My Blog - Member - John and Val

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 10 Coongie ...

. Back at Innaminka we refuelled before heading out to Cullyamurra Waterhole, where we found another big beautiful stretch of water....

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 9 Birdsville ...

. After a hot Birdsville night we made our final farewells the next morning then packed up in preparation for the next stage of this journey. Before we left though,...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 8 Dalhousie ...

. It was even colder next morning when our still-wet towels and swimmers crackled with ice, so we decided against another swim. Besides,...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 7 Alice ...

. We had a slow start the following morning but by 10.30 we were driving past the airport and dropping our tyre pressure once we were on the gravel....

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 6 Exploring ...

. Now it was time to literally move on and enjoy the next stage of the trip with Kevin and Megan. We had a good run out from Batten Hill and along the Plenty Highway towards ...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 5 Mount ...

. Next day the scientists and their volunteers arrived, about a dozen people, excited to see their new camp and keen to get out into this new area....

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 4 Ngarra ...

Having reached Kevin and Megan’s camp at Ngarra Ngarra Swamp near Lake Caroline we attempted to make contact with Batten Hill, only to find, as Kevin had already discovered,...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 3 Excursions ...

. It was a big and diverse group of people who gathered for dinner that first night. Lindsay Bookie was supported by Jol Flemming and some others who had a good knowledge of ...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 2 William ...

. The road between William Creek and Oodnadatta was rough and corrugated in places. The country was very dry and brown and we wondered what the occasional cattle that we saw ...

Simpson Desert and Batten Hill Trip, 2007- Part 1 Canberra to ...

. In early 2007 we responded to a call for three volunteer radio operators to participate in a scientific expedition to Batten Hill in the NE of the Simpson Desert....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 15 : Cape Arid to Canberra

. Our first afternoon in the Cape Arid NP was spent exploring the area around the camping areas. We had a look at the older “Council” campground, that is closer to the beach,...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 14 : Hopetoun to Cape Arid.

. Light rain was falling as we left Hopetoun in late September. We followed the coast road east, happy to be on bitumen for a while,...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 13 : Albany to Hopetoun.

. A few overnight showers, a new HT cable, fuel tanks and fridges full – it was time to head east. Our first destination was Normans Beach on the western boundary of the ...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 12 : Jilakin Rock to Albany

. Tucked in beside the vast grey wall of Jilakin Rock we made ourselves comfortable. There was a reasonable phone signal (Telstra) so by putting our awning out we could get a ...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 11 : Caron to Jilakin Rock

. “Round and round the rugged rocks” might have been a theme for the next few days. Sampling some half ripe quandongs made for an interesting start to the day and left our ...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 10 : Canna to Caron

. We spent two pleasant days at Canna, exploring the many tracks around our camp, revisiting the orchid trail, and the big rock behind the village church....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 9 : Kalbarri to Canna

. Leaving Kalbarri we’d suffered a bad attack of Sudden-Onset-Battery-Dead syndrome. Experience sometimes teaches us useful things, and this situation was a case in point....

Western Australia Trip, Aug 2012 – Part 8 : Mullewa to ...

. It was time to hit the bright lights of Geraldton and shop for a few essential items. Cooler clothes were required, and a replacement pump for our 12V shower....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 7 : Mt. Magnet to Mullewa

. Mt. Magnet looked hot and dusty in the afternoon sun. We noted that there was a caravan park, but in our search for an overnight bush camp we turned north on the Great ...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 6 : Laverton to Mt. Magnet

. A stunning sunrise brought a forecast for showers and storms, although the clouds soon cleared away to another warm day....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 5 : Neale Junction to ...

. Next morning we decided to move on towards Laverton, leaving our new-found friends to wait for Noel’s shock absorbers to arrive....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 4 : Warburton to Neale ...

. Getting on the road after refuelling next morning was slightly delayed as the roadhouse doesn’t open until 9.00 on a Sunday....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 3 : Yulara to Warburton

. Our progress west from Yulara was predictably slow at first. A few photo stops were required to record that we had passed Uluru and particularly scenic Kata Tjuta....

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 2 Port Augusta to Yulara

. The country was still unusually green as we pushed on towards Woomera. This stretch of road north of Port Augusta always gets us excited,...

Western Australia Trip 2012 – Part 1 : Canberra to Port ...

. Getting started on a trip is often the hardest part of the whole journey, and this trip seemed to be especially hard to get going....