We're into the Never Never...

   The travelling Woodleys had left the sunshine state and embarked upon the great Never Never... until one hour into the Northern Territory our trusty hard-working caravan had had enough of outback roads and cattle grids that spring up at you with minimal warning and decided to stage a breakdown! The first we were aware of this was when we heard two significant 'snaps' in succession while travelling at speed on the open road. Nick duly stopped to get out and investigate but nothing appeared amiss despite his best efforts to locate the problem. Who thinks to look under the caravan specifically where the A-frame joins? - not us at any rate, although from now on it will be different! We therefore headed on west towards the Stuart highway which intersects our country from Port Augusta to Darwin.
   
   Arriving at Barkley Homestead for our lunch stop, I was unable to open the caravan door and couldn't understand why - eventually, Nick was able to force it open and we saw that the box seat just inside had collapsed... So Nick thought that a look underneath was in order; and that's when he saw that the chassis had come off the A-frame of the caravan! - that's what the two 'snaps' were all about...
  
   At first we were thankful that we had only discovered this at a road house; because if we had been on the side of the road and had to wait for the RAA to come three hours from Tennant Creek it would not have been pleasant - as it was our membership managed us free towing and a nights accommodation at Barkley Homestead motel (only our second time) before following the poor old Viscount to Tennant Creek the next morning. We feared that this was going to be the end of the Sabbath year and indicated as much to the kids (who were as upset about that as they had been when missing cousins earlier in the year!). 


   The (super-busy) young manager at Barkley Creek gave up a chunk of time to temporarily weld the A-frame back to the chassis so that the van could make its way to Tennant Creek behind the RAA's ute; with the travelling Woodleys following as soon as we could the next day. All the time thinking of trains back to Adelaide, caravans on the back of trucks, and other options - we ended up at Davo's 'he's the best bloke in 300 miles' where we found the caravan fixed up, better than new, and able to 'go for another forty years, mate' (and all for a tenth of the price we were expecting)!!


   Ironically the travelling Woodleys were the closest we'd been to Adelaide for many months - a mere two thousand and sixty-five kilometres away!

...on the road again...

...and entering the Territory...

...then while the accommodating manager performed a minor(!) welding job...

...we had the compensation of staying at Barkley Homestead...

...before heading off again to Tennant Creek...

(next time? jealous, Dad!?)


...where we visited the indigenous cultural centre, and the gold mine museum...

...enjoyed the sunsets and met some fellow encouraging God-followers...

...and got a (brief) appreciation for the heat and conditions which early pioneers had to face at places like the Old Telegraph Station...

...and now crossing Cairns' latitude as we headed to Mataranka (near to which Jeannie Gunn of Elsy Station 
wrote We of the Never Never)... 
...on our way seeing some original corrugated iron structures...

...and the monument at the Drover's Memorial Park in ghost town Newcastle Waters...

...as well as visiting (the famous Pink Panther) Larrimah Pub which is home to a collection of Australian animals and birds including Sneeky Sam the saltie...

...and then encountering some residual waters from the many months ago wet season as we found our campsite at 

Elsy National Park...

(and just getting in the 'Little House on the Prairie' mood)

...a visit to Mataranka Hot Springs  and the old Elsy Homestead was a nice relief from the steamy weather - although too hot for Nick at thirty-four degrees in the water!...

...and back to enjoy the relatively (at fifteen degrees) cool nights and endure the hot days with paddles in the creek that ran off the Roper River (apparently inhabited not by salties [salt water crocs] but by 'only' freshies [fresh water crocs] - 'they won't hurt you'!)...

...farewelling the wild donkeys and night campfires the travelling Woodleys headed next for Darwin...




Meanwhile, check out our nearly completed itinerary at the top under 'The order of things' to find out where the travelling Woodleys are located in real time!...