Mereenie Loop Road and Kings Canyon.

Apologies for the blog stall but we have been without good access to broadband or should I say any real service by way of communications at all. It is a disgrace when we consider the services provided overseas!

After leaving Uluru we set out up the Stuart Highway to Alice Springs. Spent one night there and had Pancakes made by the SA Oakbank Pancake people. Great Pancakes! But left next day for Glen Helen Station out in the West MacDonnell Ranges. Beautiful spot which was an area that Albert Namatjira frequented and painted often, particularly his beloved white gums.

Oakbank Pancakes in Alice Springs, delicious!

Soon after leaving Alice we visited
Flynns grave.

What an incredible man, such foresight!

Our plan was to depart in the morning to travel the Mereenie Loop road back to Kings Canyon. Glen Helen staff were happy for us to leave our Caravan in their park area as the Mereenie Loop is not for our type of van. Having now completed it, it would also be pretty tough for off road vans and some camper trailer people found it fairly trying.

The Mereenie loop permit and route.

The Mereenie Loop Road, some 237 kms, is one of many roads that pass through Aboriginal owned lands . It links some of some of Central Australia's  most exciting attractions- Uluru, Kata Tjuta, Watarrka and the West MacDonnell Ranges. Acknowledgement; Central Land Council, Tourism Central Australia and Tourism NT. You can download information about this rich cultural area from the NT Governments site and play it as an Mp3 as you travel through the area. 

We got away the next morning just close to 10.00am after transferring some stuff to the van and ensuring we had our Car Tent and sleeping bags plus the camp food and cookers etc. A camper we met in Uluru told us of Glen Helen and we would strongly recommend it if you want to see the West MacDonnell Ranges and to even do the Mereenie Loop. She also told us to look out for the lookout at Glen Helen and then the one just before we would get onto the Mereenie Loop road. Both were great sites of the land and ranges out that way.

West MacDonnell Ranges, Mount Sonar.

This interpretive board tells the Aboriginal story of how Tnorala was formed. They believe that when a group of women danced across the sky and Milky Way. During this dance a mother put her baby baby carrier (Tnorala) down where the circular amphitheatre was then formed.

Tnorala (Gosse Bluff) is an old Meteorite site and is in the form typical
of Wilpena Pound. This is a sacred Aboriginal site.

We were soon on the Mereenie Loop Road which follows probably 4 gorges through to the Mereenie Gas Fields which are just north of Kings Canyon. The scenery was just simply magnificent, albeit the road rough and really rough for about 20% of it.

A heard of wild camels we encountered on the Mereenie Loop

On the Mereenie Loop

Nice wide road that narrows as it winds through
4-5 mountain range gorges

High cliffs on either side

New road signage NT style. This means "Slow Down".
If you don't it gets very tricky.

More mountainous gorge sides.

We arrived at Kings Canyon Resort (these resorts are spoiling our outback) and checked in at about 3.45pm with out a break on the road. So in for lunch first where Dallas had Fish and Chips and I had a Camel Burger at the pub. Both were delicious.

Then we did KIngs Canyon. We decided we would do the Canyon and not the Rim walk around the Canyon Rim. Once I saw the climb to the Rim I was convinced the knees and hips would not have enjoyed the Rim Walk. Anyhow we loved the walk into the Canyon with many white gums, rock pools and the prehistoric Cycads that predated the dinosaur years. Cycads are plants of great antiquity, being the oldest living representatives of Gymnosperms - the first seed bearing plants.  Acknowledgement; Jim Oliff    

Kings Canyon visitors climbing to do
 the Canyon Rim walk.

The Holly Grevilea

Very useful and informative interpretation signage.

In the Canyon river bed.

Interpretive board of the Holly Grevillea. 

Looking up to the Canyon rim.

More interpretive signage

Canyon walls

How it was formed in the Mereenie sandstone

The beautiful white gums

Cycads

Canyon walls

After this we went back to the camp and set up for the night.  Whilst we prepared camp we warmed up the casserole we had prepared the night before and transported in the Dream Pot. Very nice too!

Car tent set up for the night!

After dinner we walked back to the pub to find out about the Roaming WiFi as nothing else worked. We installed it but it was very flaky. Australia still has a long way to go in regard to reliable communication services despite many promises.

We had a good night in the Car Tent apart from the dingoes howling but we were aware that we would hear them most of the night and they were not too distressing.

In the morning we set off back along the Mereenie Loop Road back to Glen Helen. We were about 70 kms to the northern end of the Loop Road and sure enough we had a tyre "rock cut" in the centre of the tread on the rear RH side tyre. About an hour later with many willing offers for help we were back on the road. I can't recommend under the boot spare tyres though, needs an engineering re-think for outback roads.

Repairing Navara flat tyre Mereenie Loop

On return to Glen Helen a Gin and Tonic and a Coopers Stout were just what the Dr ordered.

Finke River Bar, Glen Helen Station

Clever pub art work, plane from beer cans.

Tomorrow we commence going through Kakadu. I expect we may be without sound communications again but will endeavour to catch up with the blog soon.