Not quite light yet when I rose. Packed and got my bag to the front door. We had breakfast and then got busy with preparations. This included running cats around the corner for boarding at the vet’s. Nikki invited me along, so I could see where she works. Nice facility and charming co-workers. Then back home.
We (though mostly Richard) packed the car (4WD) and hooked up the camping trailer. Last thing we did before pulling out of the driveway was write down the mileage showing on the odometer. Want to know just how much ground we’re covering. And then we hit the road.
It was a lovely morning, and sunlight and streaks and puffs of cloud in the blue sky highlighted and dappled the beautiful, rolling, green countryside. Vineyards gave way to green fields dotted with sheep or cattle. Glorious country, and splendidly green this time of year. Punctuating the greenery were numerous wonderful, old towns: Kapunda, on the Light River, the oldest mining town in Australia; Hamilton, in the Mount Lofty Range, once a stop for mining carts moving north from Adelaide; Marabel, famed for its annual rodeo, Saddleworth, on the Gilbert River; and Manoora, at the entrance to the Barrier Highway. All charming, especially to me, after a few years away.
Richard related that when the massive silver, lead, and zinc ore deposit was discovered at the spot now known as Broken Hill, the Cornish miners from Kapunda loaded their gear into wheelbarrows and pushed them all the way to Broken Hill, mostly along the route now traversed by the Barrier Highway. Since we, too, were heading for Broken Hill, we turned onto the Barrier Highway.
This route took us through Burra—a delightful town that is even more charming than I remembered. (I rhapsodized about it somewhat both in my book and in a couple of posts from my first trip, if you want to go back there and learn more and see photos. But if nothing else, my first interest was because it was where they shot the astonishingly good movie Breaker Morant.)
Left turn at Burra and follow the signs to Broken Hill.
A lot of the small towns are hurting financially, and fighting to hang on. Nikki said that even Burra was struggling. I understand why, but it still saddens me. Same thing is happening in many small towns in the U.S.
Into Terowie, another small, historic town—but with a history that touches the world. It was from the Terowie train station that General Douglas MacArthur gave his “I shall return” speech during WWII. At that time, everyone had to change trains in Terowie, because different gauges were used for railroads in New South Wales and South Australia.
Richard pointed out the Institute in town. He related that, in each town, there was a club sponsored by the government where you could go to read or borrow books—precursor of today’s public library.
Within half an hour of Terowie, we crossed Goyder’s Line. We crossed this line on our last trip together, though much farther west. This line, defined in the mid-1800s by Surveyor-General George Woodroffe Goyder, offered a guide to settlers—don’t settle north of the line, as there isn’t enough rain to survive. A couple of good years, and the line was ignored, but when regular dry weather returned, those who had ignored the line were ruined. And crossing the line, the change around us was startlingly sudden. Shrubs and scrub replaced grass, and tall gum trees gave way to shorter mallee gums.
Richard pulled into a grove by the side of the road, with green hills rising off to the west. We were surrounded by silvery-green scrub and gum trees that were beginning to bloom. Nice thing about having friends who really know the country—because this was a perfect place to enjoy our picnic lunch.
Waltzing Australia 