But this week, we’re taking a break from travel, as my attention has been taken by an Annual Report that came through my letter box yesterday.

An Annual Report?  I hear you utter.

Yes, and when you look below you may see why…

It’s not often that I (or for that matter, you) see a Journey Jottings map gracing the cover of an annual company report (other than our own!). But, as part of our corporate social responsibility, Journey Jottings is a partner to the ‘Our Page in History’ project and is permitting the use of our pictorial map of Western Australia as part of our contribution to its on-going success

The W.A. State Library Foundation was created a little over two years ago (mid 2009) and supports a variety of projects (this year includes activities around the National Year of Reading 2012)

The Executive Director, Bronwyn Lewis approached me regarding the use of Journey Jottings Australia map as the basis to their on-line Our Page in History project.

“Our Page in History collects Western Australian history and also captures what life looks like today for future generations.”

Click on the image to see the book come to life

“Our Page in History is an interactive web based project encouraging indviduals, families, groups and businesses to record their histories by lodging their photos and stories on a digital platform. We want you to record and digitise your history through the creation of your own personal “Page” in history.”

The website was awarded a Highly Commended in the MAPDAs (Museums Australia Multimedia & Publication Design Awards, which celebrates excellence in design and communication in the museum and collections sector across Australia) in 2010.

And when launched in November 2009, the invitation to the launch party won the 2010 Museums Australia Publications and Design Award.

At this stage the uploading of personal histories is confined to just WA based stories, however the long term plan is to roll out the project right across Australia so all states and territories can participate.

It’s exciting to be a part of history in the making.

Also fun to be connected to a State Library initiative as we supply our Journey Jottings Map Journals and Mail-It Maps to so many of the State Library bookshops ~

• Here in Brisbane we supply the Queensland State Library Bookshop (that was voted Queensland’s Specialist Bookseller of the Year 2011 at The Australian Book Industry Awards)
• In Perth the State Library of Western Australia shop
• In Melbourne the State Library of Victoria shop operated by Readings
• In Sydney the State Library New South Wales shop

The State Libraries run fabulous programmes and exhibitions.

Do you make the most of them?

 Tell me in the comments below…

Do you use your local library?

Mount Sonder (1380m)

… Mount Sonder, which stands 1,380 meters above sea level (4,528 feet)

Mount Sonder is the end ‘marker’ of the famed Larapinta walking trail that traverses across country 223 kilometres (139 miles) from Alice Springs. The walk is broken down into 12 stages so sections can be enjoyed for those without the time (or inclination) to attempt the entire 14 day hike.

Having been travelling Namatjira Drive for 85 km, below is a painting by the road’s namesake, artist Albert Namatjira - A watercolour painted circa 1958 of Mt Sonder, which is held by the National Gallery of Australia.

Albert Namatjira (1902 – 1959) was an aboriginal artist who painted in an adapted western style using watercolours – He was the first aboriginal to be granted Australian citizenship.

To the south of Namatjira Drive is Glen Helen Gorge ~ Our destination for an overnight stay with hosts Shelagh and Colin.

Glen Helen Resort is situated on the banks of the Finke River.

The Finke River is one of Central Australia’s largest river systems yet has only nine permanent waterholes along its course ~ Glen Helen is situated on one of those permanent waterholes.

When we arrived (mid November), we were informed this waterhole had just started flowing again

After a quick look in the Glen Helen reception shop, where we spotted some Journey Jottings Mail-It Maps in amongst the postcards…

It was time for a delicious barbeque of kebab’d vegetables, which we devoured under the twinkling starry outback sky down by the water’s edge overlooking the Finke River, to the escarpment on the far side.

I wish I had photographs to share of that night sky – An outback night sky is so…. expansive… uninterrupted… infinite

However, I do have photographs of the sunrise, which we were up at the crack of dawn, the next day, to capture.

The West MacDonnell Ranges are a stunning area to visit – There is so much variety of landscape and things to see and do -

In the 130 km from Alice Springs to Glen Helen we stopped off at Standley Chasm, the Ochre Pits and Ormiston Gorge and loved each and every one of them, so do check out the blog post links there to read more

 This was as far west as we could go in our Maui motorhome as beyond Glen Helen the road reverts to dirt, so only 4WD hire vehicles can go on to Redbank Gorge and round the Mereenie Loop Road to Kings Canyon (Watarrka National Park).

So it was farewell to the West MacDonnells for us and back to Alice Springs, where we were going to head north for 400km to our next stop ~ the Devil’s Marbles.

Have you visited the West MacDonnell Ranges?

What was your favourite spot?

Do share in the commets below

It had been a long hot day and the sight of the water in Ormiston Gorge was welcoming

It took no time at all to immerse ourselves in it!

Delicious

The early evening light enhanced the classic red centre colours looking down the gorge to the escarpment.

There were trees perilously embedding themselves in the red rocky gorge walls…

…and clinging onto the sheer sides high above us

 …a twisted eucalypt grappling for life.

Leaving this piece of paradise…

…we were heading back to our camperbus (motorhome) when we spotted a Grey Crowned Babbler busy probing beneath the bark of a tree with its scimitar-like bill.

But just before we left Ormiston, we looked up to the rim of the gorge behind us and saw this upside-down rainbow!

I couldn’t work out how this was possible – particularly since there appeared to be no rain about!

I’ve since looked up how this phenomena occurs and came across the term ‘Circumzenithal arcs‘ – The only tricky part of the description is there are supposed to be ice crystals up there for the sun to refract off, so it’s generally a sight only seen in places such as the Arctic circle – So, what was an upside-down rainbow doing in central Australia?

The colour order is correct for a circumzenithal arc, as the violet is at the top and the red at the bottom -

Do we have any scientists in our midst who can elaborate or…

please explain!?

 Have you ever seen an upside-down rainbow? 

Do share in the comments below

 Next stop (next blog post) Glen Helen Gorge

Don’t want to miss it?

and receive the next post in the comfort of your Inbox

 I so nearly trod on this poor little chap!

We’d stopped for breakfast on the way to Standley Chasm. I was walking through the leaf litter to get a photo of our motorhome (camperbus!) when as I moved forward there was a rustling movement underfoot!

Yikes!

What was I about to step on?

To my relief, it was this cute Bearded Dragon (not a snake )

Whilst indignant, he didn’t scuttle off…

I was surprised to discover when we got home that the Inland Bearded Dragon is the most common variety to be sold as pets!

Have you seen a Bearded Dragon in the wild?

Or maybe more pertinent… as a pet?

I have to be honest, when one of our group on this trip to the Red Centre said they particularly wanted to stop off at the Ochre Pits, in the MacDonnell Ranges west of Alice Springs, my heart didn’t particularly sing

Scanning the Internet prior to our visit to the Red Centre I’d found a somewhat uninspiring non-descript image and these ‘Pits’ looked like…. well, the ‘Pits’

Were they just a bit of old mud on the banks of a creek bed?

So… next stop, 80km west of our first stop at Standley Chasm was the Ochre Pits!

And it just goes to show you can’t believe everything you see on the Internet! Some places really have to be experienced to appreciate their cultural influence and their colour in the flesh!

“The colourful curves and swirls of these soft-stoned and fragile cliffs tell a story rich with tradition and geological history. Since the beginning of time they’ve played an important role in the culture of the local Aboriginal people, the Western Arrente.”

While the photo above of Arente women ‘painted-up’ with ochre and feathers ready for a ceremony was taken over 100 years ago (by the anthropologist Walter Baldwin Spencer) ochre is still widely used in religious ceremony and for decoration.

In traditional western Arrente society ochre was an essential daily household item, and was central to the preparation of many medicines.

“The different coloured layers are caused by the presence of iron oxide in varying amounts. The more iron oxide present, the darker and redder the colour. The whiter stone has little or no iron and a high level of kaolin, a white clay mineral”

The colours in the ochre cliff were every bit as attractive as colours seen in other geological delights from further afield such as the Coloured Sands on Fraser Island or Rainbow Valley, NT.

Ochre deposits are found across Australia but in varying qualities so was frequently traded with pituri (bush tobacco), boomerangs, spears and down feathers used in ceremonies. Trading has always been an important part of Aboriginal society.

Today, ochres are used in Aboriginal artworks from certain regional communities in Australia.

The Warmun Art Community in the Kimberleys are renowned for their artworks painted with ochres, where each artist personally collects their medium from the surrounding country and prepares it with pestle and mortar.

As an example of this technique is the above artwork by Nancy Nodea, from Warmun at Turkey Creek, WA.

 Beautiful seeing the medium of coloured ochres come to life on the canvas in her work against this image of them in their natural environment

So, with our route plotted and dotted to the Ochre Pits on my Central Australia map…

…Next stop, Orminston Gorge (which I’ll post next Tuesday)

Have you seen ochres in their natural environment?

Or aboriginal artworks in this medium?

Would love to hear in the comments below

This was my favourite image of Standley Chasm when we visited.

Just 50km west of Alice Springs in the MacDonnel Ranges, Central Australia.

There is so much more to see in the Red Centre than just Uluru and Kata Tjuta

I need to return!
What places have you been too and not got your fill?

What places do you feel you need to return to?

Please share in the comments below

Not sure what the exact difference is there (so if you know do tell in the comments below!) but the bit I love about travelling this way is whether you feel peckish, thirsty or in need of a nap… Pull over, and its sorted

Having driven the 450km (5.5 hours) into Alice Springs from Yulara in our hire car (after a magical few days visiting Uluru and Kata Tjuta), we picked up our Maui 5 berth motor-home and trialled our first night’s sleep in a friend’s front yard in town!

Keen to hit the road we left Alice Springs early, and as soon as we were out of town pulled over for breakfast!

Replenished, our first real stop for the day was to be Standley Chasm, just 50km to the west of Alice on Larapinta Drive.

It’s only a 20 minute walk into the chasm from the car park up a delightful path.

Starting out under classic eucalypts…

The Eucalyptus trunks are a tree hugger’s dream (3 guesses what I am!)

While the trees satisfy the eye-level-eye-candy, the rocks underfoot satisfy the textural-underfoot-tactile-foot-candy.

After a little bit of clambering up a predominently dry creek bed…

Standley Chasm opens out before us.

The Eucalypt gives it scale.

…and stunning colour contrasts.

It’s an artist’s paradise…

so we sit, with sketch pads in hand, to take in the ambience and breath in the atmosphere

And this is what I saw and felt…

Red rugged rocky sides flaming up the perpendicular chasm walls…

 …to the blue sky above

where the sun at midday penetrates the close chasm walls and simultaneously lights up both sides as it passes overhead.

Wild-flowers and grasses cling on perilously to survive in the dry craggy crevises.

Returning back down the path

we see amongst the leaf litter a Long-Nosed Dragon, also known as the ‘Ta-Taa’ lizard as when scurrying off they’ll often stop momentarily and lift a front leg, appearing to wave goodbye… ta-ta

It’s particularly long nose, as well as a long tail, help it balance when running at high speed. (Official name: Lophognathus longirostris)

So first stop of the day in the West MacDonnell Ranges, Standley Chasm is plotted…

 …& the route dotted on my pictorial map of Central Australia

Next stop, 80 km (1.5 hours) to the Ochre Pits, which I’ll post next Tuesday!

Have you visited Standley Chasm? Or is it still on the ‘To Do’?

Do share in the comments below