MGA Australian Adventure (Part 2)

Part 2

En route to Alice Springs we passed the geographical centre of Australia, and later, the tropic of Capricorn, two great milestones. Alice Springs is a major centre of Australian culture. We went to a didgeridoo show, a cultural dance and story telling experience, a painting workshop and to many water holes and gorges in the West McDonnell ranges and the Hermannsburg Lutheran mission.

The Flying Doctor, Overland Telegraph and School of the Air outlets were also well worth a visit. It opened our minds to the problems faced by the station hands and other workers in the bush.

Uluru – We’ve arrived by land

Recording our third goal on the trailer’s map

Woomera Surprises

Our next two weeks were amazing. We travelled through the ‘Red Centre’ to Ayres Rock (Uluru), The Olgas, Kings Canyon and on through South Australia, across the Nullarbor Plains to beautiful Esperance in Southern Western Australia.

On leaving Alice Springs we headed for Kings Creek station, 430km, where we stayed for two days in an old canvas tent. It had power but was still quite a shock compared to our comforts up to now. The camp kitchen was very rural, but a real experience.

This is doing it tough in Australia. We did the Rim Walk around Kings Canyon and it was as spectacular as we had been told. It rivals Ayres Rock for shock and geology.

Then on to Curtain Springs, as a base to see Ayres Rock, itself. After doing the obligatory lap we watched a heap of people climbing The Rock against the traditional owners’ will, then on to the viewing area. We were the first there, 2 1/2 hours early, in a cloudless sky; we weren’t going to miss this sunset.

The Rock was also the site of our third milestone so we updated our map on the side of the ‘Coffin’ trailer. The Rock went from brown to a reddy brown, to red, to half red/brown (as the shadow moved up the Rock), and then brown again, all in a few minutes. Plenty of time to take 60 pictures then delete 57 of them, the convenience of digital cameras.

Having driven back the 100km to Curtain Springs in the dark, we decided we had seen enough of this area of wasteland so did not return to see the sunrise at Ayres Rock.

Instead, we headed off for Coober Pedy, the opal mining area, 700km away. Nothing can prepare you for Coober Pedy. Moon landscape, zero grass, desolate, millions of pilot holes of optimistic miners, houses in hillsides. Sleeping underground to escape the heat was a novelty. Definitely fascinating though, and the geology is awesome.

Nullarbor Roadhouse

A picture tells a story

Beautiful Esperance

Crossing more desolate vegetation, we arrived at Woomera, best known recently for detaining the Boat People. In reality, Woomera is a complete town, a massive Government facility, open to the public, with an excellent museum depicting the setting up of this rocket testing facility in conjunction with the British, and later, the Americans, after the Second World War. Mind blowing what was happening on our doorstep during the Cold War.

Following Woomera we took a trip along memory lane for Laurel, her ancestor territory, Quorn and Wilmington, where the Germans settled in the late 1880s. We visited her great grandparents’ gravesite, Bennet and Matilda Liebich, and the town where her father was born. After five years of severe drought, half the family walked to Junee, near Wagga Wagga, 1000km away, while the other half headed for Western Australia. That would have been a trip and a half 100 years ago.

Then we passed through Port Augusta, the Home of Oysters, and on to Tumby Bay, a beautiful village. Here we were ‘wusses’, putting up the hood for the first time since leaving home thirty day before, to make our crossing of the Nullarbor as comfortable as possible. The vegetation was green due to recent rains, so nothing like as arid as Central Australia and Northern South Australia. Kangaroo carcases were rare, although we saw a dead camel. The road was excellent but we had a challenging head wind all the way. Despite this we did the 1400km crossing in two days without ‘RIP’ missing a beat, achieving 28mpg (10.2l/100km). We had The Nullarbor BEAT.

Reaching Western Australia was eventful. We had our fruit and vegetables confiscated at the SA/WA border. A road train also passed us going so fast that the perspex was sucked out of my window. What a loud noise it made, too.

Then a cop pulled us over and ‘gave us a warning’ for not knowing that irrespective of the speed limit being 110kph, vehicles towing a trailer could only drive at 100kph. ‘Nice car, what is it? An MG?’ We have friends, everywhere.

From Norseman, the first town across the Nullarbor in Western Australia, we headed south to Esperance. What a beautiful town, neat, clean, pristine and prosperous, with beautiful white sand, blue ocean and islands all around to the horizon. Cold, but God’s country. A good place to rest up for a few days…

Albany towards South Pole

Perth from Kings Park

Dave and RIP at Barbagallo

Laurel ready to go racing

Leaving Esperance, we had the hood up and down many times due to insistent rain, sleeping over in Albany, Augusta, Busselton and eventually Perth. We became experts in hood fitting, able to complete the task in 60 seconds.

Western Australia is well known for their wines and after visiting two or three wineries the trailer was full. Esperance has a fish leather factory, the only one in Australia and one of only six in the world, and the leather and trinkets are as soft as suede, and beautiful. Who would have thought to process fish skin and make leather garments.

Albany is the oldest town in WA (1827) settled two years before Perth, as it was the first port of call in Australia for the ships from the UK after rounding the Cape of Good Hope. The French arrived a few days later, just imagine if they had beaten the POMS to this fantastic wine growing region.

At Augusta, ‘RIP’ had clocked up 6000 miles (10,000km) so she was treated to an oil change and grease and given a vacuum and bath. We stayed in Perth for some time, finding our way about with the help of Gypsy Jane, our faithful GPS.

We attended the monthly meeting of the West Australian MG Car Club and we were invited to say a few words to the assembled company before supper-time. A few words turned into many words, what did President Jim expect. But everyone seemed to have a good laugh.

We also went to Fremantle where we visited the Fremantle Motor Museum, belonging to Peter Briggs of Caversham GP fame. Peter’s passion for cars was ignited when he bought what he describes as his first ‘real’ car, a 1954 MG TF. He also loved his MGA 1600 Twin cam but his MGB was his racing weapon in which he came third behind a Ferrari and a Shelby Cobra in the 1965 six hour race at Caversham. Peter also founded the WA MG Car Club, a truly great character.

In York, we spotted an MGB outside a church. On closer inspection, we met the driver, Jenny, the pastor’s wife. The car was bought new in 1971 by the owner, who is now 80-something and without children. Jenny has her own key for the car, with JENNY inscribed on the back by the owner, so guess who loves the MGB and treats it as her own. Lovely story…

Before leaving WA, we decided to enter a regularity race meeting at the local Barbagallo circuit at Wanneroo. Laurel plucked up the courage to also drive so the Friday saw us practicing around the fast 2.4km circuit in reasonable weather. Come race day and the weather was foul so the short circuit was selected. We met a bunch of lovely people, all driving MGs, Triumphs, Healeys and open wheelers. I went out and drove like a demon possessed and had a complete ball. Laurel went out and drove sensibly and finished third. What a star.

To be continued…