Sweet As, Out In The Wop Wops

Wilipena Pound

Hello, hello. Here we are in Wilpena Pound South Australia, a small camp in the Flinders Range National Park. A site of great significance to both black fella, and white fellas alike. It's pretty stunning no matter how ya look at it. Imagine leaving the coastal regions of California and then more or less driving into wine country, before things start drying out reverting back in time with each dot on the road map. Things get rustic quick, and then once you think you're getting close to the outback these ranges appear like knarled lips on a dog, folding out of flat barren country into parallel ridges - maybe more like overwarn sawthoots then a knarled lips - anyway they run more or less side by side and then open up in a great uplifted basin like a spoon lying flat on the earth.

Natives described it as cupped hands, and within them a great oasis has grown and been cultivated by settlers for about a hundred and twenty some odd years. No one works the land now but begining at the turn of then nineteenth century families were doing their best to raise sheep and cattle in valey , a natural 'pound'which watered and fed the stock while holding them in one place.

I had a stroke of good weather after early morning rains which developed out of no where. When I left the tent to tend to some thirsty bushes at about 545 there wasn't a cloud to obscure the full moon, but by seven it was spitting. Midmorning I decided i wasn't here to sit in the tent so I braved the wet trails and was rewarded with several hours of sunshine in the valley floor. I picknicked with Kangaroos - well insight of, at least they looked like the roos I had scared off with the camera they could have been treestumps, or boulders they look the same at first, then one bounces. And maybe it's Warner Brothers that's ruined me, but it seems so strange not to hear some sort of spring noise. In fact they're quite silent creatures. They can hop through your camp and you'll miss them.

Well it was a really good day. My legs are quite rubbery.

Tomorrow I'll head up the road to Leigh Creek a major coal mining operation and then settle in at the pub in Maree before heading out on the Oodnadatta track for a couple of days of Outback isolation. http://www.exploroz.com/TrekNotes/Deserts/Oodnadatta_Track.asp

I'll most likely camp before reaching William Creek and Lake Eyre, then west to Coober Pedy.

Adios

posted by Dusty Calfee @ 3:37 AM