Day 13 - 40kms north of Mt Dare to Dalhousie Springs

Wed 26 Aug 2015

 

After heavy rain overnight the roof of our awning had a pool of water on it and the ground was muddy and quite slippery. This made packing up a bit slow as we tried to keep our footing. Although the country side is lovely when it rains the roads and tracks can become hazardous, always drive to suit the current conditions.

Our wildlife also responds to changes in the weather. As a result of  the overnight  rain we saw flocks of zebra finches in the bushes beside the road. Zebra finches can always be found near water and in Aboriginal cultures zebra finches are one of several “water diviner” birds. These water diviner birds indicate fresh water is near. If you’re looking for water for survival and see or hear zebra finches check it out as there will be water nearby.

We crossed the border into South Australia and guess what? The road we were travelling which went through the Witjira National Park suddenly improved and had been recently graded. Our progress was still slow though due to the  road conditions but it was much better to drive along.

Around midday with the temperature climbing to 12c we arrived at Mt Dare at the same time as a couple of tour buses from the south. After filling up we noticed a tractor towing a camper trailer also pull in from the south. This looked a bit odd and we wondered how slow they would be travelling in these conditions.

In case you’re wondering, the cost of diesel at Mt Dare was $2.35 p/l

Within 10 kms of leaving Mt Dare we saw several more tractors, some towing small caravans or camper trailers, all heading north to Mt Dare.

Post script – It wasn’t until we got back that research revealed they were part of the Chamberlain G9 Tractor Clubs from WA and East Coast en route to the Alice Springs Transport Hall of Fame.

Now, Dalhousie Springs is only 70 kms away, let’s see how long it takes us……

The scenery along the way through the Witjira National Park was lovely. We drove through an ever changing landscape including treeless plains, plateaus, small mountains and dry creeks. It rained pretty much all the way to Dalhousie Springs and as we got closer the road became very slippery and muddy. We finally arrived at Dalhousie about 3.30pm, not bad, only 3 ½ hrs to travel 70 kms.

After setting up camp we headed down to the hot spring. WOW!! Even though it was overcast and had been raining most of the day the water was warm and relaxing despite the temperature being only 13 degrees celcius. It is said the water temperature of the Dalhousie Springs is always between 34 – 38 degrees celcius. Unbeknown to us Dalhousie Springs is home to 3 types of fish and one of them is a fish that gives you a massage by eating your dead skin. What a relaxing way to end our day on the road.

It started raining again while we were soaking but we didn’t care, anyway we were already wet.

Back at camp we had a shower then tea and enjoyed the evening. By about 7.00pm the campground was buzzing as other travellers made preparations for their journey across the Simpson Desert. During our overnight stay we encountred heaps of mozzies so don’t forget your mozzie coils.

Dalhousie Springs is a nice camp ground; toilets, cold showers, rain water tank and the warm spring. If you don’t have a parks pass entry fees are $10.00 per car and camping fees are $19.00 per car including up to 8 people. They have signs up advising to be Dingo safe however we never saw or heard any.

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