TRAVEL
A
FTER THE GRUELLING
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upon my trusty little postie bike
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decided to stay put in Longreach and
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and Longreach was an oasis in a
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There is much to do and see with a
concentration of tourist attractions on
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My week here started with
the discovery of the best kept
accommodation secret – the Longreach
Hostel, where, for the same price as
pitching a tent, I got a private room,
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There are 27 rooms in the hostel and
it would be the perfect hangout for
groups of travelling bikers (www.
longreachhostel.com.au).
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Founders Museum housing incredible
displays of the origins of the
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in 1919 a journey of exploration
was undertaken from Longreach to
Katherine in a Model T Ford to scout
for suitable airstrips. What a feat of
endurance (or stupidity)!
There are several aircraft on display
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immortalised in the movie Return
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intrepid aviators who restored and
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round the world. Mo had visited the
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allowed us special privileges with their
pride and joy.
The Jet Tour had us all crawling
over the 747 jumbo which has been
stripped of its inside panels to expose
the electrics and hydraulics of the
aircraft. Fascinating stuff even for a
mechanically inept postie rider.
The other famous attraction is, of
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houses extensive exhibits of Outback
life but all a bit too neat and clean
and sterile for my liking. There were
tiny unreadable nameplates with great
long descriptions lauding the lives and
exploits of men with barely a mention