Thursday, Oct 11, 2012 at 19:30
Hi Craig
I have just received this email from Denis, so you should find it very interesting.
Cheers
Stephen
“The big choice was deciding what type of bedding I would carry — a lightweight backpacker’s tent, or a heavy, bulky swag. I arranged my gear in the canoe and came to the conclusion that I could accommodate my DB Swag. I preferred it anyhow, as after years of use I considered that I had designed a very practical unit.
For those who don’t know, a conventional swag consists of a flat piece of canvas. You place your bedding down the middle then pull one side over the top of you, then the other over on top of that. Very waterproof and allowing a quick exit if necessary. It also leaves ample room at the top and bottom for all sorts of creepy crawlies to wander through at will. Rolled and buckled with a couple of leather straps, it also doubles as a
seat or back rest around the campfire. That was back in the days when swags were for ringers and bushies and unchanged in design since early settlement.
However, in my lifetime a new type of swag had been born – it all started in front of the reeds surrounding
Purni Bore on the western edge of the
Simpson Desert …
I was up early and having a wash in the hot pool when I noticed this very large King Brown snake, at least six feet long, coming across the flat towards my
campsite. He didn’t detour, and when he got to my swag and food boxes he gave them a thorough going-over: looking in my bed and checking everything out in minute detail before finally continuing on his way, disappearing into the reeds. I’d been lying there only moments earlier; the thought of waking up and stretching or eyeballing him just as he arrived alongside me didn’t bear thinking about. I hate snakes anyhow.
So I designed a modern swag with zips and mesh to defeat the early morning flies, mosquitoes, bugs, creepy crawlies and the likes of the
Purni Bore King Brown. I also wanted the canvas cover to stay clear of my face. It needed to be tough, waterproof, green, and suitable for future gold
fossicking ventures in the hot tropical north, or exploration in the cold of the desert interior. Above all, it must look like a conventional swag when rolled and on the back of a truck.
The DB swag is ready for use after tying one end up to the bullbar or a tree, and then it only needs a kick in the middle to unroll it. No pegs, no poles, no hassles – and there were no comparisons at that time. After designing and spending months at a time in this ‘
home away from
home’, it is flattering to note that my new concept created so long ago is now available in a range of great new swag designs and look-alikes and even a few blatant copies of the original DB Swag. First marketed by a company in
Adelaide about 1979, demand has steadily increased amongst the 4x4 fraternity, who could see the benefits of ‘swagging it’, and acceptance has continued to grow with station people and exploration groups. I was glad to be able to use
mine for this trip.”
Now for the interesting bit – the person who stitched the original DB Swag for me back 30 odd years ago is still sewing them for an
Adelaide company. Members who are interested can go to www.cowdenblinds.com.au and click DB Swag for photos and contact details – ask for Scott and tell him DB himself sent you !!!
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