Well thanks to the COVID 19 Pandemic, 2020 was a bust for travel, but we’re determined to do our bit in 2021…so here we are in the Northern Territory for two weeks! A few years ago we had a short 3 night break at Uluru to see the Field of Light exhibition, and Neil visited Darwin in the mid 1980’s on a work trip but other than that this is all new ground for us. The one ( and ONLY) good thing about Covid is how much quicker it is to check in for a flight, we made a beeline for the lounge and had a leisurely breakfast before heading to the gate.
It really does feel good to be back on a plane again, even if it does mean wearing a mask for several hours. We had booked direct flights originally, but QANTAS cancelled our original flight and decide to route us to Alice Springs via Melbourne! It meant we need to register to entry both Victoria and the Northern Territory, but at least we got a nice view of Melbourne CBD on the way into Tullamarine airport.
The flight from Melbourne to Alice is about 3 hours and gave me some great views of red desert landscapes and salt pans, as well as a brief glimpse of the Pine Gap , the US satellite surveillance base and Australian Earth station just outside Alice Springs.
When we finally arrived we had to wait our turn to be interviewed by the border staff to check that we had completed our entry forms and confirming that we hadnt been in a Covid hotspot before we were allowed in.
We only had a day and a half in Alice Springs ( for this part of the trip, we return for one night next week) but we’ve made the most of our time. On arrival we headed straight for the Royal Flying Doctor Service Visitor Centre. There wouldn’t be many Australian’s that hadn’t heard about this amazing service providing health care to remote communities throughout the outback. It was established by Reverend John Flynn ( “Flynn of the Inland” )who had witnessed the daily struggle of pioneers living in remote areas and had a vision to provide a ‘mantle of safety’ for the people of the bush. The museum had displays about the history of the RFDS as well as an excellent movie and a full size replica of the Pilatus PC-12 planes currently used in the N.T.
We stayed at the Doubletree by Hilton which has a great view up to the ranges. The hotel is large but very underutilized at present as they simply can’t get enough staff to provide the services to a fully booked hotel. The Pandemic has meant the usual tide of backpackers and working holiday people that staff these remote locations, has largely dried up. The main bar is closed at present but fortunately the restaurant is open, and we were lucky they could squeeze us in as we’d left our booking a bit late. We loved the tasting plate entree of pickled crocodile, smoked wallaby, and chargrilled kangaroo served with a tasty selection of sauces.
One treat at breakfast was to find they were running a full breakfast buffet, the breakfast buffet has been off the menu in NSW ever since the start of the pandemic, so I was delighted to see all those bain-marie this morning!
Our full day started with a 17km drive west of town to take the short walk into Simpson’s Gap -such a pretty spot! A permanent waterhole lies under towering cliffs in this gap in the Simpson Range.
On the way we stopped to visit the memorial grave of John Flynn, where he rests on a small hill with a fine view of his beloved red ranges.
The Alice Springs Desert Park was our next stop, it’s an extensive wildlife park and botanic garden , it contains three separate walk-through desert habitat areas which you walk through long a series of trails – Desert Rivers, Sand Country, and Woodland. The walk through aviaries were beautiful and there is a huge Nocturnal House where we saw quokka, bilbies, echidnas and all sorst of other animals, insects, snakes and lizards.
For lunch we drove north of town to the Alice Springs Telegraph Station Historical Reserve, the birthplace of the Alice Springs township. The parkland there is obviously popular with the locals, there were many large groups enjoying picnics and BBQ’s under the trees. We tucked into a burger & chips at the cafe before wandering through the several buildings that have been kept as a museum. The telegraph station was a very important part of the connection of Australia to the rest of the world via the Overland Telegraph Line in 1872.
I had hoped to visit the School Of the Air Visitor Centre on a school day to see the school running but because we’re here on the Anzac Day long weekend that just wasnt possible, however the movie, and guided tour of the centre were great! The tour guide was a hilarious and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, as well as learning a lot about how the service educates isolated children across the country.
On ANZAC day it seemed particularly appropriate to drive up the the town’s popular lookout on ANZAC Hill. There had been a dawn service there in the morning and we could see the many wreaths that had been laid at he foot of the memorial, as well as the great view across the town.
Before heading back to the hotel we stopped in town to pick up some food & drink supplies to take with us to Kings Canyon – it was a bit daunting to be questions by the police who monitor alcohol purchases at the local bottle shops. They are working hard to keep alcohol consumption under control in the community here.
For dinner we drove down to the only craft brewery in the Red Centre – Alice Springs Brewing Company, which has only been in operation for a few years. Judging by the nu,mber of people enjoying their beer and pizzas, they are doing a roaring trade! The beer was cold and the pizza was delicious!
Tomorrow we head west to Kings Canyon via the Red Centre Way.