The Great Australian Outback - Part II

One of our favorite rigs in the corral was the 100 Series Land Cruiser. Besides the plush interior and luxurious Simpson II rooftop tent, in the back was an ARB Fridge/Freezer for our cold stubbies, a Long Ranger 120ltr fuel/55ltr water combination tank, a sun awning and the normal array of ARB lockers, suspension, bull bars and rear bumper and Safari Snorkel to keep the engine happy.

Golden rays of light skipped over the red sands of the Simpson Desert, dispersing long shadows in its wake, alerting us of a new dawn. Peering out of our swags and across a shallow ephemeral lake, small birds pecked at the newly formed tarn. Breaking camp on this morning would begin the second half of our Outback adventure.

Last month, in Part I of the our Outback Experience, we signed off after trekking the backroads from Broken Hill to the edge of the Mundi Mundi plain, then to the three-state boundary at Cameron Corners. Delving into the Sturt Stony Desert to Cordillo Downs and Birdsville, we ultimately ventured into the Simpson Desert's endless sea of sand. This was the northernmost point of our route. From the heights of Australia's tallest sand dune, Big Red, we would head south over the famous Birdsville Track to the railroad depot of Marree, ultimately turning east to explore the Flinders Range. In the upcoming days, we'd follow the route of the Great Australian Cattle Drive, dine on kangaroo, camel and emu, and bunk in shearers quarters on one of the Flinders oldest

A thousand kilometers from the sea, an Australian Pelican cools its feet and hunts for fish on the Derwent River.

sheep stations.

Returning to Birdsville, a low-lying dust cloud drifted south from the well-worn rodeo arena. Two days earlier, it had been void of life. But on this afternoon, Utes and horse trailers lined the dirt lot. We'd happened upon the Birdsville Rodeo (pronounced Row-Day-oh for us non-Aussies). In a world where you and your neighbors may be separated by a ten thousand acre cattle station, the church, the pub and the rodeo become a cohesive bond for community and kind. In the stands, true-blue locals munched on meat pies, a traditional Aussie snack, and cheered while friends and family members wrestled unwitting calves to the ground.

In a country with deep roots in cattle and sheep ranching, in the days before motorized transportation, stock was moved the old fashion way, on foot. The

We couldn't resist another chance to play in the dunes before leaving the Simpson Desert.

resulting undertaking was of great scale and proportion, became known as The Great Australian Cattle Drive. But it came with risks unknown to city dwellers like us, and it was the history of such events that us drew us to the Birdsville Track. Other than the 500-plus kilometers separating the two points, Birdsville to the north and the train depot in Marree to the south, the terrain is relatively void of geological deviations and without topographical or physical barriers. We were in the center of

Australia's cattle country and over a thousand kilometers separated us from the nearest seaport. Such was the dilemma for the early cattle ranchers: How to get their goods to market through one of the most arid and forbidding regions of the country.