Nullarbor History
A trip across the Nullarbor Plain is coming up for us in May 2008.
At the roadhouse. Debbie’s grandfather is under the car, her grandmother leaning against the car, the bedrolls are on top of the car.
You see, our daughter, living in Perth on the opposite side of Australia, is expecting twins. My wife is flying over to do the Mum thing for a couple of months.
But ah! I won’t be lonesome or board. I’m taking the opportunity to do another trip of my own, following the route of the explorer John McDouall Stuart. This time I hope to get from the southern tip of Lake Torrens to Stuart Creek and Lake Eyre South, in outback South Australia.
The bloke sitting in the boot is Debbie’s Uncle, her grandmother and grandfather are standing next to him. They were having breakfast.
“But what has that to do with the Nullarbor Plain?” you might ask. Well, after my John McDouall Stuart trip, I’ll leave my ATV (quadbike) along with all the associated gear, at Roxby Downs and head over the Nullarbor to see the twins and bring my wife home.
As I’ve begun to research the photographic opportunities, Debbie, from Perth has contacted me with some historical photos and information about her grandparent’s trip across the Nullarbor Plain back in the good old days when it was a dirt track.
The ‘facilities ” at the Murchison River caravan park in Kalbarri in 1960, on the practice run the family did before doing the Nullarbor.
Debbie and family are heading across the Nullarbor very shortly, in the opposite direction: Perth to Tasmania and return.
Debbie’s 10 year old daughter has been using the trip plan as a project for school. Things have come on in education, huh!
Anyway, Debbie’s mum, her parents and brother did a the trip across the Nullarbor in 1961, before it was sealed. They traveled in a Morris Major and slept in the car on the way over.
Debbie has kindly sent three photos, taken by her mother with a box Brownie camera. The photos are great and a valuable piece of the family’s history.
The box Brownie was a great camera in it’s day and this particular box Brownie is still in good working order.
The photos involve two trips:
- The practice run the family did in 1960, before doing the Nullarbor.
- The trip across the Nullarbor Plain in 1961.
I remember (just!) when we moved from Kambalda West (near Kalgoorlie) to Melbourne in the early 70’s.
The car was my dad’s then brand new 74 Chrysler wagon and the road was dust and large rocks and roaming wildlife.
I know we stayed in a hotel at Ceduna but I think the rest of the way we camped in the scrub at the side of the road, in those days at least there were no road trains in the night to watch out for!!
Reminds me of the trip I did from Perth back in 1967 in a Mini (!). The road (track?) was unsealed from Cocklebiddy to Ceduna, and then quite a bit of dirt thru to about Kimba and we crawled in places. The track was quite wide in places where the road was too rough, so people just created a new section of track into the bush beyond the graded section. Camped out everywhere - recall camping near Caiguna out in the open - 2 bed rolls each side of a campfire, with a pile of wood at the head of each bed. When the fire died down, one threw a bit more wood on without getting out of bed. Geez it was cold that night. Trucks tooted us thru the night.
And the fuel blockage that plagued us for about 2 days, finally fixed at Pt Pirie. Adelaide was paradise after the Nullarbor. Still got some movie footage somewhere.