West MacDonnell Ranges - Swim in Pool & Whirlwind

 It was still quite warm in the afternoon so we decided to have a swim in the pool & sit over there for awhile.   The pool was very cool but quite refreshing.  We met a couple there & had quite a long conversation with them & it turned out she lived 3 streets away from us in Somerton Park & visits the kiosk near us regularly 😀.  


Tony trying to get out the sun 😂

We all headed back to the van & decided to meet for a drink at the bar 🥂 but on returning to our van we got a shock.   It looked like someone had vandalised the van - our awning was on a strange angle & our mat was blown up right against the van.  Our chairs were covered in twigs & dust 😱  the neighbours came over straight away & said a 150 foot whirlwind had gone straight through our section of the camp 🏕 evidently our van was rocking & the awning twisted.   They said it sounded like a freight train coming 🤨 our neighbours had things thrown around but not as bad as us!  We managed to straighten the awning & put up again but when we went to take it in that night Tony had to do a few adjustments to get it up so hopefully all fixed now.  There was absolutely no wind either 🤷‍♀️Our solar panels luckily missed the whirlwind 😉




Once the awning was fixed we headed over to the bar & met Sandra & Alan.  We sat outside on the deck having a few drinks & chatting.   The escarpment was spectacular & although this park has only been open for a week they have done a great job.






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

West MacDonnell Ranges - Ellery Creek Big Hole

Image
  Thinking I was going to have the afternoon to read & blog there was a sudden change of plans & we de idea to visit Ellery Creek Big Hole this afternoon instead of from our next camp we are moving to.    The drive was a lot longer than we thought  & we had to be back by 5pm as they lock the gates so no-one else can come in.   We did tell them at the kiosk we were going & they said to let them know when we were back,    The drive was worth it as Ellery Creek was a beautiful waterhole surrounded by colourful hills & trees. After watching a group of people go in for a swim & screaming out how cold it was I was glad I left my bathers back at camp 😎 it was 35 deg today 😜 We headed back to camp & lucky the gate wasn’t locked but there were quite a few people ready to camp for the night.   Tony started the chain saw for a few minutes & some old battle axe came around & asked what the noise was 😂😂.   There wer...
Read more

West MacDonnell Ranges - Finding our Next Camp

Image
Had a very quiet night -quite a few sleeping in tents on top of their cars, tents on the lawn, 2 caravans (including ours) & 4 Chinese people sleeping in the back of their cars - they were very friendly & quite chattie 😜.  Left around 8 am to try & get a camp at Ormiston George but on arrival found they were all taken & were all huddled in together 🤨  Heading into Ormiston Gorge  We decided to keep going to Redbank Campground to see if any sites there - it was a dirt road in & once there, we found plenty of sites.   The roads around were very tight for caravans (bollards on both sides of road) & looked like they were hard to back vans into!   On looking around there was one camp full of “I think delinquent kids” camping for the weekend & throwing rocks at whatever they could find 😫 it looked very hot in there as well (35 deg today) & I was feeling a bit anxious about staying so decided to keep moving!     Our Plan C w...
Read more

Dundee Beach - trip to Crab Claw Island Resort

Image
  Morning spent washing in the laundry & gossiping with other campers, so nice to have clean sheets, towels & clothes again.   Van cleaned & decided on a trip to Crab Claw Island Resort (about 50 kms away) The restaurant was like being in Bali or Fiji with open air tables on a deck overlooking the beach with overhead fans blowing in the breeze.  Tony enjoyed a chorizo & prawn pizza & I had my fish & chips! Lots of helicopters landing on the beach dropping people off for lunch.  We have 4 helicopters at Dundee which take off quite regularly. Had a swim in the resort pool after lunch & chatted to an interesting 31 yo travelling with her sister & brother-in-law.  She was in her own van.   Also an interesting family with 2 small boys.   Back to restaurant for our first mango Icecream. Back to camp for Happy hour at the beach & watch the sunset again.  Talked to Rochelle & Thor - glad to hear Evan back home but s...
Read more