Giles Weather Station Tours - a question for you

Thanks for kicking this off so quickly Allan. 11 am was the suggestion the powers-that-be made but the Senior Meteorologist suggested 4 pm for that reason.

My personal thoughts were that I'd rather wait until 11 am that risk being late when the travel times on that road can be so variable - especially if coming through the NT section.

Mh

Yes, good point about the uncertainty of arrival time MH. Anyway, 11am is an easy start and the Aboriginal Art Gallery is now open again in the roadhouse to kill some time. And of course viewing Len's grader and.... is The Shoe still there for photos?
Can I change my vote please?

Note that this all changes since my realisation that those times are SA times.

Errr, I'm missing the point MH. How does that change it?

Hi Allan - when thinking of 4 pm or 11 am - the afternoon may have been a better option as near the end of the day, and 11 am a long wait - but when in WA time 9:30 am is not much of a wait and probably more desirable to most than a 2:30 start. In may depend on direction of travel as to how one's body clock is running (NT/SA or WA time).

Mh

Ah, I see. I never seem to have an issue with "body clock" or jet-lag etc. I seem to instinctively adapt to local time, perhaps as a consequence of irregular working times. But I guess you farmers are geared to the sun-clock. lol

Thanks Pop :)

If the new tours get approved, they will not coincide with the weather balloon release and that was a big part of the tour. I recall we were there for an hour or two, but that involved see the balloon, all the readings done at that time, and how they are processed and sent to Adelaide. All very informative and the staff member took a lot of his time explaining it all to us.

Mh

Hi Hugh

As per the earlier thread, staffing changes were looking like stopping the tours altogether, however there are people working on getting something happening but it is not guaranteed.

I hope it all comes off but it won't be the same as the attention we got.

Mh

Hmmmmm....just wondering if they would be interested in a "camp host". Maybe on a rotating basis. Not paid only somewhere to park the van and maybe water and power supplied. Tours conducted every second day or so. That way the hosts could have a bit of time to tour around the area and the staff would only have to worry about the important stuff.

Just a thought (:-))

Cheers
Pop

Good lateral thinking Pop, but it is not a place many travellers would want to spend much time in. Even the BOM staff are seconded on 6 monthly rotations to ensure staff there. With all the Occ Health and Safety stuff these days, the training would probably take longer than the people would want to stay.

Mh

Thanks Shaker - note my realisation that it is 11 am SA time so 9:30 WA time, which makes the morning time more desirable.

Mh

Hi Min

Regarding the unrealistic time frame for travellers, who cannot be certain of the exact dates when applying, i recall the previous proprietors of the Tjukayirla roadhouse who were members here setting up a fax in system from the roadhouse to adjust dates. I i hope it is being continued by the present proprietors. Similar could already be done from Yulara, but in both cases it is required to be within the office opening times of the Ngaanyatjarra Office in Alice Springs. Ngaanyatjarra would not consider a longer time frame than the three days. Central Lands Council are far more realistic for the short Northern Territory side; the travel window can be as long as two weeks.

Mh

hi motherhen
i was last there in july 1987 the blue streak rocket bits and the grader was there and you could get fuel but no balloon releases or tours by bom staff to give details there was a wet canteen there called 'gafa' (but i wont mention on here what that stood for) where we had a few tinnies one night but no art gallery either
we made camp just west of giles as it wasnt permitted to stay in giles itself and it wasnt safe to do so
petrol sniffing was a big problem at that stage which we saw evidence of
the 11am time frame sounds ok to me after all one has to have a lunch break and that can be included to suit some but not others
just my two bobs worth
cheers barry

Hi Mazcan

With 11 am being SA time, that comes to 9:30 am WA time. It depends on which direction you are travelling as to when lunch time might be be.

Mh

hi motherhen
yes i did realise the time zone diffs but anyway my lunch time is any time and /or when i get hungary same for morning or afternoon breaks its what ever suits or fits the daily movements
never been one for set schedules or regulated stops my home is where i hang my hat on the day so to speak