Saddler's Springs (September 24-29)

Very early on the morning of Monday 24 September, we convened at Chancellor’s Circle at the University of Queensland for the trip to Saddler’s Spring. It was a long, long drive—about 12 hours. We traveled over the Great Dividing Range through the towns of Roma and Injune into the semi-Outback, and ended after sundown at the Ranch House of Lloyd Hancock and his family. Lloyd and his organization The Youth Enterprise Trust would be our hosts and guides for 5 days of life in the Queensland “bush”. We lived in huts about 7 km from the Ranch House in a camp designed for disadvantaged and troubled youths. Each spring for many years Lloyd has opened his camp to students from Hobart and Union College to show them what life is like in the bush, what it takes to live in this harsh country, and to learn a bit of the aboriginal history of northeastern Australia. From camp we hiked into Carnavan National Park to a spectacular overlook at Battleship spur, where we could look down into Carnavan Gorge. We also spent a day visiting Cathedral Rock and the Toombs to see some spectacular aboriginal stone paintings, after which we had a lunch at Dargonelly Rock Hole. Lloyd’s staff included his children Don, Eva and Cory, and Paul Cuskelly and Julia Chidgey; all were fun to get to know and were very helpful in all regards.