Today we head to the West McDonnell ranges. It's quite a drive and we hope to leave early but as usual are running a bit late. We drive for over an hour into the ranges which are some pretty impressive Rocky Mountain that extend either side of Alice Springs. We see only a couple of cars during the drive and some birds. The birds fly in flocks and dart across the road in front of us. It's pretty cool, especially the brightly coloured parrots!

We reach Ormiston Gorge around 10:15 and immediately head off on the Ghost Gum walk. We scramble up some rocks (Emily is sleeping in the Tula on Marks back) for a pretty impressive view of the gorge which is mostly dried up apart from a few stagnant pools of water (don't think we'll be swimming in these!) Mark is keen to continue on the loop walk so we do this instead of returning the way we came. Eventually the track reaches the dry riverbed but we cannot see any track markers. We know the direction of the walk but the rocks we have to scramble over are huge and it's not exactly fun. Fortunately it is only a short way before the river bed becomes a bit more gravelly and easier to walk on. We are impressed by how well William copes with the walk.

We head to Standley Chasm which is best viewed at midday. Due to our extended walk at Ormiston Gorge we don't get there until around 1. We pay the entrance fee and walk 1 km to the chasm. The chasm is nice but we do not think it is worth the $25 fee and are pretty underwhelmed. There are so many other beautiful things to see in the McDonnell ranges that don't cost.

We attempt to eat our packed lunch after the walk but are chased away by the flies and so head back to Alice Springs. We stop by Milner Meats to pick up some of their famous Camel & Date sausages. Can't wait to try these!

We notice a few puffs of white in the sky as we are driving back and by the time we reach Alice there are huge clouds. When the sun is blocked it's a bit cool. We are not used to this!

The next morning when we wake the sky is full of clouds and it is cool! After a spot of shopping we pack a picnic and head to the telegraph station. As we are driving in to the station a kangaroo hops over the road in front of us. We are stoked. Even though we have seen hundreds of wallabies this is our first wild kangaroo! The telegraph station is beautiful with huge shady trees. We bump into our neighbours from the campground so sit with them while we eat lunch.

We have heard good things about the Telegraph Station and so pay the entrance fee (we are a little bit jaded by our windy experience at the Tennant Creek telegraph station). It gave a good feel for what life must have been like for these pioneers. It contains the first building in the Northern Territory and is the birthplace of Alice Springs.

We had intended to leave Alice on Tuesday and have extended our stay by one night 3 times! Williams wee friend Gus turns 6 today and we extend for another day so William can go to his party.

We head over to Gus's campsite at 10 am to sing happy birthday and eat ice cream cake. This is the last we see of William for most of the day. He spends the morning playing with Gus and his new lego, they go off to McDonalds for lunch and then to the movies.

With William busy we have some free time and are like kids in a candy store! Mark and I split up and I throw Emily in the Tula and head off to the shops. Mark spends his free time at the Alice casino. He doesn't make his fortune but does manage to make a few bucks (not quite enough to cover my spending!)

That night we head to the Gillen Club to celebrate one of our newly made friends 50th birthday. William has a ball playing with some friends and again we don't see him (he does manage to slow down and consume ice cream whilst running past the table!) Emily sleeps through the entire evening!