MacDonnell Range

This is the original Alice Spring (that isn't really a spring) in the Todd River near the old Telegraph Station. The following are all rocky places in the MacDonnell Ranges east and west of Alice Springs. Imagine the forces involved in moving vast sheets and layers of rock from a horizontal position to near vertical and then the wearing down in the millions of years since. Fascinating. And every one of these places is still culturally significant to the local indigenous communities.

Reptiles

I'm always a bit wary as I walk around in the sandy or rocky environments in central Australia. And it doesn't make any difference if it's vegetated or not. Snakes could be anywhere and at any time of the day. This as an Desert Death Adder curled up in a clump of spinifex.

Ha, I'm glad it's behind glass. Actually we've seen very few reptiles - one dead snake on the road and a few lizards and dragons scurrying quickly away. So we went to the Alice Springs Reptile Centre to have a look at the reptiles that live around here and listen to a knowledgeable and personable guide. She showed us goannas, lizards and an Olive Python and allowed us to hold them as well. And we were able to see quite a few snakes, lizards and gheckos on display in nicely landscaped and heated enclosures. An excellent spot.

In the pink

The Olive Pink Botanic Garden in Alice Springs is a peaceful place, nicely designed. The plants are labelled and there are interpretive signs so the self-guided walks are interesting. And we climbed the little hill to get a good view over the town as well as the garden.

It's also a good spot for a spot of birdwatching. A Western Bowerbird scratched around in the mulch and the Grey-crowned Babblers appeared as well. There are several art installations in the garden and one of them is activated by pushing a button to start water flowing through the pipes and nozzles. So we pushed the button, the fountain started ... and the babblers arrived immediately to have a shower. They know a good thing when they hear it!

Steve Anderson's sculpture is called 'Rex Reticulous' and made out of recycled irrigation pipes and drippers, wire and hose fittings. In 2008 it won the Peoples' Choice Award at a kinetic sculpture exhibition in the gardens.

Surveyors

Today in Alice Springs we visited a site that's not in the tourist brochures. It's surrounded by a high barbed wire fence and there aren't any explanatory signs. It's an old calibration range for survey chains.

The following is a quote from a geocache page:

The theodolite gave you accurate direction and vertical angle. The chain gave distance. The chain is like a 100m long thin steel band (older ones where chains), and was dragged along the ground as distance was measured. For accurate measurement the temperature and pressure (how tight the chain was held at one end), were calculated into the chains reading. Each chain had to be standardized at a set temperature and pressure. The range behind this cache was one such range, last used in the early nineteen eighties. The base consisted of concrete pillars with a wooden rail in between. Metal plugs were inserted into the tops of the pillars at intervals of 00, 50, 66 and 100 feet distances. When a standard chain was laid on the ground, the thermometer registered the heat of the ground and not necessarily the heat of the chain. By building piers, the chain when tested would be suspended in the atmosphere. Then by suspending the thermometer from a tripod placed close to the chain, a reading would be obtained which would accurately show the temperature of the chain - the thermometer and chain being suspended in the atmosphere under identical conditions. On flat surfaces the chain would be held suspended, a fish type scale at one end indicating pressure the chain was held at. When chaining downhill on the incline, the lower chainman would often hold the chain up over his head to get it level and then use a drop plumbob (no string) and let it spear into the ground at his feet. Wouldn’t the chainmen have loved a GPS!

As we travel long distances over good roads I marvel at the work done by the early surveyors in really tough conditions.

Minutiae

The more I learn the less I know. There are huge gaps in my knowledge of the natural world. And I'm forgetful as well so I've forgotten some of the things I know I used to know. Perhaps it would be better if I specialised, built up a supreme body of knowledge around one area, such as birds. But that would mean ignoring everything else and the world of nature is so interesting so that's not going to happen.

One day on our recent trip to Alice Springs Rosalind and I decided to have a rest (nap) after lunch to recharge the batteries. Helen, who is 'more senior' than both of us, announced that she wasn't going to be in that because she had fewer years in which to explore. What a great role model. (I still had a nap though.)

Here are some things I don't know anything about. We found minute lichens and liverworts (I think) growing in damp depressions in desert woodlands around Alice. Don't they look interesting?

Succulents

I'm back in cold Geelong after a week of beautiful week in central Australia but with lots of memories and images to sustain me. We live in an amazing country and exploring a small part of it with friends of similar mind was great fun.

We expected to see kangaroos but didn't see any, we expected to see emus but didn't see any. We expected to see lizards but only saw three. We saw very few insects despite the fact that there were so many plants flowering and seeding, we saw very few tracks in the sand and there were birds around but I thought I would see more honeyeaters. It's hard for a fleeting visitor to get a feel for what is 'normal' after a long drought but we got the impression that biodiversity isn't exactly normal in central Australia.

There has been a fantastic new book published focusing on Australian succulents, Australian Succulent Plants: An Introduction by Attila Kapitany, and a webpage that I must explore at  http://www.australiansucculents.com/ but in the meantime here are a few of the succulents we saw around Alice.

A floral harvest

More pretty pictures from around Alice. The variety of plants has been wonderful to see and these are just a few of the many. But you won't see the splendour until you actually walk around and look because many are small or insignificant - just driving along the road at 110 kph you'd think there was nothing to see. I'll add names after I get home -  I'm sure Rosalind, Helen and I will be emailing each other madly after we've had a chance to edit our photos and consult the references.

Geology

Minutes and hours are insignificant in the landscape around Alice. Here you have to think in years, millions of years. The rocks speak of eons. The geology is breathtaking in its beauty and so are the many plants we have found flowering.

Prickly customers

Yesterday we drove north of Alice Springs as far as the Plenty Highway (flat) and today we went west to Ellery Creek (hilly). We stop numerous times to check out the vegetation and always find interesting plants, and as all three of us take photos non-stop we're having a grand old time.

It's been interesting to see that many of the plants here have developed a defence mechanism - namely sharp prickles. I've been pricked many times this week as I walk through the scrub or lean on an elbow, sit down, lie down or lean over to get a photo. The spinifex is the worst but at least the plants are spaced apart so you can usually weave a path between them but the others are innocent-looking little things that like to surprise. (I don't know what these are as yet - haven't had time to hit the books.)

The Centre

Alice Springs has changed quite a bit since I was last here over 30 years ago but really the town is a town like many others. But we didn't come to see the town. We came to search the surrounding countryside for plants because they've had rain here, they're close to breaking the annual record.

This is the view behind our caravan park and we have spent a bit of time exploring the vegetation there.

But today we went out to Desert Park, were there all day and came away having only seen a fraction. It's a very impressive area with paths leading through recreations of several types of inland landscapes. As you can see in this photo the park buildings have been designed to nestle into the landscape.

We found lots of plants flowering. Just a taste: Amyema maidenii, Indigofera leucotricha, Ptilotus helipteroides and Solanum quadriloculatum.

And for something different: We also went to the excellent  display of birds of prey at Desert Park. A cute Southern Boobook was a highlight.

We're here for four more days and our plan is to go north, west, east and west again. I can't wait.