourist Park, about 10 km south of Darwin and just off the Stuart Highway. Currently, 15 of the 180 sites are occupied.
We wouldn't dare visit during the busier months when it's packed with campers; that’s just not our scene.

We left Darwin after a very enjoyable fortnight. Our drive today, just over 300 km, will take us back to Katherine for four days of camping. Our Landcruiser is scheduled to go to the Toyota dealer for its 30,000 km service and wheel alignment.

If you don't mind the heat, then the middle of September and October are the perfect times of year to stay north of the Tropic of Capricorn. The days are hot, but the main bonus is that there aren't too many people travelling. We are again staying at the Big 4 park, where just ten vans are currently parked. It’s far better than being squeezed in like a can of anchovies.

Daily temperatures are in the high thirties, with expectations to reach the forties later this week.

Our drive today, on Monday, 17th October, will be 435 km, with the final 13 km over a sandy and slightly corrugated track. We are again camping at Longreach Waterhole, just north of Elliott on the Stuart Highway.

We camped here last year on our way to the Kimberleys.

This waterhole is a permanent body of water on Newcastle Creek. At the southern end is Lake Woods, which fills after good rains. Unlike Longreach Waterhole, Lake Woods is on private property, and access is not possible.

The area is managed by NT Parks and Wildlife, and, of course, camping is allowed, with the only facilities being rubbish collection and a long-drop toilet. There are numerous spots to camp beside the waterhole, which stretches for many kilometres.

We spent two days here, and on arrival, there was just one other van. We camped about 20 metres from the waterhole, and because the ground sloped towards the water, I dug two holes so that the offside tyres would sit in the holes without needing to use our levelling ramps.

Whenever we free camp, we like to leave the area in a better condition than when we arrived. Our walk this morning of just over a kilometre with disposable gloves in hand and a bag produced this, which we deposited in a nearby bin.

After experiencing the bird life in Kakadu, it's almost impossible to get excited about any other area we have ever visited. Apart from the several hundred pelicans and the occasional kite flying overhead, that was pretty much it. We have often seen the ritual where the pelicans work together as a team to herd fish into the shallows before they're up and head down underwater to locate the fish. It was no different here, watching this spectacle played out many times each day.

It was time to move on, and we soon rejoined the highway as we continued south towards The Three Ways before turning east onto the Barkly Highway. Our drive today of 587 km takes us to the Soudan Bore Rest Area, located 132 km past the Barkly Roadhouse.

We thought we would have company tonight, but the two groups of people travelling together left just after we arrived, so we had the whole place to ourselves for the evening. The site is quite close to the road, but we only heard the occasional truck pass during the night. Yet again, the whole campsite resembles a pig sty with rubbish lying about everywhere, including toilet wipes and toilet paper blowing in the breeze. I cleaned up the immediate area around our campsite within a thirty-metre radius and deposited what I had collected into one of the many bird-proof bins spread around the site.