July 12th, 2011, Devils Marbles Camp site

Tuesday morning saw us on a short travel day of 100Km to the Devils Marbles. We stopped at roadhouse at Wycliffe Well as per Alan Pierson's suggestion. All I can say is it is one hell of a way to get people to stop in the middle of nowhere. UFO Capital of the World apparently. As you can see we saw a few strange characters.

We travelled North through Wauchope to Devils Marbles arriving around 10am. We were advised to get to this site early as it gets quite busy. They weren't wrong as there were close to 50 caravans, motorhomes, and camper vans, of different sizes and shapes crowded into whatever space they could find by late afternoon. We reckon another 30 came in and left because it was too full. Luckily we were there in good time and had a good selection of sites. As you can see from the photo our van had an excellent outlook. Facilities are basic for such a popular spot with only two pit toilets for the whole campsite. Fees are reasonable at $3.30 per person which seems to be consistent for National Parks in Northern Territory. A lot more reasonable than the $10/person in NSW plus daily vehicle entry fee of $7.

The Devils Marbles are another incredible part of Australia. Once again you really need to see them in person to appreciate. They are basically just sitting there in the middle of nowhere like the Olgas and Uluru. We only explored small sections as they stretch out for quite a distance. A great place for kids to explore and climb although you would definately want adult supervision for some of the higher locations. As you will see from some of the photos we all had some fun acting like kids too! We all had a couple of walks and climbs during the day. Sandra, Carol, Stephen, and I made it to the top however Sandra didn't stay long enough for a photo. It got quite crowded while we were at the top and it was a bit nerve wracking as some people are just idiots and obviously don't know that gravity will really, really hurt them! We moved on to quieter areas and enjoyed some other climbs with just the 4 of us. We returned at Sunset for some pictures but unfortunately the sunset was not nearly as spectacular as the sunrise that morning at Taylor's Creek. The colours were still amazing!
We also got some shots of a Dingo and a number of Black Kites.

Definitely on our must see list and I would suggest staying overnight so you can do a number of walks through them at different times of the day. Like so many of the sights in the Centre of Australia the colours change so much with the changing sunlight. Get there early if you want to get a good spot!