Timeless Memories in Bourke Cemetery (Australia)

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Living in outback Australia in the earlier days must have been demanding. Nothing highlights this more than the epitaphs in Bourke Cemetery – “found hanging in the bush”, “drowned”, “shot dead by police” and “perished in bush”. Like many rural cemeteries, the inscriptions speak silent stories of a history of paddle steamer operators, drovers, farmers, bushrangers, Afghan camel train drivers, brave policemen, publicans and local celebrities.

Set in the burned khaki plains just outside town under the soothing beauty of coolibah trees swaying gently in the heated breezes, the sea of gravestones offers a fascinating hour reflecting on times past.

I like cemeteries and have wandered a number around the world – not in a morbid way – but as a window opening onto a town’s history and culture.

At one edge of Bourke Cemetery sits a small corrugated building. It was an early mosque and a place of solace for the Afghan cameleers that realised their expertise suited the parched outback of Australia. Their graves face Mecca one man living to a remarkable 107 years of age.

Haunting is the large number of youngsters that succumbed to either an outbreak of disease or reckless endeavour – one horrifying incident with moving inscriptions claiming three young lives when a horses shied at an 1888 picnic day. In another section, a formal row of nuns reminds of the times when a convent helped support the Catholic tradition in Bourke.

A reminder of the frontier feel comes with the inscription to a policeman who dies of gunshot wounds inflicted by notorious and infamous cattle duffer (thief) and bushranger, Captain Starlight. The bushranger’s story has been told in book and film on several occasions making these men into a kind of hero for their bravado and daring.

Another tale tells of a local kind-hearted madman, Barefoot Harry Rice who after failing to save his wife from drowning because he couldn't remove his boots quickly enough, wandered the riverbanks barefooted for years afterwards in readiness to save anyone else from the same fate as his wife.

Most treasured in the cemetery is the plot of world renown eye surgeon Professor Fred Hollows. From having met the man and been deeply moved visiting one of his early eye hospitals in Kathmandu (an article for another day), Hollows is a personal hero of mine. The Hollows Foundation is my preferred charity – I can hardly imagine a finer gift than the gift of sight.

Buried within a motif of an eye made from small rocks (64 of them - one for each year of Hollow's life) near an elegant but simple smooth granite sculpture and under poetic native trees, his grave area so tells the story of a simple but driven man who shunned the limelight but whose initiative against cataract blindness and trachoma has bought vision to more than one million people worldwide. His epitaph reads "Fred Hollows, Eye Doctor. The key he used to undo locks was vision for the poor". People are encouraged to touch, climb or sit on the granite sculpture and contemplate the peaceful and beautiful surroundings.

It is a moving and simple tribute to a man whose life work has touched and continues to touch so many around the world.

Pick up an excellent little brochure from the local tourist office to help guide around the cemetery and wander through the decades of this historically-rich rural town.

This is the final article in the outback Australia series.

Traveling with Mobile Phones

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guest post by Nora Williams

These days, thanks in large part to the massive spread of smart phones, the benefits of cell or mobile phones are greater than ever. The levels of convenience and methods of quick communication now available at the touch of a button are astounding, and this has led to a dramatic increase in the number of mobile phone users, and specifically smart phone users, all over the world. This is all fantastic, of course, but it can also be somewhat complicated when you get into what, specifically, you want out of your mobile phone and how you intend to use it. There are so many options, and so many functions that these phones can perform, that careful preparation is required if you are to make effective and budget-friendly decisions. For example, have you ever given thought to using your mobile phone abroad?

Once upon a time, only specialized travel phones could connect you with international service. Now, however, just about any mobile phone that you pick up from any regular provider such as O2 can be compatible with international service. This leaves you free to make calls, receive messages, and even enjoy your smart phone Internet and e-mail access while travelling abroad, which of course can be very convenient for a number of reasons. Unfortunately, however, all of this service can also add up to be very expensive after even just a short time abroad, as most roaming charges are higher than what you normally pay. So, here are a few tips for how to make use of your mobile abroad, and do so in an affordable manner:

o    First, of course, you need to make sure that your mobile phone is compatible with roaming services. Again, most mobile phones these days can be set up with international service. However, often this is something that needs to be organized in advance through your service provider; so do not make the mistake of waiting until you are already abroad to discover that you don't have service.

o    To save money from service charges, you can actually shut off certain features of your phone for the duration of your time abroad. For example, if you would only like to have your phone available for emergencies or rare situations, you may be able to afford turning off your voicemail. Or, if you are only using your device as a phone, and not for data access or downloads, you can turn off these smart features as well. Doing this can stop others from sending you data, voicemails, etc. that cost you money to download abroad.

o    If you follow the above step and turn off your data and downloading, but would still like to be able to access the Internet via your mobile device, you should remember to look into the Wi-Fi options wherever you are staying. Tapping into an available Wi-Fi network will almost always be cheaper than using your mobile device's 3G or 4G roaming services. In fact, more and more Wi-Fi is free at hotels and airports, so this may actually cost you nothing!

o    Similar to the above tip, you can also cut back on your mobile phone costs by bringing your laptop or tablet with you when you travel. Internet service on such devices operates entirely through the connection available, rather than roaming charges, so if at all possible you should limit your mobile device to purely phone usage, and use your other devices for Internet access.

With a bit of planning and care, mobile phones are a key element of modern travel. Used wisely, they are an effective and economical way to stay in touch.

Photo Credits: lake, beach

Photo of the Week: Lift Bridge (Bourke, Australia)

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Built in 1883, this bridge was one of the first lift span bridges built over the Darling River. Designed to accommodate the 200 or so paddle steamers plying the inland waters of Australia by hand-cranking the centre section upwards, it was constructed in England and brought to Bourke in sections by paddle steamer. It was finally replaced by a newer bridge in 1998 (visible behind the old bridge) and remains open for delightful strolls near the superb river gums and across the Darling River.

Past floods mark the centre pylons as Bourke braces itself for more flooding in early March (more on Bourke floods and droughts). Expected to reach almost 14 metres, it will have water sloshing around the iron girders just under the wooden slats of the bridge.

A Town Centred on Rocks (Cobar, Australia)

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Driving south 150 kilometres from Bourke, along a sunburned highway past the enigmatic Gundabooka National Park, visitors arrive at Cobar. The town sign leaves an immediate impression as to the history of Cobar. Pinned against a giant slag heap, ore hoppers topped with a large metallic sign greet drivers. Slag heaps litter the fringes of the town. A few yards further on, the heritage park contains giant pieces of mining equipment with mysterious names like a poppet-head and a stamper battery. A fine two metre statue of a miner oversees drivers entering town.

Copper was discovered in Cobar in 1870. The story has it that three failed gold prospectors were travelling out west guided by aboriginal trackers when they camped overnight near Cobar. Seeing the unusual water colour and the tell-tale green rock markings, the prospectors believed that they had stumbled across a great find, later shown to be one of the richest copper deposits ever discovered. The red ochre earth used by the indigenous people for body decoration was called kubbar in the local language and the town got its name.

The undoubted mineral wealth of the area is still visible and best seen from two vantage points. Within the grounds of the truly excellent local museum (maybe the finest rural museum in New South Wales) is the original 1870 Great Cobar Copper Mine where huge pits were dug by hand and hauled by horse and cart. At its peak, 12 smelters bubbled and brewed away extracting the rich copper deposits from the rough dark rock. Some of the waste rock has been well utilised for building or as the base for the town’s roads.

World War I saw a dramatic drop in mineral prices and soon after the war the mine closed. The main pit (over 150 metres deep) is filled with water and makes for a striking sight against the rich red environment. A second mine in the area also closed in 1920 from a fire that burned for 16 years! Copper and gold and more continues to be successfully mined today.

The outstanding museum (housed in a 1910 heritage mining office) has many humbling reminders of the harsh life and deprivations of mining families in such remote areas. The museum is presented chronologically starting with Aboriginal occupation and displays of artifacts and bush foods and moving to displays on the issues of water shortages. It highlights the bush skills required by Europeans settlers to survive the harsh weather and inhospitable land moving through to more modern times growing up in Cobar. The second floor includes historic displays on the mining of copper, gold, silver and other minerals (including a small recreated section of mine) and a farming section including a realistic local woolshed of the time (shearing must be at least as tough an existence as mining).

Outside are a fine collection of old vehicles, farming and mining equipment. Most memorable is a carriage of the Far West Children’s Health train which visited the area on occasions to bring some healthcare and medical assistance to mothers raising their children.

Overlooking Cobar is a second fine vantage point known as Fort Bourke Lookout (see top photo). A deep russet brown seam runs for miles bringing wealth to the companies and to Cobar itself. Like all mining towns, the fortunes and population of Cobar has seen steady rises and falls over the last century as the demand for copper, gold and other minerals fluctuate.

With an entrance road that curls like a wonky nautilus shell, the massive pit is the entrance to a giant underground mining system for gold. The scale is immense, the wheels on the vehicle being taller than a human. Operating every hour of every day, trucks meander up and down the slope and along the underground road travelling several miles to the main worked area.

The main street of Cobar has a number of fine historic buildings. Most attention seeking is the Great Western Hotel (1898) which has a glorious cast-iron lacework verandah that is supposedly the longest balcony in the Southern Hemisphere at over 100 metres in length. Another is the fine courthouse and its neighbouring Courtyard Hotel (maybe the accused and the court officers needed found some solace with a refreshing ale).

Cobar is a spirited town and makes for an interesting diversion with its rich mining history so apparent throughout the town and a superb local museum bring to life the demanding family life of yesterday.

Road Trip: Perth to Ayers Rock

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guest post by Sarah Paige

Next time you’re planning a holiday, why not try and see some of outback Australia. Europe may have its ancient buildings and Asia has plenty of jungle to explore but where else can you drive through sparse desert on the world’s straightest road, seeing some of Mother Nature’s rarest flora and fauna? It’s road trip time.

Getting Started

Start your journey in Perth, Australia’s fastest growing city and head east towards some of the most isolated desert in the country. The trip to Ayers Rock (Uluru) is around 4000 kilometres, even longer if travelling off the beaten track.

Look into buying a used car in Perth as it can be cheaper than hiring one for the long term. Covering so many kilometres will take at least a week, more if you want to take your time and stop off at landmarks.

Where to Go

After leaving Perth, get onto the Great Eastern Highway and head for Adelaide, the biggest town on this stretch is Merredin with a population of just 2500 (and a good bakery). You will eventually come to the Eyre Highway, which contains the world’s longest stretch of straight road. There is not a single turn between Balladonia and Caiguna. That’s 146 kilometres of straight, straight driving.

Sights to see include Esperance, the telegraph station at Eucla and Kalgoorlie. There is a homestead between Belladonia and Norseman which is a relaxing place to spend a night. And don't forget the famed Nullabor Links golf course which spans 1365 kilometres next to the Eyre Highway.

Once you have visited the sights of Adelaide, it’s just a quick 1800 km up to Ayers Rock. Head to Cooper Pedy (where you can practise searching for opals and explore the underground town) via the Flinders Ranges, some of Australia’s most beautiful mountains. When you drive into the Northern Territory, prepare to be stunned by the beauty of Uluru (Ayers Rock). Sleep under the stars and marvel at how the sky is so much brighter in the outback. While in central Australia, make sure you visit and experience nearby Kata-Tjuta (The Olgas) and Kings Canyon (photo).

You could spend weeks exploring central Australia and going off the beaten track is always a rewarding travel experience. Just be sure your car is always in perfect running order and that you always have plenty of water and fuel on board and take your time and enjoy the travel wonders of the centre of Australia.

Phoro Credits: Uluru, Perth, Eyre Highway, King's Canyon