Out and About- East of Alice.....

On re-reading this post- I think I should have called it my continuing love affair with the gum tree......anyway enjoy....


I was very lucky to spend some time yesterday with some friends I work with, out to the East of Alice, in the East McDonnells. Landscapewise it is very different to the West McDonnells- so was very enjoyable. We headed towards Trephina Gorge- which had a little water in it. After rain it can be quite spectacular, - so I have heard.....






Trephina Gorge-with a small amount of water.






and looking the other direction.. Clouds of green budgies made their presence heard very noisyly. They were enjoying the water's edge.






Very interesting holes in rocks made for interesting photos- this is John -one of my workmates trying not to fall through gap.

All along the gorge were the most unusual shaped gums....some of them struggling for survival in rock cracks

some showing signs of a long struggle with survival....

I have really renewed my great love for gum trees- they are such survivors- and have a beautiful variation in colours/barks/ forms.

more gums with the amazing reflection of the red earth giving it a "glow".

and another...........

out along the road was this superb specimen- 35m tall, and over 300 years old. I found it quite breath taking.

another view of the same tree..again with the reflected glow form the red earth below.

I hope you have enjoyed my trees- they are magical in their form and the contrast with the reds in this area.

Take care all of you....

SOUTH OF ALICE...for a night......

This weekend just gone was a long weekend in the Territory.With a lot of organisation we decided we would go camping for a night.We ended up with 10 of us- no mean feat when we had people on call over the 3 days!We went south to an area called Rainbow Valley Conservation reserve.





The arresting feature of this Reserve is the scenic sandstone cliffs and bluffs .The free-standing cliffs have rainbow-like bands that are particularly attractive in early mornings and late afternoons. In much earlier and wetter times the red colouring was caused by red iron being dissolved and drawn to the surface in the Dry Season.


There is a hard claypan in front of the cliffs and after rain there are interesting reflections in the water. The reserve is dominated by spinifex sandplains. The claypan takes on a pink hue- which was so unusual. When there has been rain, there are wonderful reflections in the claypan as it holds water.



Just after sundown the rocks "glow"-very beautiful.

This is a better part of the track in- very corrugated, with deep sand- definitely 4WD country.The pink claypan I found so unusual- there had been brief rain on Friday- I think that was adding to the colour by reflecting in the damp sands.

A little closer to the palette of colours.....

The late afternoon sun added shadows of the gums around the edge of the claypan.

....and more of the same.

Just after we unpacked we went on a wood hunt for the fire. We had to go out of the National park, and ended up really in the midst of nowhere......

I spied these tracks of a dingo.After I got back and did the usual post processing I realised that it looks like an adult dog with a pup.We never heard amy dingoes at night- but it showed they are alive and present.

I enjoyed the camping, the odd wine or 3, and the company. But it was so cold..we had frost on the swags in the morning, I ended sleeping in the back seat of a twin cab- not a lot of room, but it was warmer as I didn't have "proper gear" for winter.

The weather here is still very mild, I hope NZ is getting warmer...it will soon be spring.

Take care and look after each other....