ONE IN A MILLION

Meet Sang, one of the 19 camels who were with me in the Simpson Desert in July. Unlike the other camels - who held their heads upright when 'hooshed' down - Sang would rest his head quietly on the ground at the end of each walking day. This made it especially easy for us to give him a rub down. He seemed appreciative of the attention, which, in turn, made him a favourite among our party.
Unfortunately at the end of this year's trekking season, (his 11th in the Simpson), a vet diagonosed an inoperable tumor that had spread across Sang's jaw. Sadly, he had to be put down a couple of weeks ago.
Even though it's nearly four months since I was in the Simpson, the memories of the trip and the the special experience of sharing the desert with the camels still stop me in my tracks. Like the needle-sharp burs I inadvertently collected in the soles of my Croc sandals - and that still jab me in the foot when I walk on gravel - some of of these flashbacks feel particularly pointed.
None more so than trying to reconcile the unforced communal feeling that presided between us and each of the camels, with the knowledge that- for sound ecological reasons - a million of their wild kind need to be 'culled' from Central Australia.
In this context it seems lopsided to single out Sang's passing as noteworthy. Yet, as we all have to discover, everything can change when we come to know and respect our fellow travellers.

(For more on the Simpson experience see my stories in the latest Australian Geographic [Issue 96] and next month's issue of Wild [Issue 115].)

THE DESERT GREEN

The biggest floods - in terms of extent and duration - since 1974 have wrought dramatic changes along the floodplain corridors of the eastern Simpson Desert. It was a rare privilege to witness the flush of new growth and animal life. The just completed Eyre Creek Ornithological Trek recorded 100 bird species in its 11 day camel odyssey. Organised by Australian Desert Expeditions, our party covered more than 150km, crossing high dunes to reach Eyre Creek and neighbouring billabongs. Walking the long floodplains carpeted with fragrant native cammomile and the shrubby forests of tall verbine more than 2m high was a ravishing experience for camels and humans alike - and another reminder of this mighty desert's mercurial powers.
Photos: (top) Cameleer extraordinaire Andrew Harper leading TC and the other camels on the Eyre Creek Ornithological Trek. (centre) The eastern-most of the floodplains graced by the 2009 flows. (below) Much-travelled Morgan treats the Simpson to another of his morning serenades.