Living the Dream

Monty and I have been taking our time, wandering around. Every so often I dip in to Enchanteur’s bag and pull out the red winged shoes she gave me ages ago. I gather my swag and Lord Montgomery and with two clicks of our heels we are where we need to be. Right now we are out of Dalby, camped under the shade of similar trees to that which my great grandfather, George Chale Watson, camped under in 1873 when he set out from Dalby after receiving his instructions to begin surveying. In my swag I have a copy of my great grandfather’s notes about ‘Building the Commonwealth’ and, as dusk falls and cool shadows surround us, I let myself wander back to another time. I hear a voice reading…

“It was in the year 1873 that I received my instructions to enter upon the very work which in 1861 I had set my mind upon when looking at the outline map of Australia, which stimulated me to reach the country which Burke and Wills had discovered. Destiny by a very circuitous course had accomplished the desire of my heart and given me instructions to make a feature survey of those great rivers and creeks which explorers, at the sacrifice of their lives, had made known to the world. Every inch of my circuitous route had supplied more serviceable information’s and experience that had in some way proved a preliminary part of my training.

My surveys in Mount Perry having proved financially advantageous enabled me to gather a respectable equipment, which I looked upon with some satisfaction of the proud possessor as I reviewed myself the owner of six horses, aspiring-cart, and harness, and an outfit of camp gear, all paid for. So confident was I of success and of opening a new chapter of my evolution that I embarked my very last shilling after having my home provided for for some mohths. I undertook the responsibility of engaging four assistants and travelling 600 miles to reach the starting point of my surveys.

In my prepatory arrangements invaluable assistance was given by my old friend, Mr. A.G. Gregory, the Surveyor General, in acquainting me with teh nature of the country where I was going, and the astronomical portion of my work would check his surveys. Every incident seemed to be an omen of good luck and I fairly started on my journey from the end of the railway line, then at Dalby, where I loaded my belongings and formed the order of march on a sunny Saturday in the beginning of November 1873.

At the end of the first day’s travel was selected an eligible camp for the approaching day of rest, which I much appreciated after the bustle and excitement of reaching Dalby by train with my equipment. In the enjoyment of a quiet camp, under the cool shade of a large tree I happen to take my reading out of the Book of Joshua, wherein I read: “Unto this people shall thou divide the land for an inheritance. Be strong and very courageous; There shall not be many man be able to stand before thee all the days of your life…..”

Bulloo Downs

 

Being a Lord and accustomed to the high life, Lord Mongomery and I decided to go to Bulloo Downs.

Sidney Kidman was one of Australia’s biggest property owners. He bought land in the Channel country, the region where the floodplains of the Cooper, the Georgina and the Diamentina Rivers provide a rich base for superb green pasture.

Legend has it that Kidman left his home in Adelaide in the late 1800s on a one-eyed horse named Cyclops. At his peak Kidman and Co had purchased 150 stations.

Monster and I have decided that we might just draw inspiration from the bushmen and women, and the animals they work with. We plan to follow the Kidman Way on up to Queensland where my great grandfather was a surveyor and stand where he stood and talked of Lemuria.

But for now the King of the Cattlemen has prepared a feast for our Lord Montgomery and I plan to tuck in as well.

Heather Blakey

Packing to Go

 

 

Lord Montgomery and I are sorting out what we need for this journey. Some quality fabrics to make a swag to carry the essentials. We will travel as lightly as possible.

Billabong Dreamer

“The setting of “Waltzing Matilda” is enough to fuel a deep yearning within Australians to escape from the concrete cities of the urban fringes. To travel the outback, with my swag all on my shoulder, to witness the stark beauty and isolation of this most ancient of lands, to lie beneath the Southern Cross, to smell the unique perfume of the eucalypt, is a dream, a quest that sends thousands of wanderers towards the red centre each year, in search of just such a place. To lie while the billy boils, to dream by a billabong, under the shade of a Coolabah tree is akin to finding the eternal Garden of Eden.” from Waltz with Matilda by Heather Blakey

My Grand Tour begins alongside one such Billabong. I bring just a swag, a billy and my companion animal

No utensil is so generally used in the bush as the billy-can; none is more widely distributed, none better known in Australia. It is cheap, light, useful and a burden to no man. It goes with every traveller, it figures in comedy, art, writing and tragedy, and has been the repository of the last words of many a perished swagman. Often it is found with the grim message scratched on the bottom beside the dead owner.

Billies are of all sizes - from one to six quartz. Some hard up swagmen improvise by making a billy out of a fruit tin, with a bit of fencing wire for a handle.

So while the billy sits on the fire boiling, and you wait for that bush tea, share a story or two with your friends.