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- Aug 9, 2006
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This is a belated post I did the trip towards the end of last year but until now, havent had the time to sort out pics and put some words together.
The drive was about 2000km over ten days through some remote country in Australias Northern Territory. These places are slowly beginning to open up with a newly declared national park and increasing mining activity. It is tropical country with a strong monsoon influence. Most of the roads are closed for months each year and of the country is flooded annually as rivers join up over vast flood plains. The dry season is just that. Water can be found but rain is non existent for most of the season. The dry season is technically winter but temperatures can still be hot, though the humidity drops and evenings are pleasant.
My trip began in Darwin and the first day was an uneventful drive south along the Stuart Highway to Mataranka. Towards dusk the wildlife on the road was pretty bad. Mostly Wallabies (a smaller version of the kangaroo) but I saw some horses, cattle and one buffalo. Night driving is not recommended as evidenced by the roadkill.
Mataranka was once a cattle town but is now mostly there for tourists. It is limestone country and there are vast underground water reserves and this water surfaces in places as crystal clear hot springs. It can get pretty overrun with visitors at peak times but fortunately was quiet that late in the year. This is one of the thermal pools:
The road east - this would be the last sealed surface for quite a while:
The first few hours of daylight were spent dodging wallabies. Feral horses were also quite common. It is hard to get action pics when you are driving. I just caught this straggler from a herd that crossed the road in front of me.
Roper Bar - this is the crossing of the Roper River and is the border to Aboriginal owned Arnhem Land. The river is beautiful - full of sporting fish and man eating crocs. I did not cross but turned south.
Road conditions get progressively rougher from here - plenty of corrugations and bulldust but nothing that would stop most well built vehicles.
This is tropical savannah country - looks tame enough but wander too far off that track and you can lose yourself quickly. It was hot and you can dry out fast and from the ground there are few landmarks for navigation. Until not that long ago the only people who ventured here were the indigenous inhabitants and pioneering stockmen who worked the place on horseback. On today's working cattle stations, the stock run wild for most of there lives and are now mostly mustered by helicopter before being sent for slaughter.
see Pt 2 for the rest
The drive was about 2000km over ten days through some remote country in Australias Northern Territory. These places are slowly beginning to open up with a newly declared national park and increasing mining activity. It is tropical country with a strong monsoon influence. Most of the roads are closed for months each year and of the country is flooded annually as rivers join up over vast flood plains. The dry season is just that. Water can be found but rain is non existent for most of the season. The dry season is technically winter but temperatures can still be hot, though the humidity drops and evenings are pleasant.
My trip began in Darwin and the first day was an uneventful drive south along the Stuart Highway to Mataranka. Towards dusk the wildlife on the road was pretty bad. Mostly Wallabies (a smaller version of the kangaroo) but I saw some horses, cattle and one buffalo. Night driving is not recommended as evidenced by the roadkill.
Mataranka was once a cattle town but is now mostly there for tourists. It is limestone country and there are vast underground water reserves and this water surfaces in places as crystal clear hot springs. It can get pretty overrun with visitors at peak times but fortunately was quiet that late in the year. This is one of the thermal pools:
The road east - this would be the last sealed surface for quite a while:
The first few hours of daylight were spent dodging wallabies. Feral horses were also quite common. It is hard to get action pics when you are driving. I just caught this straggler from a herd that crossed the road in front of me.
Roper Bar - this is the crossing of the Roper River and is the border to Aboriginal owned Arnhem Land. The river is beautiful - full of sporting fish and man eating crocs. I did not cross but turned south.
Road conditions get progressively rougher from here - plenty of corrugations and bulldust but nothing that would stop most well built vehicles.
This is tropical savannah country - looks tame enough but wander too far off that track and you can lose yourself quickly. It was hot and you can dry out fast and from the ground there are few landmarks for navigation. Until not that long ago the only people who ventured here were the indigenous inhabitants and pioneering stockmen who worked the place on horseback. On today's working cattle stations, the stock run wild for most of there lives and are now mostly mustered by helicopter before being sent for slaughter.
see Pt 2 for the rest
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