| Ever dreamed of travelling to isolated
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| | salt build up in Lake Torrens shows up on
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| wilderness areas to photograph the
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| | the satellite images confirming what I
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| landscape but been defeated by the
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| | suspected from the elevation contours on
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| practicalities of getting there? Wished
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| | the topographic map.Wilderness Landscape
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| you had a helicopter? Wondered how you
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| | Photography Trip
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| could hike with a heavy pack and camp out
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| | It's 82 km from the bitumen to Bosworth
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| for days at a time?Well, this Australian
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| | Homestead, travelling right across
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| amateur wilderness landscape photographer
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| | Arcoona Station on the way. Parking the
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| did it. Here's the story of the daunting
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| | car beside a shearers hut, and after some
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| task that lay ahead and how I overcame
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| | good geographic and topographic advice
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| the obstacles.Background
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| | from the pastoralist, I jumped on the
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| My son works at Olympic Dam Mine
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| | bike and headed out along the track that
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| situated about 90km north of Woomera in
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| | follows the western side of Station Creek
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| outback South Australia, and lives with
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| | to Andamooka Island and made camp as the
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| his wife and little family at Roxby
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| | sun was setting.Now, I've always wanted
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| Downs, the town constructed to service
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| | to camp on an island since I read "The
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| the mine. He's an electrician, and
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| | Adventures of Robinson Crusoe", as a boy.
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| besides taking a few pictures of
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| | Andamooka Island, about 40 km long and up
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| electrical installations, the massive
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| | to 10 km wide is in Lake Torrens and
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| machinery he often works on, and my
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| | separated from the mainland by a channel
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| granddaughter, has little interest in
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| | varying in width from a couple of hundred
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| photography.I drove for 21 hours from the
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| | meters to a couple of kilometres.The
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| Far South Coast of New South Wales, to
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| | shallower parts of the channel were dry,
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| visit my son and to see this arid desert
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| | so crossing was no trouble. Extensive
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| region, which has become his home for the
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| | salt water holes in the channel, super
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| foreseeable future.Opportunity for
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| | saturated and with the salt crystallizing
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| Wilderness Landscape Photography
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| | out, provided micro and full view
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| Well, the desert is fairly flat and
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| | landscape images over coming days. With
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| quite bland at first glance but that's
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| | the sky subtly reflected in the base of
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| not the full story.With dry salt lakes,
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| | salt crystals covered with shallow water,
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| myall trees, stone strewn clay pans, and
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| | the stark vista was a wilderness
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| red sand dunes, wilderness landscape
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| | landscape photography opportunity to be
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| photography images clamour for my
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| | seized. Sights to blow your mind!Camping
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| attention from Roxby Downs to Andamooka
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| | Out
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| and beyond to Lake Torrens.Getting Around
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| | Camping, as you would imagine, was
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| the Desert
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| | pretty basic. You can't carry much on an
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| But how can I get around? Distance is so
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| | ATV. No esky means no fresh meat, but
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| vast and the country so inhospitable. It
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| | tinned tuna on top of tinned beans and
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| will kill you just for being there if you
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| | spaghetti goes down well when you're
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| don't look out. The family station wagon
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| | hungry.Priorities in Wilderness Landscape
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| won't go far off the bitumen. The tracks
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| | Photography
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| are so rough, and when it rains in this
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| | Photography took precedence over eating.
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| six-inch rainfall country, even a 4x4
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| | Each day: out of bed, on the bike and off
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| will bog down or slip in the clay soil.
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| | photographing before sunrise. Back to
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| There's no way I could afford a 4x4 good
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| | camp for brunch about noon. Off
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| enough for the trip from the coast to the
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| | photographing again till late and then
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| centre and reliable enough to go out
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| | try to get back to camp before the
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| alone into that country. Furthermore, you
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| | diminishing glow of the setting sun left
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| wouldn't take a good-looking vehicle on
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| | me in the dark. Although I have good
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| those rocky, desert tracks.So I decided
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| | lights on the bike, the country is just
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| on an ATV. That's an "All Terrain
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| | too rough to cover in the dark.Hidden
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| Vehicle," "Quad Bike," "four wheel
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| | Dangers in the Desert
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| motorbike." I can transport it in a
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| | Although rare, this country is known to
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| trailer behind the car and go to the end
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| | host the world's most venomous snake, the
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| of the road, then jump on the
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| | inland taipan, as well as the king brown
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| bike.Setting Up The ATV
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| | and several other dangerous species.
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| The bike, set up with boxes on the back
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| | There are also said to be scorpions
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| and front racks, pulls a small trailer.
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| | about. I'm told that the dingoes have
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| With this configuration I not only get
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| | been eradicated from this area, south of
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| myself way out beyond where a 4x4 will go
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| | the dog fence, but the nights were still
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| without too much walking, but also my
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| | pretty scary. Every time the breeze
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| camera gear, tools, emergency supplies,
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| | rustled the tent I'd wake, laying tense
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| water, fuel and my camp as well. In a
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| | and listening for the sound of pads on
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| nutshell, that's about it.Navigating the
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| | the rocks. Needles to say, I gave my
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| Wilderness Landscape
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| | sleeping bag a good shake out before
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| Navigation is with a topographic map,
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| | getting in each night.Coming Wilderness
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| compass and GPS. Using the coordinates
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| | Landscape Photography Trip
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| from the GPS, I know where I am on the
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| | Well, I came home with a heap of digital
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| map which is so much simpler than trying
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| | images, some colour film to send for
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| to identify distant features on a flat
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| | processing and some B&W to process
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| landscape.For months, in my spare time, I
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| | myself. I'm going again, you know. Want
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| studied the maps, getting the feel of the
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| | to come with me? Then go to my website,
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| geography and topography and comparing
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| | send an e-mail and we'll talk about
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| this to the satellite images on Google
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| | it.Laurie McArthur is a wilderness
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| Earth. This way I identified areas of
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| | landscape photographer based on the New
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| likely interest. It's amazing how the
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| | South Wales Far South Coast, Australia.
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