Day seven of our adventure dawned with much excitement in our camp. This was the day that a dedicated group of ultra marathon runners would depart Birdsville for the run across the Simpson Desert, raising money for Type 1 Diabetes. It was also the day that John Williamson would support the runners with a concert on the crest of Big Red... and it was our first day in the desert!
The first order of business was to watch the start of the race. This was the first time that an event of this magnitude had ever been considered - and I was amazed that there were some 54 starters for the
Big Red Run. I must admit to having tears in my eyes watching this group of people depart for a 42 kilometre run to Big Red, all the while raising money for a cause very dear to our hearts. In a moment of weakness, I promised the Little Fisherman (himself a type 1 diabetic) that if he wanted to run in this race when he was 16, then I would do it with him! And please, if you want to donate to this worthy cause - please donate here:
http://www.bigredrun.com.au/ or
http://www.jdrf.org.au/
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| The Big Red Run is about to commence |
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| The Born To Run Foundation |
After the runners departed, we enjoyed a much more leisurely breakfast at the Birdsville Bakery, before packing up camp and heading west ourselves. This was where the fun really began!
For concert goers, a special camping area had been designated on the foot of Big Red, the giant sand dune marking the eastern edge of the Simpson desert. We decided that we would drop the camper at the camping area, and then head into the desert with the aim of stopping at Eyre Creek for lunch.
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| Playing on sand meant lowering the tyre pressures |
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| Dropping the Camper off at the foot of Big Red... did I say I was excited? The boys were happy enough playing in the worlds biggest sand-pit - visible on the crest of the dune! |
And so away we went into the Simpson Desert. Of course the astute will notice we don't have a sand flag - however we were following Howard's truck that did have a flag fitted - and by monitoring UHF Channel 10, we were pretty happy we knew who else was on the track as we started heading west into the desert.
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| I think I can... |
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| I think I can... |
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| And I knew I could... |
And so away we went. And Rocky made it look easy. It took me a bit of practice to find the best gear to tackle the dunes in... before settling on first gear high range. Occasionally we bogged down in the soft sand at the crest of the dunes, and third gear low range was enough to get us over with a minimum of fuss.
The main thing to remember was to turn the stability and traction control off! But Rocky just did it - and I couldn't get the grin off my face.
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| The Simpson Desert |
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| Big Red - was closed for the concert... but we will be back! |
And so we returned to camp in good time to get rested and fed before the concert. The kids disappeared up Big Red, and started playing in the worlds biggest sand-pit!
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| What a great sand-pit! |
And then there was the concert. And in a word - wow.
John Williamson is a natural entertainer, and we had literally front row seats for his show. He sang a great mix of songs from his new Album (The Big Red) and plenty of old favourites.
It was a delightful setting - but the kids rolling down the dune behind the stage nearly stole the show! It was simply a wonderful family concert - a lot of fun and we felt truly privileged to be there. At the request of the organisers, I didn't take any photos - you just had to be there!
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| The stage and camping area |
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| Within spitting distance! |
And so we all went to bed tired but happy.
Was it worth it? Absolutely. All of us figured it was worth the effort in coming all this way - and it wasn't necessarily for the reasons we set off. Some of the thoughts going through my head that night included:
- The concert was simply fantastic - a great concert in such an iconic location was a real highlight
- Humbled and in awe of the great people who actually ran here from Birdsville raising money for Type 1 diabetes
- Even more in awe of the runners who still had another week or so to go!
- Impressed with the capability and comfort of the Rocky the Amarok on the sand of the Simpson. The mystery surrounding this desert has now been lifted and we can now ensure we are properly ready before tackling a crossing (without the camper, Matilda)... perhaps in 2015?
And the best part was that we were only half way home! Tomorrow we would plan on heading home via the Birdsville Track. Little to know that our plans would change and we would end up far from our planned destination. Ah the joys of life on the road!
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| Early morning light on Matilda set up at the foot of Big Red |
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