Sunday dawned clear and cool and not a cloud in the sky. We were picked up from the van park by our Harry Nanya indigenous tour guide, Graham Clarke, for our trip to Mungo National Park. The trip out to Mungo covers 90 klms of corrugated dirt road and we were glad to have a local doing the driving.
Our first views of Mungo were of the ancient lake bed, currently a vast expanse of low green and grey salt bush. As we crossed the lake bed, the lunette that forms the Walls of China became clearer and the clouds came rolling in. The lunette is comprised of dunes and eroded shapes and was named not because it looks like the Great Wall of China, but because of the chinese labourers who constructed the nearby wool shed. Whilst fascinating for its beauty, it was the natural and archeological stories told by the colours and artifacts on the lunette that really enthralled.
We learned much from our guide:
- the wild tobacco bush growing on the lake bed is native to South America and sprouted from seeds contained in emu droppings (though we still don't understand what the emus were doing in South America in the first place)
- there is much more to a Mallee than that which grows above ground
- don't build where black box grows as it is more than likely on a flood plain
- She Oaks whisper in the wind
- River Red Gums store excess water in branches and will get rid of excess water by dropping the branch, so don't camp or park under a River Red Gum
- the meaning of the markings on the stone memorial to Leslie Taylor, one of Graham's cousins. The eagle and the bandicoot represent the tribes of his parents, the hand prints are those of his children and the white marking on the rock is in the shape of Lake Mungo where he died.
- a wealth of archeological knowledge about Mungo Lady and Mungo Man which may indicate that the aboriginal people have been here far longer than first thought.
We ended the trip to Mungo with lunch at Wool Shed Flat, where we had plenty of time to visit the small visitors centre and the old wool shed. If you are planning to visit Mungo you can only walk on the lunette with a licensed guide.
Monday dawned clear and stayed that way. We spent much of the day exploring Mildura by foot. The highlights of the day were morning coffee and cake at Stefano's Cafe, watching PS Melbourne navigating Lock 11 on the Murray, lunch at Rendevous, a bit of retail therapy and the essential purchase of sheepskin slippers for both of us - the nights are getting chilly.
We sent Tuesday driving to nearby towns of Wentworth and Red Cliffs to see the sights and places in Mildura not readily accessible by foot. We particularly liked seeing where the Murray and Darling Rivers meet at Wentworth, the old Wentworth Gaol, the Perry Sand Dunes just outside Wentworth and the Psyche Pumps at Mildura. The pumps were installed in 1891 to move Murray water up various eves for irrigation and were decommissioned in 1959. They have been restored and are operated about 6 times per year. If you want to see the pumps they are only open a few days a week.
Today we bid farewell to Mildura and drove to Halls Gap for a few days in the Grampians. On the way we stopped to try out the prize winning custard slice in Ouyen and view the Mallee stump. (The stump certainly confirmed what Graham had told us on our Mungo tour.) After a quick lunch by the creek at Warracknabeal we headed for Horsham and Halls Gap. We drove the route through Wartook and can highly recommend it for its scenic beauty. The drive was manageable in the motor home but is not recommended for caravans due to a series of tight curves and steep drop offs. We managed to call in and see Broken Falls and the Reed Lookout but will revisit other sights along the road that we had to drive by due to time constraints today.
We will be in the Grampians until Saturday morning.
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