Isn't this place glorious? I'm still pinching myself that this idyllic lush, green carpeted dell is in the heart of Central Australia. We've covered some ground this Easter long weekend.
On Friday, we brunched lazily at the Roma Bar in Darwin before jumping in the car to begin the 1,500 km drive south towards Alice Springs. We didn't leave early, figuring that every man and his dog would be hitting the road. As it turned out, we needn't have worried; the roads were almost deserted and we had a clear run out of town. We didn't rush. The landscape transitioned from thick, tropical vegetation, thinning out gradually to termite country, with big skies and long, gold-coloured grasses, punctuated by trees.
We stopped in at the Hi-way Inn near Daly Waters for fuel and a loo break. A poster on the door advertised that the North Sydney Girls school orchestra would be playing a free concert there that night. The swimming pool in the caravan park tacked onto the side of the roadhouse was brimming with squealing first violinists and cellists and violists, clearly making the most of their free time before the show began. There wasn't any sign of an audience, so far; we didn't stick around to see the performance.
The sun began to set over the grassy plains and it was becoming so lovely that we pulled over to take photos. We decided to drive on to Tennant Creek, where we could stay overnight in a motel and rest our eyes. We woke before the sun came up, jumped straight in the car and were back on the road well before dawn. The sun inched above the horizon, casting red and pink and gold across the country, which was now the familiar red dirt rocky landscape of the arid centre.
Along the way, just out of Ti Tree, we approached a van on the side of the road and a couple of women, greying hair and bright, mismatched patterned skirts, waved us down. We pulled up and wound down the windows.
"Morning," they called out cheerfully. "You got any matches?"
We didn't, not even a lighter. "Sorry, we don't have any," we said.
"Ah. That's okay," said one of the women. "We want to make a cuppa tea," the other explained. "We got a flat battery."
We looked over our shoulders to the van and at the back, curled up on a canvas was an old fella, one of their husbands, presumably. We didn't have any jumper leads, either. They didn't seem bothered - someone would come along who could help - first, with the tea. Then, the van.
"It's okay, thanks for stopping," they said cheerily, waving us on our way.
And after a while, the MacDonnell Ranges drew near, carpeted by a sea of green after our recent rains in Central Australia. Then, the Alice Springs sign welcomed us home.
On Sunday, we loaded the dogs, the tucker box and swag into the car to head out for a night under the stars. We took the Ross River Highway east out of town, turning off onto a four-wheel-drive track. The photos above are where we spent a lazy evening, wandering along the riverbed, reading, relaxing and cooking over the coals. The golden sunlight through the trees was just magical. We had the grassy spot to ourselves and the silence - oh, the silence! We lay awake for ages just gazing at the stars in the inky sky, pointing out satellites and the odd shooting star.
The sun rose through a dip in the rocky outcrop surrounding our camp and we set about our morning camp chores lazily. A hot chocolate, a bacon and egg sandwich and we were on our way, the dogs tuckered out on the backseat.
A delightful long weekend spanning the length of the Northern Territory - perfect.
I hope your weekend was as wonderful as ours!
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