Australian Outback Cattle Drive
Sunday, February 04, 2007 Priority Pass
Drive a cow through the desert on the 2007 Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive. Drive 300 kilometres to deliver the mail on the Mail Run to Oodnadatta. Drive a golf ball over a grassless fairway in Coober Pedy. Drive along the iconic Birdsville Track from Birdsville to Marree.
The South Australian Outback is big. It's weird. It's wonderful. And with a host of welcoming towns in the middle of nowhere, it's like nothing you'll ever experience again. At 700,000 square kilometres, it stretches to the state's borders with the Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales (although of course it doesn't stop there). Its biggest lake (Lake Eyre) is 10 times the size of Singapore. Its longest fence (the Dog Fence) stretches 5,300 kilometres to the Queensland coast. Its biggest cattle station (Anna Creek) is 24,000 square kilometres.
It all begins with the spectacular beauty of the Flinders Ranges. On your way up north take time to explore the southern, central and northern areas of this ancient landscape.
Aboriginal Heritage
When the Overland Telegraph (linking Adelaide to Darwin) was completed by Charles Todd in 1872, it followed a well-worn path travelled for thousands of years by Aboriginal ochre traders. Aboriginal groups have long been trading high-grade red ochre from the north of South Australia to the farthest reaches of the country and the ochre is still used today for many traditional ceremonies. You'll find huge ochre quarries just north of Lyndhurst, near the start of the Strzelecki Track.
The Adnyamathanha people (meaning hills or rock people and pronounced add-na-mut-na), live throughout the Flinders Ranges and beyond. They are a mix of five formerly distinct but related peoples, and the name Adnyamathanha is a collective term now used by the groups. Learn how the Flinders Ranges was formed according to Adnyamathanha Dreamtime legend on the Aboriginal Dreaming Trail, a two-day, self-drive round trip to Wilpena Pound, Mt Chambers, Nepouie, Arkaroola, Copley and Parachilna. You'll find two of the dreaming trail signs in the Aboriginal communities of Nepabunna and Iga Warta. (And don't leave the Prairie Hotel at Parachilna without trying their 'feral food'.)
The Arabunna people have traditionally lived around Lake Eyre, along the Oodnadatta Track and Marree, with spiritual ties including burial grounds, quarries, stone engravings, ceremonial stone circles and trade routes. Take a tour with Arabunna tourism operator Reg Dodd for insights into Lake Eyre, local artesian springs and the Lyndhurst ochre pits.
The Dieri people have strong ties with Marree, the eastern side of Lake Eyre, Innamincka and the Cooper Creek, ranging right up to just south of Birdsville. You'll find Dieri artefacts collected by German missionary Johann Reuther at the Aboriginal Cultures Gallery at the South Australian Museum, or explore the ruins of Reuther’s Killalpaninna mission on the Cooper Creek near Marree.
Other Aboriginal peoples - the Wangkangurru and Pitjantjatjara - are also active in the outback's pastoral and tourism industries. For everything you need to know about Aboriginal culture and heritage in the outback, visit www.aboriginalaustralia.com
An Oasis or Two
The South Australian outback is dotted with great little communities - from Australia's smallest town of William Creek (population 16 at last count) to the opal mining frontiers of Coober Pedy and Andamooka; from Birdsville with its famous pub and annual horse races (the town is actually a few kilometres inside the Queensland border, but who's counting) to the mining town of Leigh Creek, with its 2.85 kilometre coal train. Find the carved Coolibah tree near Innaminka. It's a lasting memorial to the doomed inland expedition of Australian explorers Burke and Wills. Hire a plane out of William Creek to fly over Lake Eyre (it's awesome with water or without). Lean on the dog fence outside Coober Pedy. It was built in the 1950s to keep dingoes out of the rich pastoral lands to the south. Visit the Aboriginal heritage museum in the Arabunna Aboriginal Community Centre in Marree.
Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive
Be part of the splendour and romance of historic cattle drives when you saddle up for the journey in 2007. This epic experience involves 500 head of cattle and 150 horses, along with visitors from across Australia and around the world. A swag of adventure stories along one of the most evocative stock trails - South Australia's Oodnadatta Track - will be on offer. You'll ride with some of Australia's finest drovers and relive a very real part of Australian history, droving cattle on horseback through the Outback.
The Ghan
See the outback in style from the legendary Ghan. One of the world's great transcontinental rail journeys, the two-night trip covers 2,979 kilometres and will take you through inspiring South Australian scenery. Select off-train touring options to visit the Wadlata Outback Centre, the School of the Air and the Royal Flying Doctor Service at Port Augusta; or explore the Moon Plains and the Breakaways Reserve near Coober Pedy.
Outback Safety
South Australia's Outback is vast and isolated, with few towns and facilities. Stay safe and plan well ahead to ensure your journey is as enjoyable as possible.
The South Australian Outback is big. It's weird. It's wonderful. And with a host of welcoming towns in the middle of nowhere, it's like nothing you'll ever experience again. At 700,000 square kilometres, it stretches to the state's borders with the Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales (although of course it doesn't stop there). Its biggest lake (Lake Eyre) is 10 times the size of Singapore. Its longest fence (the Dog Fence) stretches 5,300 kilometres to the Queensland coast. Its biggest cattle station (Anna Creek) is 24,000 square kilometres.
It all begins with the spectacular beauty of the Flinders Ranges. On your way up north take time to explore the southern, central and northern areas of this ancient landscape.
Aboriginal Heritage
When the Overland Telegraph (linking Adelaide to Darwin) was completed by Charles Todd in 1872, it followed a well-worn path travelled for thousands of years by Aboriginal ochre traders. Aboriginal groups have long been trading high-grade red ochre from the north of South Australia to the farthest reaches of the country and the ochre is still used today for many traditional ceremonies. You'll find huge ochre quarries just north of Lyndhurst, near the start of the Strzelecki Track.
The Adnyamathanha people (meaning hills or rock people and pronounced add-na-mut-na), live throughout the Flinders Ranges and beyond. They are a mix of five formerly distinct but related peoples, and the name Adnyamathanha is a collective term now used by the groups. Learn how the Flinders Ranges was formed according to Adnyamathanha Dreamtime legend on the Aboriginal Dreaming Trail, a two-day, self-drive round trip to Wilpena Pound, Mt Chambers, Nepouie, Arkaroola, Copley and Parachilna. You'll find two of the dreaming trail signs in the Aboriginal communities of Nepabunna and Iga Warta. (And don't leave the Prairie Hotel at Parachilna without trying their 'feral food'.)
The Arabunna people have traditionally lived around Lake Eyre, along the Oodnadatta Track and Marree, with spiritual ties including burial grounds, quarries, stone engravings, ceremonial stone circles and trade routes. Take a tour with Arabunna tourism operator Reg Dodd for insights into Lake Eyre, local artesian springs and the Lyndhurst ochre pits.
The Dieri people have strong ties with Marree, the eastern side of Lake Eyre, Innamincka and the Cooper Creek, ranging right up to just south of Birdsville. You'll find Dieri artefacts collected by German missionary Johann Reuther at the Aboriginal Cultures Gallery at the South Australian Museum, or explore the ruins of Reuther’s Killalpaninna mission on the Cooper Creek near Marree.
Other Aboriginal peoples - the Wangkangurru and Pitjantjatjara - are also active in the outback's pastoral and tourism industries. For everything you need to know about Aboriginal culture and heritage in the outback, visit www.aboriginalaustralia.com
An Oasis or Two
The South Australian outback is dotted with great little communities - from Australia's smallest town of William Creek (population 16 at last count) to the opal mining frontiers of Coober Pedy and Andamooka; from Birdsville with its famous pub and annual horse races (the town is actually a few kilometres inside the Queensland border, but who's counting) to the mining town of Leigh Creek, with its 2.85 kilometre coal train. Find the carved Coolibah tree near Innaminka. It's a lasting memorial to the doomed inland expedition of Australian explorers Burke and Wills. Hire a plane out of William Creek to fly over Lake Eyre (it's awesome with water or without). Lean on the dog fence outside Coober Pedy. It was built in the 1950s to keep dingoes out of the rich pastoral lands to the south. Visit the Aboriginal heritage museum in the Arabunna Aboriginal Community Centre in Marree.
Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive
Be part of the splendour and romance of historic cattle drives when you saddle up for the journey in 2007. This epic experience involves 500 head of cattle and 150 horses, along with visitors from across Australia and around the world. A swag of adventure stories along one of the most evocative stock trails - South Australia's Oodnadatta Track - will be on offer. You'll ride with some of Australia's finest drovers and relive a very real part of Australian history, droving cattle on horseback through the Outback.
The Ghan
See the outback in style from the legendary Ghan. One of the world's great transcontinental rail journeys, the two-night trip covers 2,979 kilometres and will take you through inspiring South Australian scenery. Select off-train touring options to visit the Wadlata Outback Centre, the School of the Air and the Royal Flying Doctor Service at Port Augusta; or explore the Moon Plains and the Breakaways Reserve near Coober Pedy.
Outback Safety
South Australia's Outback is vast and isolated, with few towns and facilities. Stay safe and plan well ahead to ensure your journey is as enjoyable as possible.
