Across the Red Centre.

After a number of months, it was coming up to Christmas and the mine I was working on closed for three weeks over Christmas and New Year. I took the opportunity to cross the Red Centre and get to Alice Springs from where I planned to head down to Adelaide and back to Kalgoorlie via the Nullabor. I went across as part of a tour group in an 'Oca'. An Oca is an Australian-made vehicle supposedly designed especially for rough outback country. Well...... As an indication of how tough the road was on vehicles, we had both batteries tear loose from their mountings, the air-con compressor drop off, the power steering pump drop off, the transfer box failed and the gearbox lost first and third. Everything that could be rattled off did - lights, numberplates, mud-flaps, mirrors. We stopped every hour to tighten things that were failing and still we lost stuff. The tour group was a collection of Europeans and Japanese who were not really experienced in the outdoors. I was the only person who couldn't walk away from the vehicle for a smoke while some poor bugger who had been driving all day tried to fix things and keep us moving. I had to get down and bark my knuckles too. (An attitude difference between those from the Northern and Southern hemispheres that I have noted frequently. - Being prepared to 'muck in'. Why is it so unthinkable to some people?) There were two unplanned nights between Laverton and Ayres rock, but, all in all, it was a good experience. After the sights and Christmas, I made my way down to Adelaide, via Coober Pedy. In Adelaide, I enjoyed the wine region of Barossa, the galleries and New Year. And finally I booked myself onto a tour that was to take me to Kangaroo Island where my life was to change forever....

I could mention far more about the trip to Adelaide from Perth and I have so many good things to say about the people I met and travelled with and the things that I saw, but that is not the reason for this blog. Perhaps some other time....