The last bit - Alice to SW Queensland, central NSW, Blackheath to HOME

 



The line on the left is this bit of the trip - the right-most lines were heading north in May. 


From Alice to Home there were 2 options - south towards Adelaide and then east, or the more interesting east into Queensland and then south-east across NSW.  Having ignored the "best time of year to visit the outback" instructions a month ago, we continued to drive on super-quiet roads in unreasonably hot conditions.  After 1500km of dirt roads, and passing 10 cars in 5 days, it took a few hours to adjust to driving on the left again and dealing with oncoming traffic!  There was a lot of rain in this region a few weeks earlier and some roads were 4WD-only as they were still wet.

Just before Uluru we started to notice that 5th gear was getting noisy.  (For the interested: most likely the rear layshaft bearing, which is a known weakness on these boxes.)  This meant driving the last few thousand kilometres in 4th gear which, at 20km/h slower, allowed plenty of time to appreciate the landscape.  We intended to drive the most direct route home in case it blew up, but we still managed a few diversions.


East MacDonnell Ranges are, like their better-known western counterpart, pretty spectacular.  This creek bed in Trephina Gorge was flooded 2 weeks earlier and had a cool water hole just around the corner.


Looking up the Ross River valley (N'Dhala Gorge), E MacDonnell ranges:

The Plenty / Donohue Highway runs east-west just north of the ranges from Alice to Boulia.  Not very busy!


We camped at Tobermorey cattle station just before the border - Adam was a bit nervous of the house calf!

Back into Queensland.  The tarmac was only for looks - it stopped just around the corner!

Lunch in the shade - it was pretty warm!


Massive horizons and no people.  (We passed 10 cars in 5 days.)





The 4th time we've crossed the tropic.

Late afternoon storminess - lightning, wind, dust and a few drops of rain.

A well-deserved swim in Boulia for Adam at the end of the day.

Heading south to Birdsville we found the reason the road was labelled as 4wd only.  (Although 30 years ago plenty of people would happily have driven 2wds along here.)  The birds are pelicans.




Birdsville - the population varies from 70 to about 4000 depending on time of year.


Spiritual home of my favourite newspaper. No-one there though.

Near the Dig Tree of Burke and Wills fame, near Noccundra, SW QLD..


We went back to Charlotte Plains Station near Cunnamulla for 3 nights.  They were just finishing the shearing, which I think has to be the physically hardest job I've seen.  We arrived at about 3pm and the 2 shearers looked exhausted, but didn't finish until 6 - not my idea of a fun day in the office!  Pay is $4 per ewe / whether and $10 per ram.


Enjoying the bore-water baths.


Back into NSW and Covid Chaos.

Community Christmas Carols in the park at Nyngan

We stayed just outside of Orange for a couple of nights at a property owned by a friend of Helen's.  They grow grapes, sheep and a few cattle.


Our last night camping was at Newnes.


The last creek crossing of the trip, through the Wolgan River.  We didn't count them, but there were hundreds.

To the Blue Mountains to stay in Blackheath for a few days to reconnect with family.

Govett's Leap lookout:


And finally, back down the hill to Sydney!




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