We needed a few supplies before heading out to Uluru and spent much of the morning in the township of Alice Springs getting it all sorted. We purchased an old fashioned rainbow sherbet colored woolen blanket an original Onkaparinga to keep us warm at night. Last night was really cold, and no doubt there will be several more cold nights before we make our way north again. The blanket is a little bulky but I know we will be glad to have it. It was 2:30pm before we finally got on the road! Kev and I have the 4:30 pm rule…We will not ride past 4:30 pm due to the potential kangaroo activity close to the roads edge. The roos really enjoy the "sweet grass" that grows there and have a confusing habit of bounding right out in front of you. "Sweet grass" is lush green grass that is watered daily by the dew run off from the roads. Today will be a very short riding day!

We pulled into a free camp just beside the Finke River, scored a picnic table, fire pit and a cozy spot under a few young gums. We really could not have pulled into a prettier spot! The river was dry, but the area was alive with color, mature trees and flocks of screechy Galahs. Kev walked down to the river bed and collected an arm load of fire wood for the night. It was an interesting night! We had an enthusiastic visit by a couple of indigenous gals looking for cigarettes. Only one spoke english and I could see that Kev was having a hard time trying to decipher what the other gal was saying in her native tongue. They did not get what they were looking for and proceeded to drive onto the next camping area. That became the story of the night as the fellow campers gathered around our campfire to exchange thoughts!