Strzelecki Track

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Strzelecki Track

Strzelecki Track 0316.svg
The Strzelecki Track (blue and white) and the old part of the track at the northern end
Transferring mail from a camel-drawn coach to a motor truck at Carraweena, near the mid-point of the Strzelecki Track, about 1920 Transferring mail from camel-drawn coach to motor truck at Carraweena, Strzelecki Track, 1920 (HTSA GN04206 rotated).jpg
Transferring mail from a camel-drawn coach to a motor truck at Carraweena, near the mid-point of the Strzelecki Track, about 1920
Strzelecki Track
Coordinates
General information
Type Track
Length472 km (293 mi) [1]
Major junctions
Northeast endCordillo Downs Road
Innamincka, South Australia
  Adventure Way
Southwest end The Outback Highway
Lyndhurst, South Australia
Location(s)
Region Far North [2]
Restrictions
Fuel supply Lyndhurst, Innamincka, Cameron Corner

Strzelecki Track is a mostly unsealed outback track in South Australia, linking Innamincka to Lyndhurst.

Contents

History

In 1870, the 472-kilometre (293-mile) track was pioneered by stockman, drover and cattle thief Harry Readford. [3] He stole 1,000 head of cattle from a remote cattle station in Queensland. He drove them down the track, and sold them at Blanchewater Station. He then fled to Adelaide. Pastoralists then used the track as a stock route in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. [4]

After gas was discovered by Santos in the 1960s, it started carrying more traffic as a route to Moomba. Some sections were sealed. [4]

Description

The track links Innamincka to Lyndhurst through the Strzelecki Desert. It is mostly unsealed, but with a few short sealed sections to facilitate overtaking. [5] It is passable to conventional vehicles during the dry season, although caution is required. [3]

The track is prone to flooding after heavy rains. At other times the surface can be corrugated, with loose stones and dust. [4]

The Strzelecki Track is linked with the Birdsville Track via the Walkers Crossing Track. It is closed in summer and only traversable in dry weather. [4]

A shorter route is available via a public access road between Moomba and Innamincka, making the distance 458 kilometres (285 miles). [6]

Heritage listings

A number of isolated heritage-listed sites are located nearby to the Strzelecki Track:

See also

Australia road sign W5-29.svg   Australian roadsportal

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Innamincka, South Australia</span> Town in South Australia

Innamincka, formerly Hopetoun, is a township and locality in north-east South Australia with a population of 44 people as of the 2016 census. By air it is 820 kilometres north-east of the state capital, Adelaide, and 365 kilometres north-east of the closest town, Lyndhurst. It is 66 kilometres north-east of the Moomba Gas Refinery. The town lies within the Innamincka Regional Reserve and is surrounded by the Strzelecki Desert to the south and the Sturt Stony Desert to the north. It is linked by road to Lyndhurst via the Strzelecki Track, to the Birdsville Developmental Road via Cordillo Downs Road and Arrabury Road, and the Walkers Crossing Track to the Birdsville Track. The Walkers Crossing Track is closed in summer and only traversable in dry weather. The township is situated along the Cooper Creek, a part of the Lake Eyre basin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lyndhurst, South Australia</span> Town in South Australia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strzelecki Desert</span> Desert in central Australia

The Strzelecki Desert is located in the Far North Region of South Australia, South West Queensland and western New South Wales. It is positioned in the northeast of the Lake Eyre Basin, and north of the Flinders Ranges. Two other deserts occupy the Lake Eyre Basin—the Tirari Desert and the Simpson Desert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Central Road</span> Track in Western Australia and the Northern Territory

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bore Track</span>

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Gidgealpa is a locality in the Australian state of South Australia located about 780 kilometres north-east of the capital city of Adelaide and about 58 kilometres south-west of the town of Innamincka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strzelecki Creek</span> River in South Australia, Australia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birdsville Developmental Road</span> Road in Australia

The Birdsville Developmental Road is a mostly unsealed road in south-west Queensland that branches off the Diamantina Developmental Road at a point 103 kilometres (64 mi) west of Windorah and runs to Birdsville. Its length is 273 kilometres (170 mi). The road crosses a major channel of the Diamantina River just before reaching Birdsville. It links with Cordillo Downs road and Arrabury Road, both of which lead to the South Australian town of Innamincka.

The Adventure Way is an Australian outback route between Brisbane, Queensland and Innamincka, South Australia. Using the Adventure Way, it is 1,152 kilometres (716 mi) from Brisbane to Innamincka. The recommended journey time, allowing for some sightseeing, food and rest is 96 hours. It has been designated by the Queensland Government as a State Strategic Touring Route.

References

  1. Google (13 July 2022). "Strzelecki Track" (Map). Google Maps . Google. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
  2. "Location SA Map viewer with regional layers". Government of South Australia . Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  3. 1 2 "The Strzelecki Track". Flinders Range Research. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Getting to Innamincka by road". Innamincka Hotel. Retrieved 12 December 2021.
  5. Hema, Maps (2007). Australia Road and 4WD Atlas (Map). Eight Mile Plains Queensland: Hema Maps. pp. 72–73. ISBN   978-1-86500-456-3.
  6. Hema, Maps (2006). Australia’s Great Desert Tracks SE Sheet (Map). Eight Mile Plains Queensland: Hema Maps. ISBN   978-1-86500-162-3.
  7. "Tinga Tingana Homestead (Ruin)". South Australian Heritage Register. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. Retrieved 12 February 2016.[ permanent dead link ]
  8. "Tree, possibly marking the burial site of Charles Gray, member of Burke & Wills' 1861 expedition', Lake Massacre, Innamincka Regional Reserve". South Australian Heritage Register. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  9. "Well and Whim, Coochilara Waterhole, Merty Merty Station". South Australian Heritage Register. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  10. "Horse Capstan, Pump & Well, Old Mulga Bore, Merty Merty Station". South Australian Heritage Register. Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2016.

Further reading