Just Keep on travelling: Waltzing Matilda Centre

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

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

Thursday, June 13, 2013

The Home of Waltzing Matilda

Middleton Hotel

Servo at Middleton Hotel - we didn't
need to buy diesel!

Middleton Hotel

As we didn’t have to take the tents down and repack the roof rack we were away from Boulia much earlier in the morning. We would have loved an extra day in this town too, as there appeared to be a number of activities we could have done to enjoy the day. So instead we followed the Kennedy Development Road eastward to Winton. This is a distance of 360 kilometres and there are no towns in between. Instead there are a couple of small run down pubs and endless flat land, no fences with Brahma cattle scattered either side of the road. The only stop we made was for lunch which was a pull off on the side of the road as there were no rest areas nearby, and sandwiches and drinks all round.

History of Middleton Hotel

We were keen to get to Winton which is one of the small towns on Australia’s dinosaur trail. Winton is one of the larger outback towns and attracts the traveller because of the dinosaur exhibitions and also because it is known as the home of Waltzing Matilda. Winton is also one of the founding towns of the Australian airline, Qantas. There is a large museum of Qantas memorabilia in nearby Longreach (180 kms northwest) but we did not divert to here. The population of Winton was 954 in October 2012 and there is a small shopping area including a couple of grocery shops (but no actual supermarket), chemist, cafes, and three hotels.

A camel in the distance - typical countryside

Welcome to Winton

Jake & Tim beside road train
loaded with Brahma cattle ready to travel

On arrival in Winton we were on the lookout for the camping area when we spotted the local sale yards where a road train was being loaded. With two boys on board who live on a farm in NZ this was of particular interest so became our first stop. When the road train pulled off fully laden one of the workers came and chatted to the boys – the Brahma cattle had overnighted in Winton after being trucked 1500 kms from west of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory. They had just been loaded again and were heading to Roma in Queensland which is 900 kms away. Seriously, a long way to transport cattle.

Tim getting all the info

Connor on top with Jake helping from
the ladder

We stayed in a well set up camping area adjacent to the main street – this was perfect as we could walk anywhere we wanted to go. The camp fees were paid to the local hotel and as I booked in the guy was quick to tell me that the washing machines were free and with three boys I must need to use them! There were about thirty sites and we were the only people tenting – the majority of the other sites were occupied by the typical grey nomad travelling Australia in their caravan. Everyone was very friendly and soon chatting to us and the boys – most couldn’t believe that we would travel with three grandsons. It was really warm and so nice after the cool winds we had experienced until the end of the desert. Fortunately there were no flies so much more pleasant. We were able to sit outside and enjoy our dinner and game.

Outside the Waltzing Matilda
Centre in Winton

History coming alive in Winton

Once set up we decided that as it was around 3 p.m. we would visit the Waltzing Matilda Centre which was within walking distance and drive out to the dinosaur centre in the morning after we have repacked. The Waltzing Matilda Centre incorporates an Outback Regional Gallery, Qantilda Museum, the normal café and shop plus the Waltzing Matilda exhibition. Firstly we watched an audio visual presentation on the myth and legend behind the writing of the song which is considered the unofficial Australian anthem. This song was one of a number of Australian ballads that we played in the car and some of the boys enjoyed singing along too.

Jake

Chocolate snack is not ideal

Tim

A quick look at the art gallery which didn’t hold much interest for the boys, and then we spent the rest of our two hour visit in the Qantilda Museum. This collections brings together items from Winton’s history including a steam locomotive, a four wheel drive truck made for use in WW I, machinery, military display, a settlers cottage etc. The boys enjoyed being able to climb on the various vehicles. Before too long we had reached closing time and although we were given a pass to return the next day time did not allow for this.

The stage in the Waltzing Matilda
Centre with the audio visual starting

A meandering walk back to the campsite before cooking dinner, showers and a game. The road trains provided a background accompaniment as they drove the bypass or prepared to leave on the next part of their journey. We had agreed that our visit to the dinosaur centre was an important part of our journey and we wanted to give it sufficient time so we planned an early start the next morning. We now only had one more night before we were due in Townsville and we still had places to visit and nearly 700 kilometres to travel.