Perth to Coober Pedy Day 4 - Yeo Homestead to 30kms past Aboriginal Stone Formations

Day 4 - Thursday 6/6/02
Start - Yeo Homestead
Stop - 30kms past Aboriginal stone formations
Trip Odometer - 218.1km
Stopped time - 2:50:52 hrs
Moving average - 52.3km/hr
Moving time - 4:10:20 hrs
Max speed - 84.9km/hr

Awoke fresh and early at 6.30am but there was plenty of sunshine so we took our time to look around until 9am.

Track conditions from Yeo Homestead to the east were initially very dense with trees crowding the straight track. Further on the we crossed spinifex plains and then the tracks became sandy and very winding with lots of broken tree branches overhanding the track.

There was so much twisting and turning over the sandy track that Leah was car sick - something I hadn't anticipated. David had to slow his driving speed a little and we removed Leah's books from her toy bag in an effort to get her looking out the window rather than looking down.

The twisting track continues all the way to Neale Junction but suddenly stops and becomes as real Len Beadell track - flat, straight and fast easy travelling.

Neale Junction is the crossroads of the Connie Sue and Anne Beadell "Highways".

There a beautiful grove of gum trees opposite the junction that would make an excellent camp except that it is right on the edge of the track. Many people use this as a fuel drop off point and a "man" has been constructed out of all the empty drums so its not hard to miss.

23.7km east of Neale Junction the track passes right over an old dirt airstrip that would be easy to miss if you weren't aware of it. If you stop you will notice a faint track to the north (left for eastbound travellers). Drive up here for about 20m and you come to a small clearing that is used as a campsite. Pick up a rough walking trail or make your own way back to the west and you'll find the ground is covered with stones that at first appear to be scattered naturally. As you follow these stones and think laterally you start to see the first appearances of purposeful stone placements, similar to a basic track border.

As you walk further on you will notice large shapes and formations that have been constructed by the stone placements, said to be aboriginal.

There is plenty of firewood along the Anne Beadell so we drove for another 30km along easy a fast section of track to find the next campsite marked on the RHS by a simple barrel.