Darwin…God, what a horrible place to be. The people here are so nice, like the very least in all of Australia. It was like arrive into the oven. From the east coast, where it sometimes rained or was at least cloudy, nothing here. Just brutal heat and humid that I was sweating non-stop. I went to swim in the sea, but it was more like a swimming pool, separated from the sea by a net because of the jellyfish. There were thousands of them. If you get stung by one, you’ll die within three minutes, and as a bonus…sharks. There was basically nothing to do there. But I was still stuck there for a week.
I had to solve the crucial question of how to continue south. There were 4 options available. 1. Hitchhiking = suicide, 2. Joining someone = waiting for someone to go where you want and always having to come back…no, you don’t want that, 3. Renting a car = too expensive, about $4000 a month…no thank you, 4. Buying a car = let’s go baby.
Buying a car is absolutely the best thing you can do. You have complete freedom and a place to sleep. I found a few on Gumtree but ended up buying a Holden (Opel) Commodore 3.6l, for $2300. A beautiful white station wagon that won’t betray you (I don’t recommend a dark-colored car).
But be careful here. ATMs give a maximum of 500 dollars… so it probably depends on which card you have. Today, however, times are different and everything is much simpler. I paid by bank transfer because I didn’t want to wait any longer. Before buying a car, find out how it is with the transfer and pay attention to where the car is registered and where you will transfer the car. Every state has different rules, so be careful and don’t get ripped off! People often try to get rid of it quickly, so they can tell you anything. That’s why I bought a car registered in Western Australia. Therefore had to drive over 4,000 km to register it (I had two weeks to do it).
Well, we have a car. I folded down the back seats, put the mattress in, threw my bags in the trunk, bought about a thousand liters of water, miles of toilet paper and off I went. The only problem was when my air conditioner broke the next day. Therefore, always check the car before you buy one. But I can handle any situation. I rolled the windows down and you wouldn’t know the difference, punk style. At least it won’t hurt you when you get out of the car in 50C. You can see how I slept below. Well, enough waiting and let’s hit the road…
My first miles were heading to nearby Litchfield National Park. The environment here is completely different. You’re basically driving through the desert. I was completely alone, sometimes a farm and the killing heat. You could see that the park was suffering from a severe drought. Sometimes I came across places where the forest was on fire or where the fire had already passed. But the most interesting thing was hidden in the woods. The large piles, looking like pieces of rock, were actually termite mounds. You could find any size from small ones to the biggest ones that reached around six meters. I even found a place where was a whole field of them, breathtaking. If you happen to try to break them, I have to warn you that termite mounds are as hard as concrete.
This was followed by a visit to a number of rivers and lakes, where it was very refreshing to take a bath, as well as many beautiful waterfalls and lagoons. The worst thing about this places was that I had to keep an eye on crocodiles. Could be anywhere and also the signs at such places warn you about. I even came across swamps. At the end of each day, I enjoyed a beautiful sunset that turns the landscape red and the sky golden colours. I recommend buying repellant and something to cover your face, because you will be attacked by flies during the day and eaten by mosquitoes at night, just like me.
Kakadu National Park was another park that ranks as the largest in the northern part of Australia. But don’t worry, you won’t get lost. Everything is well marked and the roads are perfect. It is a huge area that is largely covered only by forest and bushes. It is good to have a map or take a picture of the signs in the park where there are orientation maps. The main attraction of this park are rocks, full of paintings as signs of the presence of the original Aboriginal people, round 20 thousand years old.
The landscape itself around these rocks is absolutely breathtaking. Before you arrive, there is a wetland full of different kinds of birds. But I did not go far, again my sixth sense warned me of crocodiles. If you walk through the complex of those rocks, it will lead you to the top of the last rock, from where there is a wonderful view of the whole area, all around. Rocky hills on one side and green plains and palm forests on the other.
If you look at the map, it’s like a circle between the first two parks and then you just go south. But what deceives most people are the distances. To get to the south of Australia, you have to travel over 3000 km. Everything looks close on the map, but the reality is something else.
After a fun day’s drive where you keep going straight and are grateful for every little turn, I reached the next point, Nitmiluk National Park. I got there late in the evening and didn’t sleep all night. Normally the nights are cool here, even though it’s hot during the day, but it was terribly muggy that night. I had to keep the door open and was grateful for every little breeze. Mosquitoes were my company. I think I donated about a liter of blood that night.
The next day I climbed the highest point, from where was a beautiful view of the dry and arid landscape. The trees were green only near the river, running in the valley. I got to the end of the trek and then walked back along the river and jumped in here and there. The river was cascading and full of small and big waterfalls from which you could even jump, hence the name Edith Falls. It was very refreshing. Since there was no one there, I had to pay attention and watch out for crocodiles, even though they didn’t have to be there (I saw them everywhere).
On land, another enemy is waiting for you…the flies. They will stick with you until you get back in the car. From here to the South Australia I recommend wearing something to cover your head. It’s so dry here that you’re literally covered in flies. The worst part was they tried to get into my ears, nose, mouth and eyes. If you have any injuries, cover them up. Otherwise, it was a beautiful place.
Not far there was another part of the park called Katherine Gorge. It was a gorge, where the same river was running through, just way bigger. You can rent kayaks here and explore the river. I went, again, to climb to the viewpoint to get the best view of the entire gorge. I also spotted a kangaroo (like a wild one). They are very shy, so I had to stand still. But as soon as I moved, he ran away. Accompanied by flies, I got back to the car and carried on.
I have never seen anything like Mataranka in my life. If you drive by, definitely stop there, you won’t regret. You’re just driving through an arid wasteland and all of a sudden a palm forest. Hot springs with clear water are hidden inside. I met a group of travelers from Melbourne here and they lent me swimming goggles. Underwater you will see why this place is so unique. When you get into the water, it is not only warm, but also several meters deep. When you dive under the water, you will find a wonderful world in the crystal water. On the bottom there is shining sand, pieces of trees and roots covered with algae on the sides. The only thing to fight with was the current that carried you on. When you go for a walk in the forest, be careful not to go off the path and go anywhere far, because there are swamps everywhere. A bit further a signs will direct you to other springs. There are already made swimming pools where you can relax. There is also a path that takes you to the river with a beautiful view of the forest. But I wouldn’t dare to go into the water…
I spent the evening camping with the guys from Melbourne and they told me some stories that happened to them. I will mention only two that stuck in my head (I don’t know if they are true). The first tells about a family that went fishing on the river, somewhere in the east coast. Everything was fine until their water bottle fell into the water and dad reached out to get it. And that became fatal for him. As soon as he leaned over the edge of the boat, a crocodile came out of the water, snapped his head and pulled him under the water. The second story is said to have happened to them when they were returning home at night and fell off the bridge into the river thanks to a microsleep. They got out of the car and began to swim. But now they had to choose. Either swim quickly to the shore, with the noise attracting the crocodiles, or swim slowly, silently, and watch the crocodile quickly approach you. Tough choice, really. Fortunately, no one was hurt. After that the owners kicked me out of the campsite and I spent the night in a car outside the village.
I had to travel about 700 km to get to my next destination. What a trip again. You can see kilometers ahead and still nothing. There are termite mounds on the sides of the road, with t-shirts on, from people having fun on the way. But it looks really funny, as if someone small is standing there. What you can see next are animal carcasses (from kangaroos to cows, horses and even camels in the south), most likely hit by a truck. When you drive past it, the bad smell gets into the car and it takes a while to go away…you get a strong feeling and need to vomit. Watch out for speed. You can drive very fast here, but be careful, because if you hit an animal, you’re done. Kangaroos in particular are complete idiots and like to jump in front of the cars. I also do not recommend driving overnight at all!
Hooray, here we are. Another mysterious place said to have been built by the Devil himself. Therefore, the name Devils Marbels. It’s a large area full of different, mysteriously standing stones, and most famous for the pair of stones you can see below. It’s really big and you can spend several hours there wandering around. The most important thing is to always have enough water with you (by that I mean everywhere, as soon as you leave the car). In a place plagued by heat like this, prepare again for the attack of flies that will want to get into you again. It is true that some of the stone structures are truly incredible. There is no point in describing it any further, it has to be seen.
As I say, really interesting shapes…
After about a week I reached the central part of the desert, the town of Alice Springs. It’s a small town where you’ll be happy to meet people again and you can buy another thousand liters of water. If you go shopping at Woolworths, for example, and you like Nutella, make sure you try another kind that is pink and white in color. It is best with toast bread. And from Alice, you can visit some parks, which are worth seeing and are not far away. I looked around the city a bit, enjoyed views from the hill in the middle of the city and set off on my way.
You may wonder how I was living out there for a week and how I’m gonna do it in the future. Well, it’s very simple. I’m not demanding so don’t need much to be honest. I was drinking round 4 liters of water a day. Didn’t eat much due to heat. Went to pee only in the morning and before going to sleep (sweating all day long) or bushes worked enough. Had a shower every night. Used a gallon of water (had about 16 gallons in the car) and refilled when possible. Used a sunscreen a lot.
Another stop was at West MacDonnell National Park, which was mainly interesting for its length. It was formed by long rocky ridges that are stretching along the entire park. I found, little pools located always in between two rocks with almost icy water even in such scorching heat. You can swim there without any worries, but not for long. I was supposed to go to the top of one of the hills, but got a little bit lost because they have a problem with track markings here. So, I got angry and climbed somewhere else, which seemed high enough and I was satisfied. I saw beautiful valleys, gorges and mountains. The best part of the Outback are sunsets when the landscape, especially the rocks, literally turn red.
Unfortunately, it was impossible for me to get everywhere. Some of the roads were in such a bad condition that could only get there with a 4×4 car. When I got to the end of the park, there is a shortcut to Kings Canyon which was my next stop. But if you don’t have a big car, then don’t go there. I was warned that the road is really bad there and if you get stuck in there and manage to call for help (as I had no reception at all, except of big cities) the tow is said to be about $1500…and you don’t want that. So back to Alice Springs and drive south.
But it does not matter. The only thing that was annoying about that I had to drive about 400 km more. This brings me to the next tip I wanted to share and that is…Always keep a full tank!! Fill up at every pump and you’ll make it to the south. The pumps here are about 100 km apart and you never know what could happen.
So now back on the road and we’re slowly getting to the best of the Northern Territory and the Outback. Once you turn off the main road to the south and head towards the canyon, watch out! The whole time it never rained, I saw almost no clouds and there was hardly any wind. And this is the right place to appreciate it. At night, stop, lie down (best on the roof of the car) and watch the night sky. You will see the most beautiful and unforgettable view. I have never seen so many stars together and such a shiny sky in my life. I would go back there again just for this.
Before we get to the best, let’s take a look at Kings Canyon. Along the way you may notice that the soil here is really red and along the sides of the road you can see interesting trees that look like they are hairy. But in reality, it is a kind of sharp, very long needle tree. When you arrive at the location, you can choose from several types of treks. I chose the longest one and I also recommend it. The route led around the entire canyon and takes you via beautifully shaped rocks, stones, to a beautiful pool, and eventually to the view of the entire valley and surrounding desert. The best part is about half way when you get to a point where you can stand up or lie down on the edge with a view of both sides of the rocks that look like they have been cut. Great view…especially down if you like heights.
Finally! We’re finally getting closer to the best. From a distance you can already see a piece of massive rock that represents a small version of a table mountain, but that’s not where we’re going. A few kilometers further, the real rocky massif peeks out at you. Don’t you know yet?? I am talking about the place which is absolutely the most sacred to the Aborigines and which I was most looking forward to see. Mount Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock. A monument that you must not miss when visiting Australia. You have to go through the gatehouse to the park, where you pay an entrance fee of about 25 dollars. But there is one more rock in this park and it is called Kata Tjuta. The interesting thing is that both of these rocks are connected underground like one big tooth.
I immediately rushed to Uluru and drove around. I’m just warning you, pay attention to the road, so you don’t crash. Better stop while enjoying. After driving around, I went to Kata Tjuta. It is not, as in the case of Uluru, a single massif, but is made of dozens of smaller rounded rocks, which together form a beautiful complex of red color. There is even a trek where you can walk through these rocks. I drove back to Uluru before sunset, found a spot with the best view and waited. Let me tell you, I was standing there for over two hours watching the sun turning that rock red and then some time after. I believe it has some magical power and could stare at it all day long, easy.