Street maps (and what they don't tell you)

Looking at a street map of Australia you may get the impression that the vast area in its centre isn’t as empty as people want to make you believe. Even the Savannah Highway that we are travelling along is dotted with names: Mount Surprise, Georgetown, Croydon, Normanton. However, what the map doesn’t tell you is that most of these names represent settlements with sometimes only a few houses and a population of only a few hundred people.

Just a short reminder: We are travelling along one of only 2 (in words: two) proper roads that connect Queensland — a state with a north-south extension of approx. 2,000 km and an area approximately 5 times that of Germany — with the centre of Australia. Yet roadsigns constantly remind us that the road is unfenced and that cattle has to be expected on the road (very true …). The road sometimes narrows down to 1 (in words: one) lane — that both directions have to share! So if there is oncoming traffic, you (and your “opponent”) are expected to veer off onto the shoulder, at least with the left wheels.

Did I say left wheels?

The landscape is still dominated by bushes and dry grass, blackened trees and termite mounts. According to our car’s thermometer, the outside temperature in the non-existent shade hits the 32 degree mark — though we are in the middle of winter. Out here, Australia’s highest temperatures were recorded: More than 50 degrees. In the shade. Wherever they found some …

We start to appreciate the achievements of Australia’s early explorers. They didn’t have roads, cars, not even maps or any clue what they might expect. From behind our car’s windscreen the landscape looks fascinating, even beautiful. But “out there” it is hot, dry, unforgiving. Burke, Wills, Leichhardt, they and many others paid with their lives.

We start wondering, why would anybody want to live here?

Take Croydon, Queensland, our stopover for the night. At the town entrance a sign lists several “Cleanest town in Queensland” awards. In the late 19th century, Croydon was actually a major hub, the biggest town in the Gulf Savannah region (an area of around 186,000 km2). Reason was the discovery of gold that attracted more than 3,000 miners into the area. Back then, Croydon and surrounds had a population of 7,000 and around 30 pubs. But once the gold was gone, people started leaving the area. Today all that remains are a few historic buildings, amongst them the former town hall with its clock tower, the clock aptly frozen at 1:35 — time has come to a stand-still. Today, Croydon’s population measures around 220. We suppose that there are still lots of farmers, farmhands, perhaps a few miners. Plus all the services and supporting industries: barbers, a grocery store, service station, families, hence teachers etc. Despite its smallness a well-functioning community, certainly close-knit. We leave Croydon with a better understanding of rural Australia.

[Croydon, 10.-11. August]