On the Road again - CFT Birdsville - Day 7-9

 Tuesday 23 May 2023

This morning, after breakfast we headed out in a 4WD bus for a tour of Brachina and Bunyeroo Gorges. This is a tour that allows you to travel through geological time but unfortunately the local guide did not explain much at all as he did not know the geology. But all was not lost, the scenery was fantastic and what we did have pointed out to us was very interesting.

Lunch was back at the dining room. What a group we are becoming as we all find people with whom we can laugh and chat on common ground. Many good belly laughs are being enjoyed.

After lunch it was time for our flight over Wilpena Pound and the area around it. Suddenly everything made sense about the dreamtime stories and the geology as well. We were able to see the Aroona Valley very clearly as two snakes as in the dreamtime stories.

At 4:30pm, after collecting two people from the later flight over the area, Michael drove us to Stokes Hill lookout to see the sunset. There was a bronze model of Wilpena Pound up there and Michael was able to use it to explain all sorts of details that we had not been shown on the morning tour.

Today we checked off Wallaroos (Euros) as we saw them on the way up to Stokes.

Wednesday 24 May 2023

Today we drove north through the Flinders and then west to Parachilna where we met the main road north to Leigh Creek. We had a toilet stop at Blinman. Just after Leigh Creek Kerrie and I shared a quandong pie for morning tea at the Copley Cafe.

We then continued on to Farina, now a ghost town, that comes to life every year on the last weekend of May. Luckily the crowds were not there but the volunteers had started stoking the fire in the Underground Bakery ready for bread baking at the weekend.

The other deralict buildings were quite fascinating to wander around. 

The weather is beginning to warm up a bit although I still have my winter singlet on under my long sleeved Tshirt.

On again, following the old Ghan railway line, to Marree for lunch at the Marree Hotel which was very grand in the renovated old building.

We then turned onto the Oodnadatta Track and broke our journey with a quick stop at the Mutonia Sculpture Park and had a great time making noises on many of the metal sculptures. On one old plane there were two galahs sitting close to their nest.

The landscape now is quite flat and sparsly vegetated with salt pans and views of Lake Eyre.

We arrrived at William Creek in time to settle in before dinner at the Hotel. The sunset was amazing. 

Dinner was great, the ambience was incredible in a building lined with railway sleepers, but the noise was deafening.

Thursday 25 May 2023

Today we are half way through our journey and were able to have a sleep in (ha ha). Breakfast was at 8am instead of 7am. I took a bit of a walk photographing the variety of  saltbush and bluebush flowers and fruits and the town of William Creek (permanent population of 4).

At about 10am we left on our 2 hour flight over the area. This included the painted hills (30-100m high in places) as well as part of Lake Eyre. The water is just reaching the far north end of the lake but we were assured it looks much better without muddy flood waters covering the salt surface.

We saw a camel track across the surface and also mound springs starting to form.

There were a few mound springs forming through the salt.

We returned in time for lunch before heading out to Anna Creek Station to be welcomed by Chantelle and given a tour of the homestead area with its huge kitchen, dining room, school room and many other outbuildings and workers' quarters. We were treated to a lovely afternoon tea of homemade cakes, tea and coffee.

Back to William Creek for a few hours of 'free time' catching up on diaries and phone calls home before dinner.

It is amazing to be in such a remote wide expanse of our country. I am just loving the peace the horizon brings.

At dinner the owner of William Creek hotel and the airline, Trevor Wright, came in to chat to us about how he got there and started the business. He also introduced us to the Pastry chef  trained at the Savoy in London and her partner who is a horticulturalist from Kew Gardens. Trevor has taken a stand for the tiny community and not allowed pokies in the hotel and refuses to sell cigarettes.