Date: April 23rd 2010

 

Westprint Friday Five April 23, 2010  

Included this week:

·         Western Desert Native Title

·         4WD Club. To Join or Not

·         Beelu National Park

 

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www.westprint.com.au  

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Friday Five are valid for seven days.

Friday Five (and a lot more) 23.4.2010. Books for Anzac Day

 

Books are allocated on a first-come first serve basis. To reserve your copy of any of the following books please email info@westprint.com.au with the title you are interested in. All emails will be answered during the following week, either with details of how to pay, or a ‘sorry, the item has already sold’ email. Where possible, postage on multiple items will be recalculated to offer you the best price.  

1.  An Awkward Truth. The Japanese attack on 19 February 1942 struck with the same force that devastated Pearl Harbour only ten weeks earlier. There was a difference. More bombs fell, more civilians were killed, and more ships were sunk. The compelling and revealing story of the day war came to Australia . $32.95 plus post.  Add to Cart  

2.  Australia Under Attack Douglas Lockwood. In the years that followed the bombing of Darwin in 1942, the author travelled the world interviewing survivors and participants of the attack. 214 pp. $19.95 plus post. Add to Cart  

3.  Darwin Dilemmas. An irreverent account of police life in Darwin from 1939-46 $22.00 plus post.  Add to Cart  

4.  Diamond Dakota Mystery.  Juliet Wills. Heading for the supposed safety of Australia , the DC3 flew into the path of three Japanese Zeroes returning from a raid on Broome. Under heavy fire Smirnoff, the Russian pilot, landed the badly damaged plane on an isolated beach. The full story of what really happened to Smirnoff's lost diamonds. 222 pages $26.95 plus post. Add to Cart  

5.  A Town Like Alice . Neville Shute. The classic tale of Jean Paget who settles in Australia after WW2. $24.95 plus post. Add to Cart  

6.  Angels of Kokoda. David Mulligan. A novel based on Australian battles along the Kokoda trail in Papua New Guinea . 208 pages. $23.35 plus post. Add to Cart  

7.  Borneo Surgeon. Peter Firkins. The story of Dr James P Taylor, surgeon to Australian POWs during their internment in Borneo . 150 pp. 22.00 Add to Cart  

8.  Break of Day. Tony Palmer. On the Kokoda track, in the damp, disease filled jungle, Murray Barrett and the rest of the 39th battalion are the only thing standing between Australia and a Japanese invasion. Everyone thinks they will be slaughtered and Murray finds that he will have to fight alongside his worst enemy. 17.95 Add to Cart  

9.  Brotherhood of Airmen. D Wilson . Men and Womem pf the RAAF have served with distinction and bravery in both world wars, Korea , Vietnam and Iraq . 242 pp. $35.00 plus post. Add to Cart  

10. Bullwinkel Vivian Bullwinkel survived the Japanese attack on Singapore but was captured, tortured, starved and is the sole survivor of a Japanese massacre. $30.00 plus post. Add to Cart  

11. Clive Caldwell Air Ace Caldwell was Australia 's highest scoring fighter pilot in World War 2. Detailing his rise from a raw pilot to dedicated Wing leader and covers his exploits away from flying that led to a court martial. 35.00 Add to Cart  

12. Cocos Islands Mutiny (The) Through extensive research the author has uncovered an extraordinary story, one the military has sought to keep secret. While the battle of the Coral Sea raged, gunners of the Ceylon garrison Artillery on the Cocos Islands attempted to arrest their British commanding officer and compel him to surrender to the Japanese. One soldier was killed and another wounded, but the mutiny failed and seven men were condemned to death. Ultimately three soldiers were hung; becoming the only Commonwealth troops to be executed for mutiny in World War 2. 248pp. 24.95 Add to Cart  

13. Convoys up the Track Australian army convoys between Alice Springs and Darwin . Hardcover 43.95 Add to Cart

14. Outback Corridor Hardcover. A follow-on book from Convoys Up the Track. Tells how thousands came into contact with the Outback as part of World War II communication lines along the Stuart Hwy & Barkly Hwy. Over 300 historic photos 55.00 Add to Cart  

Postage Rates. These items will usually not be found on our website. Orders will be supplied on a ‘first come, first serve’ basis. Westprint normal postage rates are now $8.50 for one book, $11.00 for two books, $13.00 for 3 or more books. Free post applies to orders of more than $150.00. Postage rates apply to Australia only. Airmail postage rates apply to overseas orders.  

Friday Forum

Jo’s comments in green.

 

Disclaimer.

Please note that the opinions and articles included in the Friday Five are not necessarily those of the Westprint mob. Nor do we endorse any products (other than our own), or tours listed in contributed articles.  

For the next few weeks my trusty assistants Graeme, John (and Laura, who’s 12) will be helping put together the Friday Five. Their comments will be in red.  

Martu Native Title

The following information comes from Connie Beadell & Mick Hutton. Beadell Tours  

Native Title Determined Areas – Might Pay to Read This

By now most serious desert travellers are aware of the Martu Native Title Determined Area. This is the area that has caused a bit of a fuss over the last few years for those wanting to travel the very well known Canning Stock Route and visit other sites of interest such as Calvert Range . Currently for travelling the CSR between Well 15 & Well 40 a permit is required which is available over the internet for a fee. That’s good news for Canning travellers. However the news is not so good for those travelling the other famous desert roads, such as Len Beadell’s network and the “Oil Roads” within these Determined Areas.

In a nutshell a Native Title Determined Area is country given/handed back to the original occupants. Quite simply these Determined Areas are freehold just the same as your house, farm or business premises. Stop and have a think about that for a minute.

Again in a nutshell, there is a clause in the Determined Area fine print which allows travel on or through Public Access areas. For desert travellers that means the major roads, (but only those made public prior to 1993 I believe.) Faint tracks & seismic lines do not fall under this Public Access category. As an example, Len Beadell’s Callawa Track has been deregistered as a road. No longer is it public access.

News Flash

If you wish to deviate off any of those major roads by more than say 50 metres then you will need a permit from the people responsible for that particular Determined Area.           

This may be old news to some but please read the rest of this short article.

The easiest way to grasp what I’m getting at is to get a copy of the latest Hema Great Desert Tracks North West & South West maps, 5^th edition. Open them up and have a good look at the Determined Areas represented on those two maps. (You may not be aware that the entire length of the Canning is now within Determined Areas and more than that as well). Now anywhere within those areas you will need a permit to leave the road if you wish to comply with the law.

Connie Beadell & I run a small tag-a-long business that of course specialises in the western deserts. This year to comply with the rules we applied for permission to visit Warri Site & Ngarinarri Claypan off the Eagle Highway . We were flatly refused permission to go to either place. Another permit to visit Veevers Crater & Patience Well off the Gary Highway was also lodged. This resulted in a response asking us to “defer our trip” as the people responsible for that area have not yet formulated a policy for travellers wanting to visit these sites. 

I am not trying to lay blame or put people offside. What I am trying to do is make folk aware that access to places of interest that have been visited by travellers for decades in these new Determined Areas is now illegal without permission, which appears to be pretty hard to obtain going through the correct channels. 

Have a long hard think about this issue. If you have wanted to see these places you may have left your trip a little late.

Mick Hutton, Beadell Tours

 

Ossies Outback 4WD Tours

have 2 seats and 1 tag along spot available on our 14 Day Simpson Desert and Kidman Tracks Expedition, departing from  Alice Springs 16th May 2010 .

Contact Harry and Sandy at ossies@ossies.com.au or 08 89569884.

 

4WDer Caught        -       Doing the right Thing

This is a story phoned into our office yesterday by a Wimmera 4WD club member.

Nhill, being halfway between Melbourne & Adelaide has a few large parking bays within 15Km’s either side of town. Occasionally people will stop and empty their car / 4WD / truck of their accumulated trip rubbish from the back seat, not always making sure it goes in the allocated bins. This was the case early yesterday morning, with rubbish all over the parking area. Later in the morning the caller drove past the parking bay and noticed some people parked with their 4WD and they were caught in the act of picking up somebody else’s garbage.

Well done to these good people. We aren’t sure if they were locals, 4WD club members, Friday Five readers or just someone doing the right thing but it is nice to be able to put in a good news story.  

4WD Clubs - To become a club member or not – that is the question...

by Hari  

This is a little lenghty, but well worth the read and considering

Just thought I’d fill you all in on some exciting ‘happenings’ on the way home from our Easter stay in Robe...  

We get to about 50 km’s from Horsham (955 km’s since filling up in Melbourne before trip) and big tank coughs and splutters telling me it’s about empty.  But before I could switch tanks, we get a bad puncture. At 100+ kph’s the valve decides to get sucked into the tyre/rim and goes flat – instantly.  

And this is on the passenger front, on a sweeping right hand bend... Tyre grabs hard and drags us onto the soft road edge...So now I have no fuel, no accelerator, no steering and 4-ton vehicle that is understeering like the Titanic!!  And I know I can’t brake...We ‘coast’ to a stop about 10-15 yards from a pylon on the side of the road – and my hands are shaking like leaf.  

Lesson #1 – always travel in convoy!!!  

So after we relax and regain our composure, I get about the task of changing over to the spare.  The tyre is REALLY flat and rim is sitting hard on the tyre wall itself. I just manage to squeeze the jack under the axle.  

Lesson #2 – See lesson #1 and add: others will have their own jacks to help!!!  

Change tyre – and use a ‘new toy’ I’d purchased; 12-volt rattle gun. This saves my knuckles and a whole heap of time getting the hot nuts off the tyre. Get back in the car and drive on a little and check nut tension – but with the 12-volt gun rather than by hand...Around 15-25 km’s later, I feel a distinct grinding and ‘tyre steer’ through the front end. Again, rather than brake, I coast to stop – and hey presto...ALL the nuts have rattled loose and are just holding on by 2-3 threads each by this stage. All the wheel studs have been flogged on the drive side (lost around ¼ of their width in total), rim is knackered, the nuts themselves are deformed, and the inside of the rim is now taking all the weight of that corner of the vehicle and has ground a groove in to the hub mechanism itself (around 2.5-4 mm’s).  

I now have no spare, no wheel studs (because of course they are in the tool box in the shed) and no bearing/hub tools (also in the shed).  

Lesson #3 – see lessons # 1 and 2 but add: others will have their own parts to lend you

Lesson #4 – never rely on the latest gadget as it might just kill you

Lesson #5 – always take a bare minimum of spares with you  

We call the RACV (Total Care) – being Easter Monday, it’ll be some time before they can get to us as all trucks are busy. So I do the next thing I know and call a mate.  

The 4WD Club network goes into swing big time!!  We get in contact with Ron (President of the Wimmera 4WD Club) and advise him of what’s happened and my location. He just happens to be on Mount Arapiles (doing a stint in the fire tower – and immediately puts his ‘goggles’ on us).  He calls me – and tells me to go to channel 10 (we can no talk for free) and tells me to hang up the phone.  

We proceed to talk – and it’s this talk that settles us down and lets us know we’re in good hands. Ron contacts Brian (also in the club and in Horsham, and organising spares, parts and a mechanic in town – and even a trailer if I need to be ferried into town) and Rod (also in club and on his way back to Horsham from a trip to Robe & the Murray Mouth  – with basic spares to get me into town).  

So we now have Ron (with eyes on us), Brian (organising stuff in town), and Rod (coming up our rear) to help...  

The RACV has since called us several times and advised us that they can only tow us up to 100 kms for free – and then every km after that is $3.85 (at 300+ km’s, that’s an expensive tow...) – BUT they have to find a tow vehicle.  

Around 1 hour later Rod and crew arrive. They give me their spare, and compare the size of wheel studs they have and a decision is made to use the studs I have, their spare, and slowly escort me to Horsham...  

Rod’s wife gets out and heads straight for Genevieve to give her some ‘female’ comfort while the blokes are milling around the front end. 

The RACV is still trying to source me a tow... but have said if I can make it to town and the damage is severe, they’ll put us up for up to three (3) nights in town.  

We get to the RACV and wait.  By this time, Brian rocks up, Rod has escorted us into town and both Brian and Rod’s kids have come to aid and assist us. This simply meant keeping us company and our spirits up.  

Another call to the RACV is made; we bring them up to speed and they now tell us that a technician will be with us in the hour (in the same hour this whole mess started over 4 hours ago...) to assess the condition of the vehicle.  We tell the guys – and they tell us they will sort it. In a heartbeat, Brian jumps on his phone and calls the technician direct (because of course he knows him) and tells him to hurry up!! So up rocks the RACV bloke – and instead of being faced with a nervous, tired couple trying to get home – they are ‘confronted’ with nearly half the Wimmera 4WD Club. They ‘advise’ the technician that the vehicle is unsafe and undriveable, to which he ‘agrees’.  When he tries to suggest we leave the vehicle in their lot, the club come to the rescue and advise that we won’t be doing any such thing, pointing to the mechanical workshop across the road (a former club member) who will do the work...  

Rod tells me to leave his spare there and let the guys at the workshop know that ‘Browny’ will be around to pick it up later – a big plug goes to Ray and Nathan Buckley of Wimmera Auto Service Centre in Horsham – 03 53825570, 11 Clark Street, Horsham. Great blokes and great mechanics.  

A hotel is arranged and we are escorted there by Brian – who then offers to take us to the Club meeting (that by chance is on Easter Monday evening).  

Lesson #6 – RACV is still good value as they pay for the Hotel stay

Lesson #7 – Being part of a Club community is far better, far cheaper, and far safer!!  

So we head off to the club meeting after a quick shower and a bite to eat (Brian picked me up from the hotel) and we chat all the way there like we’ve been mates for ever...  

Out of respect (and sheer gratitude), we donate some $$’s to the club for their assistance and great fellowship – but they won’t have any of that.  So they give me some raffle tickets – of which I proceed to win... (farm fresh eggs!!!  Now that’s a chook raffle if I’ve ever heard of one..). We decide to join up on the spot - $65....  

They make me a cuppa while members start milling around me, making sure I feel safe, comfortable and at ease, and then proceed to shove a couple of plates of home cooking under my nostrils. Ron and his wife ferry me back to the hotel at 11 pm . It’s been a long day.  

I thank them once again – and he said ‘Now Hari – enough of that – all you’ve been doing since midday is thank me!! We’re just happy you guys are safe!’ Enough said!!  

At 8.30 am we get up and make our way over to the workshop – who know who we are, what happened, and proceed to drop everything and jump onto my vehicle; six new wheel studs and nuts to go with them which they pick up from the Toyota dealer in town.  They even arrange to get the flat tyre fixed while all this is being done!! Total cost - $162.25 (for the studs, nuts and labour and $45 for the tyre. All ready, and Rod arrives to pick up his tyre...  

Rod casts his eye over the work and has a chat to the guys – and I head off to pick up Genevieve who has set up camp at one of the local cafes around the corner. The guys remind me (several times) to stop and check (and recheck) the wheel nuts over the next hour as the new studs will take a while to ‘bed-in’ – we stop around 10 times (basically until there is no more play in the studs/nuts) and get home around 5pm’ish.  

Lesson #8 – See lesson #7 – but add to that: you make friends that will last a lifetime!!  

So we don’t know about you guys, but even though we’ve been 4WD club members (Toyota Landcruiser Club and Pajero Club) for nearly 20 years and 4 years respectively, we yet again learnt the great value there is in being part of a 4WD Club.  

Now for the numbers:

Club Contacts: $162.25 + $45 + $46.50 (meal in Horsham) + $65 (Club Membership) + $70 (Club Donation & Raffle Tickets) = $388.75.  

VS  

RACV Flat bed to Melbourne : ~350 km’s to Melbourne x $3.85 p/km = $1,347.50... and then there’s the cost of the mechanical work and tyre to fix on top of this...  

So even if we continue our membership with the club for the next 15 years – we would still have change...  

That is the $$’s value of being part of a club!!  

When are you going to join??

 

Information wanted – Buntine Highway and Gibb River Road

·         We plan to travel with our 4WD and Camper Trailer in June/July along the Buntine Highway and Gibb River Road ( Nth Territory and West Aus). Can anyone assist with road conditions and the possibility of roadside/bush camps along the way? Graham and Lyn.

Fred Jacoby Park - Beelu National Park  

·         The Department of Environment and Conservation advises that construction work has commenced on the walk trail in Fred Jacoby Park in the Beelu National Park . It is anticipated that the work will continue for approximately 6 to 8 weeks. There should be minimal disruption to visitors to the park during this period. Visitors are asked to avoid entering any construction areas while the work is being undertaken. For further information please contact Perth Hills District office on (08) 9295 9100.

Books wanted – from last week

·         Major Mitchell trail that covers his exploration of south-east Australia ? Warren  

We received a few replies, but the gist of all was that the book is out of print and difficult to find in second hand shops. A useful web site was also submitted covering the work of many Australian explorers -: http://gutenberg.net.au/explorers-journals.html

·         Mammals of Victoria : Ecology. Colin

Some second hand copies available at US$200+ at a book shop in Chicago .

·         The Simpson Desert : Tony

Again, an out of print book, but some second hand copies available ranging from US$150- up to US$240-

We have passed on the relevant information to Warren, Tony & Colin.

Information wanted – This week

I am trying to research more of the life and death of aboriginal "outlaw" Nemarluk, the subject of Ian Idresses "Nemarluk , King of the Wilds" and "Nemarluk", and many mentions in his "Man Tracks".

I am particularly interested in non Idriess references and any information around his incarceration and, finally death in Fanny Bay gaol in Darwin . I am particularly interested in locating his final resting place - I believe it be a cemetery in Darwin , but which I don't know whether there is any identification on the grave, etc.

Would be grateful for any communication and would be happy to correspond by email with anyone who has knowledge of this great man.

Cheers

Chris

 

Friday Funnies

Marriage Humour. 
Wife: 'What are you doing?'   
Husband: Nothing.
Wife: 'Nothing...?  You've been reading our marriage certificate for an hour.'
Husband: 'I was looking for the expiry date.'   

Wife : 'Do you want dinner?'   
Husband: 'Sure! What are my choices?'  
Wife: 'Yes or no.'       

Wife: 'You always carry my photo in your wallet...  Why?'
Husband: 'When there is a problem, no matter how great, I look at your picture and the problem disappears.'   
Wife: 'You see how miraculous and powerful I am for you?'
 Husband: 'Yes! I see your picture and ask myself what other problem can there be greater than this one?'   

Stress Reliever
Girl: 'When we get married, I want to share all your worries, troubles and lighten your burden.'   
Boy: 'It's very kind of you, darling, but I don't have any worries or troubles.'   
Girl: 'Well that's because we aren't married yet.'
 
A newly married man asked his wife, 'Would you have married me if my father hadn't left me a fortune?'   
'Honey,' the woman replied sweetly, 'I'd have married you, NO MATTER WHO LEFT YOU A FORTUNE!'   

Girl to her boyfriend: One kiss and I'll be yours forever.
The guy replies: 'Thanks for the early warning.'

A wife asked her husband: 'What do you like most in me, my pretty face or my great body?'  
He looked at her from head to toe and replied: 'I like your sense of humour!' 

 

·         Two old men meet while tottering around the park on their morning constitutional.

" Irving , how are you?" asks one, patting his friend on the arm.

"Terrible, terrible," mutters Irving . "My memory's going. For instance, I can't remember whether it was you or your brother who died."

To all of our Faithful Friday Five readers.

Please be aware that there are numerous reasons why your email address may be deleted from our system. One of the main difficulties is that many spam companies also use the program we use for publishing and this means the Friday Five may be rejected as spam. If you do not regularly continue to get the Friday Five please check with Graeme at info@westprint.com.au Remember to include a phone number or other alternative contact.

New email addresses are constantly and automatically being added to our list. If you do not wish to be part of our Friday Five group then please unsubscribe from the link at the bottom of this newsletter. This takes effect immediately. Westprint apologises for any inconvenience.

Cheers for now,

Jo

 

 

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