This is going to be my diary entries during my road trip. Hoping to capture some memories in writing and pictures via this blog. So, that means that this post would get kind of boring. Have done a quick summary if you want a overview of events. If you want the costs of my trip, you can go to https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UOCBBykZ45unQRYMfjVcdLgO3eaQMwi1dYCq3JhXWSk
Summary of events:
12Dec – Drove 4.5hours from Naracoorte Caves to Adelaide. Spent the night in Adelaide.
13Dec – Drove 10 hours from Adelaide to Coober Pedy, where I stayed the night in an underground backpackers’ dorm. Saw 2 emus along the way. That was exciting!
14Dec – Started driving from 5am(SA time) to reach Hermannsburg at 2pm(NT time), which is 10 hours of driving to meet up friends, Gowree, Shan and Dinesh. “Listened” to “Fellowship of the Ring” along the way. Went to Gosse Bluff to enjoy the views. Along the way, there were horses and camels. Nice!
Entry for 12Dec: Naracoorte Caves – Adelaide
Was a bit disappointed as there were no wallabies grazing during dawn when I woke up. The whole plan was to wake up to see them grazing which happened the last time I camped there.
Started the day later than usual as I knew I had a short drive to do. The plan was to drive to Adelaide which is about 4 hours away, meet my sister-in-law’s grandmother, then head further north. Would play by ear and decided where I wanted to spend the night depending on how tired I was or how interesting the place was. The goal was to just drive further north to have a shorter drive the next day. However, in the end, I stayed the night at my sister-in-law’s grandmother’s home for the night. Which means that I would have a 10 hours drive the next day.
A rainbow to start the day. 
When I met up with my sister-in-law’s grandmother, she asked me to stay the night, and I obliged. She cooked a delicious vegetarian meal for dinner. Lucky me! I had seconds!
Entry for 13Dec: Adelaide – Coober Pedy
Got ready for my longest drive yet on this trip. Left at 5am and drove for about 10 hours with several stops along the way.
Was very surprised that the weather today was really cooling. It was windy on the whole journey. I think I was just lucky that it was so cooling.
Looks hot but when I took this photo, it was very cold. 
My petrol was running a bit low, so I had no choice but to pump petrol at such expensive prices. At the big cities, I pumped petrol at about 130-140cents. Further out here, I have been pumping petrol around 160cents. This is 180cents! Plan your route, there are bigger towns with more than 1 petrol station, so the prices of petrol are cheaper. Namely, Coober Pedy, Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine, etc. 
The most exciting part of the trip was seeing 2 emus in the wild. When I tried to turn back to try to take a photo of them, they slowly strolled in the bushes. Darn!! But exciting!!
Why is there a pedestrian crossing in the middle of nowhere?
Be careful when walking around Coober Pedy. They dug holes around to search for Opals. 
Reached Coober Pedy at about 3pm. Did not explore Coober Pedy during this trip since I have explored it 2 years ago. If you are here, check out the various underground (cave) churches and hotels. There is a kangaroo/wallaby rescue centre 2 years ago. Though I am not sure if this is still around. You can go see and feed the kangaroos/wallabies at certain timings. Donations are appreciated for this. I did that 2 years ago and it was a great close up experience with the kangaroo/wallabies.
Checked into Radeka Down Under Backpackers Inn. 
My bed for $30/night in the “Dungeon”.
Entry for 14Dec: Coober Pedy – Hermannsburg
Started the drive again at 5am (SA time) and I woke up at about 4:30am, since I slept at 8pm the night earlier. I expected a 10 hours drive to reach Hermannsburg.
The drive was rather uneventful. Did stay on the road for about 10 hours of 807km. Along the way, there were limited radio stations to listen to, and I did not download any songs. I had planned to listen to my apps on my phone, but since there is no reception, that was not possible. So, I had the brilliant idea of “listening” to extended version of The Lord of the Rings – Fellowship of the Ring on my laptop. Kept me awake and imagining the various scenes in the movie. Great idea!
Reached Hermannsburg at 2pm (NT time). Met up with Gowree, Shan and Dinesh, and we headed off to Gosse Bluff for the amazing views.
Along the way, there were wild horses!
Gosse Bluff. Beautiful in real life. 
Gowree made a fabulous dinner.
Then I called it a night. Slept like a log.
Will travel 