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10-10-2021, 04:07 AM | #1 |
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Roads in the old days Australia
Just in case anyone wants reminding what the roads were like in the old days. Here is a video made this year of a trip to a remote town that was only closed down only in 2014. These are modern 4wd's and it is in our northern Kimberley area. In these sort of conditions in the 20's they often used Thornycroft trucks as they had solid rubber tyres. My father often talked about grass that was higher than the vehicle, and following the telephone poles home, and camel trains. Video is in three parts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgk66lQTisY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvRo...83S_2Q&index=4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3etMOIo9eW8 On one of our more remote tracks the Canning Stock Route, a 1915 Rolls Royce was used back in the day. The re-enactment is here: https://mvec.weebly.com/uploads/2/9/..._june_2014.pdf |
10-10-2021, 06:57 AM | #2 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
My understanding, limited as it is, is that the railroads in Australia did not want the roads improved for fear of loosing business.
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10-10-2021, 07:28 AM | #3 | |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Quote:
The railroads were built by state governments. In the early days most goods went by ship. One of my ancestors came at the start of the gold rush in 1853 and in 7 years had 7 ships and 7 houses. Darwin, the main city at the top of Australia did not have a proper road to it till the second world war. Darwin was bombed 63 times by the same force that did Pearl Harbour. Before that there was a track going from water hole to water hole. After the war my father worked on putting a road thru to the Kimberley region from Darwin. Camel trains were used up to the 60's as many stations, that's farms, in the inland had no roads to them. Keep in mind that 80 percent of the country is desert, outback, and very few people live there even now. |
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10-10-2021, 11:38 AM | #4 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Madness!
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10-10-2021, 12:24 PM | #5 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
For those muddy river crossings, why not tie the vehicles together with 6 foot poles, front to rear? Trailer hitches on the front and back. That way, instead of 4 wheel drive, a convoy of 6 would become 24 wheel drive.
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A is for apple, green as the sky. Step on the gas, for tomorrow I die. Forget the brakes, they really don't work. The clutch always sticks, and starts with a jerk. My car grows red hair, and flies through the air. Driving's a blast, a blast from the past. |
10-10-2021, 03:48 PM | #6 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
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Ray Horton, Portland, OR As you go through life, keep your eye on the donut, not the hole. |
10-10-2021, 05:01 PM | #7 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
There are plenty who do this for fun now bet back in the day, it was a necessity - and the vehicles weren't as good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI9FFbXfY34
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10-10-2021, 07:58 PM | #8 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
We have similar 4 wheel drive back roads here in the States in the national parks. The Toyotas shown in the videos given by Updraught would not fit. Only small Jeeps are allowed. You have to get a reservation a year in advance. We watched some Jeeps negotiate some tight places in Canyon Land. The switchback turns are too tight to turn in so you have to back to the next tight turn. The group we watched were going to camp out for a few days. You have to carry everything out, even poop. Much more regulated and controlled.
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A is for apple, green as the sky. Step on the gas, for tomorrow I die. Forget the brakes, they really don't work. The clutch always sticks, and starts with a jerk. My car grows red hair, and flies through the air. Driving's a blast, a blast from the past. |
10-12-2021, 12:17 AM | #9 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
The north of Australia is tropical and gets a huge deluge of rain in the wet season so the creek crossings change year to year. The roads and tracks can become rivers too.
Inland is more sand dunes. I've attached a picture of an early Birdsville mail car. It would go station to station over hundreds of sand dunes. I looked up that Canyonland National Park. It looks spectacular. Yeah, the 4wds tend to be big as, depending on where you go, you need to be self sufficient. Hence the multiple fridges, battery charging system, tools, spares, two spare wheels, recovery gear and camping gear. Some Toyotas are 200 series Landcruisers with the rear cut off behind the back seat and a tray put on. Then a cabin is added. Well decked out, they can get up to the A$250,000 mark. |
10-12-2021, 04:50 PM | #10 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Updraught, I bet that guy took a biiig run up at that dune.
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10-12-2021, 10:08 PM | #11 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
I am curious about that Australian road malady called "bull dust". How did early drivers and vehicles deal with it?
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10-12-2021, 11:29 PM | #12 | |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Quote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA-LVrNCuIs
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10-13-2021, 12:29 AM | #13 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
I don't think the open cars we had here in the 20's were that great in the dust. They went out of fashion pretty quick.
These days when the Birdsville races are on and the town goes from about 40 to 9000 people they put little flags on the road to show where the pot holes are. The best thing about the Birdsville races (motto "Beer and Bull Dust"), apart from the camel pies, is Fred Brophy's Boxing Tent. Straight out of the 1920's that one. Anyone in the crowd can have a go. https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...82f90ee?page=1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD7-AG3vBEY |
10-13-2021, 06:37 AM | #14 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Australia is a special place. I visited there many many years ago. All the people were super nice. I brought some beer from California to share. They just laughed at me. Same thing happened when I brought some California wine to Italy.
My friend John Pond visited there about the same time. The Australians had a great time with his name.
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A is for apple, green as the sky. Step on the gas, for tomorrow I die. Forget the brakes, they really don't work. The clutch always sticks, and starts with a jerk. My car grows red hair, and flies through the air. Driving's a blast, a blast from the past. |
10-18-2021, 08:21 PM | #15 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
wow! we always read here that everyting over there is trying to kill you but I never guessed the highwys were in on the act.
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10-18-2021, 08:25 PM | #16 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
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10-19-2021, 12:42 AM | #17 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
When we were staying with friends just north of your border with Canada a few years ago in a remote and mountainous area, our host gave us strict instructions on what to do and not do if we came across a bear. It all sounded pretty nasty but when they came to visit here, he had a similar belief about things trying to kill us. I told him what to do if he came across a venomous spider. I stomped my foot on the ground and said "End of problem!" Can't do that with a bear!
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10-19-2021, 03:31 PM | #18 |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
oh it is just a series of comic posts that appear on the 'net showing pics of crocodiles, poisonous spiders and fish that exist in or are unique to Australia. If you search for "dangerous animals in Australia" or the like you will see dozens of posts.
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10-19-2021, 03:38 PM | #19 | |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Quote:
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10-19-2021, 04:25 PM | #20 | |
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Re: Roads in the old days Australia
Quote:
While the two countries are very similar, they are very different in many ways too so a visitor from the US wouldn't feel like they were total strangers but things are different enough to be interesting to them. That's what we found going to opposite way.
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