The Cattle And Our Camels Seemed Quite Friendly; The
Latter Were Settling Down To Work, And Could Now Be Allowed To Go In Their
Hobbles At Night, In Place Of Being Tied Down.
Only an occasional fight
disturbed our sleep; but at the the clay-pans two strangers, wild and
savage, caused a deal of trouble, necessitating one or other of us being
up all night.
However, we would soon be beyond such annoyances. At this
point our journey might be said to begin, for here we left the last
outpost of civilisation, and saw the last white face for some time to
come.
CHAPTER IV
WE ENTER THE DESERT
Our position was in lat. 28 degrees 35 minutes, long. 120 degrees
57 minutes, and from this point I started to map the country as we went.
We left here on July 23rd steering a general N.E. by E. course, my
intention being to strike Mount Allott and Mount Worsnop, on Forrest's
route of 1874 - two very noticeable hills, 280 miles distant. I chose these
for the double reason that by hitting them off correctly, as I hoped to
do, I should not only give confidence to my companions, but have the
opportunity of comparing my amateur work with that of a trained surveyor.
Our course would clear the southern end of Lake Wells with which I had no
desire to become entangled; and by so avoiding it I should cross a piece
of country hitherto untraversed.
Our way lay across a rough range of bare diorite hills, whose stony slopes
and steep gullies were not appreciated by the camels. Beyond the hills
flat mulga-clad country extended for several days' march, only broken by
the occurrence of low cliffs or terraces of sandstone. These are of
peculiar formation, running sometimes for five or six miles without a
break; abrupt, on one side, and perhaps fifty feet high, with broken
boulders strewn about the foot of the cliff from which jut out occasional
buttresses. It takes some time to find a break in the cliffs, or a gully,
up which one can pass. Once on the top, trouble is over, for the summit is
flat though often covered with dense scrub; from it a gradual slope takes
one presently down to the same level as the foot of the cliffs. Occasional
pines find a footing on the face of the rocks - how they manage to grow or
get moisture is hard to tell - showing up fresh and green against the dull
grey background of rock. Round the foot of the cliffs a small plain of
saltbush is usually found, through which numerous small creeks and
watercourses wind their way into the scrub beyond. In any one of these,
as we saw them, water could be obtained by sinking in the gravelly bed.
From the summit of the cliffs, which is often perforated by caves and
holes opening on to the sheer face, square bluffs and walls can be seen,
standing up above the sea of scrub, each exactly like its neighbour, and
itself when again seen from another point. Doubtless the numberless creeks
join and form one larger creek probably running South, as the general
trend of the country is in that direction.
We were getting well into the swing of things now, for at first there is
always some trouble in the distribution of the loads and in loading up and
unloading. On camping at night the camels were always put down in a
circle, as near as might be. All top-loading was taken off and placed near
the centre; the side loads placed one on either side of the camel, and the
saddle by his tail. Thus everything, instead of being scattered about in a
long line, was handy, and easily reloaded the next morning. At this time,
when the packs were heavy, it took us thirty minutes from the time Breaden
and Warri brought the camels in to the time we were ready to start;
Breaden, Charlie, Warri, and I loading, whilst Godfrey, who acted as cook,
got his pots and pans together and packed the "tucker-bags." There is
little of interest in this scrub; an occasional plant perhaps attracts
one's attention. Here and there a vine-like creeper (an Asclepiad) trails
upon the ground. With the fruits of this, commonly called cotton-pods,
the black-fellows vary their diet of grubs and the very rare emu or
kangaroo. The skin, the edible part, is soft, thick, and juicy, and has
quite a nice sweet taste. The blacks eat them raw or roasted in
wood-ashes. The seeds are of a golden yellow, and are joined on to a silky
fibrous core. When bruised the pod exudes a white, milky juice.
Numerous large spiders inhabit the scrubs and build their webs from tree
to tree; wonderfully strong they are too, and so frequent as to become a
nuisance to whoever is walking first. It is quite unpleasant when one's
eyes are fixed on the compass, to find, on looking up, that one's hat has
swept off a great web, whose owner runs over one, furious at unprovoked
assault. Though I got the full benefit of these insects, I was never
bitten; they may or may not be poisonous, but look deadly enough, being
from one to four inches from toe to toe. The scrubs for the most part are
thick and without a break for many miles. Sometimes open country is met
with - not always a welcome change.
July 26th the thickets became more and more open until we came across a
narrow salt-lake; by leading each camel separately we reached the other
side without mishap, and congratulated ourselves on our good fortune,
until the next morning when we found that our camp had been on an island;
and the lake stretched North and South as far as the eye could reach,
until lake and sky became one in a shimmering mirage. I think it probable
that this lake joins the Eastern portion of Lake Darlot, which lies to the
N.N.W., and connects with the narrow lake seen by Luck and myself in 1894,
to the S.S.E. Whatever its extent there was no doubt about its nature;
from 8.30 until 1.30 we were occupied in hauling, digging out, and
dragging our camels, and in humping on our backs some 5,000 lbs.
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