Going through the Simpson Desert - By Jake Lumsden

Jake Lumsden is our nine year old grandson who lives in New Zealand with his parents and younger brother and sister.  The photos below are of Jake and his brother, Tim aged 8, preparing to leave their mum and sister at the Auckland Airport. 

They travelled the trip from Melbourne to Townsville via the Simpson Desert with us and this is Jake's account of his trip.


Jake and Tim at Auckland Airport
Prior to departure

Little Sister Zoe there to supervise

A snack before they board

Zoe watches them leave -
no she doesn't turn around
Zoe they are out of the window

Going - Going Gone

Getting ready to go

Today my younger brother Tim and I travelled on our own to Melbourne. Our plane arrived at 5.30pm in Melbourne.  The air host came and got us through customs and through the final doors to where Nan and Grandad were.  The air host checked Nan’s ID so they could tell she was the right person to leave us with. Finally we could go to bed we were really tired. The Patrol was partly packed already we just needed to finish it in the morning.  Connor arrived late tonight once we had gone to bed.  Connor is my cousin that is going to be travelling with us turned up.   

The next day we are packed ready to go. Today we are going from Melbourne to Mildura it was 545 km’s. About 20 km’s out of Mildura we had to throw all of our fruit out because of the risk of spreading fruit flies in the area because of the excellent citrus fruit grown in the area.  They grow lots of grapes, limes, mandarins and oranges.

Having our first meal in Australia

 27/5/2013

Today we travelled 380 km’s to Burra. At Burra we saw some fossils at the town council building. There was the skull and part of the spine.

Burra is 150 km’s north of the Mildura and the Murray River.  Also known as the mighty Murray, because when the settlers came to Australia they used the Murray for food E.G fish, transport and water from the river to water their crops but they couldn’t drink it because it is so muddy so they had to find fresh water lakes that leads to the Murray. 

Our cabin

A steam paddler on the Murray

28/5/2013

Today we travelled 380 km’s to Leigh Creek. Did you know that Leigh creek was built for the excellent coal mining, they fill a 2.8 km train every day and that makes up 50% of South Australia’s power?

29/5/2013

Today we travelled 365 km’s to William Creek. William Creek only has one pub and no shops. Tonight is our first night in the tents and in the tent it will be for the rest of the trip until we get to Townsville. Today I used my fly net for the first time on this trip.

30/5/2013

Today we travelled 380 km’s to Oodnadatta.     

The pink roadhouse

Our plans were to stay at Oodnadatta but we continued on to Hamilton station.  The flies there were so annoying.

The flies at Hamilton station

31/5/2013

Today we travelled 255 km’s to Dalhousie Springs. At Dalhousie Springs there is a billabong that is 38 degrees hot. In the billabong there was a little type of goby that only lived in that billabong called the Dalhousie goby that nibbled at the dead skin on your feet and when you ran your hand over your feet it was so smooth. During the day the flies were all over you but at night there were mosquitoes which were all over you!   

1/6/2013                                                                                     

At the beginning of the
Simpson Desert

Today we travelled 150 km’s to our first night in the dessert bypassing Purni Bore. The bore at Purni Bore is 3-5 km’s deep and 85 degrees hot and is filled with mud and animal droppings. After lunch we headed into the Simpson Desert.

2/6/2013

Today we travelled 50 km’s to the second night in the desert.

Me on the sled

Tim playing with the whip

  

Me playing with the whip

3/6/2013

Today we travelled 115 km’s to Poeppel’s Corner. Poeppel’s Corner is where the Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland all meet.      

 

4/6/2013

Today we travelled 120 km’s to Birdsville.  We went over Big Red. Big Red is the largest sand dune in the whole of Australia!!     

Big red!!

In Birdsville there were lots and lots of road trains!!!           

 One of many road trains

5/6/2013

Today we travelled 380 km’s to Boulia. We also saw some small planes that look a lot like the Royal Flying Doctor Service but sadly they were not the Royal Flying Doctor Service.L   When we were nearly there we saw a man rounding up his horses and in among all the horses we saw a camel!!  

6/6/2013

Today we travelled 380 km’s to Winton.  At Winton there is the Waltzing Matilda Centre.

At Winton there is also the Age of the Dinosaur’s museum. There are two main dinosaur’s named Banjo and Matilda. Banjo is a small carnivore and Matilda a large plant eater.  Matilda and Banjo were buried together. They think that Matilda killed Banjo with her tail.

Banjo

7/6/2013

Today we travelled 420 km’s to Campaspe River. Tonight we used the brazier for the first time on this trip!! (It wasn’t the best of fires) Grandad thought that the road trains were going through the middle of the two tents! Because we were camping right next to the road and the road trains were very noisy through the night.

Tim enjoying poking the brazier

8/6/2013

Today we travelled 250 km’s to Townsville! Tonight we are staying in a camp ground at the camp ground there is a swimming pool and a jumping pillow. The camp ground we stayed at was called Big 4.  I highly recommend it if you have children.



9/6/2013

Today we travelled 15 km’s to the house that Nan and Grandad are house sitting for the family that live there who are going to America for a month. They have one dog named Jessie. Jessie is a white and brown Dalmatian.

12/6/2013

Today we travelled 450 km’s to Cairns to catch our plane home to New Zealand. On the way to the airport we had to stop for a sugarcane train.  It went 0.5 km’s an hour that was so slow that it took 10 minutes to pass.   By 10.00 o’clock we were at the airport and checked in and were sitting down waiting for the air hostess to come and get us so while we waited we got a pie to eat.  When we were finished the air hostess came and got us.

We arrived in at Auckland at 6.30 pm.

I’d like to say thanks to Nan and Grandad for giving me this opportunity to go through the Simpson Desert. I know not a lot for people get to go through the Simpson Desert. 

Thanks a lot. J      

By Jake

Dinosaur Trail

Age of Dinosaurs, Winton

Welcome to Age of Dinosaurs, Winton

Replica of Banjo

Connor with Banjo replica

It was amazing how quickly the pack up occurred in Winton.  All the boys had been looking forward to visiting the Age of the Dinosaurs which is just 24 kilometres on the Longreach road (in the opposite direction to which we were going) and to have sufficient time for a visit this required an early start.  We have been most impressed how each of the boys has willingly packed up their stretcher, bagged their sleeping bag, repacked their packs and helped with the taking down of the tents normally all before breakfast and with no complaints.  This morning instead of being out of bed between 7 and 7.30 we got up at 6.30!  We were packed and out of the camping ground by 8.30 a.m. – a record for us.  After a stop at one of the local general stores for grocery items we headed out of town.

Winton, and nearby Richmond and Hughenden are considered the dinosaur trail of Australia and each of the towns has exhibitions of the fossils that have been collected in the area.  Peter and I have visited the Age of the Dinosaurs exhibition when we were in the Longreach/Winton area in July 2011 but we knew the boys would enjoy it.  The facility is set high on top of a huge mesa plateau (huge rocky outcrops with cliffs and canyons overlooking the plains) and is home to the world’s largest collection of Australian dinosaur fossils including some of the most famous such as the Australovenator and the Diamantinasaurus.

Tim riding Banjo

Jake with Banjo

We paid to attend the two tours available the first being the collection area.  Here we were shown the various bones that have been collected for the Australovenator (known as locally as Banjo) and the Diamantinasaurus (known as Matilda).  One of these is 30% complete and the other 60%.  A audio visual presentation of the dinosaur was also shown including where the collected bones fit on the dinosaur.  It was certainly very interesting especially if you are a boy and love anything to do with dinosaurs.

From here we walked down the plateau to the laboratory where the second tour commenced.  Here the guide explained about the yearly two week dig, how the fossils are protected for transportation and storage and then we were able to see a group of volunteers and staff using fine tools to carefully remove the fossils from the rock.  It was amazing to learn that the first fossils were found in the area in 1999 and that they are finding so many bones during each year’s dig that they have sufficient in storage to keep the staff and volunteers working for twenty five years to prepare the fossils for show.  Jake was particularly interested in having an opportunity to be a volunteer and thinks that he will ask his parents to bring him back to Winton  when he is twelve to undertake the ten days “prep a dino honorary technician assessment” program. 

Jake taking a ride on Banjo

Jake and Tim had looked forward to visiting
the Age of  Dinosaurs for a long time

After everyone had learnt enough and seen enough of the dinosaurs it was time to continue our trip towards Townsville, still about 700 kilometres away and we needed to be there by the next day.  We went back into Winton, had lunch in the park and set off for Hughenden.  We had a stop in Hughenden at the Information Centre to view the fossils there on display as Hughenden is part of the fossil triangle along with Richmond (to the west) and Winton. 

During our travels Peter had worn his hat most of the way and in fact often two hats to avoid them being ruined.  Both Jake and Tim had often referred to him as “two hats” and it was not uncommon to see one of them wearing both hats.  All three boys had previously had the Australian outback type hat but had worn them out or grown out of them so we decided it was time that they had replacements.  So fortunately the Hughenden Information Centre had the correct sizes and three birthday presents (all in advance) were purchased much to the pleasure of the boys.  So before we left town they had their photo taken wearing their new hats in front of the dinosaur display.

Lizard at Age of Dinosaur complex

We joined the Flinders Highway (which goes east/west from Townsville through Mt Isa) towards Townsville and had decided that we would camp overnight at Campaspe River.  This is a free camping area that we have previously stayed at and the boys were keen to have a bush camping experience and to light a fire.  The riverbed was dry but made an interesting place for the boys to explore.  There were a number of caravans and motorhomes already parked up when we arrived and they watched in surprise as out climbed the boys and the unpacking of the roof rack commenced and the tents erected.  Jake and Tim have been taking it in turns for one of them to sleep in the tent with us and the other in the tent with Connor – it was Jake’s turn tonight.  With the tents up and dinner underway wood collection became the priority and after some hairy starts he fire eventually stayed alight – marshmallows were the priority but only after first course of T-bone steaks and salad.  The Engel fridge in the rear of the car has worked extremely well as a freezer and we have travelled the full two weeks with a supply of meat for each day bought in Melbourne before we left.  The T-bones were the last and were pretty tasty too.

After lots of marshmallows especially for two of the boys (Jake only like one or two) and a game around the fire it was time for bed.  We still have 250 kilometres to go tomorrow to reach Townsville, our final destination.  The road trains and the trains on the train line behind us kept going all night but surprisingly we all slept well.

"Matilda" photo taken during audio visual presentation

Banjo

Signage of fossilized bones already found

Showing fossilized bones still surrounded in rock/dirt

Lower rib bones

The boys with the tour leader at Age of Dinosaurs

Surrounding countryside from the meza plateau - Age of Dinosaurs

Jake and Tim beside dug bones wrapped in plaster of paris until
ready to be removed from the rock

Photo of recent dig poster

Volunteers being supervised by technician

Jake being shown work in progress by volunteer - note use of
magnifying glass

Tim having a hands on experience looking at the fossilized bones

The volunteers hard at work - it was really noisy like being at the
dentist with the drill going!

Boys with their own hats with dinosaur replica in Hughenden

Tim with the dinosaur at Hughenden

Tim and friend in Hughenden

The road train that caused our broken windscreen!

Unpacking the roof rack at Campaspe River

All hands on deck to help - bush camping at Campaspe River

Connor's tent is up but waiting on the fly to go on

Jake making up his stretcher after making up Tim's

Tim taking his stretcher into the tent - waiting on help

Connor and Jake adding the fly

Tim took a snatch strap with him to look for some wood 

The dry river bed with the railway bridge

Tim assured me there was water near but I didn't see it

Tim enjoyed poking in the ash in the brazier