Berkeley - Edgework.

Jottings - Some Interesting Incidents (older)

2001: 
In March the 300km journey on the Tanami Track from Halls Creek to Balgo Hills took Br. Tony Moore and myself more than 24 hours. There was a half hour wait at the fence-line creek while stones were placed on the side of the road to indicate that the creek was rising and then later subsiding until it was safe to cross. Then a 40 minute delay around sunset at the Ruby Plains homestead creek with the placed stones indicating a constant rise in the level. So, we returned to Halls Creek for the night and then drove without any further problem to Balgo Hills. A week later the Sturt Creek crossing was impassible so my return to Halls Creek was by Cessna.

2000:
Early December I was to drive from Billiluna to Mulan. I planned to go via the Access Road, which was shorter than the regular route. It was the main access road to Mulan some years back, but is not much used now. As thunderstorms were possible and would close the road, I enquired at both Billiluna and Mulan, but none had been experienced up to that morning. About an hour before sunset, I was within 15 km of Mulan when I saw the road ahead was underwater. I had noticed at other times I had used that road, that there were extensive dried out tyre bog tracks, some of them deep. So, I turned back without hesitation. It was a journey of about 100km to Balgo from where I rang Mulan and then stayed the night. People from Mulan had come looking for me on the access Road, but fortunatley had turned back, realising I would not have attempted the flooded road and creek. It was after this experience that I was able to purchase a satellite phone to use if an emergency arose.

1996: 
During the wet season this year, there was a lot of rain in the Northern Territory and not much local rain around Billiluna and Mulan. The Tanami Rd was cut at the Sturt Creek crossing for four or more months. To get from the main highway to Mulan or Balgo meant leaving the Tanami Road at Billiluna and taking the Canning Stock Route and various tracks West around Lake Gregory to Mulan. The photo shows my 'campsite' at Wiriyarra, (Well 51). The original Canning Stock Route track runs south over the sand dune in the background of the photo.