Day 7 and 8 - the Journey home

The hardest part of the holiday was saying goodbye again. There were lots of tears. Leaving good friends behind is so hard. It was great to have the time with them but leaving is painful.

The Devil's Marbles 100kms South of Tennant Creek

We traveled to Alice Springs and stayed the night with more good friends. Suzette, Jeff, Joshua and Sarah. They warmly welcomed us and found enough space for the 8 of us to sleep.

Back through the Gap we drove on the long journey home. We were on the road by 7.30am

Yep... A long way to go!

A quick toilet stop at Erldunda

Lunch stop at Marla

We arrived in Coober Pedy around 5.30pm intending to camp the night. We had a change of plan. I wasn't keen on another freezing Central Australian night so we decided to push on with the driving. We made Glendambo by 9pm and Pt Augusta by 1am and were home at 3.30am.

Driving at night really isn't a sensible thing to do on the Stuart Hwy. The roads are unfenced and there are roos and emus. The biggest cause of accidents is tiredness. The road is long and straight and many accidents are caused by drivers falling asleep at the wheel. Both Pete and I are experienced long distance drivers and we take it slow and take turns with the driving.

Day Three - Our Journey to Tennant Creek

Traveling into Alice

Through the Gap .. I felt like I was coming home. I lived in Alice for four years.

Another refueling stop and a chance for the kids to burn some energy off.

Another quick stop at Barrow Creek.

The we journeyed on and reached Tennant after dark.

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Day Two - Our Journey to Tennant Creek

Opal mining at Coober Pedy

After a quick fuel stop back on the road!

Still a long way to go...


Over taking Road Trains is scary business. You need a lot of road!

We camped at Kulgera the second night. It was very cold.
The winter days in Central Australia are beautiful but the nights freezing!

Day One - Our Journey to Tennant Creek

We set off on the long drive from SA to Tennant Creek. Six kids and all the luggage.

A roadside stop north of Pt Augusta SA.
We took every opportunity to get the kids to burn off some energy.

One of the amazing Salt Lakes between Pt Augusta and Glendambo

A Quick Fuel stop

We camped a 100kms south of Coober Pedy the first night.

I worked out I must have done the journey between Alice Springs and Adelaide in the 16 years I lived in The Northern Territory about 24 times! As per normal the stretch between Pt Augusta and Coober Pedy the wind howled.