WITH the story of Burke and Wills fixed in our minds from childhood, every Australian knows that a trip to the Outback is not to be taken lightly.
Even with four-wheel-drives, satellite communications and modern camping equipment, overlooking the smallest detail could bring your journey to an abrupt and disastrous end.
For visitors who are unsure what side of the road they should be driving on, let alone the conditions, temperatures and risks involved in Outback travel, venturing outside the major cities can be even more daunting.
Author Peter Wearing Smith first saw the need for practical information for overseas visitors to Australia when was working in Hong Kong as a motoring writer.
“I came out in 1988 and did a trip to the edges of the Outback to write a piece for the South China Morning Post,” he said.
“I wanted to do research but I found very little at that time had been written on Outback travel and what little there was assumed prior knowledge and was written in a language unintelligible to the non-Australian.”
Drawing on experience gained from working for oil exploration companies in Western Australia and northwestern New South Wales in the 1960s, Mr Wearing-Smith wrote his own guide for international travellers.
Published in 1993, Outback Australia? - No Worries! led travellers through every stage of their Outback adventure.
This includes customs and visa requirements, to choosing a car, road rules, choosing a vehicle and preparing equipment, communications, driving techniques, safety and survival and Outback etiquette.
A chapter on “Australian As She Is Spoke” helps visitors to interpret phrases such as “arvo”, “bewdie”, “Banana Bender”, and “Buckleys”, and “earbash”.
With a sequel planned, Mr Wearing Smith is setting out next month on the first of three research trips to the Outback.
His wife Lyn will travel with him on the first trip, along the Strzeleckie Track from Tibooburra to Innamincka (SA), the Birdsville Track from Birdsville to Maree, the Flinders Ranges, and back to Broken Hill via the Mungo National Park.
Future trips are planned to the Queensland’s Channel Country and in the footsteps of explorer Ludwig Leichhardt to the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Taking into account the leaps in technology in the past 16 years, the new edition of the book will include to-date sections on communications and motoring.
Mr Wearing Smith’s 1988 trip was in a Holden Jackaroo, relying on the Royal Flying Doctor Service radio for communications.
This time he insisted that his 2WD Holden Rodeo be equipped with a satellite phone that will allow him to keep in touch from even the remotest part.
But he warned that travellers often have unrealistic expectations of technology.
“When you are in the Outback, a [standard} mobile phone is useless,” he said.
“GPS (Global Positioning System) is a lot of benefit, but there is still no substitute for a decent map and basic map reading skills.”
Mr Wearing Smith’s Holden Jackaroo has not been modified for his trips, apart from the addition of a bull-bar, but he has prepared it carefully and ensured it is well serviced.
“It’s not essential to have 4WD, but it is important to have good clearance and a strong vehicle,” he said.
“One of the important things is to keep it simple. The more complex it is, the more difficult it is to get a replacement part out in the bush, which we hope won’t be necessary.”
The Outback Australia? sequel will also emphasise safety and survival in the Outback, including personal safety as well as protection from the elements.
The book will retain its travel advice form for essential information such as vehicle details, destination, departure and arrival times and radio contact.
The A4 sized form is designed to be photocopied and left with police or rangers at the departure point at each stage of the journey, so that help can be summoned if you do not arrive at your destination at the scheduled time.
“If you do break down, they know where you’re likely to be, what the vehicle is like and who’s in it,” Mr Wearing Smith said.
“The Birdsville police thought it was a great idea!”
Armchair travellers can follow the Wearing Smiths’ progress on their August trek by clicking on their website www.outbackaustralia-noworries.co m.
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