OP10 • THEEDGE SINGAPORE
| JULY 2, 2007 AUDREY SIMON/THE EDGE SINGAPORE
TRAVEL
Into the WILD
The quintessential drover
AUDREY SIMON/THE EDGE SINGAPORE
Audrey Simon takes part in the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive and gets a feel of pioneer living in the harsh Aussie desert
W
hen friends ask me what they should do when visiting Australia, I always tell them to spend a day or two in the main city and then head out to the vineyards for a few days. These days, I sing a different tune because I had an experience of a lifetime at the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive during which I re-lived the 1900s, when early European settlers would drive cattle through the outback under harsh weather conditions and without any modern facilities. Do note that the size of the Australian outback is the same as that of Belgium — about 33,990 sq km. Of course, my trip came with all the trappings of luxury that a camping trip could offer. As a city dweller, I have to confess that I have never been on a camping trip, and my idea of an outing into the great outdoors is to pack a picnic basket and head to Fort Canning to catch Ballet Under the Stars. My advice to city slickers is to not have any expectations, which was what I had, thanks to well-meaning friends who showed me glossy magazine pictures of camping tents that came with white billowy curtains, a queen-size bed and a stand-alone bathtub. To prepare for my trip, I watched re-runs of McLeod’s Daughters and even rented movies like City Slickers and tried to recall as much of spaghetti westerns that I had seen while growing up. But none of these prepared me for what I encountered at the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive: the raw and utterly captivating
scenery, the unpredictability of the animals, the wicked Australian sense of humour and dealing with Mother Nature’s fury. So for five days in May, I traded my stilettos for trekking shoes, my work attire for jeans and a shirt, and gave up the morning rush to the office on the train for a horse that, much to my relief, only wanted a leisurely stroll through the desert. The Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive, where 500 heads of cattle are herded from South Australia’s Oodnadatta to Maree, takes place once every two years. This year, it was held from May 5 to June 10. Within these dates, seven tours were organised with each one lasting four nights and five days (A$2,250 [$2,929], excluding airfare). The first three tours were cancelled this year because of bad weather, but I was fortunate enough to get into the fifth tour, which covered the dunes, springs and saltpans. The adventure begins To get to the outback, I flew from Singapore to Adelaide and caught a 50-seater plane to Coober Pedy, an opal-mining town (see Quaint outback town on Page 12). From there, it’s another twohour drive to the base camp known as Strangways Camp, where we leave every morning and return to in the evenings after droving cattle. (At the end of each tour, the base camp is dismantled and set up at another location as the trail goes further up north.) On arrival, I experienced a Paris Hilton moment when I realised my accommodation was a small, simple
tent that did not have white curtains or an attached bathroom. Nevertheless, the tent was comfortable, with a single bed, clean sheets, a duvet for nights when desert temperatures dip and a night stand with a lamp. But with the campfire every night and the wonderful friends you make along the way, you won’t be spending much time in your tent. The portable showers and toilets, located about 100m from the tents, are clean and spacious. And with hairdryers available, you can get much of the fine red desert sand out of your hair at the end of each day. When I arrived, it was time for lunch. We feasted on salad and cold cuts in the dining marquee. Next, we were fitted with a helmet and given a fanny pack with sunblock, a water bottle, a net to keep flies off the face and earplugs. I couldn’t figure out why we needed earplugs, but I found out the reason later that night. Our tents were canvas thin and situated quite close to each other, and the symphony of snoring that broke the desert silence was deafening. The earplugs definitely came in handy. After lunch, we boarded a bus to meet the drovers who matched us to a suitable horse. Because of my 5ft height, I was given the smallest, Shorty. Ah, the wicked Australian sense of humour that makes me smile when I think about them matching me with my little mocha-coloured horse. The one thing that didn’t make me smile was the fact that I had never ridden a horse before, and their sheer size and height made me nervous. But
THEEDGE SINGAPORE | JULY 2, 2007 • OP11
Desert roses — the female drovers of the outback
A drover making sure a horse is fit to ride
the drovers made it look so easy. They taught us the basics of horse riding, such as getting on and off, getting the horse to walk, stop and turn right or left. Outback drovers are trained to keep an eye on the riders, especially the inexperienced ones. Luckily for that, as I was saved on not one, but two occasions, when my little equine friend ignored my instructions. The first incident happened when Shorty was startled by a passing motorbike and he started to buck. I tried desperately to make
him stop by tugging on the reins but to no avail. One of the drovers, Ian Litchfield, sprang into action. He jumped off his horse and calmed Shorty down, with his cigarette amazingly tucked into the corner of his mouth. But did I get any sympathy from him? No, instead he gave my horse a reassuring chat and a pat. When I asked why I wasn’t given the same assurance, his wry and witty reply was that there were more people coming for the cattle drive and not enough horses. Nice. My second scare was when Shorty decided to not just take a sip from the pond, but to have a roll in it as well. One of the riders warned me to be ready to jump off my horse when he starts to roll. If you jump fast enough, you’ll
be fi ne, but if you’re slow, the horse could easily roll on you, and the result, at best, could be a broken ankle. Now, what is a city girl to do? I panicked but fortunately was saved once again, this time by Dr Bill Harbison, the vet on the cattle drive. The safety of the riders is assured on the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive. You not only have the expertise of the drovers, but also an ambulance with a doctor and a nurse on standby. For our comfort, portable toilets are hoisted onto a truck, which followed us throughout the trip. They may look out of place in the desert, but they’re a great relief when nature calls. And nature, Mother Nature in particular, can be hostile if she chooses to. Being able to finally control (with help) my horse, I was sure that I would be capable of handling anything and that I was well on my way to becoming an outback chick. On the second night, there was a sandstorm with winds with speeds of at least
30 knots and at about 1am, I was awoken by howling winds and the crashing of my table lamp onto the floor. The staff were swift to get into action, as every available vehicle was quickly mobilised and parked in front of our tents to act as windbreakers. We gathered in the dining marquee and had a cup of tea while we waited for Mother Nature to calm down. She did in a few hours, leaving a layer of fine red sand in my tent and in my open luggage. As real as it gets If you’re wondering how close the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive is to the real thing, we were told that film producer Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge and Romeo & Juliet) spent a few days at the cattle drive learning as much as he could from the drovers for his new epic movie, Australia, which has begun filming in Queensland and stars Nicole Kidman as a cattle station CONTINUES NEXT PAGE
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AUDREY SIMON/THE EDGE SINGAPORE
OP12 • THEEDGE SINGAPORE
Quaint outback town Flying out of Adelaide and into the opal capital of the world, I was greeted with a strange sight. Coober Pedy is flat, dry and deserted, and I now know why it was the location of choice for filming the Mad Max movies in the 1980s (Mel Gibson’s initial claim to fame) and drag flick Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Located 846km from Adelaide, Coober Pedy (Aboriginal for “white man in a hole”) is widely known for producing one of the world’s most beautiful precious stone, the opal. Homes, shops and my hotel, the Desert Cave, are burrowed into the hills, and for good reason. Outback temperatures can soar to 40ºC in the summer, and fierce desert storms can be brutal. These dugouts are
the safest places to live in. I found it really strange to stay in a hotel that had no windows. The best way to see this quaint outback town is via a tour. The Desert Cave Tour takes you to an actual working opal mine. We also visited the Serbian Underground Church (picture), where carvings on the rocks are beautiful pieces of art that have been preserved for hundreds of years. Underground homes have all the modern amenities, and they are rather cosy, except for the lack of windows.
Tours can be booked through the Desert Cave Hotel. Visit www.desertcave.com.au or email reserve@desertcave.com.au.
all work in cattle stations. When asked how The stars on a clear night pepper owner at the end of WWII. they met, they all answer “at a rodeo” or the sky with flakes of silver, and one Also, the men and women of the drov- “gymkhana” (an ancient Indian word that guest told me that if you want to really ing team come from actual cattle stations literally means games on horseback). experience the true brightness of the around the region. All stars, look at the black 500 heads of cattle (at spaces between them. the end of our trip, it That’s the beauty of was 501 as one had her the cattle drive — the calf along the way) were people are extremely supplied by the world’s friendly and are more largest cattle station, than happy to share Anna Creek Station, their knowledge. I which spans six milmet retired teachers, lion acres. a marine biologist, a We met 49-year-old creative director and Randall Crozier, who a headhunter. has been managing the On days when your Anna Creek Station for sore bottom gets the the past 20 years. Crobetter of you, there are zier told us that the bush dot-painting classes gives people a chance to that you can attend, do some soul searching. and you get to keep “No noise, no smog… your painting. Dot This is the best place to painting is an Abobe in touch with yourriginal art that uses a self,” he said. The Anna Creek Painted Hills are not accessible by foot, and the best way to see it is from a plane series of dots to depict Another die-hard indigenous animals to drover is retired 57-year-old Stewart Nunne Breathtaking beauty tell a story. who used to work at Anna Creek Station Clip-clopping through the outback for four Perhaps, getting a bird’s eye view is but now enjoys helping out at the cattle days wasn’t my idea of a holiday, and I the best way to experience the vastness drive. His multi-tasking services are called thought I would be absolutely bored. But of the outback. Wrightsair (www.wrights upon in mending fences or working on the on the contrary, I welcomed the peace and air.com.au; email: wrightsair@bigpond. vehicles. When asked if his three children quiet and was secretly pleased that there com), located at William Creek, provides had followed in his footsteps, he said no. was no mobile phone signal. airborne tours of Anna Creek Painted Hills “I am not disappointed. They have had a The 360º views of the red sandy earth and Lake Eyre. decent education and they all have jobs change as you move along, and the rocky The former, one of the outback’s bestin Adelaide.” plains and springs along the way are kept secrets, is a massive land area that As for the young men and women of the more beautiful than those in books or shows the various colours in the rocky outback, it is encouraging to know that they nature programmes like National Geo- outcrop, consisting of large and small hills. are the ones who will keep the spirit of the graphic. The sunsets are spectacular, Looking like a raisin plait loaf of bread, outback alive. There’s no denying that life as the sky changes from crimson red to it is not open to tourists to explore on is tough for them as a simple outing like apricot orange and finally to blueberry, catching up with friends takes weeks to plan. before leaving the sky to make way for Most of them are already attached and they the stars. FROM PREVIOUS PAGE
Riders getting ready to herd 500 heads of cattle through the outback
foot, and we applaud that as the delicate outcrop can be easily destroyed. The colours and landscape change as the plane moves along to Lake Eyre, the largest lake in Australia. The desert lake was as white as snow due to salt deposits. A holiday in the outback is never boring, as the desert has so many fascinating sides that will take more than just four days to explore. This is one experience that will have you (I still am) talking about for the days, weeks and years to come. Despite a horse with a mind of its own and experiencing the sandstorm, will I take part in the Great Australian Outback E Cattle Drive again? Hell, yes. Audrey Simon’s trip was made possible by Tourism Australia and Qantas. For more information, log on to www.cattledrive. com.au or email informationandbook ings@southaustralia.com.
Bare necessities Sometimes, it’s the little touches that go a long way towards making your flight a pleasant one. Qantas, Australia’s national carrier, has skybeds in its business class section, where the seats are cocoon-style and come with privacy screens. This ensures that you get a good rest. But it’s not just the bed. Earlier this year, Qantas introduced a new amenities kit (picture) for weary travellers. Now with the strict rules on the amount of liquid you can take on board, you probably need to rely on what the airline provides. Australian award-winning architect, Marc Newson, designed the packs, which contain skincare products from Ultraceuticals, cotton pyjamas and eyeshades designed by fashion designer Peter Morrissey, and hair care products by Kevin Murphy. You will surely welcome a good sleep and the products in your amenities kit after a few days roughing it out on the Great Australian Outback Cattle Drive.