I was inbound Alice Springs via Deep Well in my Auster a few years ago in awful strong, gusty winds. The tower gave me an update of the ATIS and the direction was veering all over the place.
i asked if the grass was available and she came back with a negative. Luckily the wind was pointing down the strip as I landed and I was able to taxi to the parking bays looking somewhat wistfully at the lovely, wide expanse of manicured grass beside the bitumen.
I went up and spoke to the Contrroller afterwards and told her the grass looked terrific and would have been by far the best option for a tail-dragger especially in cross-winds of 20+KN. She said that they thought it would be too rough and didn’t understand the demands that cross-winds could impose.
it was a billiard table compared to some place I have landed.
kaz