Overland Journal – August 01, 2019

OVERLAND JOURNAL FALL 2019

70

The windfromthe SouthernOceanclawedagainstmy

skin,and the mist fromcrashingwavesof CapeCarnotspeck-

led my sunglasses.I was standingon someof the oldestrock

in Australia,with nothingbetweenme and the coastof Antarc-

tica.I stoodin awe of my surroundings,humbledby the scale

of the place,by the immensityand age of the continentbehind

me, and the realitythat it was onceconnectedat this very spot to

Antarctica.Betweenthe earlyPermianand late Jurassicperiods,

the supercontinentof Gondwanabeganto tear apartas Australia

movednorth,the rift creatingthe GreatAustralianBight.This area

is not only famousfor its remotenessbut the stark beauty of the

world’slargestlimestoneplain,the Nullarbor.

Any goodadventurestartswith a tablefull of mapsand a teamof

willing(andequallydaft)participantsto embarkon the journey.

For this trip, Rob Bogheim,a greatfriendand arguablyone of the

mostexperiencedoverlandersin Australia,calledme with a pro-

posal:“Hey,mate!Whatdo you thinkaboutfollowingin the foot-

stepsof JohnEyre and MatthewFlindersand crossingthe Bight?”

My responsewas moreof an autonomicyes thana considered

agreement,but that is oftenhowmostgoodanswerscomein

life—fromour gut. I was not only humbledby the invitationbut

fromawarenessof the accomplishmentsof thoseexplorersthat

had comebefore.For example,CaptainFlinders(1774-1814)had

conductedthreemajorexpeditionsto TerraAustralisby his 40th

birthday,includingthe first coastalcircumnavigationof the con-

tinenthe wouldultimatelyname.He died at the age of 40 having

achievedmorethan I couldever envisionin a full lifetime.Edward

JohnEyre livedto the ripe age of 86 and also led threemajorex-

peditions,includingthe first land crossingof the GreatAustralian

Bightwith JohnBaxter,his longtimecompanion,Wylie,and Joey

and Yarry,two otherAborigines.As with mostquestsof that era,

the hardshipwas extreme,includingBaxter’sdeathat the hands

of Joeyand Yarry,who stolemostof the company’ssuppliesand

left Eyreand Wyliedestitute.Neardeath,the pair encountered

a Frenchwhalingvessel,the Mississippi,and weresaved.After

restingin the ship and obtainingadditionalsupplies,theycom-

pletedthe journey acrossthe NullarborPlainto CapeCarnot.

Eyre died in 1901,havingexploredmuchof Australia,and having

servedas a lieutenantgovernorin NewZealandand as the gover-

nor of Jamaica.His later yearswereboggeddownby controver-

sy and ultimately,a trial for murder. Such are the stories of early

TerraAustralis.

Whileour goal was to crossthe Bight,my journeystartedmuch

farthereastin the city of Brisbane,wherewe neededto collect

the LandCruisersand startdrivingto Adelaide.Justthe trans-

port segmentof the trip requiredover 2,500kilometersof driving,

mostof it on the dirt of the AdventureWayroadand the east-

ern FlindersRanges.We passedthe remoteburialsite of Robert

O’HaraBurke,the leaderof the ill-fatedBurkeand Willsexpedi-

tion—Australiais not kind to the weakor underprepared.Oncein

Adelaide,our full teamwas complete,alongwith a cadreof inter-

estingvehicles,includinga pair of 70 Series,a 6WD200 Series,

and a well-lovedHilux.We spentsometime at the RedArcfacility

finalizingprovisionsand thenset out to CapeCarnot,the tip of

the Eyre Peninsula, and the easternmost point of the Bight (as

definedby the AustralianHydrographicService).Whilebeautiful,

this regionwas certainlymorepopulatedand busy,the campsite

full of greynomads,the townsbustlingwith touristsin sunnies

and thongs.Theseplacesare idealfor havinga tastymeal,but

our goal was to find remotecampsand bushtucker,so after filling

the fridgesin Port Lincoln,we headedoff to the Nullarbor Plain

and into the heartof the AustralianBight.

Australiais a fascinatingplaceto me, mainlybecauseof my love

for the greatdesertsof the world,and the happinessthat comes

frombeingableto drivefor daysalongthe beach,the nightsa

chorusof crashingwaves.I havealwaysbeenintriguedby the

SouthCoastof Australiaand was fortunatein recentyearsto ex-

ploremuchof it, includingTasmania.The GreatAustralianBight

had eludedme thus far though—particularlycrossingit in sucha

crediblemanner,stickingto the coastas muchas possible,off-

highway,and self-supported.The challengesalso camequickly

and often,especiallyin the coastaldunes.Withinan hour of being

in the sand,one LandCruiserhad alreadydepartedterrafirmain

a dramaticdisplayof air (withthe trailerattached),and another

had beenstuckto the frame.As a team,we becamevery efficient

at pullingshovelsand tractionboardsoff the racksand working

in concertto extractthe heavy79 Series.I cannotrememberhow

manytimesthe 76-, 79-, and 200-Seriesvehiclesweremiredin

the sand;one bogging seemed to blend into another over the

weekof travel.

I also experiencedmy first flat on a 4WDin all my decadesof

overlanding.My long streakwithouta puncture(evenaftera few

circumnavigations)is due moreto luck and goodtires thanany-

thingI can claimcreditto. Thatreignendedin a momentwhenI

tookmy gazefromthe trail to the GPSand startedfiddlingwith

the errantdevice—thelessonbeingthat there are usually conse-

quencesfromdistracteddriving.

The fartherwestwe went,the moretechnicaland remotethe

routebecame,and the biggertoll the encroachingtrees,brush,

and sandcausedto the vehiclesand teammembers.Punctures

becamemorefrequent,and bothof the trailersenduredsignifi-

cantabuseto the awnings,but somehow,structurallytheyre-

mainedintact.Fatiguewas also frayingnerves,and patiencewore

thin with a few of the teammembers;daysof drivingand lack

of communicationwith the outsideworldtestedtheirmettle.It is

perhapsone of the mostinterestingpartsof travel—howremote

locationsand the environmentcan makesomepeoplestronger,

whileothersstart to slowly(or rapidly)deconstruct.Muchlike reli-

able vehiclesand soundequipment,the teamwe choose for any

giventrip needsto havethe samedurability.

The GreatAustralian Bightalsoremindedme of the joysthat

comefromexperiencingthe unknown,the pleasurethat comes

froma campfirewith friends,a hot meal,and a colddrinkat the

end of a dustyday. I stoodat PointMalcolmand considered

wherewe had beenand whatwas next.That is the contemplation

of all who love to explore—remembering the last adventure, and

dreaming of the next horizon.