Finally getting better weather

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
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Near Darwin
After a few weeks of Adelaide, Yorke & Eyre Peninsula's, we finally got to some better weather as we head back North to home. This is the view from our hill side camp spot at Rawnsley Park in the Flinders. For some reason the wife asked to extend the stay for an extra day.

Phil
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Salz

New Member
Feb 27, 2013
13
1
3
Para Hills SA
After a few weeks of Adelaide, Yorke & Eyre Peninsula's, we finally got to some better weather as we head back North to home. This is the view from our hill side camp spot at Rawnsley Park in the Flinders. For some reason the wife asked to extend the stay for an extra day.

Phil View attachment 16968 View attachment 16969 View attachment 16970 View attachment 16971

Hey Phil,
The countryside looks fantastic, heading up to Rawnsley Park from Adelaide next Monday with a group of 12 others for 4 days. The rainfall over last few weeks has really improved the outlook. Any wildflowers out yet or are we still a little early?
Cheers
Salz
 

Wanda

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2013
336
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63
Adelaide
Well PhilD what beautiful photos, I just want to pack up and go right now. We've been going to Rawnsley for years but missed out last year when husband and son decided to go to Melrose to mountain bike ride up and down Mt. Remarkable instead..... :argue:. Funny thing was that while staying in Rawnsley a few years back other campers told us we must go to Melrose and how pretty it was but in my opinion it doesn't come anywhere close to Rawnsley, such a beautiful peaceful spot. Husband has requested his ashes be sprinkled from the top of the bluff!!
 

Wanda

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2013
336
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Adelaide
Will he be forgiven if he takes you to Rawnsley this year? :p
ABSOLUTELY!!!! and the best bit is that it will be in the new van instead of the old Cavalier camper. So excited to be getting a kitchen on the inside, is it a bit sad that I'm getting excited over an inside kitchen? :rolleyes-88: must be getting soft in my old age.
 

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Nice phil, how's the W/N play measuring up, any problems or just smooth sailing so far.
TV aerial replaced on warranty on way out of Adelaide. Combiner unit between sections on mast faulty.
Hose to rear tank was fitted too tight around frame and was blocked off. Fixed it myself.
Still to screw down mounting plate for jack in front bin. Idiots screwed it down so hard that they broke off heads of 3 of the 4 mounting screws. Will do it myself in a few days while in Alice.
Not particularly impressed with the radio Jayco fitted and needs a true OFF switch. Have just removed face plate to turn it off fully but might take to removing fuse.
Apart from the TV aerial, the others and a couple of other things it's minor issues. Turning out to be a good choice for our useage and will be even better after a few mods when we get it home and before the next trip. That won't be until around April next year though after the Wet Season.
Very happy with the additions/mods done by Dario Caravans, especially the diesel heater. Weather hasn't yet gotten to be warm enough for us to use the frond bed yet. One thing I did within a couple of days of picking it up was to purchase an egg carton type underlay for one rear bed and it's been well worthwhile. Been sleeping a lot better since.
With the 2 solar panels and 2 batteries we've so far done overnight stays without 240v with no problems, but we've also been quite frugal in our power usage while seeing how well it performs. Usually within about 4-5 hours each day the batteries seem to be well topped up. But some of the places haven't had any, or lousey peformance or channel choice, so TV usage has been minimal sometimes.
Storage space, once we offload some of the extra stuff that we brought down, is adequate but we will most likely still go ahead with extra cabinets just like some pictures that I posted earlier. Mostly this is because my wife is having a bit of a problem reaching up in to some of the rear overhead cabinet spaces. That one legged table gets in the way too much, as well as it being quite unstable.

Phil
 

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Hey Phil,
The countryside looks fantastic, heading up to Rawnsley Park from Adelaide next Monday with a group of 12 others for 4 days. The rainfall over last few weeks has really improved the outlook. Any wildflowers out yet or are we still a little early?
Cheers
Salz
Make sure you take with you some fly nets as most people are having problems. Their shop sold out of them and they had a large number on order but they sell quickly.
We initially booked a powered site but on arrival we changed it to an unpowered one as the solar and the diesel heater removed the need for 240V. It also allowed us to move a bit further away from the too close for comfort section. With the unpowered sites it was a case of just picking your own choice. If you also don't want to use the showers you can go quite some distance away. We chose an in between site and about the highest one up we could find.
Yesterday morning 2 campers about 50 metres away left early and later we thought that one must be coming back later because they had left behind a fold up table, a couple of buckets and their power cable. They didn't return and we reckon that there might have been a bit of an unhappy bickering later in the day as to who failed to pack everything up. They also left behind some rubbish strewn around. A few hours later some new campers took up the site and scored themselves some extra items and cleaned up the rubbish.
BTW, as we were packing up it was raining and looked like it may continue for some time as we had quite a bit of it all the way to Pt Augusta and even a smaller amount now and then right up here to Lake Hart Rest Stop where we are for the night. We did the scenic drive loop up to Blinman and back down the other side. Depending on how much rain fell up that way, and it did look to be heavier further North, you would be best to ask about roads such as down through Parachilna Gorge. I think that some of the campers we saw through there might have been questioning their choice of dry river bed spots.

If any of you want to make use of the Telstra mobile coverage that they have within the camp kitchen building be aware that it is quite slow and intermittant. Uploading pictures or files of more that a couple of hundred Kb either took ages or just didn't happen.

Phil
 
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Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Forgot about the wildflowers. We didn't see too many but from the green grass it would appear that rain has been in the area lately. Apart from quite a few Emu's right around the scenic drive, especially just across the creek from the camping area, we didn't see much wildlife either. In fact, in the whole drive from Darwin to Adelaide, then to both Yorke and Eyre Peninsula's and to the Flinders the only roo's we've seen were 3 during that scenic drive. Lots of Sleepy Lizards though that despite their name they seemed quite lively, apart from the roadkill ones of course.

Phil
 

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Where we are tonight. Lake Hart Rest Stop.
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Appears to have a full coverage of water. How deep I have no idea.

In the late 70's I drove past here when it was still dirt from Pimba to the NT border. There was no water then, but there was still the concrete launch pad on the opposite side of the Lake (to right of picture) for the ELDO Woomera launches. I have this reccolection that they may have been destroyed at some time later. Must get out the binoculars in the morning and have a look to see what is still there.

Phil
 

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
I think that I should have created this thread under "Trip reports".

Looked with binoculars but couldn't see the where the launch pad had been in the early morning light. One day I'll get around to going through my old slide/photo collection and I may find the one's I took, if they haven't already deteriorated too much in the tropical conditions.

Anyway, leaving Lake Hart we made it to the NT border rest area, and freedom, for the night. Everytime I pass by that border marker when going South I think that it needs amending to "Welcome to South Australia, the nanny State". Between their excessive use of the ridiculously slow 25 KPH speed zones through roadwork areas and seeing footpaths having lane marking down them with symbols for separating human and bike traffic I feel so much better seeing that NT sign.

There was very little traffic headed North, and another caravaner at the Rest Stop also commented on it. In a coincidence they were at Rawnsley Park a few days before us and in an adjacent camp site. I guess that the exodus from the hotter North is well underway. Apart from wanting to get home anyway we can't see why the Wet Season buildup has such a poor reputation. We love it and it means that we can finally start using the spa again without having to put the solar heating on.

I don't know how many people are aware of it, but in Coober Pedy opposite the Shell servo there's a self serve bowser for water. It's 20 cents for 30 litres. It was only by chance that we spotted it.

In the weeks that we've been down South we have noticed an increase in wild flowers and flowering bushes up the centre. It does look quite good in places.

A word of warning to anyone with dogs and using the border Rest Stop in particular. Do not allow the pet to wander outside of the fenced area. Ours strained at the leash and went through the fence and rolled in the grass. It then took quite some time, and with scissors, to remove all the quite vicious prickles from her hair and especially right up in the paw pads. She was quite stressed at it all, and the dog wasn't happy either.

Here for a couple of days then have to take the van through the NT Rego Shed here to have the temporary 3 month rego certified for the whole year. Easier to do it here that in Darwin as we have to pass right by the office going North anyway.

Phil
 

Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Had some fun at the Rego Shed. Despite being told here in Darwin that the van would only have to be inspected for compliance plate info we were asked to take it over the weighbridge, which was only a few metres away. The van passed with no issues at 2200kg and we asked the Inspector whether we could check ball & vehicle weights while he completed the paperwork. Was surprised that the weight came out as 340 on the jockey wheel. Car plus van hooked up came to 3100. Although we knew we were carrying full water tanks plus a fair bit of stuff that we wouldn't be carrying in the future and the van spare wheel was in the back of the Ranger it doesn't seem that there is a lot of margin left. Some culling is needed.

Anyway, we took a drive out through the West MacDonnell Ranges via Glen Helen then down past Gosse Bluff and back to Alice via Hermannsburg. It's been many years since I was last through there but having now seen some of the Flinders Ranges, the MacDonnell Ranges have their own just as spectacular views.
View from Neil Hargrave Lookout, which is actually an overnight camp site despite the conflicting signage.
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Finke River opposite Glen Helen.
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Gosse Bluff from Tyler Pass lookout.
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Wanda

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2013
336
291
63
Adelaide
Hate to admit my age but it's been about 25 years since I have been to this part of our very diverse country. Just looking at those views lowers my blood pressure! SPECTACULAR!
 
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Meanderthals

Aka PhilD
Mar 16, 2012
837
1,356
93
Near Darwin
Wanda, so many people think Central Australia is just Ayers Rock, the Olgas, and maybe Kings Canyon and miss out on all the other places. We were limited this time on getting in to many places as we had a dog with us but we've each, at different times in our work, spent time working around there. The Eastern MacDonnells are also worth visiting. I actually met my wife in Alice as we both worked for the same Company and were doing a stint there from different parts of the Company. This was our first joint holiday visit there in our 32 years. We will be returning later for more extensive touring.

With other work people and friends I've been to a few spots for camping and really enjoyed Ruby Gorge, Chambers Pillar, Palm Valley, Kings Canyon and many other day trip to other sites. Some have deteriorated from those times of 33 years ago though and camping and where you can go have been limited around the Olgas and Kings Canyon in particular. There's a section of the Finke from the Rangers Station at Palm Valley down to Junction Waterhole on the Ellery Ck that was a great camping and 4x4 trek but the Ranger's got tired of having to drag out bogged tourists so they closed off that section. Some spots are really like quick sand. I never got to do the next section but from what I've heard it's supposedly just as good. Chambers Pillar is apparently a lot easier to get in to these days so I guess that it gets a bit crowded now. Camping there on a full moon night right next to the Pillar was brilliant, literally. Not long ago I tried looking at some of the slides I took then and couldn't pick which were the day and night shots. One work mate used up a whole roll of film on night time lapse shots, only to discover the next morning as we were about to leave that the film had never moved on from the start. Way back then there were numerous, unrestricted, walks that you could do through the Olgas so if what I've read about the restrictions these days is true then I doubt that I would bother going back.

I did climb "The Rock" once, a few weeks before Azaria was taken, and was actually dissappointed that the view from the top wasn't that much better than at the top of the guide rope. We did think before the climb to take something to drink, unlike many tourists, and did wear proper footwear, unlike some tourists in thongs. At the top we unwrapped the drinks from many layers of paper and cracked the VB cans. We got looks of both disgust and envy from many other climbers. Someone asked where we got them and we told them that there was a drink stand just over the next rise. We left before they discovered there wasn't one.

The whole region has so many places to see and camp at that it should be a holiday destination by itself.

Phil
 
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Wanda

Well-Known Member
Jun 22, 2013
336
291
63
Adelaide
Totally agree Phil, some how the open spaces, blue sky and red earth makes your heart beat slower and makes you take long deep breaths. I loved it and Mr Wanda and I will definitely be going back again, soon. And yes, I too have climbed the rock and on the climb up I kept getting told by the people coming down that there was a drinking fountain at the top! :rolleyes-88: Luckily we also took our own drinks too.:)