BBTagebuch

RAID OZ 1992
Pre Raid Late November 1991, I paid Steve Wedell the entry fee and took a list of Raiders without co drivers.
In early December 1991 I sent off letters to 6 overseas Raiders to ask to be considered as their co driver, two replies came in late December.
Further correspondence followed but these Raiders were not keen to have me, so the co driver idea faded until the Easter gathering in Canberra in April.
Here I looked for a local Raider without a co driver, several names were mentioned, then I spoke to Paul Young " yes he said I am going but my Dyane is in pieces" . Well I offered to help him put it back together and come with him if that's OK. He said it was so we agreed to look at it when we returned to Sydney.
Early in May I went to Paul's place to see how much work was needed in the next 17 weeks until we would leave for Brisbane.
It was in bits all right, the body was off the frame, the engine and gearbox were removed and separated and there were boxes of bits all over his garage and workshop, does this sound familiar to other Citroëners.
Oh well "the challenge is part of the fun," during May we removed, re bearing and modified the suspension arms, we also unpicked the lower sheet of the frame to discover the extent of the rust and decide how best to repair it, Paul is doing a panel beating course at tech so fabricating new sections became part of his class project.
Early in June '92 the under tray of the Dyane was complete and so the rebuilding process could now go ahead, first we had to put all the suspension pots and arms on, then the steering, brakes and kingpins, by late June we had a rolling frame and 9 weeks left.
By mid July the engine had been overhauled and the gearbox checked, these were assembled and fitted to the car, over the next few weeks we fitted up all the little jobs like brake lines and fuel lines to the frame. On July the 28th we refitted the body, there were now 4 weeks to go....
On the 5th of August the engine was ready to run, and in true Citroën fashion complained a bit then burst into life.
Next day Paul took the car for its first run, after about 30 Kms a clang and thump came from under the bonnet and Paul stopped to look at the damage. A driveshaft flange had not been tightened and had come away tearing the driveshaft boot and holing the muffler.
This is the possible result of two people working on the same car, my next visit was spent going over the car checking all the nuts and bolts, no other loose ones but we both felt more confident now.
Over the next 2 weeks we made and fitted front and rear bull bars, sump guards, headlight covers and modified the seats so I could get my 2 metre frame behind the wheel, as well as all the little jobs needed to protect and help us on the Raid.
Now with one week to go, I just had time to organise the camping gear as well as do all the jobs around the house to hold up for my month away.
August 27th
After a day at work which seemed to drag on for ever, I got ready to leave. Paul arrived and we left Wahroonga at 5PM after rearranging the gear in the Dyane, the weather was fine and cool and the early peak hour traffic was light on the run up the expressway, a lot of traffic left us at Gosford and we cruised at a steady 100Kmh reaching the end of the expressway just on dark.
Over the CB radio we heard of a traffic accident at Freemans Waterhole so after a bit of figuring we decided to take the alternate exit to by-pass the accident this worked well and we got to Kurri at 7PM.
After a meal of hamburgers and chips we departed on the Newcastle by-pass for Taree, this was a chance for Paul to show me the technique for driving a twin pot, run at the hills, when to change gear for corners and hills. By the time we got to Taree it was 10PM , the fuel gauge showed empty and we were glad to book into a motel.
August 28th
Up at first light for a quick shower and breakfast, then repack the car and be amongst the first customers at the service station at 7AM, the Dyane took 23 litres of fuel for the run in traffic through the city to my place then up the expressway to Taree, about 44MPG which I considered to be good economy on a new engine.
The day was fine and warmed quickly as we drove on up the coast road to Grafton via Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour, here I had a go at driving the car , I am 1M 98cm tall, so it was a bit of a squeeze behind the wheel but good fun. At Grafton we stopped for another 19 litres of fuel then went on to Woodburn a little sugar cane town just short of Ballina for a roadside lunch of sandwiches and fruit at 12.30.
From Woodburn we went on through Ballina and Byron Bay to the "Twin Towns" at the NSW \ QLD border where we stopped at 3PM for an ice cream then on up the Gold Coast Highway to Brisbane.
We arrived in Brisbane at 4.30 and made our way to DS Motors at Red Hill, here we found some familiar faces, Lance Collins, David Gries and John Walton together with a variety of other Raiders and their cars all of whom we would get to know over the next month. We also heard of Claude Hermans accident which had occurred the previous day and was now repaired. Over the next hour we looked at the preparations of the other Raiders while Lance and David inspected the Dyane, the verdict was a well presented car and we will see you at the party tonight, yes OK I said but how do we get there.
In typical Raid form we had missed out on the map in the info kit we had been given by Lance, but I had got Alec Lowe to fax me down a "mud map" of how to get to his home before we left Sydney, we left the gang at DS Motors at 5.30PM just on dark
and headed for Clear Mountain about 30 Km away, well somewhere just out of DS Motors we took a wrong turn which dropped us in the middle of peak hour in Brisbane on a Friday night, well Raid is all about challenges isn't it !!
After about 30 min of sitting in a series of traffic tangles we got to a Caltex Service Stn at Kelvin Grove the next suburb to Red Hill, and asked the owner how to get to Clear Mountain. He was very helpful and as we added 24 litres to the Dyane he explained the route via Samford Valley. This route took us to the outer limits of Brisbane suburbs and through a state forest to another Caltex Service Stn which looked to be about 60 years old, turn right here and go on to Clear Mountain.
As we were trying to establish our position at Samford Valley, a Toyota ute pulled up, and asked if we were looking for Alec Lowe's place, yes we are, well follow me he said. It appears he works with Alec at Maxim Motors and was on his way home, he took us to the start of Clear Mountain Road, gave more directions and wished us luck for Raid.
We eventually found Alec's place at 7PM at the end of a very long and hilly road and after parking amongst the other Raid cars, we were welcomed by Alec's wife Myra who said the party was in the new barn at the end of the yard, she also said we could sleep in the barn after the party as we had no other accommodation.
There were people all over the yard, and I noticed a spit roast nearing completion, we could hear some piano music, in the barn there were about 50 people, some we knew from various Easter meetings and many we would get to know over the next 4 weeks. The piano music was coming from a pianola mounted on an old Overland truck, the owner had great delight in showing off the pianola and the truck to all who wanted to see, they were neighbours of Alec's who had a variety of cars including Citroëns.
The party grew until about 8.30 when a very hot and filling soup was served, this was followed by the spit roast with spuds salads and rolls. The assembled multitude soon made short work of the food, and another group of Alec's friends, a country and western band, entertained us and we all sang along. About 10PM Steve Wedell and Ralph Hibble started to "call the roll" to see how many Raiders would face the start the following day, this also let everyone see who the names on paper were.
There were 37 starters, but the two English girls were going to start in one of Alec's D's as their 2cv's were still on the wharfs due to red tape. The party continued until just after midnight when most people left and by 1AM the last of the stragglers had left, Paul and I could now roll out our sleeping bags.

Raid Day 1, Saturday 29^th August 1992
Alec's roosters woke us about 5AM and only stopped crowing at first light on severe death threats, Paul and I got the sleeping bag's stowed and set about breakfast, tea and toast looked good as well as discovering party leftovers, by about 7AM the rest of the raiders camped at Alec's place had risen and eaten, we then helped Alec and Myra clean up before heading off about 9.30 to the start line under Storey Bridge. When we arrived at Storey Bridge we found the Queensland club had organised a breakfast with croissants, rolls, cakes, tea and coffee etc for the Raiders who had not eaten yet, and also for all the well wishes who had come from as far as Sydney and Melbourne to wave us off.
Just before the start we were given our car numbers, we were car 29, there were more stickers for the cars then group and individual photo's were taken to be included in club magazines and albums, we were given last instructions, and then left Storey Bridge in convoy at 10.45 for a re group at Bald Hills.
On our way at last, out over Storey Bridge and into the mid morning traffic, but no matter all Raiders were on C.B. radio so any stragglers soon got instructions on what lane or turn to take, soon we arrived at the Caltex service stn at Bald Hills and in what was to be a familiar feature of Raid took it over.
From here the convoy went on up the Bruce Hwy to the Woodford turn off, here we took the scenic route along the ridge tops and back roads to reach Gympie about 2PM for a lunch and fuel stop, the Dyane took 15 litres and we took hamburgers.
Rule 1 on Raid was, eat when you can, because meal stops are often dictated by the circumstances of the day.
From Gympie we turned west on good fast roads and arrived at Gayndah at 4.30 PM to be met by Peter, Pam and Les the " Hayezzyhuth's " here we pitched our tent and went into town to find the location of the "Grand Hotel", the site of our meal for the night sponsored by the National Mutual Insurance and Dulux paint representatives in Gayndah, we refilled the Dyane, it only took 13.5 litres and we bought a bag of the local mandarins, then back to camp to get cleaned up for the dinner.
The dinner started at 8PM it was an excellent meal, a country style roast dinner with all the trimmings and apple pie or pavlova to follow, there were some brief speeches from the sponsors and a reply from Lance Collins to thank them, after the meal we got to know each other until about 10.30, then off to bed.
Raid Day 2, Sunday 30^th August
Some showers came in the night and we were woke to a cool, overcast dawn thanks to the local rooster, then tea and toast for breakfast and break camp, we then had a brief look at the fabulous cars that Peter, Pam and Les have as their collection, thanks to them for their hospitality and camp-site and also for organising the dinner of the previous evening.
We left Gayndah about 7.30 AM in light rain, and drove to Eidsvold, here we turned for Cracow, this road was narrow bitumen with short patches of dirt, after a regroup we left Cracow about 10 AM on a narrow dirt road heading for Taroom, the country here was quite hilly as we were starting to enter the Great Dividing Range.
There were lots of sharp corners, and as this was the first time I had driven the Dyane on dirt I had a few "moments" when the corners came up too soon and I was in the wrong gear, I was not the only one to have trouble, Alec Lowe's Traction was "caught out " by a creek bed and a combination of long travel suspension and the mudguard support bracket. The result of this was an ugly tear in the LH front mudguard and slight tyre damage after a temporary repair with an across the bonnet strap and we continued on to Taroom arriving at noon.
Taroom was a fuel stop so we had hamburgers and chips and added 17 litres to the Dyane, then back on the road, this time heading for Injune, it was still overcast and raining lightly, ahead lay 180 km of dirt road through the Lynd Range, the surface varied from sandy loam to red clay and occasional patches of black soil.
Many Raiders experienced "moments" and some cars ran off the road but as no damage was done it was loads of fun, the video cameras were running most of the time so there is quite a lot of film of this section. We arrived in Injune about 3PM to the amazement of the locals and after adding another 12 litres of fuel to the Dyane we set off for Carnarvon Gorge on good fast bitumen, this lasted most of the way, with only the last 40 Km or so on dirt, there had been no rain here so the Raiders enjoyed a sunset through the clouds as we entered Carnarvon George.
We arrived at our camp-site about 5.30 PM and just got the tent up in the last light, we then set about cooking dinner of soup and noodles, before joining the other Raiders, at one of the camp-fires to share their experiences of the day. It was
quite cold here at night and the best place was in the sleeping bag so by about 10 PM most Raiders had closed day 2.
Raid Day 3, Monday 31^st August
The morning was cold and cloudy but not raining, when we rose, we found the rubbish bags of the evening meal as well as any food left out had been attacked by the currawongs, these birds were very bold and would take anything. We were camped near the French team who were fascinated by several wallabies and their joeys who grazed at the edge of the bush, after a bit of coaxing the French team all had video footage and photo's of their group with these animals.
Today was to be a sight seeing day, but most crews decided to take the opportunity to clean out the mud from the Taroom to Injune road and check the rest of the car out, however Lance called a meeting after breakfast to explain where to get information on the attractions of the area.
Paul and I spent several hours cleaning mud out of the chassis and mudguards of the Dyane then we decided to look around the other teams, their set-ups and problems, Alec Lowe was busy repairing his torn mudguard and David Noke who was also in a Traction, had the same problem, we then came to Ian Gamble's camp, his car had a bent chassis on the LH side under the transmission, Christian Komaniecki from the French team was also there, he said the same problem occurred during 2CV CROSS races and the fix was to jack the car up at the front and jump on the front door sill till the chassis popped back straight, after about 10 minutes of bouncing on the door sill the chassis was straight and a gusset was then welded in to the weak point.
Most teams had done their repairs by noon, and after a lunch of jaffles and a battle with the birds for scraps, this left the afternoon to explore Carnarvon Gorge, we didn't have time to go on the long trail, 10 km in and out and anyway my leg would not have stood up to the walk, so we looked at the short walks close to the road, there were some interesting examples of rock art, rock formations and local plant species.
This filled the afternoon and just on dusk we added 11 litres to the Dyane and returned to camp for a dinner of packet rice dishes, quite good and filling if you add extra rice, by now the birds had gone so we had the meal in peace, after dinner the stories of the day around the camp-fire were a lot of fun, and Christian produced a bottle of home made spirit made from apples he called " calvitos " it appeared to be about as strong as overproof rum and had the same effect, after several nips I slept very well.
Raid Day 4, Tuesday 1^st September
Up again at first light and make breakfast, it had been raining overnight and was still drizzling lightly so packing up a wet tent wasn't much fun, but it was necessary as we were to be on the road by 7 AM. We got away by 7.15 and went out on the Rollerston road until we got to the Dawson Highway which took us to Springsure, here we stopped for a break about 10 AM, Dave Noak was complaining of a squeak in his engine which turned out to be no oil to the rockers, so while Lance and Dave repaired the engine, the rest of the Raiders went shopping for food etc.
The locals enjoyed the antics of the roadside repairs and about 75 people invading their shops, about 11AM, just as Dave's car was being finished Greg Bracegirdle rolled slowly into town, he had dropped his LH drive shaft on the highway, in a few minutes the mudguards were off and new studs were fitted to the driveshaft, using loctite, we also tightened the RH side too.
By now it was about 11.30 and we had all had lunch of pies and pastries from the Springsure bakery, very good they were too, we then set off for Tambo 240 Km away on dirt roads in constant light rain.
A small group including Rene Goedel, Rolf Breyer and Bernd Weise decided to go on the bitumen via Emerald and meet us that night in Blackall, some other cars that left Springsure before waiting for the repairs to be completed made it to Blackall late in the afternoon with no trouble.
The main Raid group, about 30 cars, followed the Dawson Development road, and good fun it was too, we had some mud to start with, then into the hills and valleys of the Snake Range, this was rock and sand base with lots of puddles and creek crossings, after about an hour we came to a small patch of black soil about 1 Km long and the lead car of Lance Collins slid off the road, this was followed by Paul Smythe and the Goodwins, the result was the first panel damage in the Raid, a damaged rear mudguard on the Traction and a dented door on the " D " but no real problems.
The convoy was stopped here for a short time while the cars were retrieved, and there was lots of discussion as how best to drive in the mud, the general answer was very slowly and well spread out, all the time the rain was falling lightly......
We pushed on through a herd of very inquisitive steers, heading for Castle Vale, Birkhead and Tambo, all went well for about an hour when the convoy of 2CV's at the front, about 8 cars ahead of us called up to say they had no traction in the mud, by this time it was about 2.30 PM, we had hit a patch of black soil about 3 Km long and slightly up hill, we were close to Castle Vale station in what the locals call Brigaloe forest.
Very soon it was apparent that the 2CV's didn't have enough power to pull through the blacksoil and many drivers spent a lot of time spinning wheels and sliding, meanwhile the mud was building up inside the rear wheel mudguards, this stopped the rear wheels from turning. The answer was to remove the rear mudguards and dig out the mud every 200 metres or so, and to get extra traction I sat on the bonnet while Paul drove, this went on for about 3hours until we got to the end of the blacksoil, I was getting cold now as I had bare feet to get traction in the mud, it was dusk and the rain was still falling.
Peter Scholz in the 4WD 2CV towed out quite a few cars and some locals, Steve and Cathy also pulled out a lot of cars with their 4WD Toyota, darkness however beat us and some cars were forced to spend the night camped in the Brigaloe forest.
We still had over 100 Km to get to Tambo on dirt roads in the darkness, so with the rain still falling and the heater on full, we drove slowly watching for Kangaroos and washaways. The lights of Tambo came up at 7PM and we found a group of Raiders in a cafe trying to get warm and decide what to do, after a bit of discussion it was decided to stay the night in Tambo and push on to Blackall next day.
We were all very muddy so we had to wash off the mud before we could enter the hotel, imagine our delight to find the hose in the service station was connected to bore water which came out at about 60 degrees.
We then booked into the hotel and had a hot shower and a meal, meanwhile the other Raiders had arrived in town completely filling both hotels and ordering meals. The locals enjoyed our stay, it is fair to say we boosted Tambo's coffers enormously that night as we celebrated our victory over the mud until quite late.
Raid Day 5, Wednesday 2^nd September
A road train woke me about 6AM and I went outside to find an overcast morning but no rain, as breakfast was not until 7 AM, I decided to hose the mud out of the chassis and mudguards of the Dyane, this was done with the hotel's fire hose, and didn't take long, by breakfast time Paul and I had refitted the rear mudguards and checked over the car for damage from the previous days drama's. Breakfast was served in the hotel's federation era dining room, and was a full meal with bacon, eggs, sausages and tomato together with tea and toast.
After breakfast we packed the car before helping some other Raiders with their clean-up, by 8.30 we were ready to roll and after adding 20 litres to the Dyane we set off for Blackall.
During some discussion the previous night we had heard the road was badly broken up on a black soil area, but there was one lane of bitumen open when we got to that spot, some of the floodways however were a problem as they had up to 300 mm of water in them, we got through but some other cars were stuck.
We arrived in Blackall about 10.30 to be told over the CB to come to the van park for the meal we were to have had the previous night, this was a hearty bush stew and was just as good for an extra 15 hours cooking, after swapping stories with the Raiders who went via the bitumen, we heard from Claude that Alec Lowe and the English girls with Dave Noke had gone to Windorah to collect their 2Cv's from Jim Reddiex who had driven them out from Brisbane, he went back in Alec's DS. We washed more mud off the rear wheels to eliminate an out of balance problem we encountered on the way from Tambo.
On then to Barcaldine to join the Capricorn Hwy to Longreach, at Barcaldine we found a group of Raiders around Neil and Wendy Trotters car, it had developed a squeak in the LH front wheel area, this turned out to be a damaged kingpin, after a snack of jaffles we left for Longreach where we were due to be one of the attractions at the opening of that section of the Matilda Hwy at 1PM. About 30 Km from Longreach Bernd Weise in the twin engine 2cv Ute lost a rear suspension knife edge, this was replaced on the roadside.
The convoy reached Longreach at 1.30 PM, and found the stockmans hall of fame, here we found the officials had held up the opening for us, after the usual speeches and ribbon cutting we drove past the camera's and into the car-park, Longreach had received about 70mm of rain in the last week, so the car-park was a bit of a mess, we found a dry bit and went to see the attractions at the hall of fame, this is a very good insight into the old times in the bush.
Next job was to find some accommodation, our original tent sites were too wet to use but we found a spot at the Longreach Swaggies backpackers hostel, other Raiders were in hotels, motels and even in a pavilion at the Longreach showground, all had a dry bed at least.
At our hostel we had quite a group of Raiders, and a variety of other people, like old Ray, he was about 70 who lived on a property about 150 Km from town, the last 30 Km on blacksoil, he was staying in town several days after the rain stopped before he tackled the road in a Diesel Landcruiser !!
After dark the fun started, first there was a meal of sausages and veg, cooked in a kitchen with 10 other people, after dinner we watched the weather forecast on the TV, it was for fine weather for the next 4 days at least, this would help greatly.
Just as the news was finishing, a taxi arrived and the driver came in to find " Max " and to say the "baby" was here, we found Max and he paid the driver, soon a full bottle of " Bundy " rum was being passed around. The non Raiders at the hostel wanted to hear our stories and we listened to theirs, about 9.30 another" baby " was delivered, more stories, with old Ray telling quite a few, then with a crash old Ray fell off his chair, we put him to bed as he had passed out. Some of the younger guests continued on until 1AM when Chris the manager locked the rest of the nearly empty bottle up.
Raid Day 6, Thursday 3^rdSeptember
Lots of thick heads this morning, but if you were up early enough, a fine outback dawn was there to greet you, then around 7AM a heavy fog rolled in, this is very unusual in Longreach and lots of photo's were taken by the locals, the fog lifted about 8.30 to reveal a fine day, just the thing for the boggy roads.
A lot of discussion had been taken on what to do about the run to Birdsville, as there were several large sections of black soil on the road to Windorah, at a 9AM meeting it was decided to give the roads a day to dry out and if necessary, abandon Birdsville and go via Winton, Cloncurry and Mt Isa to Alice Springs all on bitumen roads.
The morning in Longreach was filled with looking at local attractions like the old Qantas hanger, hall of fame and the main street which is about a kilometre long, here we found the Merino bakery with excellent pies, bread and pastries as well as the usual shops. About lunchtime we added 24 litres to the Dyane and returned to the hostel where we dried out our still wet tent and cleaned the rocks and mud out of the sump guards.
Peter Scholz the " Hero of the mud " was concerned about his clutch, so out came the engine to reveal the clutch was ok, but the release lever and throwout bearing were faulty, after a bit of fiddling the release mechanism was pronounced ok and the engine was refitted. Jost Hashoff and the Trotters who had king pin trouble were able to fix their problems and Rene who left us in Springsure appeared with a tool he had made for straightening rear arms, this consisted of a wheel rim with a 3 metre length of pipe welded to the centre of it and braced at 2 places, it worked well and was used by many Raiders over the next few weeks.
Late in the day about 6 cars who had no repairs to do, and had seen all the attractions of Longreach decided to go to Winton as they believed the roads would not dry out and this would reduce the distance they had to travel next day, we were able to contact them later to tell them of our plans.
About 4.30PM, I heard that a TV crew were making a travel film about the river tour on the Thompson River and were looking for people to fill the boat. The bus arrived at the hostel not long after and those who wanted were welcome to come, I went along with some other Raiders, but Paul still had some things to do and stayed behind.
The boat was a flat bottomed barge with 2 outboards and seated about 50 people we cruised up and down the river for about an hour then returned to the wharf to a magnificent sunset, we were then returned to the hostel.
Later that evening after a meal of sausages and veg, we went to the showground where another meeting had been called to tell everyone the road to Windorah would probably be reopened next day, so after getting in touch with the Raiders in Winton it was decided to speak to the police at 8AM next morning and if possible go to Windorah next day.
After the meeting, Steve Wedell brought the video camera back to the hostel and we had a review of raid so far, the non Raiders were also interested, then about 10 PM the taxi delivered another " baby " but I didn't hear it at all as I went to bed.
Raid Day 7, Friday 4^th September
Another blazing bush dawn and the promise of a fine day, we had breakfast and were all packed in time to assemble for the 8AM meeting. Lance had spoken to the police and was given the all clear to go to Windorah via Jundah, I still had misgivings about the state of the road but they proved unfounded, we then notified the Raiders in Winton of our intention to go to Birdsville and hoped they would join us there. Also we welcomed Richard and Beth Payne and daughter Ruth to the Raid.
We left Longreach at 8.45 AM on the road via Jundah to Windorah, at first the road was good fast bitumen, then about 70km from Longreach we came upon the first patch of blacksoil, this was badly cut up by the trucks and 4wd traffic which had been bogged, all Raiders got through with little or no trouble, so we continued on, arriving in Jundah about noon, here we regrouped and set off for Windorah.
The road was drying all the time and with no clay or black soil sections on this stretch we arrived in Windorah at 1.30 PM to be reunited with Alec Lowe, Dave Noke and the English girls who by now had their own 2cv's, after adding 22 litres to the Dyane and a meal of sandwiches and fruit we set off for Bettota at 2.30.
The first 40 km's was bitumen on the Diamantina developmental road, and as we drove along we noticed lots of shiny rocks on the roadside, there was a lot of chatter on the CB as to what made them shine, it appears that the minerals in the soil coat the stones (or gibbers) and make them shiny.
After turning off the Diamantina Developmental Road onto the Birdsville Development Road, the surface became stonier and much rougher, lots of vehicles had been through here and some rain had fallen, more than 20 Raiders suffered punctures and several tyres were cut so badly they were destroyed.
By 5.30 PM we had arrived in Betoota to find a fuel pump, a roughly built pub and nothing else, so after a couple of stubbies at $ 2.75 a stubbie, we went to a nearby creek bed to make camp for the night, after a dinner of jaffles cooked to a blazing sunset, the sound of tyre removal and air pumps was everywhere, then after the chores, a mozzie free camp-fire was enjoyed under a nearly full moon, here we caught up with the adventures of Alec, Dave and the English girls as well as the other Raiders stories of the last few days, before turning in about 10 PM.
Raid Day 8, Saturday 5^th September
After a breakfast of tea and toast, we left for Birdsville 170 km away at 8AM under a cloudless sky. With all the tyres repaired the Raiders were ready for the next section, this was as rough as the previous day's road and soon the familiar call of" I've got another flat " was heard over the CB. Paul and I caught up with Neil and Wendy Trotter about 30 km out of Birdsville, they told us they had flattened 3 tyres that morning and had no more spares, we loaned them one of our tyres and followed them into town.
On entering town we found Stefan and Georgi Laguna taping up their windscreen, this was broken by a passing car just as they got to the bitumen road.
We arrived in Birdsville about 11 AM and added 24 litres to the Dyane, then after a tour of the main street we decided to camp about 1 km out on the race-course side, after setting up the tent, Paul and I decided to walk into town to see the " sights."
You could write a book on the people at the Birdsville races, but I will be brief, the town normally has a population of less than 100 people, but on race weekend, this swells to over 5000, to get this large population here, there are cars, busses and trucks of all ages and sizes, there were also about 700 planes parked at the airstrip.
The centre of attraction in Birdsville is the pub, with hundreds of people milling around inside and out, all clutching beer cans, from here a constant stream of cars, trucks, busses and one lone taxi were taking people the 4km to the races and back.
Around the pub were lots of stalls, selling souvenirs and food, as we had not yet had lunch, we each had a potato max, this is a large roast potato with some of the centre removed and filled with meat, cheese and sour cream, very tasty it was too.
Most of the Raiders had by now set up camp and joined us in town, with them we spent several hours walking around looking at the antics of the people, then one of the Raiders who said he was going to the races agreed to put a dollar each way on a horse called "Gully Wind," in the Birdsville Cup, I later heard it finished last.
About mid afternoon Paul and I decided to walk back to camp to find a cool spot out of the now hot sun and away from the hordes of people, we put up a ground sheet for shade and soon a group of Raiders joined us for some shade and a chat. While we were there a chap in an old Ford truck introduced himself to us, he was Noel Neill from Katherine and intended to travel with us all the way to Katherine, He was to prove invaluable as his truck was equipped with welding gear and compressed air.
At dusk we cooked a meal of jaffles, and ate them watching the sunset, after our meal we again walked into town to watch the fun at Fred Brophy's boxing tent, here the chief spruiker would beat a drum and dare the audience of about 1000 people to come up and fight one of the troupe, "If you win, you'll get $ 10 per minute, and if you lose you'll get the experience free " after a time he had enough takers, these brave souls were introduced to the audience then sent on inside to be made ready, I thought it was a bit like the gladiators at the roman games, the next step was to entice the people to come into the tent at $ 10 per person to see the spectacle.
We walked off to watch the other side-shows and souvenir stalls for a while, about 8PM we saw people gathering for the other big event, the Birdsville Ball, a black tie affair, at $20 per person, some patrons were " dressed to the nines " and others were in all stages of dressiness, a roaring trade was also done reselling the black ties at $ 5.00 a time through the fence to the men on the outside.
After a while the group of Raiders we had joined decided to walk back to camp, behind us we heard the spruiker drumming up a new group of victims for the members of the boxing troupe from an even drunker audience, on reaching camp we joined a camp-fire till about 10 PM, then went to bed, the ball ran until a bit after 4 AM going by the noise.
Raid Day 9, Sunday 6^th September
At first light, just before 6 AM, there was a terrific roaras a twin engine plane took off, this was repeated every few minutes for the next 4 hours, I couldn't sleep with all that noise going on, so I got up and started breakfast, we then broke camp and packed the car for the next leg of our journey to Boulia via Bedourie.
As we left our camp-site I noticed Bernie Rachelle in his red "D" model having trouble with the suspension, it turned out that the RH front piston rod and ball had been smashed on the road in from Windorah, Lance found these items in his tool box and repairs were quickly completed.
When we got into Birdsville township about 8.30 AM, we went to the site of the previous nights ball to find people still asleep on the ground and others who didn't look too well trying to find some breakfast, meanwhile further up the street, a bulldozer was being used to clean up the garbage which had accumulated over the last few days, it looked like it would be there all day.
All the people in town meant I had to queue for the phone for 30 minutes to ring home to catch up on all the news, it sure was good to here from them after 2 weeks on the road. Then after another walk around the roadside stalls, now anxious to sell the souvenirs of the 1992 races, we drove out of Birdsville at about 9.30, I was glad to leave as a strong south westerly wind was blowing dust and a hot sun was going to make Birdsville uncomfortable in the next few hours.
The road from Birdsville to Bedourie runs between the Simpson Desert and the Channel country, it was all dirt and badly rutted from all the traffic, out to the left we could see big red sandhills and to our right there were the shining rocks we had seen on the way into town, the vegetation was low stunted scrub and tussocks of grass, but here and there some green shoots were already coming through around the puddles left by the recent rain.
To break the boredom there was a lot of fun chatter over the CB radio, all went well for about 100 km until Guido and Alex in one of the AK vans came over a rise and landed hard enough to bend the chassis at the axle tube, this meant that the steering column was also jammed, after a rough repair we were off again, a little further on Annie Walters called up to say she had smoke coming out of the dash, this turned out to be the wiper motor burning out after she had turned it on to clear a puddle splash.
We arrived in Bedourie about 1PM and found a spot under a shady tree near the pub, no soon had we turned the engine off than we were besieged by the local kids trying to get stickers from us, after a small bribe they let us get some lunch, a pie and a stubbie went down very well, we also bought some biscuits and drinks from the general store to nibble on the way to Boulia.
After a half hour stop we were off again, and rejoined the Diamantina Development road, this was also badly rutted, the rough roads and the heat were taking quite a toll, Bernie Rachelle and Paul Smythe in "D" series cars were both having cooling system troubles and several 2cv's had broken or leaking shock absorbers.
The next trouble came about 100 km from Boulia when Jost Hashoff broke the LH front tension rod, Paul and I were right behind him, so stopped to help, first we had to get the welding gear from Phil Ward in his car and unload Jost's van then weld up the rod.
With this done we started off again, only to find the German drivers Michael Mohr and Ollie Becker, who had been changing drivers while driving had taken out a road sign 40 km from Boulia, this had bent the chassis but the car was still drivable, so we left them to make temporary repairs and continued on, about 10 km from Boulia, we found a group of Raiders around Greg Bracegirdle's " batcar," the rough road had broken the rear axle tube bolts, he said he was ok so we pushed on to Boulia to make camp just in the last of the daylight.
As this was the first chance of a shower since Longreach it was most welcome, so after a look around the very nice van park, Paul and I walked the 500metres into town for a meal at the pub and a few drinks, here we found the Raiders who had left us in Longreach and also got the stories of the day from the other crews, Greg Bracegirdle got into town about 8PM after removing the broken bolts and fitting some spares.
When we got back to camp about 9.30 we found the cars with bent chassis receiving attention, our help was not needed but we stayed to watch the job, then about 11PM another resident of the van park complained about the noise so we stopped work and went to bed.
Raid Day 10, Monday 7^th September
Another blazing dawn under a cloudless sky, Paul and I had breakfast to the sound of hammering, Michael and Ollie were repairing their damaged mudguard, an excellent job they made of it too, we then packed the car and called in to the only service station in town for 24 litres of fuel and ice and drinks.
there was sometimes water after the recent rains, Jean-Marie Legal of the French team managed to get bogged trying to avoid one of these water courses.
As we travelled further west the wildflowers increased, and the road got rougher and more corrugated, in places where the sandhills had been covered by gravel the stones were quite sharp, a few more punctures here by some cars.
We arrived at the lunch stop after about 250 km at 3PM, this was just inside the Northern Territory border, here we reset our clocks to 2.30. Here was a typical roadside rest area, with a water tank, and a covered picnic table, not enough room for all of us so Paul and I had a lunch of Ryvitas and Gayndah Mandarins in the shade of the Dyane, we made a point of refilling our water bottles as the temperature was in the mid 30's and we had finished the drinks bought in Boulia, we also added 10 litres from a jerrycan to the Dyane.
After we left our lunch stop the road improved dramatically now it was 6 lanes wide and graded gravel real 100 mph stuff, along the way there are various landmarks to look out for, such as station turn offs, stock dams and solar powered microwave antennas.
The sun was moving west very quickly and after a time and distance check I told Paul we would be lucky to reach Jervois Station by dark, then about 4.30 we passed a huge ant hill it was 3 metres tall and 2 metres in girth. The next hour or so was hard as we were driving into the setting sun in a cloud of dust thrown up by the cars in front, we arrived at Jervois at 6.15 just in time to erect the tent before dark.
While I cooked our meal of rice and noodles, we noticed a bank of cloud forming to the north and west, there were also a lot of moths around our lamps, the locals said this was a sure sign of rain on the way, this was a worry as we still had 270 km to the bitumen and Alice Springs.
At the camp-fire after dinner we heard about the problems that some other Raiders had encountered, Jost had a clutch break at the border, he replaced it at the road side, Micky White had the chassis break as did Guido and Alex in the AK van near the border, both cars had temporary repairs done on the roadside so they could continue on to Alice Springs for full repairs, we listened to the tales until about 10 PM then went to bed.
Raid Day 11, Tuesday 8^th September
The clouds were gone at dawn and the cloudless sky promised another fine hot day, so after breakfast and breaking camp we added 10 litres from a jerry can to the Dyane and left Jervois Station at 8.45, there was about 270 km to the Stuart Hwy and another 70km or so to Alice Springs.
About 100 km after Jervois we started to see hills, this was the Hart Range, we drove along the foot of this range almost until we reached the Stuart Hwy, the country here was better with larger trees in the watercourses and lots of wildflowers on the roadside.
We reached the Stuart Hwy just after noon and turned for Alice Springs, about 3 km down the bitumen the engine died, out of fuel,"ok I said I'll put some in from the jerrycan" no!.. both cans were empty, I had forgotten to fill them at Jervois. Oh well no worries Phillipe Mortimer was behind us and he kindly let us have 10 litres which we replaced in Alice Springs.
The run down the bitumen went without incident, and we arrived in Alice Springs at 1.30, we then found the Hevitree Gap van park, set up camp and went into town for fuel and food, Here we filled both jerrycans and added 19 litres to the tank, then looked around the shops.
Back to camp about 5.30 to see the Redex Bash cars arrive,always good for a laugh, then we booked a trip to Ayres rock for the next day. After washing some clothes, we went to the hotel next to the van park, and had a nice meal from their blackboard menu, quite a lot of other Raiders joined us so we had a few drinks and told our stories of the day before going to bed about 10.30PM. We heard later some Raiders went to a show at the Hornsby winery just out of town and they said it was very good.
Raid Day 12, Wednesday 9^th September
Paul and I rose about 5 AM to have breakfast and be ready for the bus to take us to the airport at 6.15,on the way to the airport we were treated to another colourful bush dawn and fine day. After the purchase of the tickets was done the dozen or so Raiders who went on the trip to Ayres Rock were divided into the groups in which they would fly, we were lucky enough to get John who had been doing the trip for about 2 years.
Our take-off was delayed by the departure of a US air force C 35 Starlifter, a huge cargo plane bigger than a jumbo, this plane comes in once a week with supplies for the US servicemen at the Pine Gap base, we finally took off for the Rock at 7.15.
Our first point of interest was the mysterious domes of Pine Gap, we had to keep at least 3km away, then we went to look at Simpsons Gap, a very narrow gap in the Macdonnell Ranges, from here we headed west past Stanley Chasm and Ellery Gorge until we reached the old Hermansburg Mission, from here we turned south and followed the Finke River to Palm Valley.
From about 500 feet you can clearly see the palms in the river bed, from here we went via the Amphitheatre, a huge semicircular valley to Kings Canyon with its rugged cliffs and strange rounded domes. Our pilot John was full of stories and facts about each of the points of interest we were passing, he then suggested we look for some camels on the clay pans so off we went at 300kph and 200 feet, we found a few to round up and I suspect gave them a bit of a fright, then after this bit of fun we passed over Lake Amadeus, part of a series of salt lakes which is over 250 km long and is all that remains of the inland sea.
We could see Ayres Rock, now called " ULURU " in the distance so after a turn around the Olgas we landed at Yulara Resort airport, about 25 km from the rock, our flight had taken an hour and 45 minutes and was most enjoyable.
At 9AM the fine clear day was just starting to warm up but a strong cold southerly breeze kept us cool so jackets were still needed.
The coach was waiting for us and as we left the airport, we saw Jost and Alex in the red AK van, they had driven the 450 km from Alice Springs during the night and were having a meal before tackling the rock. The coach took us to the bottom of the rock,and those who wanted to climb were given 2 1/2 hours to climb to the top and return, Paul and I decided to climb.
It's only 1.5 km from the bottom to the top but it still took me 45 minutes, there must have been over 100 people doing the climb that day but all I could hear was my own heavy breathing, after reaching the monument at the top and looking at the plaque, we took some photo's and caught our breath, then came back down. Evidence of the recent rain was the pools of tepid water in many placer on the rock, and the breeze that had kept us cool on the climb was now a 30 knot gale, so we were glad to reach the bottom after 30 minutes of walking.
When we reached the bottom a bus was waiting to take us to the Yalara Resort, where a ploughman's lunch was waiting for us, this was a very nice buffet, and after the mornings exercise got a fair sort of work-out. After lunch there was some free time to shop or look at the visitors centre, the visitors centre has a very good display of the plants and animals of the area, so after spending some time here I only had time for a quick look at the shops until 2PM when the coach was waiting to take us back to the airport and the flight back to Alice Springs.
John our pilot was waiting for us and asked who wanted to ride up front, I immediately took up the offer, while Paul and the others all got in the back and were soon asleep, the flight back to Alice Springs took just under an hour and we flew at 10,000 feet to avoid the updrafts, from up there dust clouds on the horizon were quite apparent and John said these were what was giving us the brilliant sunsets and sunrises.
From the airport the bus brought us back to camp at about 5PM and after a shower and change we had dinner at the hotel again and told the other Raiders of our day's adventures, then I was glad to get to bed just after 8 PM.
Tomorrow we would drive to Darwin up the bitumen, it should take 3 easy days run.
Raid Day 13, Thursday 10^th September
Up at 6AM again to see the moon setting as the sun was rising, it was fine and clear, today we were heading for Phillip Creek station, some 540KM north on the bitumen so we could take it easy. After breakfast we broke camp and packed the car, then asked the other Raiders what they had done while we had been at Ayres Rock. Most had a day looking at the sights of Alice Springs, but Mickey White and Guido and Alex had had their broken chassis repaired by Alec Lowe at a nearby panel shop, I was also surprised to see Jost's tent, he told me that after they had climbed the rock and watched the sunset, they drove the 450 km back to Alice Springs, " no problem." Some Raiders had left before dawn to go on a hot air balloon ascent followed by a chicken and champagne breakfast, very good too they said.
Paul and I went to see the shops in the Todd mall and to buy souvenirs and the like before leaving Alice at about 10.30.
We stopped at the Tropic of Capricorn monument for a photo then headed North. A little way further on we came across a group of Raiders all gathered around Annie Walters car, it was using oil and down on power, after a bit of discussion it was decided to tow her 2cv with Dave Noke's traction to Phillip Creek station about 500km away, soon we were all under way again.
The next stop was Barrow Creek, we arrived at 2.45 for lunch, "beer and burger" and to add 22 litres to the car, we were here for about 30 minutes, and while we were stopped I saw the 2cv and traction combination go past. We were swapping drivers every 2 hours or so to relieve the boredom of the long straight roads that just go on and on, after Barrow Creek we came to a place called Wycliffe Well, here is another road-house which stocks over 400 different kinds of beer from all over the world, well we had to stop here and have at least one beer...well two..
Overseas beer was $4.00 a can and all Australian beers were $2.75 a can, we had only gone about another 20 km when Stephane and Georgie Laguna called up on the CB to say they were broken down at the Wauchope road-house with gearbox trouble, when we arrived, we found they had lost 3 teeth off the input shaft gear to the transmission, so after a bit of discussion it was decided to tow them to the 3 ways road-house for repairs, about 130 km away, while we were stopped in Wauchope, Lance Collins caught up, he had been delayed with a broken exhaust about 100km out of Alice Springs, it dropped right off about 30 km further on, so it was now inside the car, he said the noise wasn't too bad if you cruised at 100 kph in top.
We all left again, Stephane's car was now being towed by Steve Wedell's "DS", Paul and I stopped about 20 km on to see the Devils Marbles, huge round boulders by the side of the road, we were here for about 30 minutes looking at the rocks and reading the information cards on the walking trail, it was getting dark as we left the Devils Marbles and we still had over 140 km to go to Phillip Creek.
About 7.30 we got to Tennant Creek, here David Gries was filling as we pulled in, the Dyane took 16 litres, and after a drink we drove on to 3 ways road-house to see what was happening to Stephane's car.
The Laguna's, Steve and Barry as well as Jost and Alex were staying the night at 3 ways and would replace the gearbox with a spare one Jost had in his van and see us on the road the next day.
A group of 4 cars including us had a meal of burgers and beer then we set off for Phillip Creek about 30 km North, we were calling over the CB radio and about 10 km out of 3 ways made contact with the main Raid group who were just finishing their meals at Phillip Creek, they guided us in and we arrived at about 8.30. Here we found a large open sided shed about 10 metres long with a kitchen area at one end and Annie's car at the other, there was a lot of activity around it, soon the engine was out and set up on a table, it was then dismantled to assess the damage, the verdict was the rings had broken up but the crankshaft bearings were gone too.
In the next few minutes, a second hand crankshaft, a set of rings, a full engine gasket set and all the parts needed to build a new engine were produced from various Raiders spares kits.
Helpers came from every where, some to hold the light, others to wash parts, we all had a part, even if you didn't get near a spanner Christian, who took charge made a point of getting some grease on your hands, thanks mate! The ladies made tea and coffee and produced biscuits and cake for the workers.
By midnight the engine had been rebuilt and fitted to the car, then started up to check for oil pressure, then we all rolled out our sleeping bags on the shed floor, so much for an easy day!
Raid Day 14, Friday 11^th September
Up at 6 AM again to a clear cloudless sky, after a breakfast of tea and toast we packed the car, today Annie would run in her new engine on the way to Mataranka, some 520 km away. By 7.30 the finishing touches had been made to Annies car and the Raid left for Elliot and Mataranka. We had no trouble and arrived in Elliot about 10 AM, for a drink and to add 19 litres to the Dyane, as we headed north the days were getting hotter and we had taken to carrying drinks in the car to be replenished at just about each fuel stop.
At Daly Waters we turned off the main road to see the historic airfield, the Stuart tree, and to have an enormous burger at the Daly Waters pub, it was a huge hamburger, 150mm in diameter and at least 150mm tall, one was a meal to be washed down with the inevitable stubbie of beer.
During the afternoon we changed drivers frequently as the road went on and on, we stopped at Larrimah for a drink and visited the site of the "We of the never never" homestead and graveyard, some of these stops and side trips were to keep us from going to sleep while driving, a real problem out on these roads. Then just as we got to the Mataranka Springs turn-off the engine died, out of fuel, this time there was a Jerry can in the back, so in went 10 litres and we continued on in to our camp-site at Mataranka Springs resort, arriving about 4.30.
After setting up camp we went to the springs, here the water comes out of a natural rock fault at 35 degrees, and is excellent water to swim in and to drink, we spent about an hour in the water and emerged looking like "pink prunes". After changing we went to book a tour of Katherine Gorge for the next morning then went to join the other Raiders at the bar.
Here we heard about the other Raiders run up the bitumen, the "D" series cars of Bernie Rachelle and Paul Smythe were still having trouble with overheating, they were to have their radiators flushed the next day in Katherine.
Later we had a meal of rice and noodles and after catching up with some of the other Raiders we went to bed early as we had to be up at 5AM to leave at 6.30 to do the 130 km to Katherine Gorge for an 8 O'Clock tour.
Raid Day 15, Saturday 12^th September
As we rose the moon was setting, and while we had breakfast and broke camp the sun rose in another cloudless sky. We left Mataranka Springs at 6.30 for Katherine Gorge and arrived at the tour jetty at 8 AM, we boarded the boat and once underway, our guide showed us the rock formations and places along the bank the places where the freshwater crocodiles were breeding, after about 30 minutes, we came to the end of the first pool. there was about a 500 metre walk to the boat in the next section, along the way there were some excellent rock paintings that were well signposted and explained.
In the next section of the gorge we were shown the 30 metre rock cliff that was used in the film "Jedda", for the final leap scene, also there were some interesting rock caves, and hanging "gardens", this section also took about 30 minutes. We then retraced our steps to the other boat and back to the jetty, the morning on the river was very good and took about 2 hours all up.
As we were returning to Katherine, we noticed several Raiders turning into a house, this was the home of Noel Neil and his wife Cath, who had travelled with us from Birdsville. Noel showed us his collection of about 8 cars ranging from a Ford model T to a Rolls Royce, all being used on a daily basis.
After spending some time here we arrived in Katherine just after 10.30, after a tour of the main street, we decided to get some pies, rolls and pastries from the Katherine Patisserie for lunch. We then added 25 litres to the Dyane and refilled the used jerrycan and left for Adelaide River just over 200 km away at 11.30, this was the 3rd day on the bitumen and with the engine doing a constant 6000 rpm at 110kph on the long straight roads it is easy to see how people go to sleep at the wheel in broad daylight. We made Adelaide River at about 2 PM without incident and after getting some drinks and adding 20 litres to the Dyane, we were off again heading for Darwin.
We detoured to see the old uranium mine at Rum Jungle, it's closed now, with a big fence and sign to tell you not to enter as there is still a lot of radio active material in the tailing dumps. From here we returned to the main road and went on to the Arnhem Highway turn-off, here we were to meet up with the other Raiders and the Darwin car club people, we found the other Raiders OK but no sign of the welcoming committee, after waiting about 20 minutes or so Lance went on and found them about 5km up the road, they didn't have CB's so couldn't hear our calls.
A photo session was the next thing before travelling the last 30 kms or so to Darwin, here there was a reception for us by more car club members and we were officially welcomed by Marshal Perron the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, he arrived in his 1946 Ford hot rod, straight out of Happy Days, complete with painted flames up the sides. After a few short speeches out came the beer and we got to know the Darwin mob.
The car club members then escorted us the 15 km out to the Lee Point Van Park, this would be our base for the next 3 days, they were not expecting so many people and it took ages to book in, then, after setting up camp we had a meal at the van park restaurant, here the service was even slower, however by 10 PM we were all fed and were very pleased to go to bed.
Raid Day 16, Sunday 13^th September
An easy day this, we were to be at East Point picnic area at 8AM for a breakfast put on by the Northern Territory motor clubs, this was a slap-up affair with heaps of good food and good company. The breakfast continued on until about 10 AM then most of the Raiders went off to Morgans Motors to carry out any repairs that were needed, Paul and I went to visit his cousin on the way to Morgans and arrived about 11AM.
Darwin in mid September is great weather wise, about 25 to 30 degrees during the day and dropping to about 15 degrees at night, today was no exception, but you have to be careful of sunburn as the sun was very strong even this early in the summer. Towards evening a bank of cloud usually appears out over the sea to give an excellent sunset.
Peter Morgan had kindly opened his workshop to the Raiders to carry out any repairs that might be needed, we spent the afternoon there servicing the Dyane and helping other Raiders with a wide range of other jobs. About 5 PM we went back to the van park for a shower and to go to the free jazz concert on the grass area in front of the Darwin Casino at Mindil Beach.
Here we had a meal from one of the open air food stalls, mine was chicken kebabs and rice, a good meal for about $ 7.00, at the end of the concert Paul and I had a quick look at the Casino and the shopping area of Darwin then we went back to the van park here we found a group of Raiders relaxing, we got the mosquito repellant out and sat with them for a while before heading off to bed about 10 PM.
Raid Day 17, Monday 14^th September
Today was a sight seeing day, so after breakfast we added 20 litres to the Dyane and set off for Litchfield National Park, it was fine and warm, and on the way we stopped at a roadside fruit van and bought a variety of tropical fruits to have as lunch, then off back down the Stuart Highway about 80 km to get to the Batchelor turn off, then in via Rum Jungle to the Litchfield National park.
On entering the park a sign told us to turn on the FM radio to a set frequency, here a continuous broadcast described the features and regulations of the park.
During the rest of the morning we visited the "magnetic" termite mounds, so called because they face north-south, they can be up to 3 metres tall and are quite wide, about 1 metre but only about 20 centimetres thick at the base tapering to a point at the top. The information sheet said the termites build the mounds in this fashion to give a cool side, and a warm side of the mound.
The next stop was the Buley Water hole, this is a series of rapids and pools which were well patronised by several family groups, from here we drove on to Wangi Falls for lunch, this is probably the best known spot in the park, here a permanent water fall drops about 30 metres into a pool about 200 metres in diameter and only chest deep, just the place to cool off before lunch, after our meal of tropical fruit we had time for another swim before heading back towards Darwin via Finnis river.
This was probably the long way back but we were sight seeing afterall, as we drove on through the hills and valleys on a well maintained dirt road we noticed that all the trees had been burnt, this apparently happens each dry season throughout the tropics.
About 3 PM we arrived at Finnis river store for a drink and to look at the remains of an old crashed aircraft, bits were used as door stops and garden decorations, very strange.
After a short break we continued on to Darwin and back to the van park, we had covered 300 km on the day and added another 22 litres of fuel to the Dyane. After a meal of rice and noodles we were talking to some of the other Raiders about our day's outing when one suggested going to the pub for a drink, here we found the rest of the Raiders in the air-conditioned bar, we stayed until about 11 PM then came back to camp and off to bed.
Raid Day 18, Tuesday 15^th September
After eating breakfast to yet another blazing sunrise we packed the car, and got ready to go to Kakadu, Rolf and Jan, our medico's came to see me about some insect bites which had become infected on my right leg, the result of this was a trip to the Royal Darwin Hospital, where after the usual hour or so wait, the doctor looked at the leg and put a dressing on the bites then prescribed some antibiotics to knock out the infection.
We caught up with the rest of the Raiders as they were leaving Darwin for Kakadu and after some more delays at the Arnhem Hwy turn off we all left for Cooinda at 10.15AM, by now the day was getting quite warm and we were glad to be moving.
The drive from Darwin to Cooinda is only 250 km and goes by way of Humpty Doo on the Adelaide River, the next point of interest was a road-house called the Bark Hut road-house and hotel, here we stopped for a drink and a look around, the road house is enormous, there were about 6 buildings about 10 metres long and 5 metres wide all connected by covered walkways as well as a series of courtyards set out with rough hewn tables and seats.
About 170 km after leaving Darwin we came to the park, here at the entrance station we paid our fee and received a series of maps, and a glossy visitors guide, from here we continued along the road until we got to the Kakadu Holiday village, several Raiders had stopped here at the kiosk for lunch, I had a "Barra burger" which was an enormous hamburger filled with a barrumundi fillet and lots of salad, in the centre of the kiosk was a floor to ceiling fish tank with about 6 barrumundi watching us.
We drove on about 20 km and came to a place called Mamukala, this is a large wetland area about 2km across with a hide to view the birds, we stayed here for about 20 min. After leaving here we drove directly to Jabiru, this is a small town serving the needs of the Ranger uranium mine, nearby is the Four Seasons resort.
This resort is in the shape of a huge crocodile it is about 250 metres long and 60 wide, here we found a group of Raiders in the bar, funny that, so we had to try out the local beer too, after looking in the souvenir shop we headed off for Cooinda about 50 km away, about 20 km from Jabiru we came to the Nourlangie rock turn-off, another 12 km in to the rock art site, here there were lots of rock paintings explained by a self guided tour, this was very good as you could move at your own pace, we stayed about half an hour then left for Cooinda, reaching the camp-site in the van park about 5PM.
After booking a cruise on the Yellow Water Billabong for the next day we set up camp and made use of the swimming pool, after a swim we watched an enormous electrical storm to the North and hoped it wouldn't hit us, we were spared the rain but enjoyed the lightning. Next thing was dinner, at Cooinda there is a small hotel attached to the van park the menu includes Kangaroo and Camel steaks as well as the more usual Beef, these you cook on a large BBQ, there were salads to go with the steaks from an excellent salad bar, this was well patronised.
After dinner a band started up, this provided quite some entertainment as more beer was drunk, we stayed until about 11PM then went to bed.
Raid Day 19, Wednesday 16^th September
After the previous evening's storm the day was clear, we had breakfast and planned an easy day looking at the sights of Kakadu National Park, after adding 23 litres to the Dyane we went to visitors centre to see the audio/visual presentation on the features of the area, a good show.
From here we went to Ubirr, this is about 45 km from Jabiru and is a major native art site. Here we met Malcom Douglass who makes nature and documentary type films, after talking with him for a while we went off to see the rock art.
There are 3 areas of rock art at Ubirr and a guide to give talks to the tourists and look after the area, there is also a look-out where you can see the open woodland on one side and the grasslands of the East Alligator River on the other. While we were here we also met up with Steve Wedell and Barry Sargent who were taking photo's and video's to show later, after finishing at the art site we went via the East Alligator River at the Border Store, this was a slow moving stream about 50 metres wide, there were signs everywhere telling you not to swim here as it is crocodile territory.
From here we returned to Jabiru to have lunch with Steve and Barry at the "big croc", we had hamburgers and a beer, then we were going to visit the Ranger Uranium mine, but we missed the last tour of the day. Instead we spent some time in the Jabiru town centre before returning to Cooinda for a quick swim in the pool before the Yellow Waters cruise which was to leave at 4.30. I lost track of time in the pool and we only just made it to the boat in time, the camera was left in camp in the rush so I don't have any pictures of the fabulous birds and crocodiles we saw on the 2 hour tour of the Yellow Water Billabong.
As we returned to camp we were treated to another lightning display, again we didn't get any rain but the storm cooled the evening down, after changing we went to the pub for another round of self serv BBQ and a few drinks, after dinner the band was back for our entertainment, but most of the evening was taken up talking to the other Raiders about their sight seeing day, about 11PM I went to bed as we had a big day tomorrow.
Raid Day 20, Thursday 17^th September
This morning was grey and raining, we were up early to have breakfast and break camp, we were to be on the road by 8AM.
By 7.30 we had added 16 litres to the Dyane and were heading for Pine Creek 150 km away on the dirt. The road was quite good with lots of little creek crossings, not much water in them but I was glad we left early, the later cars were to have some trouble with several creeks we heard afterwards, the road took us up to the top of the Arnhem Plateau, from here the views over the park are supposed to be excellent, today however they were obscured by mist and rain.
From the Arnhem Plateau the road took us to the Mary River here we joined the bitumen for the run into Pine Creek, by now the rain had cleared to a fine hot morning with very high humidity we arrived at Pine Creek about 10.30, we stopped here for a drink and a quick look at the town before heading off to Katherine via the Stuart Hwy.
When we were driving down the Stuart Hwy we heard some Raiders on the C.B. say they were going to stop at Edith Falls for a swim, this sounded like a good idea, a 10 km detour from the highway brings you to a small parking area and the falls, here the Edith River drops about 10 metres into a pool about 200 metres across and quite deep the water was cool and refreshing, after about 20 minutes here we left for Katherine for lunch.
At Katherine we visited the patisserie we had found on the way North and bought some of their delicious pies and cakes, we then added 20 litres to the Dyane and left for Roper Bar at about 1.30. The road to Roper Bar follows the Stuart Hwy to Mataranka then swings east, this was good fast bitumen until about 100 km from Roper Bar, where the dirt road started, this road was quite good except for some bad patches of corrugations, we arrived at Roper Bar about 5PM and had trouble finding the camp ground, however Dave Noke saw us go past and called us on the C.B. to guide us back to the camp site.
After pitching the tent we went off to the general store and added 21 litres to the Dyane. When we got back to camp we made a meal of jaffles, then later after catching up with all the Raiders stories, we were entertained around the camp-fire till late by Brigitte Kuechler on the violin and Roland Oehler on the pan pipes and spoons.
Raid Day 21, Friday 18^th September
We rose at first light to see a brilliant dawn, then after our usual breakfast of tea and toast, we broke camp, packed the car and were on our way by 7.30AM.
Today we were heading for Borroloola along a track marked "4wd vehicles only" it must be alright because it was surveyed by the organisers right!! We hoped so because there were no towns along the 365 km route. The country was harsh, with scrubby trees up to 3 metres tall and tussocks of grass along the road there were also lots of dry creek crossings from all the streams draining into the Gulf of Carpentaria.
The road was very rough and corrugated, so much so that personal items on the dash shelf were constantly falling on the floor. About 10AM we came to a patch of newly graded road and within seconds had a flat tyre, the grader was turning up sharp rocks, one of which had split our rear tyre from tread to bead, a check of the speedo showed we had only travelled 80 km in the two and a half hours since leaving Roper Bar.
After replacing the tyre we were called into Morealum Lagoon by other Raiders on the C.B.radio, it was a beautiful lagoon, about 3km long and 1km wide with grass to the waters edge and water lilies in the water, lots of water birds around the edges of the lagoon and many nests in the trees, after a short break here we left again, very careful on the newly graded road.
In places the road was so bad we were only able to drive at walking pace, then about lunchtime as we were travelling along at about 30 kph, Paul said he had another flat, to our horror we found both tyres on the right side were flat, it appears we had hit a bump rather hard and pinched the tube on both tyres.
We had no option but to repair both tyres on the spot, so we unpacked the boot and set up the stove for a cuppa and a lunch of emergency rations while the tyres were repaired, we also served tea to several other Raiders who stopped to give us a hand, next we tried inflating the tyres to 40 psi to reduce the bulge, this would stop pinching and rock cuts but made the car worse on corrugations.
There were no further troubles and we reached Borroloola about 4PM, it had taken 8 1/2 hours to travel 365 km, about 40 kph average. We added 24 litres to the Dyane and went to have a patch put in the sidewall of the split tyre.
By 5.30 we had set up camp and gone around to the pub for a drink, a swim and to catch up with the other Raiders, there were lots of punctures and slashed tyres like ours, but after a swim, a couple of beers and a good meal of Barramundi fillet, only the good parts of the day were remembered. We stayed at the pub talking to the other Raiders and locals before heading off to bed about 11 pm.
Raid Day 22, Saturday 19^th September
Today was to be 500km of the same type of road from Borroloola to Escott, near Bourketown, via Woologorang and Hells Gate.
Most Raiders were up before dawn to be ready to leave at first light, about 6am. We were in a group of about 8 cars to leave at 6.15, we headed east into a rising sun on a very dusty road, there was high light cloud and you could tell the day was going to be quite hot. After about half an hour of driving, the road was getting worse by the kilometre, a check of the speedo showed we had only done 15 km, at this rate it would be 9 or 10 o'clock tonight before we got to Escott even without problems.
Paul and I decided to go back to Borroloola and go via the bitumen to meet the main party the next day at Lawn Hill, we called the other Raiders on the C.B. and told them of our decision.
When we arrived back in town we found David Gries and Ruthard Wolf discussing the direction they would take, also they didn't have any petrol, after a quick meeting we all decided to go via Camooweal to Lawn Hill. A party of 3 cars, our Dyane, Jost and Alex in the Red AK van and David and Ruthard in the 2CV, left Borroloola at 8AM after David had got fuel. We drove down the Carpentaria Hwy to join the Tablelands Hwy, here at the Road-house we added 12 litres to the Dyane and topped up the jerrycans, the plan was to go down the Tablelands Hwy and Barkly stock route instead of to the Barkly Road-house, this would cut 100 km off our journey but there was no fuel until Camooweal some 580 km away.
The road from the Carpentaria Hwy junction was good fast bitumen and soon the stunted trees of the coast gave way to the vast plains of the Barkly tablelands, we followed this road for about 2 hours and just after noon turned onto the Barkly Stock route, here we added 10 litres of fuel to the tank and drove off down the good dirt road there were only a few rough patches where trucks had been bogged, and we were able to do about 80 kph most of the way, again the scenery was the grasslands of the Barkly and as we drove on we ate lunch from our emergency packs. About half way along the stock route we came to a large property called "Alexandria" we didn't stop, and by 4.30 had reached the bitumen again at the Barkly Hwy, here we added the other jerrycan of fuel to the Dyane and set off for Camooweal about 90 km away on the Queensland side of the border.
At about 5.30 we crossed the border into Queensland and the road went from a wide smooth bitumen highway to a narrow bumpy secondary road. About 10 km from Camooweal, David Gries who was in the lead stopped, what's wrong, we asked he was out of fuel so we bled a little fuel from Josts long range tank and arrived in Camooweal soon after.
We added 22 litres to the Dyane and filled both jerrycans, next thing was to get more food and replace our emergency rations, also a cool drink from the fridge went down a treat. We then left on the Bourketown road and drove until sunset, about 40 km, here we made camp on the roadside, after a meal of jaffles and soup we sat around the camp-fire until about 9pm when we turned in to watch the stars on a moonless night, it was the best star show I can ever remember.
Raid Day 23, Sunday 20^th September
Up at sunrise again to another fine clear day and after the usual routine of breakfast and packing the car we were ready to leave about 8AM.
This road got steadily rougher, and where the trucks had been bogged in the last rains, large bulldust holes appeared, some were up to half a metre deep and up to 100 metres long, the bulldust covered everything with a 10 mm layer of dust as fine as talc.
About 9AM Rolf and Jan caught us, they had stayed in Camooweal that night, and gave news of the French team who were going direct to Townsville to have some time on the coast before flying home, I was sorry to see them go without saying goodbye but I got a nice letter from Christian and Claudine.
We drove on along this road until about 10 AM when we reached the Riversleigh turn-off, this is a short cut to Lawn Hill, if the river fords are passable, a chap in a Landcruiser had said it was OK so we decided to take the Riversleigh road. As we drove along this good dirt road Rolf said the country looked very like the Flinders Ranges in South Australia with low rounded hills and small patches of trees, I agreed with him.
After passing the Riversleigh homestead, we soon came to the gate into Lawn Hill National Park, from this gate onward the road deteriorated rapidly, in the last 40 km into Lawn Hill, Jost suffered 2 flat tyres.
There is no fuel at Lawn Hill, but a store at Adels Grove, some 10 km before had fuel, hand pumped from 200 litre drums, at 90 cents per litre, we took 15 litres here and got some supplies from the store, then headed off to make camp at Lawn Hill. Arriving there about 1.PM, we checked in at the Rangers station and were given a camp site, after setting up camp and having a lunch of sandwiches, we set off to explore the Gorge.
The Lawn Hill Gorge has a large pond about 1 1/2 km long and 100 metres wide joined to two other pools which were a bit smaller by rapids and small waterfalls, the water was clear and quite cold, there were lots of lilies in the water and the banks were covered with grass and large trees, a truly beautiful place.
Canoes were for hire, but they were all gone when we got there, so about an hours walk was all that was needed to see the place on foot. As we were some distance from the coast there were no crocodiles here, so swimming was OK anywhere, the most popular place however was at one end of the main pool under the waterfall.
Here most of the Raiders washed off the dust from the previous days trip from Borroloola via Escott and told us of the journey, the road was worse than expected, there were lots of flat tyres and some suspension damage, it appears we made the right choice, as some people had taken 18 hours to do the 500 km to Escott, only to turn around and drive to Lawn Hill the next morning.
After a dinner of jaffles we talked to the other Raiders about our adventures and went to bed about 10 PM.
Raid Day 24, Monday 21^st September
The sun rose a bit later in the gorge, but by 7AM we had finished our breakfast, this was to be another fine hot day.
After packing the car we were going for a swim when we saw Rene had the rear axle tube out of his 2cv, it appears the rough roads of the last few days had caused it to crack, this was causing the rear trailing arms to go out of alignment, so with the help of several other Raiders the axle tube was straightened and strengthened, after this we just had time for a quick swim before leaving at 10 AM for Gregory Downs and Normanton, via the Bourke and Wills Road-house.
The road out of Lawn Hill was just as rough as the road in, and we took 2 hours to do the 100 km to Gregory Downs, here we stopped for a sandwich and stubbie at noon at the pub before setting off for the Bourke and Wills road-house, this road was much better, the country around here was similar to the areas around Borroloola, then after about 50 km we came to the bitumen, we then ate up the distance to the Bourke and Wills road-house, arriving at 2.30. Here we added 21 litres to the Dyane and got, a drink and tried the local delicacy, a hot dog with mustard, onion, cheese and bacon, very good it was too.
Next stop was to be Normanton, up the top part of the Matilda Hwy about 200 km away, on a good fast bitumen road we got to Normanton about 5PM. Here we found some Raiders who had come directly from Escott and not via Lawn Hill, after setting up camp we had a swim in the pool at the van park before having a look around town.
Across the road from the van park was a "purple pub" this serves Aboriginals as well as whites, and it was here we had dinner, this was an enormous mixed grille of several meats and salad. After dinner, Paul said he thought he was getting the flu and went back to camp, I stayed on at the pub talking to some other Raiders and locals until about 10PM, then went back to camp and off to bed.
Raid Day 25, Tuesday 22^nd September
Paul said he felt much better after a night's sleep so after breakfast and packing the car, we went to the Normanton General Store, this is like the emporiums of the 1920's and stocked almost everything you could imagine, if it wasn't in stock they could have it in a few days, here we bought some food for the last few days of raid.
Next we went with the main party of Raid to the Normanton railway station to look at the "Gulflander" this is the name given to the light trains or motor rails used from Normanton to Croydon.
Some Raiders went for a short excursion on the Gulflander, but Paul and I decided to make a start on the day's run. As we went to leave the railway station the starter wouldn't work, so we removed it and dismantled it, nothing seemed wrong it was just full of dust, we cleaned it up oiled the bearings and refitted it to the car, it worked OK, this was our only mechanical trouble.
We added 14 litres to the Dyane and left for Croydon and Georgetown along the Gulf Developmental Road at about 9.30, this road was a mixture of bitumen on the creek crossings and good dirt surface, we made good time, arriving in Croydon about 11.30 here we had a cool drink and looked at the local mining museum which is attached to the milk bar, after leaving Croydon we headed for Georgetown along a mainly bitumen road, the country here was returning to rolling grass lands as we went east, we arrived in Georgetown about 1.45 and had a hamburger and cool drink for lunch, we added 21 litres to the Dyane and just after 2PM we left for Mt Surprise, about 100 km away. The further east we drove the hillier the country became, this was old gold mining country and there were large outcrops of rock amongst the grass.
About half way to Mt Surprise, some Raiders were on the CB about going to Talaroo hot springs, a 10 km detour off the main road, here a natural fresh water spring at about 60 degrees is directed into a large formed concrete pool about 30 metres long.
The owners of the property make a small charge for the use of the spring but we enjoyed the hour we spent there.
Back on the road for about an hour brought us to Mt Surprise, here we found Jania and Sarma Priedkalns who had a shattered windscreen in their 2cv, after helping remove it and clean up the glass, we got a cool drink and set off for Springfield Station, our camp-site for the night.
Just as we got out of town we saw Claude Hermans in the AK van stopped on the side of the road, there was no petrol at the carburettor, a bad fuel pump was the cause, so after helping replace the fuel pump, we all drove the 30km to Springfield Station arriving about 6.30 PM.
Here we were met by Don Logan the owner of this cattle station, we erected our tent on a grassed area in front of the main house with the help of huge arc lights. After a dinner of soup and noodles, we hunted cane toads for a while, then had some supper with some other Raiders before going to bed about 10.00 PM.
Raid Day 26, Wednesday 23^rd September
The dawn was heralded by strange animal noises, Don Logan has a private zoo on his property, after breakfast we went to look at the zoo and see the various animals being fed. From Springfield Station you can see the western side of the Great Dividing Range, and Don said the coast was only 150 km away as the crow flies. After breaking camp and packing the car we left for Chillagoe about 8.30.
Today was to be a short run of about 160 km over good dirt roads, where have I heard that before, Don had given Lance instructions on which road to take at the various "T" and "Y" junctions on the way, the road signs were a bit misleading and Paul and I managed to get lost out the back of a property near Bullock Creek.
We lost over 2 hours getting back to the right road, and finally arrived in Chillagoe about 2PM, here we added 21 litres to the Dyane and had a hamburger and a cool drink for lunch, next we set up camp at the van park and went to look at the renowned caves, we missed the last tour of the day, so we went to look at the old smelter and mining museum, these were very interesting and filled in the rest of the afternoon.
After dark we joined about 20 Raiders for dinner at the Chillagoe hotel, this was followed by a singalong in the bar, we gave it away about 10PM and walked back to camp for an early night as we had a cave tour booked for 8AM.
Raid Day 27, Thursday 24^th September
Just before dawn some locals drove a herd of cattle down the road past our camp-site, oh well, we were going to get up and pack early, so after breakfast and the by now familiar chores, we had breakfast and went to see the TREZKINN Cave.
This is a limestone cave, it is very fragile but it has wonderful mineral formations, the tour took a little over an hour, we then went to Balancing Rock, this is a large boulder standing on it's end amongst a lot of other rock formations.
We left Chillagoe about 10AM and drove out past the marble quarries on a very rough road heading for Mareeba, after we passed through Almarden, the road got better with only small patches of dirt, then at Petford about 60km from Mareeba we left the dirt behind and were on bitumen all the way to Mossman, the closer we got to Mareeba the greener the country became, after 3 weeks of looking at dry and dusty country it sure was good to see some rich green growth on the roadside, from Dimbulah to Mareeba we passed through a lot of avocado, mango and tobacco farms.
Just outside Mareeba, we came across the town cemetery, here the local Italian community had a series of above ground crypts, these were very ornate buildings about 4 metres square, some were occupied and some were empty. After a photo, we drove on into town here we got some lunch, excellent local pies, and bought some drinks for the end of Raid party to be held the next night at the Cape Kimberly Resort.
Paul and I had discussed what would happen when Raid finished, he was keen to go up to the top of Cape York and I was keen to get home to my family who I hadn't seen for a month, in Mareeba I bought a plane ticket for the Saturday afternoon flight to Sydney.
About 1PM we left for Mossman and after crossing the Great Dividing Range at Mt Molloy, we decended into Mossman about 2PM, here we missed the main Raid party on their parade through the town and a photo session by about 5 minutes, oh well you can't win them all, from Mossman we headed north about 35 km to the Daintree River and caught up with the main Raid group at the ferry.
After crossing the ferry it is only a short 10 km drive through rainforest to the Cape Kimberly Resort, this is a fabulous camp-site on lush lawns with tall trees and only 100 metres to the beach, we quickly set up camp and went for a swim. After a shower and change of clothes we went for a meal at the Daintree Tea House Restaurant.
A small place that a lot of rowdy Raiders filled to capacity, from a set menu I had Coral Trout, it was delicious, after the meal we talked about the plans for after Raid, then left about 10.30 for an early night as Paul had not completely shaken off the flu he had got in Normanton.
Raid Day 28, Friday 25^th September
This was to be an easy day, sleep in if you want, take as long as you like for breakfast, and so on, Paul and I sorted out the gear I was to take home and he made plans with several other Raiders for the trip up to Cape York, it was strange not having to rush off to "do something."
During the day we had a lot of time to swim and look around the bush bordering our camp, later in the morning Ollie Scholz was organising an outing to the Barrier Reef for the next day, most people including Paul decided to go, I couldn't as my flight left at 3.30, I was starting to realise the end of raid was very close for me, some other people I suspect also must have been feeling the same.
We spent the day servicing the Dyane in readiness for its trip to Cape York, and generally lazing around the camp-site.
After a last swim, Paul and I joined the other Raiders in the restaurant of the resort for a meal, 70 Raiders stretched their kitchen to the limit and some of the meals took a long time to come. After the meal Roland Oehler entertained us by playing tunes on wine glasses filled with water, at one stage this amazing man had 6 glasses partly filled with water and was rubbing their rims to play tunes.
About 9.30 Leigh Miles gave out a series of humorous awards to various Raiders, much to the amusement of all those present, at the end of this Lance presented each Raider with a medal to remember the raid by, then said as it was 11pm and the restaurant owner wanted to turn off the generator, it was suggested we should go down to the beach for a final camp-fire.
On the beach Lance had organised a huge fire from driftwood, here we had a "Raid debriefing" telling our favourite tale of the last month, this went on until quite late, I came back to the tent about 1AM, and Paul followed a little later, some of the Raiders stayed on until all the drinks and fire were gone, about 3AM so I was told.
Raid Day 29, Saturday 26^th September
I woke early to see the sun rise over the point at Cape Kimberly, then returned to camp to make breakfast of tea and toast for the last time, this was a leisurely affair as we didn't have to leave for Cairns until 9AM, We packed the car with Steve and Barry's bed-rolls to make room in their car for me and my bags for the trip to Cairns. I said goodbye and goodluck to Paul who left about 8.30 with most of the other Raiders to go on the Barrier Reef cruise, leaving from Port Douglas.
Steve, Barry and I left just after 9AM for Cairns about 200km away, it was with some sadness we left Cape Kimberly and out through the rainforest, then over the Daintree ferry for the last time. We drove on through the canefields to Mossman then on down the coast road to Cairns. The views along this part of the coast are superb, and we stopped at several places to look at the views of headlands and beaches.
We arrived in Cairns about noon after dropping my luggage off at the airport, Steve and Barry were to finalise details of their trip to Cape York, while I did some souvenir shopping, we then had lunch and visited "The Pier," a large modern shopping complex built out into the bay.
About 2PM it was time to leave so Steve suggested we go via the Cairns van park so I could say goodbye to the Raiders who were there, only a handful had arrived as most were still on the Barrier Reef cruise, so after a few handshakes, Steve drove me out to the airport, after a last goodbye Steve and Barry drove off back into Cairns and I checked in to wait for the plane back to Sydney.
The plane left Cairns at 4PM on a direct flight to Sydney and left me with a little over 2 hours to remember all the good times I had enjoyed with my fellow Raiders over the last month, just north of Sydney I watched the last sunset of my Raid, this one was above the clouds, then as we decended into Sydney about 6.30, the carpet of lights was beautiful, it was good to be home in Sydney again but I was sad to leave my fellow Raiders.
I was picked up from the airport by my eldest son Scott, in our gold CX, on the way home we had a meal of McDonalds (yuck) and he told me of the problems which had occurred in my absence.
Our normally reliable white CX had split the hydraulic regulator return pipe and had been towed home several days earlier, while the car he had collected me in was making scratching noises at the rear, but only sometimes, this turned out to be rear brake pads worn out.
My wife Anne had decided not to chance a trip to Tathra, some 500km south of Sydney, in a car with noises in the rear, so had taken the bus with our other two children, we had booked a week in a holiday unit long before Raid started.
She left word that I should follow after fixing the car's, OK then, I had better get started, both jobs were easy, the hydraulic line was split just above the regulator, so I cut the line about half way up and inserted a piece of steel tube into it, this gave me the extra length needed to remake the connection at the pressure regulator, now fill the reservoir and bleed the hydraulic system, everything worked OK.
Now the gold car, off with the back wheels and in with a new set of brake pads, now this car was OK too, Scott then asked if he could take one of the cars to an outing he had planned for the following day, yes, sure take the white one as it has N.R.M.A. membership in case it breaks down.
Next job was to do some washing so as I had clothes to take with me to Tathra next day, I got to bed about 11PM with the sound of the dryer humming in the background, it had been a very long day.
POST RAID
September 27^th
I rose early, and packed the clothes I needed for a week at Tathra, it was cold in Sydney after 3 weeks in the tropics, then after filling the CX I left for Tathra, it was just like Raid except this time, I was in a car with some go, out through the Sydney traffic and onto the Princes Hwy, I had lunch at Moruya, and arrived at Tathra about 2PM.
It was good to see Anne and the kids again, and the rest of the day was filled with catching up with all the events of the month I had been away.
The next week can best be described as Raid withdrawal, I felt that I should be driving somewhere, I was getting up at sunrise and had nowhere to go. I started writing the story of Raid to give myself something to do and also to help with the withdrawal.
After returning to Sydney on the 2nd of Oct I still had a weeks holidays left before returning to my job at T.A.F.E, this week was filled with little jobs around the home, then on the Wednesday evening Paul showed up in the Dyane.
It appears that after all the plans to go to Cape York, the other Raiders either decided not to go, or went by other means.
Paul drove to Cooktown, then came back down the coast slowly, looking in at many places and people on the way, he said the Dyane had done 14 000km for the round trip and he hadn't had any trouble on the way down the coast, he was glad to be back, and after unloading my gear from the car and having a meal with us he left for home.
The next day I went to the doctor, I had been having trouble with by bad leg since the Ayres Rock climb and it was getting worse not better, this resulted in a couple of days in hospital, and a small operation to clear up the problem.
It was now mid October and I had to return to work, this gave me a new audience to tell my Raid story to, my students as well as the other teachers enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed telling it.
There were several evenings in October when Steve, Paul, Barry and I have got together with other club members to look at Raid video's and photo's, and go over the trip again.
I thought that would be the end of Raid, but people keep popping up, like Edith Boesch who was in Sydney in mid November and came on a club outing to a car restoration place, and David Gries who rang up one Sunday night just to see if my phone was still working, also Neil and Wendy Trotter have called in and phoned up.
Now it is early December and I expect most of the overseas Raiders will have gone home as their visas will have expired by now, but on the other hand I wouldn't be surprised if the door bell or phone rang and there was another Raider......