South Australian Desert

Painted Desert, Oodnadatta to Mt Dare and Dalhousie Springs.

We left the van at Cadney roadhouse on the Sturt Highway and took the Painted desert road out towards Arckaringa Station.

The painted desert was stunning with a 1 km walk through the hills and a stop at the lookout.

Then another 90 kms to Oodnadatta for the night.

The road in showed signs of the recent rains with a lot more green than seen previously except a 30 km stretch were not a bit of green to be seen anywhere.

One section had thin shard of rock , like crystal everywhere all shining on the barren landscape.

We didn’t do much in Oodnadatta except stay inside away from the flies and we had explored the town last year. The pub was closed for food so we ate at the pink roadhouse and fought with the flies that got into the dirty and expensive cabin we were booked in.

Day 2 Off to Mt Dare

The mulga was quiet green after recent rains and the crossing at the Alberga river still had some water over the road and the river was quiet full.

The road was mostly good recently graded, some corrugations in some areas and some wash outs on the sides of the track.

We went past hamilton south station and over hamilton creek.

Now the dirt road turns to a track with whoa boys built onto the track to divert water in rainy times A whoa boy is big dirt mound like a big speed hump, the reduced speed has much increased driving time to get to Mt Dare.

The flies are still horrendous and doing a pee on the side of the road very awkward with flies trying to get up your body bits, Grrrr. Eventually found flapping the fly squarter around my butt help.

Stevenson creek was the next crossing on this long drive to Mt Dare, 245 kms from Oodnadatta.

and Eringa waterhole and ruins provided a great spot for lunch with the strong breeze reducing flies getting as friendly.

An amazing amount of water in the waterhole and stupid cattle who dont know how to get off the road where around the trees and waterhole.

Then a right turn before the SA /Nt Border towards Mt Dare another 60 kms.

The longest drive ever to a pub and we dont drink.

Then we arrived at the Witjira national park, 768,853 hectares of undulating gibber tablelands wide flood areas and sandy dune country, Stopping at the National park sign

The track now has periods of large amounts of water over it , also sandy areas with chicken tracks in some areas, these tracks go around the nasty bits of track. Occasionally it got a bit hair raising to go through some water holes and the car got covered in a clay orange gluey water.

Blood creek windmill , a bore of Route No 5 drilled in 1898 was at a detour in the road, Dalhousie one way and Mt Dare another.

At Mt Dare we stayed in a basic donga with no bathroom but it did have air conditioning and relatively clean.

Dinner at the pub and we went to bed early to avoid the flies and mozzies.

Next day we went out to Dalhousie springs, 70 kms each way of a shit rocky corrugated road. The springs are quiet big and the water 32 to 37 degrees , enjoyable but only for ten to fifteen minutes.

The flies were there in plague proportions but worse were the massive numbers of biting march flies. So the thought of doing the nature walk was not on!

Some of scenery from the lookout on the way out and near the road to the ruins was specular. Some of it reminded me of the Atacama Desert in Chile.

Worth the horrid drive hmmmm not so sure.!!!!

The springs are at the start of the Simpson desert 450 kms of no habitation, the road currently closed due to flooding and it is also closed in summer due to extreme heat 40 – to 50 degrees.

Overnight at Mt dare pub again.

Today, Easter Sunday we left Mt Dare heading towards Finke, an Indigenous only community with its own bitumen airstrip and good internet. We are now in NT, briefly. Some areas really green after the recent rains.

Then travelling west back to the Highway we detoured 12 kms each way on a shitty track to the Lambert Geological centre of Australia . Wow here we are in the middle of Australia!

And who did we meet but someone from Port Macquarie Mr and Mrs Holbrow who’s daughter went out with Mitch Hayes my secretary’s son.

Then back to the Stuart Highway to the Kulgera Roadhouse, where we opted not to stay in the crappy room and drove the extra 260 kms back to the van at Cadney roadhouse. Back to SA!

The whole drive with the car only was 900kms of dirt plus 260 on the Bitumen and three nights in donga accommodation . Interesting and we can tick it off but certainty too far and too long to ever do again.

We left Cadney after washing and cleaning mountains of red dirt out of the car.

South Australian section of the trip over and next blog NT