Birdsville Safari Pt 1

A week after the Dig Tree Safari we were on our way again, this time starting from Broken Hill with 70 motorhomes in convoy ranging from small 4WD compact campers to top of the line Winnibego motorhomes and a converted tour coach, several towing cars or trailers. After our experiences on the previous trip we decided to leave Scruffy and the trailer in safekeeping with a friend until this trip was over.  



Wall mural at Hawker



Everyone travelled pretty well spaced out over the first few days across to Yunta in S.A. and on through Peterborough to Craddock where we camped amongst the prickles behind the pub. From Craddock we went to Hawker where there is a panoramic painting of Wilpena Pound on the inside walls of a silo type structure and there are also some floor to ceiling scenic murals all painted in great detail.  

Flinders Ranges



From there we moved into the Flinders Ranges which are 500 – 600 million years old and are just the crumbling remains of huge mountains – still magnificent! The spring wild flowers were all coming out and the grass under the trees was green so everything looked nice and healthy - good to see after so many dry years. This was the first bits of unsealed road and came as a bit of a shock to some travellers who had never been off the black stuff, causing some to slow down considerably so that the group bunched up and so learned their first lesson about travelling too close in the dust.

 After a night camping in a creek bed at Beltana Sheep Station we continued north to where the real adventure began. Lyndhurst is the end of the sealed road and here we split into 2 groups, some going to Maree and then up the Birdsville Track where they had to cross the Cooper Creek by ferry, and the smaller group which included the vehicles too large for the ferry, went via the Strezlecki Track, Innaminka, Dig Tree and then north via the Annabury Road, so that we all met up again at Birdsville for the famous annual races.

 We chose to go with this second group of 13 motorhomes as we were only repeating a short distance of our previous travels. There were a few problems along the way with two Coaster buses stopping at Innaminka to repair a shock absorber and also trailer springs, and there were a couple of flat tyres from debris off the road such as a horseshoe nail.  

Feral camels



Once again we saw lots of native birds and also the usual kangaroos and one morning we finally saw some camels. As you read in my last blog it was VERY dusty but we enjoyed every minute and although the land is basically flat, it is constantly changing and showing new vistas of vast open country and the bare bones of this remote and ancient land. It is much more interesting to travel through than the more populated and “civilized” areas.

     Our last stop before Birdsville was at Betoota where there is nothing but a pub which is closed, the local cattle station homestead and a race track. We stayed at the race track and after getting the generator and pump working we had toilets, hot showers, fresh water and power!

Montecollina Bore- hot water from the artesian basin



Several stops on this trip were “freedom camping” with no facilities at all – just the wide open spaces and starry skies. Montecollina bore beside the Strezlecki Track is a fine example.

My next blog will cover the second half of this trip.