Such is the commitment of Andrew Dwyer, of the Diamantina Touring Company, who provides not only a memorable journey through outback South Australia, but ensures the rigours of such travel are tempered by fine cuisine. Stocked with fresh produce from the markets of Adelaide and a range of fine South Australian vintages, Dwyer's kitchen is a robust trailer built to endure the corrugations of the infamous Oodnadatta and Birdsville Tracks. Combine this with a crossing of the Simpson Desert from west to east over more than 1000 sand dunes before returning to Adelaide via the Gammon and Flinders Ranges and you begin to understand the depth of such commitment.
Blackened cajun swordfish, Coffin Bay oyster salad, korma curry, camp-oven Iamb roast and green curry chicken are just some of the dishes that are cooked to perfection, dispelling forever the myth of bush stew as the staple diet of any camping expedition. Dwyer's extraordinary ability to maintain a level of quality over a 12-day journey in less than forgiving circumstances is a credit to his ingenuity. This is coupled with a knowledge of the region that makes for an unforgettable outback experience.
We travel in tandem in two four-wheel-drive vehicles, the journey beginning in Adelaide and heading north beyond Port Augusta into the South Australian outback. The inaugural camp establishes a set of procedures that ensures a harmonious routine for the remainder of the trip. Each individual shares the responsibility for collecting firewood, erecting tents and generally becoming involved as a member of the group. By our second night out, at Lake Eyre South, it seems that everyone has adapted readily to camp life: tables and chairs are unpacked from the trailer into their place in front of the kitchen and a fire is lit for the evening meal. Tents are erected in quick succession and we all settle down for a pre-dinner drink, as Dwyer and his assistant, Steve Baird, tend to kitchen duties.
Over the ensuing day we visit ancient mound springs -the surface expression of the Great Artesian Basin, where water that fell an estimated 2.5 million years ago in the eastern ranges of New South Wales and Queensland is released into the desert, creating reed- fringed waterholes in an otherwise arid landscape. The old Ghan railway bridges and depots, now abandoned, stand as silent sentinels to more prosperous times. Outback pubs such as the William Creek Hotel, ( where single-engine Cessnas are parked casually beside four- wheel drives) are dependent for their survival on the increasing tourist trade. Isolated towns such as Oodnadatta, where the Pink Roadhouse sits on the red earth, add to the curiosities, both natural and artificial, that constitute outback South Australia. Leaving the Oodnadatta track with a load of firewood balancing precariously on top of the vehicle, trailer in tow, we stop at Lodgers Claypan. Dwyer quips that he knows of a great little Italian cucina that operates here at night.
We sit down
to an entree of antipasto, a main course of southern-Italian-insI,Jired
penne, accompanied by d' Arenberg d' Arry's Original Shiraz-Grenache,
and finish with a dessert of corella pears and fresh pecorino.
The aroma of freshly brewed coffee heralds the dawn of a new day and,
after a hearty breakfast, we break camp and travel north from Oodnadatta
to Dalhousie Springs on the edge of the Simpson Desert. Dalhousie is an
abandoned cattle station that is now a part of Witjira National Park.
The daily routine is firmly established -each member of the group rolls
out either a drover's-style swag or sets up a tent. For me, the night
sky observed from the comfort of a swag is an exhilarating part of the
experience.
Beyond the ruins of the old stone homestead are the hot mound springs,
where one can bathe and relax in the "warm waters after a long day's
travelling. This is the last natural freshwater source until Birdsville.
The springs and their surrounds are home to a large variety of wildlife
including dingoes, goannas and waterbirds. The desert, recognised as one
of the world's largest longitudinal sand-ridge deserts, covers more than
150,000km2. Our approach is from the western edges, but Captain Chatles
Sturt's description on his arrival in the east, in 1845, best describes
the experience: "... we saw that the ridges extended northwards in
parallel lines beyond the range of vision, and appeared as if interminable.
T o the east and west, they succeeded each other like the waves of the
sea ...".
The desert is an ecological wonder: there are a number of major habitat
types here, including spinifex grasslands, gidgee woodlands and coolibah
floodouts, with numerous plant species, native mammals, birds and reptiles.
After crossing the Napanerrica Dune {aka Big Red) the last and largest
of the sand dunes, it is a short drive to Birdsville and its famous outback
pub. It's time to wash off the red dust and mingle. Declining the public
bar's menu of a seven-course meal- a meat pie and a six pack -we dine
out under the stars, but in the confines of the hotel dining room. Somehow
the local menu falls short of our expectations, and a night spent in a
hotel room no longer seems appropriate after a week of camp fires and
conversation.
From Birdsville, Dwyer travels the old "inside track" -the original
stock route -to Etadunna Station, featured in the 1952 documentary Back
of Beyond that graphically depicted Tom Kruse's mail run from Maree to
Birdsville. Kruse would take up to eight hours to travel a mere 12km through
the Natterannie dunes. These days, the roads are a little better as we
travel from our overnight camp at Etadunna to Maree, where its "Ghantown",
complete with mosque, is a reminder of the Afghan cameleers that once
settled here. We continue south to the Gammon and Hinders Ranges for the
final leg our journey.
The magnitude and beauty of these Ranges have a mellower feel than the
flat, open landscape we have previously travelled. At our campsite in
Chambers Gorge, rock walls rise from the base of a riverbed dotted with
red gums. Inhabited by the Adnyamathanha people for thousands of years,
the Ranges are dotted with rock carvings. The pace of travel has slowed
by the time we reach the Flinders, and early-morning walks through the
surrounding hills of the gorge allow us to investigate many of these ancient
sites.
By the time we return to Adelaide, we have covered a distance of about
3200km. National Geographic recently selected the outback in its top 50
"places of a lifetime". We are fortunate to have something considered
so unique by outsiders, so easily accessible to us.