Today we got going quickly since we wanted to catch the 8:30 am discovery tour and we were supposed to be at the Visitor Centre half an hour before the tour. We were the only ones on the tour, which was good because the kids weren’t always quiet. We went back to the Walls of China lookout that we went to last night, but we were able to walk around the sand dunes and formations with the guide, who’s name was Robert. Robert showed us old middens, bones that were both in the ground and sitting on top, and he talked about the aboriginal culture a lot.
After the tour we started driving around the Mungo Drive loop which took us past several points of interest. Red Top Lookout was our first stop where we saw more of the eroded formations and Mungo Lake (it has been dry for 17,000 years). We were all hungry for lunch, so we bypassed Rosewood Rest and Mallee Stop and headed for Belah Camp. The mallee scrub was quite a different landscape to the low shrubs of the dry lake.
We found a shady spot at Belah Camp for lunch. It was bushier than the main camp where we set up our camper, and there was a toilet with water. I have been impressed with the toilets at the park which have all had a tank to collect rainwater that could be used for hand washing.
After lunch we stopped at Round Tank where there is a feral goat trap. They come to the water to drink and are unable to get out of the fence surrounding the dam once they are inside. They are then sold and the money raised supplements the funds of the park.
Our next stop was at Vigars Well which was used as a watering spot years ago. Just behind the water were sand dunes which were incredible to walk on. We sat on top of a dune and built sand castles….you just couldn’t find a better sand pit to play in! Unfortunately it was a bit windy, and Toby was pretty tired, so we didn’t spent as long there as we would have liked to.
The last stop before we got back to the visitors centre was another old woolshed. Then we went back to our campsite and started cooking our marinaded flat chicken and roast veggies for our dinner. Afterwards we went again to the visitors centre for showers and then it was back for bed. It was another beautiful evening, and although there were plenty of flies around during the day, there didn’t seem to be many insects at night. I also managed to snap a few Major Mitchell cockatoos as well before it got dark.
A formation in the Walls of China
Bone artifacts
Climbing a sand dune
At Red Top Lookout
Baked Emu footprint
Feral goat trap
Nathan with emu on the sand dunes
We made it!
A great sand pit!
