Alice Springs

As we entered the caravan park we were surprised to see our friends that we keep on catching up with. That seems to be the way with travelling. Meeting new people and then seeing them again on your travels. It rather uncanny.
After we settled into the CP we did the washing and then headed “downtown “to stock up on groceries and to get our bearings.
There are a lot of aborigines that hang about down in the town area and there is a very strong police presence. There are two small plazas, one with Coles and one with Woolworths and one car park that serves both so the traffic is very hectic- rather a contrast to the peaceful places we have been experiencing in the past few weeks.
Todd Mall is also frequented by the aborigines and a lot of them sit on the grass showing off their paintings. Other than that the area is fairly deserted. There are a few coffee shops and restaurants but apart from that the area seems rather drab.

A trip to the Overland Telegraph Station was very, very interesting. Alice Springs was a one of a series of repeater station for the Overland Telegraph Line which was major communication avenue that linked Australia to the rest of the world. The construction of the line from Darwin to Adelaide was a massive engineering feat as it was built in 18 months through some of the most hostile and arid country in our continent. All the materials had to be transported by camel or wagon as well as food and supplies for the workers and the animals. A post was inserted every 70 metres, the conditions were extremely hot and much of the territory was uncharted. The line was to link with an undersea cable to Java. Once it was completed Australia was able to have contact with the rest of the world. All the messages were transmitted on the line by Morse Code which had to operate 24 hours a day. Often the line would break and parties were sent out from the station on horseback to repair the line. This could take days in extreme heat – over 55 degrees.
I am reading a very interesting book called Alice on the Line written by the daughter of family who went out there in 1899 to be in charge of the OT station. They had to go by train from Adelaide to Oodnadatta (this took 3 days) and then by buggy to the Telegraph Station which took three weeks. Life was very tough in those days and that is why the OTL was so important for communication.
At the Telegraph Station is a waterhole which was named Alice Springs after Charles Todd’s wife. He was in charge of organizing the OTC construction and it was mainly due to him that it was completed on time.
The site of the present Alice Springs (about 2 kms from Telegraph Station) was then called Stuart but when the Post office moved to Stuart, the post master continued to us the Alice Springs postmark until Stuart became known as Alice Springs.


After the Telegraph Station was closed when it was no longer needed, the buildings were used to house all the aborigines from the “stolen generation” of half caste children. It was so sad reading about it and how no-one wanted them as they were neither black nor white and the conditions they lived in was appalling.

While we were there a group of school children all dressed up in period costume arrived on a school excursion. They camp the night there, cook their food on the wood stove, do some washing by hand in the old round laundry tubs and experience life as it was. Every school child in Alice Springs experiences this which I think is great.



More Trouble: That afternoon I was going out in the car to do some exploring. I was trying to get out onto the busy highway, got half way out when another vehicle was coming too fast so I had to back. I didn’t look did I and reversed into a car behind me- only dinted his number plate and only seemed to damage the tow bar cover. However it turned out there was a dint in the tailgate door and we couldn’t open it. Even the panelbeater after half an hour of banging and shoving couldn’t open it – some electrical problem. To get the car repaired we would have to wait 5 to 6 weeks so now we are continuing by only being to access able to access the back through the back passenger doors. No doubt we both very upset by my carelessness.
We were glad to leave the hustle and bustle of Alice Springs and head to the West MacDonnell Ranges.