Off to Manning Gorge

The three days we spent at King Edward River was a great opportunity to relax after the teeth rattling, shock-absorber destroying return from Mitchell Falls. The Kalumburu Road, while enough to deter most sensible drivers, was almost a joy in comparison. The UHF radio antenna is now strapped to the HF radio antenna. We knew the HF antenna would be useful for something. On the Kalumburu Road we passed a landcruiser that had rolled over the night before, and then ten kilometers later a late model Landcruiser with a shattered diferential hpusing. The jovial character in the second vehicle, waiting for a flatbed to retrieve his car, said that the diver of the overturned landcruiser had walked past in the midle of the night intent on walking the forty kilometers to the next station. He had left his girlfriend with the car.

We made it to the Barnett Road House without major incident and forked out more big bucks to fill the tank ($2.05/litre), before booking into the Manning Gorge camping area. This was a nice campground, although the solar hotwater has been broken for two years. The apologetic signage might lead you to believe that this was a recent and temporary abberation. Our stay here was very enjoyable, and the gorge was as pretty as ever. Photoes include a nice reflection in the water hole, a view of the gorge from the top of the falls, and Galvin's Gorge which we visited one afternoon.