The 150th anniversary of the joining of the Overland Telegraph

You know I have been wondering at the type of person who will pull up a car, truck or whatever dig around for some sort of top or shirt, and in some cases a hat and sunglasses and then dress up a termite mound in them!! This is a phenomenon that I have discovered with increasing frequency as I have travelled the length of the Stuart Highway towards Tennant Creek.

The outback is a more subtle kind of outback. NSW and Southern Queensland is a harsher outback, and the mulgas are thick and lush. The outback towards Tennant creek is of darker soil and the most delicate of mulgas. I had to go up close to work out if they were mulgas or not. It is odd in a land that is renowned for bow legged men expectorating in the dust, horsemen of expertise, dust, and resilient cattle that the mulgas have a delicacy that makes them so pretty against the persistent blue sky.

I stayed in a little blimp on the map called Dunmarra. I found out that this place was named after a fellow called Dan O’Mara, a bloke that was working on the Overland Telegraph near that location and went missing. He was searched for and could not be found, and it was only 30 years later that a skeleton was located that was thought to be his. Apparently if you say the name Dan O’Mara very fast that it sounds like Dan O’Mara very fast it sounds like Dunmarra – and that is where this strange name comes from!

I was pleased to get there as I had power and most importantly water and a pile of washing that needed attending – the dust out here gets into everything. I have also learned a rather uncomfortable character flaw about myself – if I am anxious about something I WILL procrastinate. I had researched and sort out a diesel heater for the caravan so that camping off grid will not be a problem when I get further south, and I was thoroughly determined to install the equipment myself. It turned up in Adelaide River is a big cardboard box and I found myself starring at the box for a few days! In the end I told myself that this is nonsense and opened the box and then I left the bloody thing and looked at it again. Next day I dragged out the instructions and found them very difficult to comprehend as they were translated from Chinese. I fossicked around YouTube and found any number of videos installing them. That was enough that day. The next day I decided I needed to start doing something. By this time, I was in a remote layby sitting out a couple of days before I had to get nearer to where the 150th anniversary of the Overland Telegraph celebrations were to be held. I had been to Bunnings in Darwin and purchased I must confess a very cheap saw drill bits because I knew that I would have to drill holes into the caravan, so I dragged them out and confess I had absolutely no idea how to connect them to the drill. Fortunately, a rather nuggety gentleman pulled up in a caravan with his wife. Thank goodness he needed to go to the loo and had pass by my caravan to get there so I yelled out ‘do you know anything about saw drill bits’ and he said ‘yeah’ and was delightful in showing me what a nong I was in not being to work it out but did say ‘no offense these are pretty cheap and crap’ I told him I knew that but I would only ever be using the damn things once. This gave me the impetus to drill a hole in the bottom of the caravan. So, shakin’ all over I did it. I then found that activity so stressful I had to have a little lie down! I hadn’t realised how much I had been dreading that, but it was done, and I could put the ‘unit’ in and secure it with some technical screws. I then had to sort out the fuel tank which need a hole drilled in it and a nozzle threaded into it. That was a pain and a fellow had very kindly told me that as it was clear I should paint it black to protect the diesel and to stop it cracking! – I mean who would have thought and that wasn’t in the manual – or on YouTube – and again shakin’ all over I had to attach it to the back of the caravan. Next there was the fuel system and oh my! severe procrastination started again. Thankfully by that time I got to Dunmarra and I remembered that Don, my brother, who praise be! is a mechanic so in my procrastination I devised a diversion for him in his visit to this part of the world – poor fellow but he quite willingly and with great skill hooked that part up and I was so grateful. Now there are just the electrics and I have an appointment in Mt Isa for that to be attended to professionally and that is an enormous relief!!

The 150th anniversary of the Overland Telegraph celebrations were fabulous. Such an amazing achievement and precursor to the communications that we all take for granted today. John McDouall Stuart exploring a path through the continent from Adelaide to Darwin and then 10 years later Charles Todd’s vision to establish communications to the other side of the world. It was a celebration that was to be resplendent with pomp and ceremony but dear oh dear the official party were delayed because of the defence exercises that are being held in Darwin, so we were all left awaiting. Thankfully in the audience was a bush poet and he entertained the crowed! This was my brother Don, and I was so proud he held the audience spell bound and amused until our official guests arrived. We also had some entertainment from a lady who had written a poem about the overland telegraph and a 90-year-old who sang a wonderful song about John Stuart.

It was an extra ordinary morning and so interesting! To think that with the establishment of the Overland Telegraph 7 messages a minute could be sent and today in a nanosecond we now send terabytes of data – all in the space of 150 years.

After this glorious celebration I headed to Tennant Creek. Another town of eery quietness in the middle of the day and in the middle of nowhere. I stocked up with groceries and then turned right and pointed my nose towards Mt Isa. On the Barkly Way I do believe I found the place where all the winds that blow in Victoria come to play. It was gale force and a slow journey with cross winds. I pulled into a rest stop and the gales continued all night. I had a hell of a job packing up the caravan next morning particularly getting the top down. I ended up having to recruit another pair of hands to help me get it down for the winds would not let me. I headed out for another slow drive.

I have now crossed into Queensland and am parked in yet another rest stop along the Barkly way. The winds have subsided to some degree. I know that I will be needing my heater soon so thank goodness I will be meeting with the auto electrician on Monday.