In the June holidays, Dad and I took an outback camping trip in his 4WD. We'd originally planned to go through the Simpson Desert, but it had been closed due to recent rains. Instead we went from Geelong to Uluru and back.

All up I think we drove 5,000km in 9 days. Well, Dad drove most of those. I drove a manual for the first time, on the Oodnadatta Track.

Another awful example of Australia's big things.

Woomera

Kingoonya

We stopped in at the Kingoonya Hotel for lunch. The publican told us about some earlier visitors who'd asked where the nearest McDonalds was. He told them when the International Space Station passed overhead it was closer than a McDonalds.

Coober Pedy

Coober Pedy seems like a good place to bury a body.

Lasseter Highway

Mount Conner. Underrated, I reckon.

Yulara

Kata Tjuṯa

Uluṟu

Rock art in a cave at the base of Uluṟu.

Because of the recent rains, there were waterfalls on parts of the rock.

Lasseter Highway

Oodnadatta Track

The track is about 600km and follows an abandoned railway line.

I got to drive for a bit. First time driving a manual. Only stalled it a few times.

Roadhouse at Oodnadatta.

Dad checking out a handcar on an abandoned railway bridge.

There are railway sidings all along the track, with abandoned workers' cottages. These were fascinating to explore, we stopped at every one.

William Creek Hotel. Stopped in for lunch. The pub staff had been stuck there for weeks due to the rains and track closures. Spoke some Swedish with a Dane and we managed to understand each other.

These three were cycling the track. We later came across two blokes who were walking from Perth to Canberra (?) and were halfway up the track.

Dad showed me how to set up the camera for astrophotography. There's negligible light pollution in the middle of nowhere, so the night skies are filled with stars.

Maree

A rainbow on our way home. We stayed in Murray Bridge the night before, and it was so rainy and windy the swag was flattened down on top of me all night and in the morning I was soaked.