An Alice Springs stopover for
two nights was great fun, as was
throwing ourselves into the first
controlled airspace of the trip.
ATC certainly had their dance
cards full the afternoon we arrived.
RPT, choppers, light charter,
medivac ops; everyone was out
playing this day. With a filed f light
plan, however, it made for minimal
delays and the Alice controller was
more than helpful. Having brushed
up on procedures on CASA’s
OnTrack program the night before
was also time well spent.Two final favourites
Our f light across the Simpson
Desert southbound out of Alice
is probably my favourite day of
scenic viewing. We cross Lake
Eyre and are blinded by the salt
glare. Not much water in the
old girl but her canvas of various
coloured sandbanks, saltpans and
tiny pockets of blue is still one of
Australia’s iconic images.
It’s been ages since we’d called
into the Prairie pub at Parachilna,
one of my all-time favourite
outback pubs, so I thought it was
time, plus none of the others had
been there. We refuelled at Leigh
Creek, 30nm up the road. Since
the airstrip at Parachilna is still
not serviceable, ( Jane Fargher
at the Prairie continues to work
tirelessly on this – who canhelp her?) we land at Blinman,
in the Flinders Ranges, and are
transferred by Caroline from
Angorichina Village. It’s about
a 40 minute drive through the
geological showpiece of the
Parachilna Gorge. Standing
around the fire outside that very
memorable pub on the main street
after dinner, I detected eight new
converts lured by the charms of
Parachilna.
For our final night together
before our home-bound legs
took us in different directions,
we chose Lake Paika. Rossy and
I had discovered this beautiful,
under-the-radar lakeside
destination last Easter, and
could not wait to share it with
other pilots. Your hosts, Diane
and Ian, are totally across pilot
needs, providing full catering and
transfers for the 10 minute drive
from Balranald (where you’ve
just left your aircraft, just east of
Mildura). Five cozy bedrooms in
the renovated shearers’ quarters
will fit your group of ten, with a
country kitchen and dining room
you’re going to want to see for
yourself. Dead set, this country of
ours never ceases to inspire me.
That’s it from me – now it’s
your turn. It’s time to start
planning for next winter.
See you next issue.
http://www.f lyingtheoutback.com.auAUSTRALIAN FLYING November – December 201726 australianflying.com.au
Sometimes it’s hard to sneak in.
I’ve already filled you in on
the sensational experience that’s
on offer at Kimberley Coastal
Camp, where we are dropped on
to the beach ten minutes later. In
a nutshell, if you like water, sand,
seafood, good music and great
company, you’re never going to
want to leave KCC.
Heading out of Mitchell Plateau,
we spend some time cruising the
knockout coastal scenery of the
Bonaparte Archipelago before
setting track for Halls Creek, where
we refuel, grab a bed and turn
our heads for home. There’s a lot
of country to cover, however, and
by some divine intervention, the
tailwinds we’ve had all throughout
our trip now turn on their heel and
we again have tailwinds to cross the
Tanami Desert. Happy days. A
headwind today would have meant
a possible diversion via Tennant
Creek, Yuendumu or Tilmouth
Well for a top up.Kimberley experience, but today
we’re on a deadline so must high-
tail it direct to the north-west.
For a couple of intersecting dirt
strips in the middle of nowhere,
Mitchell Plateau is one busy
aerodrome. With our four aircraft,
there are nine fixed wings and
four choppers operating in and
out of here this morning, so there’s
no daylight between any of the
radio calls keeping the frequency
buzzing from the moment we leave
Kununurra.
One of the local young pilots
who’d just landed came over
to BXO to say hello. Liam
O’Donnell is a past student from
Curtis Aviation, now living a
long way from home and happily
working charter for King Leopold
Air. He’s keen to catch up on all
the Camden goss. I’ve found this
is not an unusual occurrence; the
callsigns of BMX and BXO seem
to be widely recognised in the most
remote corners of the outback.Destinations
BELOW: Kimberley Coastal Camp cabin.
LEFT: A low between the two highs – Neil Bourke’s
hot rod Falco cozies up with our Cessnas at the
bustling Mitchell Plateau airstrip.
BELOW LEFT: Parachilna, on the western edge of
the Flinders Ranges, is the next place that needs
to be on your fly-away radar.