by Peter Nelson
We had the whole place to ourselves for a few days, and that was one awesome experience.
We spent a couple of days just wandering around the base, poking into all the little caves, and exploring the little oases created by what little rain did fall. Kind of spooky in these isolated spots of greenery. You could really feel some strange vibrations in there. Almost an electrical humming. No wonder the Aborigines consider it a spiritual centre.
Okay, time to head out. Sure hated to leave The Rock, and we knew it was gonna be a long, dry trek back out to the main road. And maybe a long, dry wait before we can get a lift. So we stop at the little store to stock up on whatever liquids they have that we can carry out. And what do they have? Grapefruit juice! Sixteen 1-quart cans of the stuff! Well, beggars can’t be choosers, so we bought all of it. Any idea how much that much canned juice weighs? Just under 40 pounds. Just what I wanted to carry for the next few days!
We managed to get a lift out to the road, but that driver was going north, and we were heading south. So he dropped us off at the highway intersection and drove away. Boy, was that a lonely feeling — watching his dust trail disappear.
Well, babe, here we are, I guess. So we sat down to wait. And wait. And wait.
And wait.
