Heading to Alice Springs

I made it!!!!! What a night that was. I was in better shape than the other 2 though, they were soaked to the bone in their tent which totally sucks. We started to pack up and get our stuff dried out a bit before we headed out on the road. It was so messy packing up the tent and tarp that I had on the ground. Deep dark red sand was all over it and I didn’t see it coming off anytime soon so I just folded it and put it in the trunk. Back in the car we drove off to whatever adventures we wanted to check out today before we made it to Alice Springs.

Our first stop was a bit out of the way but really cool. There was a meteorite that crashed out here eons ago and NASA actually came out to do some research on it. It is called the Henbury Meteorite, the craters are named for Henbury Station, a nearby cattle station named in 1875 for the family home of its founders at Henbury in Dorset, England. There are 13 to 14 large craters with several tons of iron-nickel fragments and is thought to be over 4 thousand years old. One of the craters has become a kind of desert oasis where it has come into contact with an underground river and there are trees and grass that grows out here. It is an important part of the ecosystem for the animals.

After there we stopped at a place called “Rainbow Valley” and this was stunning. It was a huge chunk of rock that protruded out from the middle of the land and it was jagged all over. The colors were spectacular, from bright white to deep red and browns. I can imagine how beautiful it would be with the sun setting on it. We did one of the walks around the area to check things out and see the back side of the rock. Not much else to do or see here so we didn’t spend much time (kind of like the meteorite place).

Our last stop before we got into Alice Springs was a camel farm. I think camels are so cool, especially after reading the book “Tracks” that was given to me as a going away gift from a coworker. I wanted to ride one, but there was a part of me that didn’t either, I can’t really pinpoint why unfortunately. We got to see a baby camel and a few adult ones before getting on the road again.

I had no access to internet while out here, only a bit when we were in the campground near Uluru so as soon as my phone started blowing up from updates and notifications for emails and stuff, I pulled over to find a hotel to stay in. After last night’s weather I wanted a bed and a good shower lol. I found a fairly cheap hotel to stay in even though it was a 4 star, that was right near downtown Alice Springs. I booked it and couldn’t wait to get there. As we continued to drive along, I knew that the 2 with me didn’t have a place to stay. I mulled it over in my head for a good 15 min before proposing to them that they could crash with me at the hotel for free. I am sure some of you are thinking, what the heck, have them chip in money or something but it isn’t about money. It is about giving to good people, helping people along and have them experience things. So I did, I offered that they could stay at the hotel with me till Sunday if need be. They were so excited I had offered and took me up on it. I told them they were stuck with me now haha. It was really nice to have some people to talk to and do things with. I enjoy my alone time as much as anyone else, but being able to explore some of the surrounding area with them was nice. They were the ones that pointed out the meteorite and rainbow rock area, if they hadn’t I am not sure I would have.

We ended up doing dinner at a local bar, and the food was pretty good, it was just nice to be outside eating, hanging with a few people enjoying everything that was going on in my life at that moment.

Everything happens for a reason, I really believe that. We may not know the reason now or ever but it is true. So do unto others as you would like to have done to you. Sometimes things come around full circle, you may see it and you may not, but do things because it makes you feel good and to be a better person.