The Great Australian Outback

 The following morning was quite wet and we heard on the VHF radio that heavy rains had closed several tracks to the north: Possibly the east leg of our intended trek through the Simpson Desert. Light rain had

The unknown is a great reason to run a snorkel on your rig. Testing the depth and goo-factor on foot first, we sent three rigs across. Running Safari Snorkels, all three had water well over the hood. After submerging ARB owner Andy Browns personal F-250 up to the top of the seats in Eyre Creek, we realized that Super Dutys are not very watertight.

crossed the area through the night and would be with us for most of the morning.

 The Outback is known for its bulldust (red silt). And when it rains, bulldust turns to a slippery, gooey paste akin to a mixture of clay and oil.

It made from some awesome driving conditions. We played a game of high-speed slip-and-slide for several hundred kilometers and had an excellent opportunity to put each vehicle's stability control system to the test.

Unpredictable in nature, the clouds had parted and the Australian sun was again searing our brow by the time we pulled into Birdsville.

Birdsville, the central settlement and supply center for a county with a population of only 326, lies nearly three hundred kilometers from its nearest neighbor. It is also home of the famous Birdsville Races.

Originating in 1882, each September the town's population swells to nearly 6000 during race week.

Birdsville also sits on the eastern fringe of the Simpson Desert. Swinging the double doors open to the Birdsville Hotel, the aura of Australia's Wild West greeted us. With all the appeal of a southern biker bar (which we like), soiled

 Akubra hats from long-dead drovers and faded photos of early stationers canvassed the sixteen-foot stone and stucco walls.

 Behind the bar, several dozen personalized stubbie holders (for regular patrons) sat next to long rack of draft beer taps. ARB had booked rooms (very cool) and we proceeded to rub

Amidst one of the harshest environs on the planet, the Outback's flora and fauna and have adapted resiliently.

elbows and toss back tinnies with the locals and shoot pool under a small squadron of giant moths: An authentic Outback Roadhouse experience replete with the late night ruckus of Birdsville's citizenry.

Big Red, The Simpson Desert And Submerged Super Dutys
Deep shades of magenta illuminated the eastern horizon as the stars faded, unveiling a shallow body of water in what is normally a cracked and fissured dry lakebed.  

Cattle egrets and white Ibis pecked in the shallows for water bugs that had lay dormant since the last rain. The sun crested the red sands of the Simpson Desert, bathing the newly formed lake with golden hues of morning.

.

Our tires dug into the crimson sand as we nosed off the summit of Big Red, the tallest sand dune in the area (we were told it is the highest drivable dune in Australia). Ok, so only takes five minuets to climb on foot and is 40-meters from top to bottom.

So it's not that tall, but from the top you can see a hundred kilometers into the Simpson. We headed west, following a sandy two-track towards the first of fourteen hundred, north-south running dunes. 

They are some of the longest parallel dunes in the world, and an east-west crossing of the Simpson would take about a week.  Over the VHF radio, we heard news that the previous rains had inundated our intended exit route with twelve feet of water. After forty kilometers of dunes, we would have to return to Birdsville and take an alternative route.