We had 2 options to fly into Innamincka, South Australia: either from Brisbane to a small airstrip called Ballera, or from Adelaide to a small gas and oil ‘town/reserve’ called Moomba. We opted for the Brisbane option as we would be in the Gold Coast at that time and could get to Brisbane easily from there. We looked into train/bus costs to get us to Brisbane airport and the costs were ridiculous! It would cost each of us about $45 each for a bus to get us there and just under $40 for the train (however, we had to leave very early in the AM so the train was not an option for us). In addition, that didn’t include our taxi or bus to get us to the bus stop! So what did we decide to do? Rent a car ofcourse! It was half the price that way! I would have to say that was one of my first experiences where renting a car was the cheapest mode of transportation!
We got to Brisbane airport early in the AM to board our flight. The airline we were flying with was called Alliance Airlines, and there are only a select few airlines (Alliance being one of them) that fly to remote posts in the Outback. Our flight left on time, just before 8AM. It was a 1.5h flight to Ballera and we landed in NOTHINGNESS. The only thing there was a Santos oil and gas Plant, and about 99% of the people we were on the plane with were heading there to work. For the airport itself, there was just a small building the size of a room that deault with boarding procedures. I knew we weren’t in Sydney or Gold Coast anymore!
We were greeted by one of the workers of Innamincka Hotel and brought to a cozy white van with pleasant Air-conditioning…….thank you! The drive to Innamincka was about 2 hours long, with a whole lot of nothing in between. No animals, little shrubbery, a sign informing us we had entered the Innamincka Regional Reserve. In the looming distance we saw the small ‘town’ of Innamincka- One hotel, one “museum”/old hospital, One Trading Post store, and a petrol station (gas station) in front of the Trading Post. Other than that, some huge freighter trucks (affectionately called ‘Road Trains’ in Outback Australia) and what looked like some containers of cargo on one side of the hotel. Up the street was 1 trailor and a house a bit further up the road. Innamincka Cattle Station was approximately 10 km up the road. Wow, what a metropolis! :P
The heat was intense, in the upper 40’s Celsius when we arrived. We were given a small tour around the hotel- pub, kitchen, dining area, and were then shown our room. It was a decently large room with a bed, a couch, a tv, and our own bathroom ofcourse. Basic but it had just about all the necessities we needed, and we could ask for anything we were missing. We met the rest of the staff which included an older couple from Brisbane, an English couple backpacking around Australia, and a couple from Adelaide. The permanent managers were away on vacation for a few weeks. The owner travelled a lot so he popped in once in a while. We put our bags in our room and stepped outside to see where we had ventured……….!
A bit of shock came over me at that moment and many thoughts running through my head: Was this a good idea? How will I deal with the isolation? How will I deal with the heat? How will I get along with everyone? We stood there for a few minutes in the intense heat and decided we would accept the challenge and see how it goes. After all, we could leave whenever we wanted to right?
We started work the same day we arrived. Our duties involved a bit of everything—the pub, the kitchen, the rooms, the reception. There was always something to do and the whole idea of going out to the Outback was to work and make money. As the weeks went by, we made good friends with the English couple, and had a few issues with the temporary managers who turned out to be a bit power hungry in their roles. It goes to show that no matter where you are, there will always be people you can and can’t work with. But we all have to learn to work together.
I was curious how we would end up spending our time in the Outback—would I get bored out of my mind? Would I enjoy the serenity? How would I react being in one of the remotest parts of the world? Well, the work really did keep us busy. Lots of hours= more money, so we weren’t complaining about that. So I never found myself bored for that reason alone. Otherwise, I caught up on reading (always a favourite pastime). In addition, we had WIFI in our room so we explored our future plans for Australia travel once we were done with Innamincka. We hung out at the pub with our English friends, and enjoyed our free meals by ordering from the menu or creating our own meals. All in all it wasn’t a bad place to be. The few times we ventured out of our air-conditioned haven we were greeted with a blast of intense heat, not at all welcoming, and a buzz of annoying flies that always seemed to hang around your ears, eyes and nose. They were as annoying as that person at the movies that talks the whole time! We did do short walks up towards Coopers Creek, but the only thing to see is some murky water and large gumtrees. The gumtrees look beautiful amidst such a barren landscape, though. And we did swim in the Creek once, with the company of a few snapping turtles.
Our most memorable activity, however, was star gazing. We made a night of it a few weeks into our stay there, as the moon was practically gone, so you could see the stars best. Oh the stars we saw! Hands down the brightest sky I have ever seen! Better than any planetarium you could even imagine! You could see stars in every direction and in every part of the sky! You could actually see the ‘cloudiness’ and haze of the Milky Way and all of the incredible stars, planets, and star dust in it! A shooting star every few minutes! An incredible sight that none of our cameras could capture properly, but the mental picture I will never forget! We stood out there for hours, on the dirt road, just STARING intently at the sky (and watching out for snakes ofcourse)! It was our most memorable moment in Innamincka, a sight I wish everyone could see and enjoy for themselves :)
There is a lot of history in the Outback, and definitely in the tiny town of Innamicka itself. I meant to write about it but sort of forgot. So I highly recommend that you google it and learn the history behind it yourself! Namely, it is part of the famous route that Burke and Wills took from south to north Australia. They were the first to try this route out and ended up dying near Innamincka, roughly half way on their journey. The whole tourist attraction of "The Outback Loop" follows this trail. It holds a lot of historical value to every Australian and its an incredibly intersting and (sometimes darkly comedic) tale!
