Australia: Tales from a Canadian Nomad: Surviving Palm Valley

some of the Finke River trail we drove on

So this weekend I took two friends with me to Finke National Park and drove the 4WD track to Palm Valley. It was the first real 4WD track I had taken the Rav 4 on so sure to be interesting. We only managed to get bogged in sand twice. The first time was on the way in, we were driving a long sandy patch and the centre ridge was quite high and the Rav just couldn't clear it and got bogged down. So we dug out what we could and just as we were finishing up, someone came along and gave us a tow, thanks so much to Tim and Kay! The second bogging was on the ride home today and we managed to get it out ourselves, just a little bogged as I tried to drive ON the ridge instead of over it and the Rav slid off and bogged us. We got 'er out and were on our way. I did manage to scrape a rock with the left side and dented the door, as I was trying to manage the rough rocky track but oh well! I plan to USE the Rav, not baby it. We also managed to rip one of the plastic guards off the bottom, so I will have to get that put back on at Toyota this week before I head out again.
Aside from the bogging, the rocky track was awesome. Most of the time we drove in first gear on rocky and second gear, and I didn't bang or bottom out on the rocks. They told me the larger vehicles often do as they have so much more bounce. Most of the track was either packed dirt, or rocky riverbed that was either small rocks or rock formations. The Rav did a great job and I'm glad I did buy what I did. The gas mileage was awesome, and with petrol prices so high here in Australia (no less than $1.70AUS/litre most of the time, and sometimes over $2.00/litre. We also managed to pack a whole lot of stuff in there which was great, and still didn't feel crowded. I'm quite happy with my rig.
We parked the Rav and set up camp next to Palm Creek, which was just beautiful. After setting up and having a beer, we packed our backpacks for a hike in the valley where the Red Cabbage Palms were. They are quite rare palms and only found in a few places of the world, and this was one of them. The weather was of course beautiful, warm, and sunny with just enough breeze at times to keep the flies away. After the hike we headed back and lounged for the rest of the afternoon with some cold beers, and a view of the creek as all the other campers arrived and set up camp. Just before dark we got around to cooking our supper on the communal barbecues and then headed over to the communal fire pit to join the gang already there. I was the only Canadian, and there was one Dutch gal, and the rest were Australians (save for our friend Kate who lives in Australia but is originally from New Zealand). It was quite entertaining with stories, s'mores (no one had ever seen) and even a few drover poems. A drover is someone who drives cattle.
The night was interesting as the birds came in and out - magpies, pink cockatoos, Australian ringneck parrots, and many more. There was a dingo at our campsite getting into snacks we left out, and later that night a few dingoes were around and got into a scrap at one point just by our tents, snarling and growling. One carried off Kate's Ugg slipper...we told her not to leave them out as they go for the leather and human smell...but she didn't listen. Kate was a virgin camper and bushwalker, so we broke her in, but she needs more time out before she learns it all I reckon. The stars were amazing and I took the fly off my tent so I could fall asleep under the stars. No big hairy spiders this time which was great. My air mattress crapped out though and I spent most of the night on the ground...I have tossed it and will use my foamy from now on. Air mattresses always seem to let me down...pardon the pun.
We got up for a cooked breakfast and then packed our gear up to head back. We didn't want to stay too long or there would be no one coming behind us to give us a tow if we needed on. Home again by noon and then the chore of unpacking my rig...I have to organize it all again as I leave for Darwin on Wednesday for a road trip to visit a friend from Canada who just moved there this weekend with her kids. I'll be stopping over in Katherine Gorge along the way, which should be amazing. Remember you can click on any of the photos for a much fuller size to see the shot.
Central Australia is just beautiful. I'm so glad I came.