Life on a Station out of Longreach

Station Activities

While our purpose at the station was to Home Tutor a Yr6 boy through School of Distance Ed, SODE or School of the Air, we were also involved in other activities. 

There was Swim Camp at Longreach SODE for two days, a trip into Longreach one Friday to drop our young boy off ready for Saturday cricket and swim squad, dinner at the pub and George busied himself with different jobs around the station.

Here is a snapshot of our quarters and activities!

A beautiful early morning sunrise, normally around 5am. As I turned to walk back to the house the glow on the oldgate and house was beautiful as well.

Looking back to our quarters and our caravan and ute. 

These absolutely glorious bottle trees are surviving the drought.

 A night out at the pub for dinner.
 Muttaburra is a small town with an old style pub, a small convenience store in the front room of a home where the fruit and veg are brought in on a Wednesday afternoon about 4pm for immediate sale, a community hall and small library.


The older brother had returned home from boarding school for a few days after completing his Yr12 exams and decided we should all go to the pub for dinner on his last night. We had been cooking while mum was away at a conference. He was returning to school the next day, a 15hr drive.

Station Work 

George's job while on the station has been to help with the feeding and watering of stock while everyone is away. 

There is no ground feed due to the long term drought conditions and the weaners and bulls they have left need feeding. The property has Spiky Acacia Bush which is a weed but at this time of year it has a seed pod which is very nutritious. The seed pods are generally too high on the bush for the cattle to reach so George has been cutting the bush down to supply them with feed. He has also been checking water troughs and cleaning them as with the high heat they grow algae. 

He has also managed to herd his first small group of cattle into the yard on his own riding the quad.

Above is a photo of the Spiky Acacia bush seed pod which is very nutricious weed.

Below: our young Year 6 student built this pig catching pen to catch the wild pigs which are such a problem pest on the land.

  

Really ... A Random Breathe Test ?

On our way into Longreach one Friday, dropping our student into town ready for cricket and swim squad on Saturday, we were  stopped for a random breathe test. We were about half way into town, 60kms from Muttaburra and 70kms from Longreach, on a development road that is part single lane bitumen and part dirt. Couldn't believe what we were seeing as we approached the policeman standing on the side of the dirt road.

On being asked if he had been drinking George answered, " we're Govies, we would be shot if we  drank and drove on the job. " 

When the policeman stated, " Going into the big smoke for the weekend ! " we answered, " No, we leave for home in Sydney next weekend," not realising he was meaning Longreach today. 

When realising we were from Sydney he said, " I'm getting closer to the coast, I was transferred from Winton to Muttaburra." It was a very different random breathe test !