Destinations > Canning Stock Route, Part 1

After a restful night under the stars and a chilly morning, expect temps to drop below freezing early in the adventure, you will continue in a generally northerly direction pushing past dry creek beds and dead mulga that you will miss later on when looking for firewood in the spinifex-only plains found further north. Kangaroos and emus are plentiful through here too.

White Well and Corners Well are distinctive with their windmills and holding tanks while cattle yards indicate you are on pastoral land and have not yet reached the true isolated parts of the CSR. The party of W A Snell sank Well 3A in 1929 and now the track veers to the right bypassing the soft boggy crossing of Lake Nabberu and the original course of the CSR. You are traversing Cunyu Station so keep to the track and avoid camping until at least Windich Springs. Sections of the track through Cunyu station cross very flat country with gravel-like surfaces, reminiscent of what I call the 'supermarket carpark' areas found west of the Simpson Desert. The temptation is to let the speed creep up on these relatively good roads but be warned there are many washouts and tight corners around dead mulga trees.

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You leave the boundary of Cunyu Station near Windich Spring and it would be hard to go past this piece of paradise. The spring itself carries a large body of water most years with a plentiful supply of raucous corellas and finches. I have even seen ducks swanning around in the water. The banks of the spring are lined with large gum trees whose twisted boughs and colourful bark make for a superb sight reflected in the cool water. The camping is limited due to the rocky outcrops along the edge of the springs but one of the good things about the Canning is that other travellers are few and far between and you rarely need to share a campsite.

Well 5 is significant by the fact that it was the deepest well dug by Canning's crew at 105 feet (32m). Just imagine digging straight down through solid rock for 105 feet. Canning's men were truly working in impossible conditions. Today it lies in ruins but not so Well 6, which is another favoured campsite for travellers. The well has been restored and provides good water through its windlass, bucket and rope and long water trough which birds frequent to gain a cool sip. There are scattered shady trees and plenty of level ground. A short distance north of Well 6 is your first opportunity to properly stretch your legs.

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