The mountaintop and the minutiae.

 

After more than two years in Alice Springs, yesterday I climbed Mt Gillen for the first time. The mountain forms part of the West MacDonnell Ranges, which stretch out from Alice Springs into the rugged surrounds. It was a perfect day for a hike - the sun was shining but the morning air crisp and the breeze cool. It's a scramble to reach the top but once you're up, the views are amazing. After the recent rain, the ancient country is blanketed with the deep green of new growth. From the mountaintop, I breathed deeply and let my eyes scan outwards, outwards, until the bumpy ranges of the far horizon met the end of the sky.

As for the minutiae?

Cool air whispering around in the mornings as summer has been farewelled.

The chickens rushing out behind me in a line, one-two-three.

The excited pantings of a dog either side as we walk in the early evening.

Long weekends with no plans but lots of options.

Life feels simple right now. Beneath this simplicity is the struggle in knowing that things are simple because I have all I need. I feel thankful, but lucky beyond belief.

Territory traversed.

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!

On being 33 and learning to skateboard (again).

That's right, I'm almost in my mid-30s (mid-mid-30s, if you will) and I have gone and got myself a skateboard. A longboard, to be precise. It's an idea I have had in the back of my head since I was in my mid- to late-20s and living on the city fringe in Adelaide. But, for some reason or another it didn't come about back then, so I'm making up for it now.

Learning to skateboard was one of the first things I did when I finished school. There were two big ticket items on this list: learn to skate and learn to surf. Living - back then - in a place with close access to fantastic beaches meant learning to surf was both easy and convenient. Skating followed on. My sister was already into it, and it was something lots of people in our group of friends were doing, so it was a great learning environment. I was never quite the star on the skatey as my sister - she seemed fearless at the skate park and used to skate (and win) in competitions. I skated in one comp, held at a skate park in Canberra, and placed third. My sister, of course, won. I was happy to have won a set of trucks, a hat and a t-shirt for my efforts - which consisted of dropping in to a shallow bowl, a few swooshy turns, going over stuff, up and down a few ramps, but not many tricks.

So here I am, thirty three years old, and owner of a funky longboard. It's different to a regular board but I'm getting the feel for it. I'd like to maybe skate to work sometimes, or at least into town.

If you see me around, please don't laugh! I might be cruising, or I might just be walking for a little bit with it under my arm.



Habitat longboard // purchased from Valor art / sk8 / life, Alice Springs

Other places: Exploring the Top End.

We spent today exploring the a little corner of the Top End, as I enjoy a weekend with Peter following on from a quick visit to Darwin for work. After visiting the popular Parap markets, we headed out of town. (I was going to say 'headed south' but to be honest, I am still finding my sense of direction completely askew here in Darwin. I think we eventually made our way south. Anyway, I digress.)

First, a little zip around Humpty Doo (yes! that's really what it's called!) before reaching Batchelor. Best known these days for the tertiary institution of the same name (Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, or BIITE), the small town with a population of just less than 500 people lies near a former uranium mine called Rum Jungle. We stopped at a butterfly farm for lunch on a breezy and eclectically-decorated verandah.

Next stop was Berry Springs Nature Park, a popular picnic and swimming spot during the dry season. Since it's still considered the wet season, the swimming holes were closed, with water levels high and turbulent. We umm-ed and ahh-ed before deciding to continue around and head north through the Cox Peninsula. The end of the road brings you to Wagait Beach, a small and sleepy coastal community. It sits almost directly opposite Darwin with a stretch of clear blue water between, which is traversed several times each day by a ferry service. This means a 130 km trip by car becomes a 15-minute boat trip - very handy for residents who commute for work or school.

Dark and foreboding clouds cracked open for a heavy rain shower on our drive back, but in true Top End style it soon passed. I'm looking forward to being able to explore some more of the Top End - including Kakadu and Litchfield - during the dry season. Tomorrow, it's back to Alice Springs for the week ahead!