In the 'olden' days, if someone was going bush it was referred to as back'o Bourke, so that is where we are heading, the Back of Bourke. We will not be going to Cameron's Corner because of the rain - maybe next time.
We didn't drive through many towns on the way to Bourke. Those we did were mostly boarded up shops and few people. The land is still very dry, with patches of green grass every now and then, probably from the recent rain the past few days.
We stopped at an IGA store to get some milk and bread, and there were some dodgy people hanging around asking for money - with iPhone and cities in hand!
Peter also came back with a bottle of Rice's Splashe Cola, which is suppose to be famous in Bourke. A local trader, John Rice, set up a lemonade factory in a horse stables in 1907. It was known as Rice's Cordials and was powered by a steam engine. He made, and his descendents still make a variety of soft drinks. If we had known it was not only the cola that was famous, but the company, we may have bought a different flavour - the cola was disgusting, way too sweet even for me.
We had decided to stay in a caravan park rather than free camp, just didn't feel comfortable free camping, so we booked two nights at Kidman's Camp, at the back of Bourke. It was lovely to see green grass. The park is very well kept and the amenities are good. They even have two pools. There is a bush poet and dinner a few nights a week. The pool area has lovely plantings and a great seating area, including this rocking chair. It is 800 metres from the Darling river where the paddle boat Jandra leaves from. Kidman's Camp is a good base for seeing the area. There are many grassy drive through sites, and at $32 a night for power not bad. There are courtesy buses from the town clubs and pubs that come to the park.
We decided to do a one hour cruise on the paddle boat Jandra. John did the commentary and Peter steered the boat - not my Peter. It was very interesting to find out about the history of the area.
This bridge was the first lift up bridge built across the Darling. It was built in 1888. It was replaced by a concrete bridge in 1998
After the Cruise we drove to the Information Centre and had an early lunch. We asked about the recent floods and the cotton farming. The food in the Café was good - the chocolate milkshake was the best I have had in a while.. The info centre is also where the Back o Bourke exhibition centre is. It was a little expensive for us this trip, but it portrays the history of the area.
Bourke is 789 kms from Sydney and was established in 1862 as a market centre for the surrounding areas. The export of wool via the Darling River on paddle steamers to the South Australian coast. Originally there were three wharf, but today there is only one replica wharf. Bourke also became the hub of camel trains and horse bullocks along the Cobb and Co route wet and north.
We then drove into town to see the starting up of the Crossley Engine. The Crossley Engine is a fully restored 1923 oil engine that is started every Monday to Friday at midday. John and Peter from the paddle boat were there explaining how it worked.
It was obvious by the cotton on the sides of the road that there were cotton fields nearby. We did pass a cotton gin. The town has some old buildings but the 'mud map' we had was not so clear on where the buildings were. We did follow the mud map to find Fort Bourke Stockade, only to find that we needed a key from the info centre. Would have been good to know when we were there saying that we were going to follow the mud map, or even a note on the mud map to say pick up key. Sadly we missed out. The Fort is believed to be the only fort ever built in Australia. It was for security and defence and was built by Major Mitchell in 1835. What is there now is a replica built in 1983. It is situated 16kms south of the town and was named after the then Governor of the colony, Governor Bourke.
We wanted to see the road to Louth for another trip doing the Darling River Run, but after the rains in the past few days the road was closed.
We did drive out to the one and only lock. We were told on the cruise that council had requested 100 locks / Weirs from the state government in order to preserve the river system and the plant and fish life. The government agreed, however, only built one weir. It was opened in 1897. Today there are many Weirs on the Darling as part of the Murray/Darling Irrigation System.
We did find the cemetery on the mud map. Bourke Cemetery has some interesting Graves, including two police officers that were shot by bush ranger Captain Starlight in 1868. Professor Fred Hallows is buried there, and in the photo below one can see the centre black stone that depicts the pupil of an eye. This is his headstone. Around the pupil is a circle of rocks in the shape of an eye. There is no headstone, but an informative board is nearby.
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