Kiwis & Aussies, Need help planning next R&R

[Seshat]

If you go to Uluru (Ayer's Rock), do the guided tour around the rock led by members of the local indigenous tribes.

(Please don't climb the rock: it's sacred to them, and climbing is considered disrespectful. I don't know if it's still permitted, I know it used to be.)

But if you're making your way that far inland anyway, there's apparently some fantastic scenery and other natural wonders in the same national park and the same general region. I'm afraid I'd have to ask the Northern Territory tourism board folks about it myself - I've never been - but give it some thought.

The closest city (city?) to Uluru is Alice Springs. You'll probably land at their airport, switch to a commuter plane, and land at a tiny airport specifically set up for Uluru tourism.

The road from Adelaide to Darwin goes through Alice Springs, and there is road access to Uluru. HOWEVER. Imagine you were planning a drive from New Orleans to Chicago, and there was only one city between them, and very few towns. No Mississippi river. No fresh water (or even salt water) at all. No petrol stations! Just miles and miles of desert, occasionally broken up by opal fields (Coober Pedy) and .. um .. more desert.

IF you want to drive in the Outback, EVER, talk to the locals. The police are extremely happy to give you advice, tell you what you will need to carry, and will beg you to fill out a trip intentions form.
(Trip intentions form: we're here, we want to go there, we plan to take this route, we expect to be there at such and such a time. Then you check in at cop shops periodically, and definitely at the final cop shop. If you DON'T check in, they know to go looking for you, where you last were, and where you intended to be.)

Australia can be a very safe place to visit. It can also be fatal. If you listen to the locals and ask our advice, it's the former. If not ....

Long story short: if you were Jester, and familiar with driving through desert, I'd say 'Jester, check with one of the local cop shops in Adelaide, then good luck and have fun, mate'.
Anyone who isn't familiar with desert driving: take the plane. Or the Ghan train; I'm told that's a once-in-a-lifetime experience too.

[Greenday]

HOWEVER. Imagine you were planning a drive from New Orleans to Chicago, and there was only one city between them, and very few towns. No Mississippi river. No fresh water (or even salt water) at all. No petrol stations! Just miles and miles of desert, occasionally broken up by opal fields (Coober Pedy) and .. um .. more desert.

Hm, this sounds like a road that deserves a high speed limit...Is it? I quite enjoy driving fast.

[Mishi]

100-110 km per hour is the normal highway speed here, and most speed cameras are marked. The fixed ones usually have several warning signs nefore them, but the handheld ones only need a small sign somewhere near the police vehicle to be legal.

I'm guessing that it's SOP to have drinking water with you when you're doing pretty much anything in Afganistan, so remember to make sure that you have some in the car if you're doing a driving trip. For short trips up the coast, we usually just fill our waterbottles up because it's still pretty well populated. If we're going for a longer drive, then we take a 15 litre container as well as the drink bottles and some non-perishable food. I'd rather have it and not need it than the other way around. Also, don't take shortcuts unless you have GPS, and try to avoid going on dirt roads without a 4WD.

Don't poke any octopi, especially if they're tiny and cute.
If you have a chance, have a go on the Bathurst racetrack (its a public road). Try not to speed, because everyone does it and the police are undestandably very active there.

[fireheart]

If you go to Uluru (Ayer's Rock), do the guided tour around the rock led by members of the local indigenous tribes.

(Please don't climb the rock: it's sacred to them, and climbing is considered disrespectful. I don't know if it's still permitted, I know it used to be.)

Australia can be a very safe place to visit. It can also be fatal. If you listen to the locals and ask our advice, it's the former. If not ....

Quick search on Wiki tells me that while its discouraged by the Indigenous population (known as the Anangu), it is still going. You are correct though, they do consider it disrespectful. You also are not allowed to take photos in certain places of Uluru, however its due to the fact that certain areas are/were used as sites for specific gender-linked rituals which the other sex can't view. They don't want the other sex to suddenly see them in the next issue of National Geographic.

Yes it can be safe...most of the time. Don't hesitate to ask for directions, I've had a few people, both Australian and tourists, asking me where the nearest <whatever> is.

100-110 km per hour is the normal highway speed here, and most speed cameras are marked. The fixed ones usually have several warning signs nefore them, but the handheld ones only need a small sign somewhere near the police vehicle to be legal.

Usually in the state paper (depending on the state it might be the Herald Sun, Advertiser etc.) it will have a list of the speed camera locations. I would very much recommend getting a hold of a GPS regardless. They will also have in the paper certain sections of Australia closed off to 4WDs for whatever reason.

As for driving in Australia, we drive on the left hand side of the road, if there's no speed limit posted on a backstreet or similar, the speed limit is 50km/h, if you see an ambulance, police car or fire truck with lights on, the speed limit is 40km/h if you're passing them (i.e. they're attending a car crash) and you're also required to move out of the way. There are also some areas of road where it'll say "form 1 lane" or "form 2 lanes", if there's no lines after a while (i.e. the lane doesn't "end" per se), you're still required to merge in what's called a zip merge.

If you want to do some shopping, there are outlet malls in most of the states called Harbour Town. You can pick up some nice cheap stuff there. Melbourne has the Queen Victoria Markets, Darwin has the Mindil Beach Markets (sp?) and if you're after souvenirs, there are a heap of souvenir shops dotted around Australia. Australian Geographic shops have a LOT of good-quality stuff. If you're in Adelaide, Central Market is good for a LOT of fresh fruit, vegies and whatnot.

If you are in South Australia or Melbourne, you MUST make a stop into Haigh's Chocolates. Little bit expensive, but VERY much worth it. If you're in Adelaide, you can have a look in their little chocolate factory, which is located just outside of the city. If you're in around Easter, they have these MASSIVE Easter eggs, which are roughly the size of a football. All the chocolates are hand-wrapped as well.

Local cuisine....let's see....there's Violet Crumble (basically a honeycomb bar), Cherry Ripe (and their newest flavour, Dark Cherry Ripe), Tim Tams, Lamingtons (basically a sponge dipped in chocolate and covered in coconut), Vegemite (most forms of accomodation will have little sample packs of the stuff), Chiko Rolls (kind of like a spring roll, I've never tried it ) and so on.

For the vocab, obviously we speak English, but here's a few terms that you may not recognise while in Australia:

Thong=flip-flop.
Biscuit=cookie.
Capsicum=bell pepper.
Rockmelon=Cantaloupe
Lemon Squash=the version of lemonade made with lemon juice Also known as Pub squash.
Bathers/togs/swimmers=Swimsuit.
Maccas=McDonalds.
Woolies=Woolworths (the supermarket)
Goon bag=the form of wine that is in a box. These are on the decline but still exist.
Esky=a portable cooler.
Barrack=root for a team. (the two main forms of sport in Australia are Australian Rules footy and Cricket, you'll be coming in somewhere in the transition of the two )
Ute=pickup truck (best translation).
Chook=chicken.

Don't ever ask if you root for a team, as root is a slang term for sex. On the other end of the spectrum, rubber can refer to an eraser.

One term that is unique to South Australia is the term for overhead power line poles. They are known as stobie poles.

No matter where you are, do not try and get close to emus or cassowaries. Cassowaries are a smaller form of emu, but they can KILL.

[Seshat]

Hm, this sounds like a road that deserves a high speed limit...Is it? I quite enjoy driving fast.

There are some roads which probably do have high speed limits. However, if you see a sign saying 'no food for fuel for Xkm/Ymiles', BELIEVE IT.

Similarly, when (not if) you get a road map which has a warning on it saying 'no food or fuel beyond this point', believe that, too.

Beyond those signs & map markings, you need to be in desert survival mode. Think like you're planning to attend Burning Man, or go off into the Arizona desert alone. Or turn around and go back to civilisation.

Yes, the cops near those points do trips out to rescue stuck tourists. But it can be hours between their trips, and it's not a comfortable situation to be in. And you probably don't have cell phone reception out there either.

I'm not saying don't go there! Plenty of people do use those roads in perfect safety, regularly. But - well. Even someone desert-familiar like Jester would probably check with the locals to find out what this desert's threats are.

[TawnyMyst]

My brother was in Aussieland for a few months last year and one of the things he did was a bus tour to Uluru, it was a week long ( I think) tour and took him thru the outback to end there and then he flew back to Brisbane from Alice Springs. Might be worth looking into, if they still run them.

[Seshat]

Yes, Outback bus tours are popular. There's also 'drive in a group' tours, where the tour organiser/leader is your desert survival expert and ensures everyone has everything they need.

There's an annual road trip from Adelaide to either Alice Springs or Darwin (I forget which) for the benefit of the Kidney Foundation, which is an extremely popular and very safe way to do that trip. They check every entrant for sufficient supplies (give you a list before you start), and they have lead and follow cars to make sure everyone makes it to each checkpoint safely.

[Nyoibo]

Another thing Fireheart didn't mention, it's not that far to go from McLaven Vale to the beach either, BTW if you want to do a proper tour of all the wineries in McLaren Vale, set aside 2-3 days, seriously, there are that many of them, aslo, don't discount the tiny little ones, some of them make some of the best wine and a couple produce a decent mead too.

All roads in urban areas are 50kmh unless otherwise marked, all highways and freeways are 110 unless otherwise marked, in the Norther Territory unless marked there are no speed limits.

[Greenday]

My friend really seems to have her heart set on New Zealand. She said she wants to do scuba diving and lots of hiking.

[Seshat]

South Island of New Zealand is amazing for hiking, I'm told. A lot of it is unspoiled wilderness, visited mostly by hikers who are practiced at the 'leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but memories' philosophy.

If she's taking you along and you're not a skilled hiker, do short, easy hikes. When you get to NZ, rent or buy a daypack with a camelback water holder. Make sure you pack two pairs of good, ankle supporting sneakers or hiking boots, pants that you can walk comfortably in for a couple of hours and are happy to get muddy, and comfortable shirts.
(This is just standard hiking advice, really. If you find you enjoy hiking, take the daypack back home with you.)

She should contact the New Zealand tourism board, and get a list of hikes suitable for her preferences in hiking, and your level of ability.

Scuba diving: I have no idea how much there is to see in NZ, scuba wise. THE place to scuba in Auz/NZ is, of course, the Great Barrier Reef. Everyone who scubas in either nation makes a point of scuba-ing there at least once in their life; and I know a couple who moved up there just so they could scuba and/or snorkel it whenever they wanted.

However, the Southern Ocean is also fantastic, and Melbourne has an aquarium devoted to Southern Ocean sea life. Sydney's aquarium is (IIRC) a Southern Pacific sea life aquarium. She may well enjoy visiting both, and doing the compare-and-contrast.
(I assume NZ has at least one major aquarium, but I know nothing about it. Last I knew, Brisbane didn't, and I don't know about Adelaide, Perth or Darwin. If Alice Springs has an aquarium, their fish would have to be imported from a looooong way!)

Australia has an abundance of hiking trails, and we do have worthwhile and interesting scuba sites other than the GB Reef. The Parks departments of each state has a website listing both their land and marine parks, and hiking/diving sites and trails.

Again, when your friend is choosing potential trails, make sure she keeps your level of ability in mind.

[Greenday]

I got my combat boots I wear out here. God are they amazing ankle support (When it rained for three weeks straight, they laid out tons of rocks to solve the flooding problem. It worked but man is it tough on the ankles.). I also have a giant ass backpack I got from my company I could put to use.

When I get my new kicks, I'm going to start working out again and get in shape so I should be good to go by then.

[Seshat]

There's a difference between general fitness, and being fit for difficult hiking trails. It's like the difference between general fitness, and being fit for .. is it 'black diamond'(?) ski slopes.

But yeah, if you're basically fit, then standard 'general public' hiking trails will cause you no problem at all. I'd just be wary of the trails only intended for serious hikers. Perhaps the two of you could do some practice hikes in your own area before you go.

BTW: A friend from the US, and Anna and I visited Wilson's Promentory national park. At one point, a wombat decided to waddle out of the bushes and browse on the track right in front of us. As in, we could have reached out and touched it! We stayed still and it was there for what seemed like five minutes before waddling on!

(We didn't touch it, of course. It seemed to be accustomed to humans being 'safe', but it's still a wild animal!)

[Greenday]

Well, she's back in the US and I'm still going to be here in Afghanistan until March when I take a month off. I'd love to climb the beautiful mountains in my area, but unfortunately there are people there who would love to blow me up/cut my head off/shoot me multiple times/etc.

[ApolloSZ]

We have Kelly Tarltons in Auckland. MOTAT (Museum of Travel and Transport) aswell.

Wellington has a sunken ship off the coast, specifically for diving/SCUBA enthusiast.

Seshat is right, South Island is AMAZING for scenery. The Alps, the Fjords, Kaikoura whale watching (depending when you come over).

North Island has Waiurou Army Museum (I'm guessing that may interest you Greenday). The Desert Road (no hiking there tho, army training area on both sides of the road).

Mt Ruapehu, Tongariro. If you PM me some stuff you'd be interested in, I can see what I can find for you.

[Seshat]

For climbing beautiful mountains, New Zealand is better than Australia. We do have mountains, but compared to NZ - or heck, most of the world - ours are worn out and tired.

Australia - as a continent - is one of the most ancient land masses in the world. We're in the middle of a plate, with very little geological activity. No folding, no vulcanism. Heck, the Glasshouse Mountains are so very old that they're just the volcanic plugs - none of the rest of the volcano remains.

Of course, in its own way, that's fascinating!

New Zealand is on the edge of the same plate Australia's on, and the South Island in particular gets the benefit of both folding and vulcanism. Thus it has beautiful, beautiful young mountains.

Or of course, you could always do a compare-and-contrast. NZ's young mountains, Australia's ancient ones.


We, too, have war museums. ANZACs (Australia/New Zealand Army Corps) often work together; I know Australian war museums regularly include the history of both nations' armed forces, and NZ veterans are totally welcome at RSL clubs (Returned Service League). I assume NZ war museums do the same.

Naturally, Australia has a massive collection of desert parks, desert trails, and so forth. As stated earlier, if you plan desert travel, please take appropriate precautions.