Off road

Today we woke to a much cooler morning after a warm day yesterday. We decided it was time to do a little touring and drive out to Hermannsburg. It is an Aboriginal community about an hour out of Alice Springs and the site of the first Aboriginal Mission in the Northern Territory.

Towns like these it isn't just children that are on the roads

Some historical facts:

• Hermannsburg mission was established in 1877 by the Lutheran Church.
• It was the first Christian community developed in Central Australia.
• Hermannsburg was named after the town of the same name in Germany, where the two Lutheran missionaries who established the Hermannsburg mission completed their training, before being sent to Australia to spread the word of their Christian faith. 
• Hermannsburg was also the birthplace of Albert Namatjira, famous Aboriginal artist, who began a water color art school on site.
• The Lutheran's established a strong community. They brought livestock to the land and built a school.

I believe the missionaries really did mean well. Their heart was in the right place. They believed the Aborigine's of the area needed 'saving' and that they could help them and in some ways they did. They educated children, provided employment opportunities and stood up for their rights. However, I can't help but think of the removal of tradition and culture. Aboriginal people had been living on the land for thousands of years before Europeans settled. They had their established beliefs and values and strong family units. All of a sudden these people found themselves wearing clothes, trying to understand a language they've never heard and attended church. With more close reading about the site, the missionaries of Hermannsburg worked hard to protect their community when the government introduced their 'assimilation' laws. Clearly, this is a complex issue and will no doubt be for generations to come. I believe that more can and needs to be done to bridge the still very visible gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.

Because we had extra time, the 200km round trip was worth it. If you're only staying in Alice Springs a couple of days you might want to reconsider driving out there. The buildings are quite derelict and you can learn more about this significant place by reading about it.

It's a fixer-upper

Check out the mountains

Rainbow Bee-Eater

From here we drove on to Palm Valley, somewhat off the beaten track. Despite the 'High Clearance 4WD only' signs, we decided we'd attempt the track. We drove out to the picnic area for a lunch stop and were planning to drive further on to do a walk among the palms, but the road just got far too rocky. The stretch to the picnic spot was red sand and rocky patches, which was actually the bed of the Finke River. Of course, it was completely dry, but during the rainy season, you would need a serious vehicle to cross it. We know our limits and decided to turn around and head back to Alice Springs.

About a kilometre out of Hermannsburg, we stopped at a monument dedicated to Albert Namatjira; famous Aboriginal activist and artist. I replaced the flowers that had blown into the scrub.

On the drive back to Alice Springs, a strange sight caught our eye on the side of the road so of course, we had to pull over and investigate. There was a line of prams with a handmade painted sign that read 'Pram Creek Two'. I couldn't help but wonder where on Earth 'Pram Creek One' was.