In the Outback, the unexpected is always expected. The land is wild and inhospitable. Man has no business here. But he ventures here anyway, and often pays the highest price of unwelcomeness. Even the native animals make themselves scarce in this unwatered country. But man’s inherent penchant to explore brings him here anyway. And so it was for two of us who wanted to touch the edge of the Never-Never-Land. The iconic Birdsville Track has long represented a major challenge of macho manliness. Year after year it has claimed victims with its insatiable thirst for inexperienced newcomers who thought they were fearless and could survive whatever was thrown their way. Only to find their self-beliefs were false as they perished in the scorching sun’s rays and the searing winds that blew the sand dunes to new locations. Like others, we tried to be better prepared and fully ready for the unexpected. Even so, when it hit us, it became the scariest moment ever experienced in our fragile lives. This story dates back 50 years. Much has changed in the interior of Australia since then. A graded dirt road now exists between Birdsville and Marree, and well organized Eco-tours allow one to explore the back country in safety. Living and traveling conditions were a lot harder and riskier half a century ago. There were no cell phones for communication, just limited two-way radio in the ranchers’ homes, but not for those passing through their realm. As a city-bred lad I was relatively ignorant of life ‘beyond the black stump’, so there were numerous mind-opening learnings from my trip. This memoir is carefully derived from notes made at the time. Added to the memories are the personal reflections and learnings from the trip that have impacted me positively over the ensuing years. In retrospect, our bold venture to the fringe of aborigine-only country was an amazing awakening to just how mere and vulnerable we mortals are.
