Swimming sign at Elsey National Park, Northern Territory

Looks inviting, doesn’t it?!  BUT …

No crocodile hiding places here, right?!

SO … who’s going to be the guinea pig in first?!?!

AAAARRRGH!  Is that a CROCODILE in the water??**

**Please note:  this crocodile was NOT photographed in the Roper River at Elsey National Park!  It was, however, photographed in the Northern Territory!!

The post Signs #20 – Croc? OR CROCK!! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

There’s only one town in Australia furthest from the sea – in EVERY direction!

Surprisingly, to me at least, it’s NOT in Central Australia! Australia’s weird continental shape means the geographic centre is relatively close to the Great Australian Bight to the south, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north.

No, the title of furthest from the sea currently belongs Eromanga, a small Western Queensland Outback boulder opal mining town.  Ironically Eromanga was once the site of a vast inland sea – a feature that’s replicated every now and again when the Cooper Basin is in flood …

But the title isn’t all there is to Eromanga!!

Eromanga is also the site of the largest dinosaur fossil remains yet found in OZ, and produces the most oil of any Australian region. Combine this with ‘Opalopolis Park’, a beautifully maintained picnic area right next door to the excellent local museum (get the key from the pub down the road!) showing a well produced video highlighting town and regional attractions and history, and you just might be tempted to stop over in the caravan park for the night.

I’m not sure who actually triangulated the map coordinates to bestow this title on Eromanga, but I’m not about to argue.  Others have – but so far no alternative site has been identified.

Nor is it likely to be without a lot more work and research.  So until the title is bestowed elsewhere, I’m not going to rock the boat.

Not when I get such a thrill out of telling people I’ve been to Australia’s furthest service station from the sea!!

Want MORE?

• Eromanga Map
• Eromanga
• Eromanga Fossil Finds
• Eromanga Boulder opal

Later edit (21/02/2012)

Here’s some additional information and clarification in response to some of the comments below!

1.  Julie queried my claim that Eromanga was the largest oil producing region in Australia.  Certainly, Barrow Island production appears to be greater, but I was convinced I’d seen a claim for Eromanga, so I returned to my source documents where I found the following:
‘Eromanga is the largest oil producing area in mainland Australia …’ (from the ‘Quilpie Shire “simply unique” pamphlet available from the Visitor Information Centre).

So Julie – we’re kind of both right!  But my bad – I left out that vital word ‘mainland’!!

2.  Grey Roamer gave the generally accepted position for Australia’s geographic Centre as Lambert Centre.  While this isn’t in dispute in this post as the town or place furthest from the ocean is not necessarily the geographic centre, the details may be of interest to those who, like me, want to know these things!

The Australian Government Geoscience Australia official website gives a number of interpretations for how to determine the geographic centre.  Interestingly, it also gives an interpretation of how to find the furthest point from the coastline … and it’s NOT Eromanga!!!  But it’s not a definitive science as you’ll see from the website …

Thanx to both for your information, and apologies for any confusion caused by my post!!

The post Signs #19 – Where’s the Ocean? Eromanga, Queensland appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Historic Sign, Wentworth, New South Wales

At what point is an object, action, document or place deemed ‘historic’ – and therefore worthy of recognition and/or preservation?

So I was thrilled to spot the sign on this massive River Red Gum at Wentworth’s Riverbend Caravan Park marking the spot where explorer Charles Sturt celebrated his discovery of the junction of the Murray and Darling rivers! At least here the memory of this historic event has been preserved!!

Looking across the Darling River to the historic spot on the other side

But in a bravely pre-emptive strike, another more recent historic event is immortalised on the other side of the tree!

Hysterical sign, Wentworth, New South Wales

Isn’t it a relief to know that future generations of Aussie kids will know EXACTLY what happened in this spot??!!

• What else is Wentworth famous for?
• Wentworth, New South Wales
• Murray-Darling basin

The post Signs #18 – Historical? – OR Hysterical?! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Possibly the sign of a misspent youth, my ability to guess ‘whodunit’ has been well-honed over the years by detective and courtroom drama novels, TV shows and films.

But this sign, languishing with other unlabelled exhibits in a shed at Boulia’s Stone House Museum, gave my amateur sleuthing skills the chance for a REAL workout!

Who made it? Where was it located?? Why wasn’t it there any more???

Of course to someone with my well developed investigative powers, finding the answers was a doddle …

According to point #10, the sign was once located 48 miles – approximately 80 km – from Boulia. So it pre-dates the metric system – adopted in Australia during the 1970’s!

The sign gives answers to probably repetitive questions – or why would the sign have been made in the first place? But while they’re about living in a remote location – Boulia itself is deep in western Queensland’s Outback – the signwriter clearly had enough visitors to make the sign necessary, which indicates a stopover point on or near a main road.

And given that other exhibits in the shed near the sign included signs for various refreshments, an old bain-marie and bottles, the stopover point could well have been a roadhouse or hotel.

Deducing the rest was elementary easy. Within a radius of 80 km from Boulia, a map of the area indicated hotel ruins 78km to the east – with no other site meeting the parameters above.

Then – a quick look at the excellent Boulia visitors guide booklet confirmed the Hamilton Hotel ruins about 80km from Boulia towards Winton! QED!!  Or should I say ‘WooHOO’!

Hamilton Hotel Ruins, via Boulia, Queensland

Today these ruins are what’s left of the last stage from Winton to Boulia. Opened in 1897, the hotel closed in the 1990’s – with what was left after demolition salvaged by the Stone House Museum. Travellers can still stay at the Hamilton Hotel – it’s now a popular rest stop and free camp with a modern amenities block.

And the old windmill still provides an irresistible opportunity for another Outback cliché shot!

Windmill, Hamilton Hotel Ruins, Outback Queensland

If, like me, you just can’t get enough of clever signs, you’ll be thrilled to find a whole bunch of them over at ‘Signs, signs’!!  Head on over to check out the other contributors!!

The post Signs #17 – Yes … or NO!! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.



Sultana Point, South Australia

Pushing through the shrubs growing closely together over the old coast road was a bit of a giveaway.  So were the trees – now quite large – that broke through down the centre of the old bitumen surface.

Under the plants, piled up rocks that rendered the track impassable to anything larger than a bicycle gave a further clue.

I was starting to piece the evidence together …

It was a long shot – but could it be possible I wouldn’t have to look out for any vehicles while enjoying a walk through this phalanx of unrelieved undergrowth?

HHHMMMmmm… the indications were ALMOST conclusive, but what if I was mistaken??

How could I be absolutely sure???

Did I – or ANY walker for that matter – have the skills to resolve such a vital dilemma????

Then I saw it.  Praise be for the responsible adult/s who removed all lingering doubt with this official decree!

Yes, the road is indeed closed!!

The post Signs#16 – Are you sure? appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Maybe South Australia’s Yorke Peninsula is riddled with pyromaniacs.  Or maybe a fire-bug convention is headed for town.  Just maybe the local school hasn’t got to the bit about fire and water yet.  Perhaps it’s a popular site for shipwreck survivor re-enactments.  Then again, maybe fisherfolk can’t wait to cook up the catch of the day.  Maybe there’s an overabundance of tempting driftwood not visible in this shot. Or it’s a rumoured trial site for a fabulous new ‘floating campfire’ product.

Or maybe not.

But I can’t think of any other reasons why the local council felt it necessary to erect a sign that prohibits lighting fires in the sea!

How about you??

The post Signs #15 – BYO Waterproof Matches … appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

Pterodactyls, Rocs and pieces of Skylab are regrettably long absent from our skies – as are the signs warning of their presence. And apart from the lovely Wycliffe Well, Aussie UFO sightings are rare.

And Superman is a myth. Isn’t he??

So … the danger of injury from large flying objects either in, or falling from the sky should therefore be negligible in this day and age, right?

Right!

Right, that is, unless you’re on Lord Howe Island where the signs warn of a new threat from the skies …

The 1 km (~1095 yard) long airstrip bisects the island at its narrowest point. The sea’s at its western end, and the road to the island’s southern parts squeezes between the eastern end of the airstrip and the sea.

There’s not much room to get past anything on the road, and the airstrip can be challenging to land on if the weather conditions aren’t perfect.

That’s why there are warning signs.

Which can mean only one thing if you’re on that road and there’s a plane taking off towards you or about to land behind you!

DUCK!!!

Want MORE funny Aussie travel signs?  Check out the signs I’ve found around OZ HERE!

The post Signs #14 – DUCK!!! appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

On our March 2011 visit, the river was running high but had peaked the previous day.  But the current level is still well below other floods – as shown by the markers on the right.

Why is the meter so high?  Well … the September 1956 flood is the benchmark against which all other floods are measured.  And yes, it’s there on the marker – way up past 11 metres!!

If it reaches those levels again , the Mid Murray Council would have a lot more than a few out of date signs to worry about, wouldn’t they?!?!?!

Stay dry!!

The post Signs #13 – ‘Droughts and Flooding Rains …’* appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

The perils littering the Australian coastal fringe are legendary – braving the threat of crocodiles, sharks, marine stingers, stonefish, blue-ringed octopi, sea snakes or stingrays in our waterways isn’t for the fainthearted!

Even the rainforest or coastal scrub can be risky – stinging trees, death adders, king browns and other more deadly snakes, spiders, various stinging ants, mosquitoes, scorpions or leeches.

So what’s a traveller to do**?

Head outback, of course! Fewer hazards there, right? RIGHT???

Well … maybe.

Happily, we had no need to test the protective qualities of our Mazda Capella after spotting this sign en route to Cooktown (on Cape York) in the mid 1990’s when this photo was taken. Maybe size really DOES matter?!?!

The ensuing years have softened the graphic impact somewhat. In 2010, the bulls on the signs sported top-hats courtesy of outback graffiti artists!! Sadly, no photographic evidence exists – deep gutters and no verges mean pulling over for a photo in tourist season traffic is riskier than facing what’s on the sign!

But at least you can see it coming …
 
 
 
* (from title) Bull DUST, of course!  What did you think I meant??
**  Don’t be alarmed.  Millions of OZ dwellers AND tourists have survived all these hazards – and more!

The post Signs #12 – Bull***t!* appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.

What do overseas visitors make of Australia’s more esoteric pictorial instructions? Space constraints mean non-English wording is often limited – or non-existent! So the sign designer is stuck with conveying important, but sometimes obscure facts and instructions with stick figures.

Their success necessarily relies on reader ability to immediately interpret the pictures correctly and heed their warnings and messages without the benefit of English comprehension.

It’s an interesting exercise to test the clarity of the more cryptic drawings by ignoring the accompanying text – and any other linguistic clues – while trying to work out what they mean. And the result isn’t always what the signmaker intended!!

So … it was a relief that at least THIS sign at the Kanyaka Ruins Woolshed gave four VERY clear pictorial messages! 

And these are, as I’m sure you’ll agree, from left to right:

1. Perform your headstands in the space between buildings
2. The bollards are floodlit to prevent you bumping into them
3. The wall is as good a protection as any from errant seaspray
4. Way-station for endurance ice skating/skiing

Or maybe not??

If my interpretation is wrong, it’s a testament to the perils of either monolingualism, or weathering – or both! But if I’m right? Well … the South Australian State Government need fear no reprisals from accident, injury or death arising from failure to heed the warnings!!

So what do YOU think the sign means??

The post Signs #11 – What’s the Problem? appeared first on Australia by Red Nomad OZ.