Quiet morning with bacon & eggs for brekky, and wandering around the largest caravan park we've seen to date. Mum, Renee & Eamon had a basketball shooting competition (Eamon won!). After lunch we took a drive around the town centre and picked up a few bits and bobs. Got back and the kids enjoyed some time at the jumping pillow and playground with a couple of friends they met yesterday - who also showed them another playground with a great flying fox. ...

Took a while to pack up today, but we were on the road by 10.15am east along the Namatjira Drive towards Alice Springs. We stopped at Standley Chasm around midday, which is the best time to view the site as the sun streams through the gap in the 80 metre high walls an hour each side of noon. The chasm is a pleasant 20 min walk from the carpark, and it is quite stunning. We enjoyed coffees and hot chocolates at the kiosk with a log fire, so it was nice and rel...

Big day out today. We left at 10am and headed west along Namatjira Drive towards Palm Valley Track in the Finke Gorge National Park. The road was sealed for about 50km, but then unsealed for 20kms or so then sealed for a bit more, then unsealed for 43 kms - that was a little bumpy but nothing compared to the next section. The road into Palm Valley is 'severe 4WD driving' as per the sign, and indeed it was. It took us 90 mins to travel 22kms; the last 4km took...

Busy day today with our aim to visit some of the gorges of the West MacDonnell Ranges. First stop was the Ormiston Gorge where we chose to do the 2.5 km Ghost Gum walk: it took us up high in the gorge at a lovely lookout directly above the main waterhole. We then descended down into the base of the gorge where the waterholes were. The water was freezing, but nice and refreshing on the face. Coffees and drinks at the kiosk were a nice ending to that exper...

Quick 120kms out to the Glen Helen Resort today which is at the far end of the McDonnell Ranges. A number of places don't really look like the brochures, and I've come to realise that the term 'resort' simply means there's a variety of accommodation available such as camp sites, caravan sites, bunkhouses, and motel rooms, and there maybe a pool - it certainly doesn't equate to 5-start luxury however! This place has a nice bar and restaurant but the sites are qu...