Long before gun control and the miracles of the modern cell phone we trekked to Edith Falls to hear the cicadas sing. What we were searching for was beyond Wagnerian sublimity, the supposed discovery of alien life-forms depicted in ancient rock art, lizard-like beings gesturing toward a celestial body in outer space, no doubt evidence of extraterrestrial visits with the promise that the visitors would one day return. What we found at the upper pool where the water spilled over the rugged escarpment were tall Scandinavians skinny-dipping without shame, seeking the mystical healing power of goanna oil and pondering the…