Woodstock

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Day 89

I may have said previously that Australians know good pie, and today is no exception to that.

After saying our goodbyes to the lovely people that we had met at Shellharbour and after being reminded that we will not get the lovely ocean breeze and it will be very hot inland, we left for Nangus via the McQuairie Pass which was strongly advised to us by Graham and Bev, as the pie shop is en route to Wagga Wagga (pronounced Wogga Wogga). Graham and Bev come from Wagga Wagga and everytime they come to this coast they drive the long way round in order to get to the Pie shop, we wondered which pie shop as there seem to be so many.

Well a short while later we just arrived in Robertson and there was the pie shop at the top of the hill, of course we had to stop and investigate. We popped in and picked up a few pies, one each for lunch and a very large spiced apple pie to take with us to Helen and Roberts for tea tonight.

One thing that Andy wanted to see in the wild is a wombat, however it would not be our luck to see a live wombat but a dead one (a very stiff dead one with its legs in the air) just before joining the Hume Highway. "Never mind" I said to Andy if there is a dead one around then that surely must mean that there are wombats in the area, but sadly the wrong time of day to see them. We have also been told that if you see anything like a dead kangaroo, koala, wombat or other marsupials that have pouches that you should check the pouch to see if it has a joey inside it. If so the Joey may still be alive and need rescuing. Not sure that either of us are up to that as much as we like wildlife.

On the Hume Highway I recited a story to Andy that Bev and Graham had told me earlier of their own travels around Australia, many years ago when there were very few people driving around Australia, they pulled off the road for a overnight stop, I believe somewhere on the Nullarbor. In the dead of night they were fast asleep and were woken suddenly when the caravan started rocking wildly. Suddenly fearful, thinking that someone was outside rocking the van and they were about to be attacked they warily peered out of the window, only to find that the cattle had decided to use their caravan as a scratching post as there were no trees around.

The 300km journey to Nangus was fairly uneventful, we stopped at the "Dog on the Tuckerbox" a legend born in the 1850's and rests firmly with the early pioneers and the story of Bullocky Bill.

Celebrated in Australian folklore, poetry, and song, the Dog on the Tuckerbox, a monument to the pioneers of the Riverina region, has become an icon of Australia's past.
One version of the dog's role in pioneering times is that the dog was guarding its master's tuckerbox and other possessions while he sought help from being bogged at a river crossing. The master, a bullocky or driver of a bullock team, never returns but the dog continues to guard the tuckerbox until its death.


Mid afternoon we turned off Hume and headed up towards Woodstock on the otherside of Nangus it was not long before we hit the dirt road and our nice clean truck once again became shrouded in dust, it really does not take long out here, not to mention the large insects already caked on the windscreen.

You may ask what we are doing on a Sheep Farm in New South Wales. Well, I was contracting at Skandia in Southampton and a few months before I left for Australia I received an email from a fellow contractor, Susan, saying "I just heard about what you are doing, please pop in and see my Mum and Dad when you are over there". So leaving me with her parents contact details less then 6 months later here we are.

So here we are with Helen and Robert Sheridan, who have very kindy put us up for a few days and in turn we hope to do one or two things to help out while we are here. After all, our year out is all about experiences, so this one will be no exception. Also I think of Bryan Brown in The Thornbirds, those of you old enough to remember and wonder if I am likely to meet a Bryan Brown lookalike... don't tell Andy!

As soon as we arrived we were made to feel very welcome, it was blisteringly hot at around 42c now we have moved 300km further inland, the drive in revealed the landscape with empty creeks and dams and a drought of 8 years. There has been little rain from time to time, but not enough to keep creeks and dams replenished.

We went and helped feed the sheep dogs, they were excited to see us, including a puppy at around 8 months old called Trixie. All of the dogs are very lively and Helen tells us the names of the dogs and by the time they have all run around and welcomed us I have forgotten most of the names and who is who!

Helen very kindly took Andy and me on a tour of their land, some 6000 acres. A good proportion of which contain sheep. The scenery although parched looks fabulous and for me epitomises Australia. While we were out we passed one of the dams on their land that does contain water only to find two of the largest grey Kangaroos that we have come across. They stop drinking when they see the car and of course when they see me with my camera, off they bound into the distance and out of shot.

Andy and I eagerly ask many questions about sheep farming and Helen explains that in the morning they will be weighing the lambs ready to take them to .....oh dear .... the abbatoir to prepare them for two of their biggest clients. Robert apparently will also point out to Helen the ones that they call "Poddy Lambs". A Poddy Lamb is basically a lamb that has been rejected by the ewe or maybe the ewe has died so it is hand reared until it is old enough to rejoin the flock. Usually when hand rearing you can become attached to the individual lamb. Helen explains that once the lamb has rejoined the flock she tries to forget which one it is, but Robert apparently marks them.

Naturally we had roast lamb for tea washed down with a nice glass of Chardonnay followed by the delicious Spiced Apple Pie from Robertson Pies.

Retiring early is a must here , this is a farm after all, and somehow I think we won't be getting a lie in tomorrow morning.

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Photos

Marulan
The sun rises at 6.00 am and sets at 6.00pm

Summer Solstice
The Summer Solitice

The Dog on the Tucker Box
This monument is to the pioneers

The Dog on the Tucker Box
He sits guarding his masters tucker box

Old Folklaw
The description

NSW Landscape
The parched landscape really does need some water.

The Local Cattle Buses
The cattle buses

Rear View Mirror
A western Star, bearing down on us.