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RAID AUSTRALIA 2004

A Citroen Raid, what does that mean? Well, the French term means a expedition, a challenge but if you go with 66 cars to places like Innamincka, population 16 (a pub, fuel pump, General Store, tire place and a small place to stay) it certainly is quite an invasion as well. And this is not the smallest place you can find out there.

Australia - it is hot and dusty. It really is a challenge to drive a few thousand miles through the outback, do all needed repairs on the side of the road and have bushcamps somewhere out there in the company of millions of flies. And it is fun - a lot of fun! When you are the adventurous type of guy, this is. Nothing for couch potatoes who prefer to watch second hand life on TV.
But this time "Raid OZ" was not as tough as the ones before. Still it was very good, though, it showed us a wide variety of landscapes and it offered a lot to do and to see. Even temperature wise it was not as hot as before, never above 100 F and some quite chilly nights.

The start was in Penola, at the border of south Australia and Victoria in the south. One of the many good wine growing areas Downunder and so the raid started in style with wine tasting.

Picture 1 Raid kickoff party

Picture 1 Raid kickoff party

Most raiders arrived there in small groups already, coming from Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. So it was easy to form groups of 3 - 7 cars to travel together. This is more fun and it is also safer when you have a problem in the middle of nowhere.
And the first problem happened the next day already - a broken suspension arm. Someone found a big pothole, I think ... we missed it since I flew into Adelaide that day and Axel left the raid for a day to pick me up. We rejoined the next day after meeting our Citroen-friends in Adelaide who couldn't participate this time. And after seeing our first wild Koala in the suburbs there!
Day two we camped at the beautiful Murray River. What a fun to see so many old friends and to make new ones! 66 cars (mainly 2CVs), 120 people from 10 nations but we were the only ones representing the US of A.

From there we went to Wilpena Pound in the beautiful Flinders Ranges. That day our 2CV had it's only problem during the whole trip - the fuel pump gave up - more a inconvenience than a real problem. But since the car was borrowed we were not fully equipped with spares ourselves and so we had to wait for the Tech Team, always the last ones to follow the raid to pick up break downs if necessary.
This time the Tech Team found a great addition in Bob and his C35, carrying spares and tools, welding gear, generator and even a pressure washer - whatever was needed and one could think of came out of this truck and Bob was always happy and capable to help. If it's made from metal, Bob will fix it.

Arriving late at Wilpena Pound first thing we see entering the National Park campground is a badly damaged and already half stripped 2CV. Earlyer that day Herman was watching some Kangas beside the road and stopped without pulling over to the side. Skinny Alex behind him watched the same Roos but decided not to stop for them ... when he realized the car in front it was too late and he smashed his front left side into Herman's right rear end. Luckily this happened just a few miles before the campground. Another 2CV had developed an engine problem and another one an ugly noise from a bearing. We decided to stay behind with the Tech Team and help fix the cars.

Picture 2 Steve from England and Axel from Seattle doing major surgery

Picture 2 Steve from England and Axel from Seattle doing major surgery

In the evening we have a meeting, a get-together for story telling, to hear what happened during the day and what lies ahead the next days. Usually there's a campfire, wine and beer, some guitars and the billions of stars in the great southern sky above. This time - late fall Downunder - there's a total fire ban so instead of chatting half the night away at the fire everyone rushes back to their cars and tents and their little groups ... what a pity! There is no central meeting point and also the meets are not every night, so the big group feeling is missing. But our little group (called the "Termites") - Raid organizer Peta and her mom Margaret from Australia, Hannes and Evi from Austria and we, Uschi & Axel from Seattle - are having a great time traveling together. During the raid the groups get a little mixed, so we have another 1, 2 or 3 cars for a day or longer or one of us travels in a different group for a short while. That's fine, just let your group leader know what you're up to and don't travel alone!
Wilpena Pound, early next morning - like every morning - we awake from the voices of countless cockatoos greeting the new day half an hour before sunrise - no chance to sleep in! Another beautiful day in paradise, many Eucalypt-trees for shade, Kangaroos watching us closely and colorful Parakeets all around. We spend the day with our great passion for 25 years - fixing 2CVs, followed by a lovely afternoon hike and a BBQ with friends. Can it get any better?

The next morning we follow the raid through gorgeous Gorges on dusty dirtroads and catch up with them at Arkaroola where they stayed 2 nights.

Heading north on the Strzelecki Track the most spectacular breakdown happens to Joe and Helen: They loose a complete rear wheel in full speed! Their group stops and a little later Swiss Marijuschka comes back from "going bush", rolling a 2CV wheel: "Hey, Joe, I found this over there - is this yours???"

Picture 3 Joe's lost wheel

Picture 3 Joe's lost wheel

Like some other cars, this 2CV has been on several Raids AUS before and after thousands af miles on bad dirt roads with corrugations and potholes it develops metal fatigue. At those cars suspension arms break, chassis' crack, suspension rods break. But never before a complete wheel including the break drum simply sheared off. The Tech Team carries spares, so they just have to prepare the car for the new arm and wait.
A little later everyone who is not with the breakdown car finds refreshment in a borehole with hot ground water and a shaded picnic area.

In the afternoon we reach the oil and gas fields of Moomba and take the turnoff to Innamincka, the northernmost point on this trip. Our "campsite" is beside the dry riverbed and to reach it we have to cross a mud puddle. This adds some mud to the dust we shovel out of the cars every few days.
Mark's Traction conveniently dies just 100 yards before the pub so they push it the last bit and have a party and a short night before finding next morning at daylight that the fuel line had just slipped out of a connector. Those Outback-pubs are always a welcome stop to refill man and machine!

Picture 4 Innamincka

Picture 4 Innamincka

Innamincka has a comparably big store and they stocked up expecting us. So we shop - the last chance for the next 2 days! Fill all your gas cans as well, there's a long stretch of nothing ahead of us ... but before leaving we have to look at the other end of "town" where the Cooper Creek has flooded a road 3 m high (10 feet!) due to heavy rainfall far north from here. Luckily our road is open.
Soon we leave the main road and continue on small tracks through the bush. Tim from England decides to drive alone and promptly manages to take a wrong turnoff. When he finally finds out he is lost he is clever enough to return to Innamincka to fill up again before following the raid. Hours later he catches up with the "Camels" and the Tech Team is very surprised to see one coming from behind!

We find Roy and Esther at the road side, a rear suspension rod broken. The Finns have a great idea: They tie nylon rope between the suspension mount and arm and twist it with a screw driver. This holds the car up - sort of - and acts as a spring. Esther and their entire luggage get into the cars of their group and ours and very slowly they carry on.
Just before it gets dark we arrive in Cameron Corner where the states of South Australia, Queensland and New South Wales meet. We have a meal in the pub (the only building within a hundred miles) and find out that they are almost out of gas. Yes, they received the mail telling them that 66 cars were coming today and also the confirmation 2 weeks ago, but they simply did not believe we would really show up there ... just as we are ready to leave Roy and his group arrive, the rope still in place and working!
Just 15 more miles to the campground at Fort Grey Natl. Park. And when Roy finally arrives and collects all their luggage and camping gear he tells us that the gas pump at Cameron Corner now is bone dry and not everyone could fill up, the Camels had not even arrived.

The next morning brings the Tech Team and a suspension rod for Roy to the camp site. After they found out the gas was empty they tried to do the same to the beer but did not succeed. An Aussie pub without fuel - ok - but an Aussie pub without beer - impossible!

Well, everybody carries gas cans so there is enough fuel for all cars to make it to Tibooburra. Another hot and dusty day out in the bush and we are looking forward to see the opal fields and township of White Cliffs and a proper campground with a little swimming pool where we stay 2 nights.
But - 30 miles before town all of a sudden Hannes stops. The Acadiane felt like having a flat tire and the rear wheel seems to scratch in the fender ... we suspect the suspension arm bearing to be the culprit and drive the car to the other side of the road where it is flat and wide enough to park safely beside the road. Off comes the arm and shows a bearing in bits and pieces! The sun is setting and we send Peta and Margaret off to White Cliffs. No need to return, driving in the dark is dangerous, you see potholes and animals too late or not at all, even if someone there has a bearing better return in the morning. They leave and we set up our little camp on the side of the road. The UHF radio is still switched on but 2 hours later instead of the "camels" we hear Margaret's voice - they got a bearing and decided to return! Unfortunately the bearing is only half what we need, the counterpart is missing. Peta is pitching their tent. During the night the wind picks up and tries it's best to blow down our tents. Early up in the morning to get ready and have breakfast finished before the "Camels" arrive so they don't have to wait for us. And it works - almost. The Tech Team decided to bush camp when it got dark, some 30 miles behind us. Of course, they carry a complete bearing and pretty soon the Acadiane is back on all 4 wheels, Peta did not even have time to finish her traditional raid breakfast in the middle of the road.

The campground in White Cliffs looks like a giant garage. Everybody uses the extra day to check and service and repair if necessary. Bob's truck is completely unloaded and all around it are huge piles of tools and stuff. How does all this fit into it??? And how does he always know where everything is???

Picture 5 Bob's mobile shop

Picture 5 Bob's mobile shop

Welding is needed but first the welding gear needs repair itself. Axel spends hours until it finally works again - more or less. Some cracks in suspension arms are found and welded, a ripped off bump stop in a Belgium car and a front axle which is almost broken in half.

Tonight we'll have a special treat: The raid is staying in a underground motel! Those "dugouts" were popular dwelling units in the opal fields. Digging into a hillside the miners discovered that it is much cooler on hot days and warmer in cold nights in those self-made caves than in tents or huts. So mines that did not contain opals became homes and today hotels or motels are offering such special accommodations to tourists. Nothing for claustrophobic people - the rooms are just rock walls and since they are built inside the hill they have no windows.
The raid has booked the complete motel and so nobody can complain about the party.

Before heading on next morning we visit the opal fields: Deep shafts dug into the ground with big molehills of gravel in between. Only a few hundred people live in the area today, the high time is long gone here. But one of them is photographer Otto Rogge (www.ottophoto.com) and his nature pictures are quite impressive.

Our initially planned route is flooded and so we take a detour on the major HWY. Hard to believe since we haven't seen a single drop of rain or even a gray cloud so far! But rain a thousand miles north in the tropics floods the rivers down here, which are dry most of the year.

We stop in Wilcannia to visit Anthony, a architect who met Peta when she did the raid survey a year ago. He loves 2CVs and is excited to see so many out here. We invite him to join us for the BBQ which will be held for the raid in Tilpa tonight, just 80 miles from here and he promises to come.
We follow the Darling River east on a lovely most sandy road and reach Tilpa (the outback-pub called "Hotel" with gas pump and a tiny store) just in time to get our tents up before the BBQ starts. Anthony shows up and through the radio we can hear that the "camels" have found the "waterhole" - so they are in the pub already and everyone has arrived.

Picture 6 The Tilpa Waterhole

Picture 6 The Tilpa "Waterhole"

The BBQ turns out great. Really good food and plenty of it. Pork, Lamb and Goat, tasty and tender and all kinds of sides and salads.
Finally, back at our tent Markku tells us he just saw a snake disappearing into a hole in the ground, only two or three yards away ... there are many holes and who knows what else lives down there, after all Australia has lots of poisonous snakes and spiders and all sorts of little critters ... but so far we never had problems with any of them.
Before leaving the next morning I do what every traveler out here does: Leave a donation for the Royal Flying Doctor Service and sign our names on the walls inside the pub. It's not easy to find even a small empty space somewhere, including the ceiling!

About 10 miles before Wilcannia Gerry & Gwenda's GS has a serious breakdown. Nothing we can help with and GS-expert Bruce is already on his way back - only to find out there's nothing what can be done out here. Gerry has to call a tow truck from Broken Hill over 100 miles away.

Two nights in Broken Hill give the opportunity for servicing the cars and do some shopping and sightseeing. It's a nice old mining town and there are some interesting and unique places to visit like the base of the Royal Flying Doctor Service which provides medical help to the small communities, farms and travelers in the huge and vast outback or the School of the Air where children on remote stations (farms) are taught via satellite radio.

Of course, Bob's traveling workshop is open all day and some neighbors on the campground enjoy the live entertainment of all sorts of repairs, including a 2CV resting on it's side on a stack of tires so the broken chassis can be reinforced to get it home on it's own wheels.

Picture 7 Serious underbody work

Picture 7 Serious underbody work

Steve Hill has a breakdown so we have a broken Hill in Broken Hill and it happened at Steven's Creek!

Another relaxing day. Just a short drive to Kopi Hollow where we camp at the Menindee Lakes. Green grass, a lake and mosquitoes are the total opposite to desert, dust and flies.

Back into the desert again to reach Mungo Natl. Park, a world heritage area. The lakes here dried out some 15,000 years ago and the old sand dunes preserved traces of humans and climate changes since 60,000 years.
It's still early afternoon when we arrive and we decide to do the scenic 50 mile roundtrip after we visited the museum at the parks headquarters. We spend a lot of time hiking on the huge sand dune called "The Wall of China" and doing some short nature trails. It's getting late and the sun is setting. In the low light we're driving on a very dusty track across the dry lakebed. This must be the Australian version of the famous "autumn mist over the lake" ...

Next morning we leave this fascinating place and head back to civilization. Driving south the scenery gets more populated, more roads, more farms, more towns and villages. We meet the vintage car club of Swan Hill in Kyolite where we have a nice pub lunch together. Later in Swan Hill we find a good Chinese restaurant for my birthday dinner and even some friends from Adelaide show up. We recruit them to take the raid group photo and so they end up with all the cameras and a lot of work. We find out that there are just 6 all time raiders, who did all 5 "Raid Australia", Steve Wedell, Ralph Hibble, David Gries, Ian Gamble (all Australians) and us, Uschi and Axel.

Picture 8 All time raiders

Picture 8 All time raiders
From left: Steve Wedell (Sydney), Ralph Hibble (Perth), Uschi Walter (Seattle), Axel Kaliske (Seattle), David Gries (Melbourne), Ian Gamble (Canberra)

Two nights in town and off we go for another bushcamp. This time it's on a farm, owned by Peta's cousin. The whole family and friends come to look at our cars in the evening and we're the talk of the neighborhood for sure. Thank you for having us, folks!

We continue on small roads through farmland and reach the Ettamogah Pub. No wonder it's looking weird - it was built after a popular cartoon! Not far away we have a good lunch in a old woolshed converted into a nice pub.

Driving through a village we almost run over a bird sitting in the middle of the road. We stop and discover it's a Kookaburra and it's not moving at all but seems to be alert. We manage to get it to sit on a piece of cardboard and carry it away - just in time before a huge truck rushes by, the wheels right where the bird was sitting a minute ago. It seems not to be injured or frightened and we don't know what to do with it. Steve finds someone working in his front yard and talks to the man. He looks at our bird and thinks it might be a young one, maybe on it's first flight. He puts it into a cat carrier and promises to take it to the vet to get it checked out. Let's hope it's well and people there can enjoy its happy laughing song.

Picture 9 Rescued Kookaburra

Picture 9 Rescued Kookaburra

We visit the impressive dam of Lake Hume and drive all the way around the lake and up a mountain pass on a narrow winding road. The last dirt roads for us, tomorrow it's time to leave the raid to go home. We reach Myrtleford just as it's getting dark.

A meeting in the morning and time for us to say good-bye. The raid will stay here another night and then go on for another week through the southern Alps and to the sea and end at the Capitol Canberra for the Cit-In, the big Easter meeting of the Australian Citroen Clubs.
A last check on Peta's car by her "personal mechanic" Axel and - hey - there's a crack in a rear suspension arm! So we stay another half day to repair it.
Some people come walking by: "Hello - remember us?" Unbelievable! It's Michelle and Christian Police from France, participants of the last Raid Australia in 2000 with their wives!

Finally we leave and rush down the Freeway to Melbourne. We clean the car and the day we fly home Sue takes it to catch up with the raid and her husband. So "Valerie the brave Tassie Duck" only missed a few days and even finishes the raid with the others.

It was a great trip and we had a good time! A great big THANK YOU to everyone who made this raid possible, the organizers, the Tech Team, Mark and Sue who loaned us their car, all our friends. Looking forward seeing you all again! Maybe on our "Raid North to Alaska" in 2006?

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