Entry into the West Macs

Images to follow due to weak internet connection…

Our rooftop tent has a dark green cover, but when we wake up this morning, it glows bright red. The rising sun over the desert is responsible for this magical experience.

Today's entry into the West MacDonnell Ranges was filled with various highlights:

Short hike into the narrow Standley Chasm, where you feel like a dwarf between the vertically rising rock walls. And ascent to the viewpoint. Here we find particularly many ancient (500-1000 years) cycads.

Swimming in the ice-cold Ellery Creek Big Hole. If the water weren’t so freezing, one could enjoy the scenery for hours.

Hike into the Serpentine Gorge, where the afternoon sun makes the bark of the Red Gums glow.

Walk to the colorful Ochre Pits, where the indigenous people once extracted their colors.

After so much action, we are glad in the evening when we arrive at our campsite and get to enjoy our evening beer. Now that the sun has set, the pesky bush flies have finally disappeared.

What surprises us very much is how green everything is. It seems it rained a few weeks ago, which has brought the desert to life. The red rocks above the green carpet are indeed beautiful to look at, but they are also responsible for the extraordinary amounts of bush flies. Several locals have now told us this.