It ain't over til it's over (Ellery Creek and Standley Chasm, Alice Springs, Northern Territory)

The 6:55am breakfast call came for the last time. It was a more relaxed beginning to the day and we had until 9am to pack up. We gathered around the fire pit to cook toast over the coals and enjoy a cup of tea. Finally, the wind had dropped and, what was supposed to have been a relatively warm evening, turned out to be the coldest so far. Clear skies and an eternity of stars. Marcus’ swag was fringed with ice as were all the tents. The interior sparkled with ice crystals from the condensation, as did many of the tent tops.

An icy morning.

Dave and I packed up quickly and Dave was appointed Camp Inspector, required to check all tents before we departed. In the meantime, we went in search of the bower of the resident bowerbird. Another Western Bowerbird with the usual pink mullet. He was a frequent visitor to the kitchen to steal food and items for his bower. We had been watching him for days, trying to work out where his bower might be hidden.

What's for dinner?

Ultimately, after discussions with Jonny, we decided on the ridge line behind the camp site and set out to find it. We were partly correct. It was on the ridge, but the second ridge.

The kitchen.

Again, we watched and followed and were led on a merry chase. Divide and conquer, Machiavelli advised and so we did. We explored either side of the scrub line. While Dave was conducting a ground search, I kept watch of the skies. Eventually, he returned to the tree near his bower. Gotcha.

Discovered.

We backtracked and found the bower. Given all the items stolen from the kitchen, I expected more. The most amusing was a post it note reminding someone to "take the T-shirts to Ormi". A few photos were snapped and we returned to camp. Dave returned with Jonny so he was aware of where his nemesis resided.

Our transport.

The final event at camp was the surprise presentation of T-shirts to all the trekkers. Words of thanks were spoken. We were grateful for the experience and Trek Tours Australia were grateful we had chosen them. In all seriousness I could not recommend them highly enough. They are a totally professional outfit. The guides we spent time with were all passionate and knowledgeable.

Ellery Creek like you've never seen it. Dave's photo.

Bags stowed in the trailer, we boarded the bus for Ellery Creek. It was too early for a swim. The temperature was in single digits. However, it was a beautiful scene with trees reflected in the water. We admired the view, nailed a few classic photos and marshalled ourselves for a team photo before heading to Standley Chasm.

Beautiful,  but Dave's photo is better.

We arrived shortly after midday when the sun is almost directly over the top of the walls. Visitors were few in number and we strolled the path down to the chasm and shared the space with another couple as we made the most of the excellent unpopulated photo opportunity. Obligatory photos taken, we returned to the trail and the climb up to the lookout where we would be enjoying lunch.

Ellery Creek ... again.

It was a reasonably short climb, but quite steep. The view from the ridge allowed you to look back over the chasm in one direction and out across the range in the other. Lunch was as good as ever and everyone was in a celebratory mood. The end was in sight and we had achieved what we had set out to do.

Budgies.

And then it was over. We were back on the bus heading to our respective hotels. Not that they were far apart. It was agreed we would meet for pre-dinner drinks at the Double Tree.

A White necked Heron.

Before that though there would be showers. Showers! And phone calls home.

Standley chasm.

Drinks were great and Jonny and Lucas turned up unexpectedly. The other surprise was, it was Alice Show Day, a public holiday, the second that week. This one apparently necessitated a 15% surcharge on all drinks. I’m so glad Malcolm Turnbull got rid of penalty rates when he was PM - it stopped price gouging. The bosses win again. Anyway, we sat around chatting and reliving past glories until it was time for dinner.

The view from our lunch spot.

And that was pretty much it. There is no need for a separate post for the transit day. It went as expected. The plane was late. The Qantas lounge wasn’t open when we arrived so we were forced to breakfast in the public café. The guy behind the counter was not having a good day and my ham and cheese croissant was served up looking like road kill from the Larapinta Drive. It was ever thus.

Two of our guides: Jonny and Lucas.

Lenny Kravitz sang "it ain't over til it's over" but we know it's over. For now. Until the next adventure. 

 

We're already discussing the Tarkine in '25.

Going North (Sydney to Alice Springs)

Yes, I’m back, sans Jayne. Bushwalking is not her thing, but it is David’s, so the first born and I are off on our annual (major) trek. Going North as Missy Higgins might sing. Have a listen. This time to the Larapinta Trail in the Northern Territory on a guided trek with Trek Tours Australia. This post is a transit day so to break up the text I’ve included a few photos from the walk. There was precious little connectivity on the trail so this is being put together on our return.

Weekend trackwork, and the resultant closure of the Airport line, encouraged an alternate transport plan. I had already declined Jayne’s generous offer to drive me to the airport. Dave’s trip in from suburbia now involved buses and a train and would take around 2 hours. The new plan saw Dave train it into the city on Friday night to stay with us and Jayne would drive us to the airport on Saturday morning.

Holly Grevillea

My platinum status as a Qantas frequent flyer was going to expire at midnight on Sunday. Saturday morning would be my last time to enjoy the Business Lounge for most domestic flights. Although Jayne and I are flying business class to Perth in August.

Qantas has not been my friend for some time now and overseas flights with Qatar, Singapore and Vietnam has cruelled any chance of maintaining platinum status. That said all went well on this leg of the journey. The traffic was light, baggage drop was smooth and the security check was fast and efficient. The Business Lounge wasn’t overly busy and a toasty and coffee readied us for the 3 hour flight to the Alice.

The wide open spaces of Ormiston Pound.

Today is my first experience of Qantas’ new method of boarding in zones. They have finally joined the civilised ranks of other international airlines. We are Zone 1 and first onto the plane and into our exit row seats. The boarding process worked well and we were in the air and heading to Alice Springs on schedule.

The flight was uneventful and relatively smooth. The head of Customer Service dropped by for a chat (courtesy of my soon to be expired platinum status) and said he would catch up with us on the return flight to see how we enjoyed the trek.

Our taxi driver to the hotel channelled Lewis Hamilton and was clearly frustrated by other cars observing the speed limit. We were at the Double Tree by Hilton for both ends of the trip and happily our room was ready when we arrived at 1pm.

As we sorted our gear for tomorrow’s first day of the trek, we discovered we were walking 70kms over the six days, not the 110kms I read about in a previous email. Neither of us was sure whether to be pleased or disappointed.

The forecast for day one was rain and we had around six hours of walking in front of us. In that time we would only cover around 8kms. Clothes and packs were reorganised for our 7:30am pick up.

We dined at the inhouse restaurant. They were very busy and service was slow. The food was ok but nothing to get excited about.