West Maconnell Ranges and Alice Springs

Dear Grade 4,
Sorry I haven't written for a while. I've been having so much fun that I forgot. I"ve also been off line out in the West Macdonnell Ranges.

I hope you all have been having fun, because I definitely have been because it's my sisters birthday.

We went to Ellery Big Hole. It is a narrow gap in the rocky range where a creek runs through and you can swim in it. No Crocs.

We visited the Ochre pits which is a place where Aborigines found the clay that they used to paint their bodies for ceremonies. In the photo below I'm holding a lump of yellow ochre and I've painted my hand with it.

We spent 2 nights at Red Bank Gorge. This was also a gap in the rocky range where a creek flowed and you could swim. I found a Grasshopper at our campsite. It is VERY well camouflaged. See if you can see it in the second photo.

We did a BIG walk around Ormiston Gorge Pound. (Like a dish). There is Rocks there that have the ripples from the bottom of the ocean or a river on them.

Yesterday we went to the School of the Air. The students only see their teachers once or twice a year at Open School Day, where they travel hundreds of Km to Alice Springs for school sports and to meet their teachers and other students. Their lessons are done over the internet and used to be done with a radio.

From Tom