Mungo Sum up and Slide show

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When we’ve talked to friends and colleagues about our Easter excursions the following four questions tend to come up:

How was it?
Was it worth it?
Would you go again?
Would you recommend it?

The very short answers are:
Good
Yes
Maybe
It depends

I’ve elaborated below if you’re interested. Otherwise, check out the pictures and the slideshow at the bottom.

What I Liked
Wide-open spaces: Jean and I have been in large cities for over a year now. Even on holidays and hiking trips thus far we weren’t far from population centers. The closet town to Mungo National Park is around 150 kilometers away. There’s something about a horizon that’s so long and unobstructed that you can see the curvature of the earth. Or a night sky that’s so dark and expansive that it seems like the stars have multiplied ten fold. Or a soundscape whose only players are birds and the wind.  
The Park Staff: The tour was great as was an evening presentation on the history of the area and the park. We got Johnny cakes and hot cocoa and the rangers talked about the history of the park and what they did when they weren’t leading tours including: locating rabbit warrens for demolition, setting evening traps to gather data on smaller animals to make population estimates, and working with archaeologists to excavate fossils and remains.
Informational: The visitor’s center was great source of information. All the walks were well sign posted with information about the plants and animals. Over the five days I think I got a really good handle on the history of the area and the plants and animals.
Seeing Wildlife in the Wild: Seeing droves of kangaroos and emus in Australian outback is infinitely more rewarding than seeing their captive cousins in outback themed enclosure at the zoo.
Weather: It was sunny or partly cloudy everyday we were there which I think is fairly common for the area. Five consecutive sunny days in Sydney is unheard of from my experience. In summer I can imagine it getting pretty warm so we picked a good time to visit.

The Downsides
Distance from Sydney: 1000+ kilometers/14+ hours is a pretty hefty distance for anything short of a week. As the idea of driving in Australia was still novel and the route was almost entirely rural I really enjoyed the drive. I could see how it might become monotonous and expensive though. As it was we spent about as much for petrol as we did to rent the car.
Limited hiking/activity options: The park offered one hiking trail(7 km), two nature trails (1-2km), one drive tour (70 km) and perhaps one bike tour trail. The hike, nature trails and drive tour are all really good, well sign posted. The drive tour in particular had several stops with small walks, great vantage points and loads of informational signs.

On a couple of afternoons Jean and I followed fire/management trails on foot. They are usually not quite as interesting as a designated hiking trail being very straight, often following fence lines, and not the most scenic. We did see a lot of wildlife on these walks. It was also a good opportunity to test our knowledge of flora and fauna without the aid of display boards.

In 5 days we did all the hikes, the drive tour, the guided tour and attended the evening campfire talk. I think having a mountain bike would make a huge difference. Taking the 70 km drive tour would definitely be more interesting on a bike and take all day rather than a couple of hours to complete. Fire trails are also far less tedious on bike.
Insects: Flies during the day and mosquitoes a night. I wasn’t as bothered because for the most part they were busy with Jean.



      

Comments

sly said…
What a nice respite from city life. And wouldn't you kick yourself if you HADN'T taken the opportunity??
19 April 2012 at 08:06
tomy said…
After seeing your slide show I had visions of electric high speed rail train service across the continent with special rail cars carrying your car, motorcycle, or bicycle. The trains would drop folks off at various parks and other locations of interest. They would be picked by returning trains to go back home or to continue on another train to further points of interest. This might be away to reduce cost.
19 April 2012 at 16:42
Jean said…
I think it should be upgraded from a 'good' to at least a 'great'! I had a fantastic time! This part of the outback might have been a bit greener than I expected, but I still enjoyed the different scenery, seeing the wildlife and by the end of the week I had plenty of red dust on me! The only thing that got me down was the mosquitoes going to town on my feet on the first night(thank goodness the rest of me was covered)! So much for romantic camping by the river! However camping out under the stars in the bush and learning more about the amazing history of the area made up for it!
20 April 2012 at 06:07
M and D said…
We thought the pink rocks in the 'lunnette ' looked like Bryce canyon. Beautiful. The flat open scenery was rather like the route from Los Vagas - but you had kangaroos and emus.
21 April 2012 at 06:52
Debbie said…
Wonderful pictures!
23 April 2012 at 11:30
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