Katherine to Tennant Creek

After leaving Katherine we headed towards the township of Mataranka.  It made an interesting journey on the way because the World Solar Challenge Race from Darwin to Adelaide was also heading down this strip of the Stuart Highway.  Each car was accompanied by at least two other vehicles; one car warning that there was a solar car ahead and another support vehicle with parts and equipment (most also had a trailer).  We were fortunate to see several of the competitors, many from overseas.  One of the entries that caught our eye was the solar vehicle sponsored by TAFE S.A.  We were also surprised to note that some of these vehicles could reach speeds upwards of 80km per hour along some of the more flatter parts of the highway.  

80 kmh car

The township of Mataranka is quite small and is known as the Centre of the Never Never, because it was in this area that Jeannie Gunn lived when she recounted her experiences of Elsey Homestead in the book, “We of the Never Never.”  This novel was also made into a movie  for which they built a replica of the original homestead which has been moved near Mataranka Thermal Springs. 

Elsey Homestead Replica

Shady Veranda & Flow Through Ventilation

After we set up camp in Mataranka we decided to watch the barra feeding at the Territory Manor Homestead.  It was quite interesting learning about the habits of these fish as well as watching them being hand fed by the manager.  We noticed that he had bandaids on his fingers and he later explained that although barramundi don't have teeth like most predatory fish, they do have mouths like sandpaper, which eventually wear through his fingernails.  They are so quick at grabbing their food it's scary.

Lightning Fast!

How Big isThis!

 

From there we headed to Bitter Springs, Rainbow Springs and the Mataranka Thermal Pools where we once again enjoyed swimming in clear, pristine waters.  Bitter Springs has been left quite natural, this also meant that there was quite a lot of algae in the water.   It was easier to float down the stream and then walk back to the entrance, rather than swimming back against the water flow.

Bitter Springs

Algae at Bitter Springs

Mataranka, on the other hand is much more developed.  I was not expecting concrete edges and steps but it definitely made the pool cleaner.  The water from both Bitter Springs and Rainbow Springs flows from an aquifer that reaches all the way to Lawn Hill on the Barkly Tablelands.  This water stays at a constant 34 degrees and flows at an amazing 30.5 million litres a day.  From here it flows to the Roper River and eventually out into the Gulf.

We Enjoyed Mataranka Thermal Pool

Rainbow Springs

Roper River

These pools are all part of the Elsey National Park.  We returned there in the afternoon to throw a line into the Roper River hoping to catch one of the elusive barramundi – no luck today but not for the want of trying.

Pink Panther Pub Larrimah

Genuine Yowie Thong

Troops travelled on 'The Ghan' in cattle wagons

From Mataranka we continued down the Stuart Highway passing through the town of Larrimah.  I had to share this quote from Gregory’s Caravan and Camping Book about Larrimah.  “Some towns are destined to die but they don’t know it.”  It’s quite true because it was believed that the town would fade altogether once the railway closed, however someone forgot to tell the tourists.  Tourist buses were pulled up there when we stopped.  We found the Museum very interesting.  It related stories about the town itself, its history as an army and air force base as well as the town’s role in both railway transport and communications through the top end.  One of the supposed highlights was the Pink Panther Hotel.  For one of the ‘top ten bush pubs in Australia’, the Pink Pub was very run down.  However some of the artifacts were amusing.

Daly Waters Pub

Beer Garden

Shop at Daly Waters (For Sale)

From one pub we travelled to another, heading to the oldest pub in the Northern Territory – The Daly Waters Pub.  The decor at this pub is an eclectic mix to say the least.  There are rugby jerseys, undies, singlets, thongs, postcards and number plates, currency from all around the world, etc all hanging from the walls and ceilings.  The theory is, if it don’t move, it’s decoration!  What the hell! - It works!  I had to wonder though, what explanation the tourists who left their passports behind gave to Customs as they departed Australia...or perhaps they’re still here.  The pub even has an overflow area for caravans and campers.  Good food (Beef & Barra), good music, great atmosphere – just the way to get tourists to stop and visit the town.

Hangar Daly Waters

The town of Daly Waters is also famous because the airfield here was the first international airport in Australia when it hosted the original Australia to England air race.  The buildings are heritage listed and are part of the National Estate.  However everything we saw was in an sad state of disrepair, with termites eating away a lot of the interior woodwork and very tired displays about the history of this airfield.  According to the signage, the airfield at its busiest had an average of 6 planes landing every 15 minutes as refugees were brought in from the north.  We gave our cruiser a run down the tarmac but it didn’t quite lift off!  Surely if the people of Larrimah can look after their museum our National Trust should also be looking after this historic airfield. 

Tom Cruiser on Tarmac...Couldn't Quite Get to Take Off Speed!

Stuart Tree

 The Stuart Highway is named after John McDouall Stuart who crossed the nation from south to north after three attempts, two of which ended in tradegy.  His previous two attempts had been thwarted in the main because he failed to locate enough water to continue onward.  It was at Daly Waters in 1862, that he located water on his third attempt and it was believed that he (or one of his party) carved the letter ‘S’ on a tree  to commemorate this finding.  The tree has been preserved, however I could not make out the actual carving.
 

Newcastle Waters

We had a delightful stop off at Newcastle Waters as we headed further south. Named by Stuart as he passed this way, today it is part of a huge cattle station.  (We passed lots of cattle that had been loaded into road trains and looked as though they were heading off on an overseas holiday!) This used to be a bustling township because it was in the middle of the droving route from Darwin to Alice Springs, and the starting point for droving to Longreach in Queensland.  Today abandoned remnants of this 'ghost' township are open for inspection and stand as a museum and memorial to the life of the outback drovers.

Drovers Memorial

Lifelike Statue

 There is also a magnificent statue of a drover that was created as part of the bicentennial celebrations.  The pub was built from remnants of local windmills and other scrap metal by creditors of the publican in return for him excusing them from their debts.  Must admit the design was ideal for the weather...very airy!  The shop also utilised local materials.  Some of its interior walls were made using beer bottles and mud and daub construction, while the vertical window slats were built from split bamboo.  Once again it had great ventilation.  There is a modern school next to this township and it uses the original Aboriginal Inland Mission Church for school concerts.

Pub Newcastle Waters

Mark Can Find A Beer Anywhere!

 

 

Jones Store (1934)

Interior Wall Jones Store

Kitchen in Jones Store

Aboriginal Inland Mission Church

Info on Sir Charles Todd Cairn

 As you move along the highway there are memorials to explorers and also quite a few of the original overland telegraph stations.  I was interested to read the information on the cairn honouring the workers who ten years after Stuart had led the way, finished this vital communications link.  You can only imagine the hardships that they experienced as they made tracks, hauled and installed equipment nearly 140 years ago.

We'll Definitely Move On!

We had planned to stay at Banka Banka, a station that had been recently been purchased by an aboriginal corporation; however after driving about 20km through thick smoke with scattered fires, some very close to the highway, we decided to play it safe and travel further southwards. We read later in the local paper that the highway south of Tennant Creek was closed. The headline "Barkly Burning" said it all.

Freestay Stuart Memorial

We camped for the night at a freestay near another Stuart Memorial, marking where his 2^nd exploration attempt ended because of illness and hostile aborigines.  This was a good free site and had a toilet and running water.  There were water tanks, excellent shade and rubbish bins.  Doesn’t take much to please us these days.  What we've found really surprising is that there are very few insects.  Since we left Darwin we have not had to worry about mosquitoes or flies at all.  Anyway its probably for the best, as its terribly hard to look attractive wearing one of those "Fly Nets".  We'll store them for another day!

John Flynn Memorial

Continuing our trek down the Stuart Highway we stopped at the John Flynn Memorial at the Threeways (Darwin, Alice Springs, Mt Isa).  The foresight of this man led to much improved health services for remote regions and we were comforted as we travelled, knowing that the RFDS is in operation today.

Our next stop was at Kunjara (The Pebbles) which is 11km north of Tennant Creek.

Rock with Artwork

Artwork on Rock

This is an aboriginal women's dreaming site and the locals prevented mining in this area in 1989.  They even ensured that a pebble that had been removed to Tennant Creek was returned to this area, believing the removal led to the death of an elder.  Because there was good shade and a fireplace we decided to stay the night at The Pebbles and move on to Tennant Creek the following day. We enjoyed the wildlife at this stop, especially the Rainbow Bee Eaters that were busy all day chasing their food and singing.

Rainbow Bee Eaters

Well Camouflaged Lizard

Larry Lizard

Tennant Creek Telegraph Station

From The Pebbles we headed to Tennant Creek, the largest town in the Barkly Region, stopping along the way at the Tennant Creek Telegraph Station.  As we wandered around the buildings I could imagine how isolated the workers here must have felt, back in the 1870’s.  Supplies arrived only once every 6 months via camel train from Port Augusta.  Meanwhile the team was responsible for manning the telegraph equipment 24 hours a day and checking and maintaining the line both north and south of the station.  A blacksmith was needed to repair and make any tools or equipment necessary.  One of the buildings was a cellar to keep food as fresh as possible in the days before refrigeration, however each telegraph station also had its own garden and stock to help provide fresh food.  

Meidinger Batteries

We were interested in the batteries.  They used Meidinger cells, each of which produced just over 1 volt, so a bank of volts was necessary to produce the operating voltage of 120V.  Initially all messages had to be manually retransmitted by the operators (reminding me of the school game ‘Chinese Whispers’)  but later automatic repeaters were installed.  

The buildings themselves were pretty amazing, with just a bit of refurbishment, they would still be quite comfortable today.  The large verandas certainly helped to cool down the buildings as did the thick walls and high ceilings.  They used ventilation holes along the walls and louvres which allowed air to flow into the buildings.  A very sensible building method for this climate.

Veranda on Station Building

Near the Telegraph Station was an engineering marker near the old Stuart Highway.  Thought you might be interested in this Jeff...did you draw up the original plans?

Old Stuart Highway

Lake Mary Ann

We also visited Mary Ann Lake created by a dam over Mary Ann Creek.  Both of these were named after a gold mine in the area.  Tennant Creek still has mining leases as well as a quarry for marble.  A visit to the Local Cultural Centre  was made much more interesting because Jerry Kelly informed us about the culture of the local area and his experiences as Banka Banka Station.  He now runs a horse riding school where he trains aboriginal stockmen and also does bush tucker tours – a wonderful example of a hardworking aboriginal.  

We also went to the local Catholic Church 'Christ the King' which was built in  1904 in Pine Creek.  It was dismantled and moved to Tennant Creek in 1936 when it became known as 'The Longest Church in Australia' as parts were dumped as trucks got bogged during the wet.  It is still in use today.

Church of Christ the King

Jim and his Bush Tucker

Mark Really Worked Up a Lather

During an evening in Tennant Creek, we were entertained by Jimmy Hooker who regaled us with some Bush Poetry and told us about bush remedies and bush tucker.  He has been on Australian Story and had a lot of stories to tell about Tennant Creek and his time living at Gum Tree 69 when he was prospecting for gold in this area.

Tomorrow we head east from the Three Ways towards Queensland!