We all focused on getting our vehicles packed up the afternoon before for the Simpson Desert loop.
Early the next morning we packed up the vans and our tvan and hItched up moving them all to the back of the managers residence where they are allowing us to leave them whilst we head off on our adventure to cross the Simpson Desert.
We set off on our planned adventure with the route for the day taking the whole group through Buneyroo and Brachina Gorge.
We were again treated to the magnificent scenery of these gorges and also lucky enough to be able to show the others in our group the spot where we found the Yellow Footed Wallabies - they were there again today for everyone to see.
The kids loved this treat for today!!
We came out of the gorges and hit the highway and stopped for a quick morning tea at the Prairie Hotel at Parachilna. A lovely old bush pub with lots of local handicraft and artworks for sale.
We all had our air compressors out and pumped our tyres back upto highway pressure and headed off up the tar for a big day of driving and sightseeing on the way to our overnight stop at the back of the Marree Hotel (at the tiny township of Marree at the start of the Oodnadatta track)
We got to the mining town of Leigh Creek (which services the massive Leigh Creek Coalfields) for lunch - and also for the important last quick run around the supermarket to stock up on food, and water supplies for the next 4-6 days.
This is our last real chance for those of us purchasing water for the journey ahead of us. In our car we now have 60 litres of drinking water - all sitting in 10 litre boxes on the floor behind the front seats of the ute.
Over the next couple of days we will head on further up the Oodnadatta Track on our way to Mt Dare Hotel on the edge of the Simpson desert.
This track for the most part follows the old Ghan railway and their are many remnants and ruins of times past along the way - as many if these, then thriving townships, did not survive after the Ghan track was relocated and no longer passing through them.
Some like Marree and Lyndhurst and Oodnadatta have barely survived - and these surviving towns are really no more than pub and maybe a general store servicing the tourists and local pastoralists.
Except where they have a resident indigenous population and then there will possibly be a community medical service as well.
Passing through Lyndhurst - we dropped in to see the eccentric old fella known as 'Talc Alf' but he was not about at the time. We still had a quick look around his outdoor gallery of sculptures fashioned from Talc.
For other townships - like Farina - all that remains are the ruins of what was once a thriving town.
Here are just a few photos of the Farina ruins. It amazes me how these old stone buildings really stand the test of time. The interpretive walk around this old township tells the story of life here in days gone by.
A group wanting to preserve this history comes here for a couple of months each year (June / July) and have restored the unique underground bakery building to a working operation again. They bake and sell bread to tourists for this 2 mths of the year and this helps with funding of the upkeep of the.
Tonight we camp out back of the Marree Hotel - which is pretty much all there is left in Marree.
It was a lovely sight at sunset!
It is a free camp here - with just $2.00 per person for a good hot shower.
This was the first of many nights of erecting our little tent city (and taking it all down again each morning). We were all did well having the tents up in in reasonably quick time.
A lot of the group patronised the pub after dinner - kids included.
It is a Nice old pub with lots of memorabilia to the outback postman Tom Kruse.
This is tom's old truck - that he used to do the mail run from the railhead at Marree through the desert to Birdsville - delivery mail (and lots of other gear) to many properties along the way.
The first thing we noticed as we begin this journey is the hotter days and the FLIES, FLIES and more FLIES!!!
It is now that the fly nets become our constant friends in coping with the number of flies we are encountering each time we leave the protection of our vehicles.
It is not easy eating with a fly net on - but way better than trying to do anything without them.
They are a stunning part of our daily apparel - not exactly particularly attractive nor fashionable though!!
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