Exploring Central Australia's green heartland

THE heavily laden work ute was bogged. Really bogged! And the young tradie who had been there for five hours already was really glad to see us.

We had been heading north from the small community of Apatula (Finke) and dodging around a wide, flooded area of track when we heard a bit of a distress call over the CB. Turns out it was another tradie who had spied our bogged mate and asked us to help.

In the end we had two vehicles, each with a double-line pull, hauling our stricken friend from the red mire. When I asked him if he was heading for Apatula, his reply was definite: “Not any bloody more I’m not. I’m going home, they can stick it. Thanks for the help!”

And with that he was gone!

Then, as we were trying to get out of the firmish area we had parked ourselves on, Trent’s 79 sunk in the red slush and we spent another half-hour extracting him and his trailer.

We were nearing the end of four weeks of wandering the outback with my son’s Moon Tours and while this recovery was one of the more intricate ones, it was by no means the only one.

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Initially, our little convoy had left Birdsville and, because of a flood warning on Eyre Creek, we were told the only way open into the desert was via the long, circuitous route of the Warburton Track. While it was a long detour we were just glad to be allowed to head into the desert, our group being one of the first, if not the first, to head west from Birdsville for the year.

We dodged around a little as we headed west, striking north to Poeppel Corner first where we came across a couple of vehicles bogged in the centre of the nearby salt lake. We took the diversion track around the north of the lake and wondered why these travellers hadn’t done the same. Their nonchalant replies and cocky attitude beggared belief really and, while we made sure they had water and didn’t need a sat phone to call for help, we left them to it.

Our route then took us down past the Approdinna Attora Knolls on to the WAA Line, a route less used than the French Line and one, I must say, I prefer. With a diversion to the Lone Gum we hit the western end of the French Line and, with the track improving greatly after Purni Bore, we made it to Mt Dare that evening, our fifth night since leaving Birdsville.

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Not sure why anyone drives out on to a wet salt pan, especially when there is a bypass track

RAIN COMING

Greeted by Graham and Sandra, the current owners of this fine establishment, with dire warnings that heavy rain was on its way, we bailed out next morning before the roads closed and as the first spits of rain heralded more on the way.

At Kulgera and the safety of the bitumen the next day, we found dirt roads were closing all around us, with even the bitumen highway to Uluru and the road along the Western Macs from Alice Springs both closed due to flood waters rushing down the normally dry river beds. It seemed choices for a dirt-road adventure were dwindling fast!

A call to a friend who was running Kings Creek Station gave us some positive news with the proviso to watch the flooded creek crossings, but they were already receding when we arrived. That evening we opened the campers and I threw down my swag along the ridge-top camp they called the Drovers Rest, which has inspiring views north to the red raw ramparts of the George Gill Range. The property itself is pretty well set-up for campers and travellers, with a range of accommodation and facilities. With a new owner, expect even more and bigger changes in the future.

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KINGS CANYON

As we waited for roads to dry and creeks to subside further, we took the opportunity to explore nearby spectacular Kings Canyon and later joined the manager at Kings Creek as he led us around the property which is basically being destocked. An ancient Aboriginal rock-art site was a highlight before we headed over the road to join an Aboriginal family and their Karrke Cultural Tour, run by Peter and Elma, traditional owners of the area. Over the years we’ve done a few of these tours in different areas of Australia, but this was one of the best and most informative.

Next day with news the Eastern Macs were open, we headed up the blacktop, crossing a strongly flowing Finke River which was worth a stop to view this rare happening. With news that the Hugh River Stock Route and the Old Ghan Line Road were both open, we headed that way and hardly saw any sign of water; although, the country was green from rain that had fallen through here a month or so previously. The only other travellers we saw were a couple of young Aboriginal men who had broken down, and we stopped and got them going again before continuing.

The sun was heading to the western horizon as we drove along the southern flank of the Eastern Macs, the evening light showering the mountains in the rich, reddish glow of the setting sun – it was magical!

We stopped that evening in the pleasant confines of the camping ground at the historic Ross River Homestead, one of the iconic properties of Central Australia and one of the first properties in the heart of the country to look at tourism as a way of surviving this often harsh land.

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Back track on Kings Creek Station

The nearby N’Dhala Gorge, reached next day at the end of a reasonable 4WD track, was so green it nearly obscured the red rocks the gorge is so well-known for, while flowing water and deep waterholes were another pleasant surprise.

We headed east, stopping at a couple of historic sites in the Arltunga Historical Reserve and, while I’ve been here a few times, it is always an interesting place, depicting a time when pioneer prospectors helped open up the heart of the country with little more than their own feet, tough hands and a lot of manual labour.

That evening we pulled into the very pleasant and well set-up Hale River Homestead and the rich hospitality of the owners, Lynne and Sean and daughter Tracy, along with her two great kids. Set amongst the hills on the northern edge of the spectacular East MacDonnell Ranges and close to the ephemeral Hale River, it was so good our group elected to stay another day. We joined Sean on a trip around the property that the family is turning into a model of sustainable grazing for their small herd of prime cattle. As the heat of the afternoon descended, all of our party retired to the relief of the pool made from a large shipping container and decked out better than most suburban pools. Then it was time for a meal at the famous old workshed the family has converted into a fabulous rustic bar and lounge area.

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The old ruins at Arltunga Historical Reserve have been well-preserved

FLOWER SHOW

Next day, with word that the track south to Old Andado Station was open, we tore ourselves away and backtracked before taking the Santa Teresa Road through a country where the grass was seemingly growing as you looked at it. In places amongst the sandhill country farther south, daisies were starting to bloom, heralding a wildflower season in the centre of Australia that is bound to amaze travellers and locals alike in the coming months.

As we got closer to Old Andado, the country became less green as it had missed much of the rain of a month or so previously, but had received a drenching just days earlier. The track itself was relatively dry, our wheels throwing up a thin whisp of dust as we headed south, following one of the dunes that mark the western edge of the Simpson Desert. In between these widely spread dunes, the flat gibber stone country had any low-lying pan covered in a sheet of water.

Old Andado Station’s historic homestead is much the same as when the legendary Molly Clark lived there. With COVID and no travellers though, there hasn’t been a caretaker in residence for more than a year, and the dust had blown in and cobwebs hung from the rafter and across the desk where the old RFDS radio still stands. It was a sad sight but everything is still in place, so hopefully another caretaker will be found that can have the water running, the showers and toilets working, and the dust and cobwebs relegated to their rightful place.

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Old Andado is well worth a stop and makes a good camp

The following day we headed along better roads towards New Crown Station, the road showing more and more signs of the heavy rains of a week or so previously.

By the time we got to where the mighty Finke River breaks into a series of wide channels, as it occasionally oozes into the desert to expire amongst the Simpson’s sands, the road was rough and the approaches to the road crossing of the main channel washed away. In its place was a dry stretch of deep, soft sand with hardly a patch of water to be seen, but the first vehicle across got stopped in the sandy morass, which required a few Maxtrax before it was on the move again.

Then, with the Maxtrax still in place, the rest of our convoy slipped across without a worry.

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Inside Old Andado is much the same as when Molly Clark lived here

At the Aboriginal community of Apatula we fuelled up and took a heavy toll on the steak sandwiches and sausage rolls of the general store while yarning to a few of the locals who were looking forward to the annual Finke Desert Race in June once more, after a break in 2020 due to bloody COVID.

Just north of the small community the main track to Alice Springs, part of the historic Old Ghan Railway Line route, we crossed a still flowing Finke River.

Talking to a young jackaroo who had pulled up to let us pass, he informed us that the river had been in flood for more than a week and the crossing had been closed up until that morning. While the crossing itself was a little soft, it wasn’t an issue, but it was so good to see water flowing into the desert and to experience what is, in fact, a very rare occurrence.

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It was a few kilometres north of the Finke River when we came across our bogged tradie and spent more than an hour extracting him and then one of the recovery vehicles. With that adventure behind us we pushed north, the sun heading to the distant horizon and our group pulling up for the evening beside the old fettlers’ cottages at the now defunct railway siding at Rodinga.

It was our last night camped in the desert after what had been a momentous few weeks in the very heart of Australia. While the rain and water had closed roads and changed our plans considerably, the trip was made even more memorable by the verdancy of the landscape so different to the norm and the burgeoning explosion of life brought on by the rains. We’ll never forget it!

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Don’t miss these spots in the red centre

1. Dalhousie Springs, SA
2. Kings Creek Station, NT
3. N’Dhala Gorge, NT
4. Arltunga Historical Reserve, NT
5. Hale River Homestead, NT