2009 Trip - Beulah to the Canning Stock Route Well 5

2009 Canning and Kimberley Trip

The first part of our trip took us over familiar territory through Hopetoun to the Patchewollock road then Walpeup and the border of SA at Pinaroo. We stopped for something to eat then continued on as the night closed in around us. At Cadell we crossed the Murray River on the ferry and finally arrived at Burra about 10pm where we had a motel room booked. A change of essentials in hand we headed for our room and settled down to sleep before the real adventure got underway in the morning.

A good night’s sleep was not to be as the pillows were hard and I was cold. I didn‘t think to look for extra blankets until after the chill had reached my bones and why I didn’t bring my own pillows from the camper I‘ll never know. Oh well, it meant that I was awake before 6am and we were on the road by 6.30 which made for a nice early start. It was cold and misty as we drove off but soon the sky cleared and we were heading up through Horrock’s Pass and down into Port Augusta where we stopped for some breakfast at the BP Service Station.

Between Glendambo and the northern turn off for Kingoonya we stopped for lunch at a roadside area and for fuel at Coober Pedy. Although we’d intended to stop at Cadney Park we felt fresh enough to drive on the extra distance to Marla where we set up for the night at about 5.30pm. Marla campground only charges $10 for unpowered sites which is great and their showers are excellent despite having to have a pin number to get in the door. A bit of fun in the middle of the night for some people!! We watched a bit of the AFL in their hotel before tiredness overcame us and we headed for bed.

Next morning we got away early again and drove northwards into the beautiful sunshine. In no time it seemed that we were in the Northern Territory and at Erldunda where we received a message from Bucky and Lyn who were awaiting our arrival at Yulara.

We stopped for lunch at a roadside stop with a view of Mt Connor and at about 3pm we rolled into the campground, caught up with our travelling companions then went out for a pre-trip meal to celebrate the beginning of the adventure.

We flashed our permits to the person in charge of the Uluru park station next morning and turned the vehicles towards the west. The bitumen ended after Kata Tjuta and the signs telling us that we were on unsealed roads with all the associated warnings meant that we were finally heading out into the desert country. The Great Central Road was excellent as we headed westward.

We stopped for a cuppa and a walk to lonely Lasseter’s Cave and stopped for an ice cream at the Docker River store where we had to dodge several scrawny dogs. Before long we were crossing the WA border and still the road continued to be excellent. Confusion reigned for a while at Warrakurna since we thought we were on WA time but found that we were still on Central Time and luckily for us, we had about five minutes to race out and see the launch of the weather balloon at Giles. We jumped into our vehicles and arrived just as the show began. It was very interesting and we were all glad that we’d been able to include it in our day.

We especially enjoyed looking at all the memorabilia and Len Beadell’s cartoons.

At Warrakurna we back tracked a bit to the Wingellina road where we headed south looking for a camp. After a couple of false hopes we found a faint track heading off through the scrub to quite a large reasonably clear area which we all decided was perfect for a camp. Before long we had dug a pit and had a fire going as we made our meals then sat around talking and watching the night sky fill with stars.

Next morning we travelled to Wingellina through some beautiful country with ranges looming up on the horizon. Wingellina was welcoming, people and dogs everywhere and much healthier dogs than the skinny, poor things we‘d seen at Docker River. Everyone we met said hello and pointed us in the right direction with smiles. At the Community Office we fought with several dogs for space until we were we met by Lance who was our guide to the corner. Lance ushered us into the office where a young man behind the desk quickly ran us through all the formalities and took our money. Lance sat back taking it all in, interjecting every now and then when he thought something wasn’t to his liking.

Now we were following Lance out over the tracks to the corner where he gave us a little talk about how there came to be two corner posts etc. We asked him a few questions about his life and he offered to have his photo taken with us which we gladly accepted. All that done it was time to leave Lance, Surveyor Generals Corner and Wingellina and since it was still before lunch we stopped for a bite to eat at a grader scrape then on we went.

After we’d rejoined the Great Central Road it was on to Warburton for some supplies. Warburton had gone “on line” with mobile phone reception just a week or so before we arrived there so it was a chance to make some calls and leave messages. They had fruit and since we couldn’t bring it over the border we greatly appreciated being able to get some in stock. After stocking up and getting the necessary ice cream we drove off towards the Heather Highway and a camp for the night. This turned out to be difficult as we were driving into the late afternoon sunlight and we were fortunate enough to find a cleared spot off to the side of the road just before the sun sank completely. Camp set up, a meal made, we chatted then fell into our beds after what had been a big day.

The Heather Highway began deceptively well. The grader must have been along this stretch and we sailed along happily until the junction where it turns to the north. From here on the going was slow. It began with a narrow track over rocky rises and so it continued interspersed with rocky wash outs, sandy stretches and corrugations. Not that we were worrying too much since the views were magnificent and we were enjoying the day. We reached the Gunbarrel Highway and turned to the west with the corrugations stretching out before us. They were relentless and seemed unending. We moved slowly along making our way towards Mt Beadell where we drove to the top.

What a great view! We stood there for ages just staring out into the distance. We stopped for lunch at the base of Mt Beadell and found that the corrugations had shaken the grill loose on our camper stove. The stove was ancient and the fault was mine. I had carefully padded so many other things but not once thought of the stove. It wasn’t a drama though since it just meant that we couldn’t use the grill….and it did make good toast!
Nothing to be done about it and at least we did have the wire mesh toasters as back ups. On we went with the corrugations beginning to wear on our state of mind. At 3.30 we called it a day and made camp to rest up and relax. We made a camp fire, cooked up a feast and talked until the fire died down and it was time for sleep.

In the morning we continued on towards Mt Everard where the Gary Highway heads to the north. At Geraldton Bore we stopped for a cuppa then it was on to Mangkilli Claypan and Mt Nossiter where we walked to the top.
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Before long we arrived at Carnegie Station and our Gunbarrel Highway crossing was at an end. Although it had been gruelling, it was one of those “roads” that you want to travel and we felt pleased to have done that plus the scenery was beautiful, mountains, wild flowers and large groups of camels everywhere. Since it was early we discussed whether to go on but the thought of hot showers definitely influenced our decision and we stayed! We got fuel, showers, rested up and chatted to fellow travellers for the rest of the afternoon
There were quite a few travellers at Carnegie including a group of motor bike riders who were doing an east/west crossing- Steep Point to Byron Bay. We got talking to a couple of blokes who were joining a Beadell Tour and spent the evening chatting away happily.

Next morning we drove off into a bright, sunny morning headed for the Canning Stock Route via Glenayle Station and Granite Peaks Station. The roads were excellent, almost felt like we were on the bitumen they were so smooth. There’s an interesting section of road between the two stations called Sydney Heads Pass. Apparently it looks like Sydney Heads although I couldn’t see why but it was lovely with rich red rocks on either side of the road. We took the back track to Granite Peaks which was just a narrow station track, quite good driving on it though and interesting country to have a look at.
It brought us into the homestead on the west side. No one was there so we paid our fees to use their track in an honesty box, continued on past cattle yards, wind mills and bores following the signs that said CSR and before long we were at Well 5 and our Canning Stock Route journey had begun.

Next: Well 5 to Durba Springs

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