Pandemic travel might just be a bit like Alice –
Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?
That depends a good deal on where you want to get to, said the Cat.
I don’t much care where— said Alice.
Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,” said the Cat.
—so long as I get somewhere !
So here we are – which way or where to – not a rabbit hole but Alice Springs in the Northern Territory ! We were going to save travel in Australia until we were old – so here we are 😂 😂 And any road trip is a good road trip so here we come !
The Northern Territory is an area we haven’t seen much of – we visited Uluru on a “quick tour” a few years ago and loved it so we are back in “the Territory” for another visit. In two weeks we will take in a few of the icons and to start off we are in “the Alice” for a couple of nights.
Day 1
was a travelling day – and pandemic travel is full of the unexpected ! The airport was pretty quiet – certainly not the busy queues and lineups of the past. We almost had the security check to ourselves – even my usual holdup because of the number of “gadgets” I have in my carry-on didn’t hold anyone else up ! And the lounge was pretty sparsely populated with very limited “Covid-friendly” offerings for breakfast.
And first stop on our original “direct” flight to Alice Springs was, of course, Melbourne ! Luckily our flight reminder the night before reminded us we needed to get our “visa” to enter Victoria. The plane was probably only about 3/4 full – masks all the way and in the airport terminals but everyone was happy to follow the rules – hey, we were all travelling somewhere !
A quick stop in Melbourne and we were on our next flight to Alice Springs – direct this time. It was quite an amazing sight to see the “plane parking lot” that is now Alice Springs airport. When we landed and the plane taxied in, there were rows and rows of planes parked alongside the airport – numerous different airlines and what looked like the whole Cathay Pacific fleet ! Then it was our next “visa entry” experience. Adrienne spoke too soon when she said at least we wouldn’t have to face up to a Los Angeles style immigration queue – we just had one “NT Style” ! Here we queued until they checked off our NT entry permit and re-checked our details, matching details to our photo id.
But soon enough we were through and our NT adventure was about to begin ! As we are heading further afield into the “Outback”, wanting to steer clear of any unexpected rabbit holes, we have gone for a 4WD – a Holden Trailblazer – which looks like it has the goods.
So, we were off on our next tour – NT 2021 – and though it was mid afternoon by this stage our first stop was one of the icon’s of the Outback – the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The brainchild of Reverend John Flynn (“Flynn of the Outback”), it started service in 1928 and plays a significant ongoing role today – it provides emergency and primary health care services for those living in rural, remote and regional areas of Australia who cannot access a hospital or general practice due to the vast distances of the Outback. It is one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world.
Our stop here was not without an initial glitch – Adrienne clicked on the “how to find us” button on the RFDS website and Google guided us to the address. But the address was just a suburban house in a suburban street. A re-check of the address on the website showed the correct address as “Stuart” street and Google had taken us to “Sturt” street. When we eventually arrived at the right place we were just about to do a tour when the guide had to take a phone call. He came back quite puzzled that he had been getting so many calls that day about Google taking people to the wrong address ! Seems the problem had only just started !
It also became quickly evident to us that “tourism NT” was suffering pretty badly from lack of able bodies as the cafe was closed and anyone on duty was covering a few roles. But the film and virtual reality experience were great so we couldn’t complain. As it was getting late in the day, we then headed for our hotel – the Doubletree by Hilton.
After dropping everything in our “Mountainview” room – overlooking the east Macdonnell Range – we headed to the bar for a “welcome drink” or two ! Only the bar was shut but the restaurant staff were serving drinks at the restaurant instead. Only the restaurant area was obviously understaffed and it quickly became evident that service was a bit slow ! A few unhappy campers making it very clear the golf club next door was a better bet – but we just went with the flow and enjoyed a nice couple of glasses of “slow” bubbly !
Next issue was dinner. Luckily we thought “should we book?” so enquired with the bar/restaurant staff. “Fully booked – should have booked earlier” came the reply ! We had only just arrrived ! Anyway, we managed to secure an early sitting and enjoyed a lovely meal despite that staff being run off their feet ! We shared an “Outback Platter” – including wallaby & crocodile – and shared a mushroom risotto and prawn linguine – all very, very tasty !!
Day 2
We started with a drive out to Simpson’s Gap about 20 km west of town. Along the way we stopped at the commencement of the “Red Centre Way” the road we would eventually be taking further west. This is also the resting place of John Flynn, who, having died in Sydney, had asked to be buried in Alice Springs. Flynn “brought gladness and rejoicing to the wilderness and the solitary places” and his grave site overlooks the spectacular Macdonnell Ranges.
Simpsons Gap is a spectacular gap through the West Macdonnell Ranges with a river running through the gap. The river bed is dotted with mighty Red River Gums and the vibrant green of the trees, red of the rocks and blue of the sky provide a stunning scene !
We headed back toward Alice to visit what all the guide books indicate is a must see – the Alice Springs Desert Park. It is an area of about 1,300 hectares on the edge of the ranges which presents and interprets the Australian desert environment and its inhabitants while contributing to the conservation of Australia’s desert flora and fauna. It uses the stories and history of the local Arrernte people, together with the plants and animals they are responsible for, and is told through the interpretation and creation of three distinct desert habitats – Desert Rivers, Sand Country and Woodland. It was very interesting and we spent some time here.
From here we headed to the Old Telepraph station – where we also had a spot of lunch. It marks the original site of the first European settlement in Alice Springs – and which was originally called Stuart. It was stablished in 1871 to relay messages between Darwin and Adelaide along Australia’s Overland Telegraph Line. This not only connected Australia’s population centres with the north of the country, but it also connected Australia with the undersea telegraph network of the British Empire. We did a tour of the old buildings and read stories of the experiences – and plight – of those first intrepid settlers.
Next stop was another icon of the Outback – the Alice Springs School of the Air. Using the principles which had been used in the establishment of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, it used radio to provide distance education to remote settlements and cattle stations and officially opened in 1951. Another very interesting tour !!
Our final stop was to the lookout on the hill above the town of Alice Springs – fittingly for ANZAC Day 2021 – known as ANZAC Hill. The memorial was dotted with wreaths from the morning ceremonies and the site commands great views over and around Alice Springs. It is supposed to be a great spot for sunset so we might re-visit when we return to Alice next week after the next stage of our travels.
On the way back we stopped at the “Sip N’ Save” bottleshop to buy a few beverages for the next few days. We had to go through a ” local police inspection” to satisfy them as to the use of the alcohol we were purchasing and that was even before we got out of the car ! – unfortunately, alcohol is obviously still a major issue with the indigenous population. It was a somewhat intimidating experience really !
Having said that, dinner was at the Alice Springs Brewing Co – the only brewery in the Red Centre – and a very tasty “Supreme Being” pizza was washed down with a couple of tasty brews. Anything works in moderation !
Tomorrow we head west ………….
