Canning Stock Route 2004

Wednesday 1^st September.

The wind sprang up this morning as usual just before we left at 7.15 am. The first well on today’s list was Well 43 (Billowaggi) which was just a hole in the ground with the remains of a bucket and trough only. There was even less at Well 44. The remains of the of the bucket were obvious, but there was no recognisable well area and the old trough was filled with wind blown sand. After this well the track became much more like the French Line in the Simpson Desert. It went straight up and over the sand hills for a while, but it then reverted to the twisty, windy one we had been following for so long. In one section the termite mounds looked like garden gnomes. We stopped at a rocky outcrop and climbed up to have a look at the long rounded tunnel caves. A 6’ snake managed to avoid Ann and wriggled off into one of the caves. Travelling further, we went past Gravity Lake to Well 45. Some boarded walls remain and some steel pieces. A large gum tree had grown near it. There was a 7km diversion road around the lake and it was very rough. Our speed was about 15 – 20 kph. A willy willy on the lake looked like vehicle dust or fire and this lake had water in it. Lunch today was at Well 46 (Kudarra), which was dedicated to Peter Canning, (grandson of Alfred Canning), who died in 1990. This well was near an open camping area and it had good water with frogs living in it. After lunch we headed off to Well 47, which was derelict and had rusted relics. We are now about 1600 km from Wiluna. Our second flat tyre of the trip caused another short delay before we reached a lookout on the top of a hill, which gave us a great overall view. It was almost sunset when we arrived at Breaden Valley. We camped on our own again and saw no other vehicles today.

 Thursday 2^nd September.

Our first warm up walk of the morning was to Breaden Pool, which was close to camp and did have some water in it. The next one was a short climb up and then a walk along the top of the hills to Godfrey Tank. The view from the top was magnificent and it was very windy. Godfrey Tank was a deep hole surrounded by cliffs. There was very little water in the bottom. The area had been used by Canning’s party and some of them, as well as others, had left their names on the rock face high above the ground. Shortly after we left Breaden Hills there we saw a dingo on the road, which posed for photos before it left. Bustards were also in this area and were fairly close to the track. There was quite a lot of bulldust on the track heading back to the CSR but it was only a few kilometres to Well 48. Rusted drums were there and a depression in the ground and it is a very flat, stony area. There was another dingo on the road. We stopped to have a look at it and as we drove away it loped along the track behind us for quite a while, as if it  wanted to play. On to the  burnt out  Ford Explorer, which  didn’t finish its trek in 2003. Apparently the people had three under vehicle fires and couldn't put out the last one. Everything was completely burnt, including the Engels fridge and all the contents of the vehicle. The jerry cans on the roof rack had exploded. Not a good way to end the trip!! On to Well 49. This one had been reconstructed in July 2001 by Tracks Across Australia. The water was good and clean. Jack Smith's grave was nearby. He died in May, 1939. Further along there were some very deep washaways alongside the track and we saw our  third  dingo for the day. Near  the  Well 50  turnoff  there was  quite  a large  area that had been burnt, but there was also a lot of new growth at the base of the plants. Well 50 was a deep depression and only some timberwork remains. It was quite a hot day and the ground was parched and cracking where we had lunch. There were also some large areas of burnt out spinifex and the new growth was a dark green. The last well on the stock route is Well 51 (Weriaddo). The windmill was turning in the wind, but was not connected. Our next stop was at a lake that had many birds on or near it including brolgas, black swans, pelicans and others. Every ti tree had at least three or four nests in it. We were now travelling over flat, open grassy plains in cattle country. The track had now turned into a road and we were moving along at about 70 - 80 kph. Stretch lagoon was the chosen campsite for the night and we had another beautiful bush shower, this time with water views. The moon was very orange when it rose tonight and the reflections on the lagoon were lovely.

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