Blog Archive
Govie life
Host: Mallina Station Written by Tully, Governess – Mallina Station On the 10th of August 2018 I started my journey as a governess. A governess is someone who helps out in the schoolroom and supervises the children’s learning. The kids have teachers who are based at the School of the Air for that area but as […]
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On the other side of the desk
Host: Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Written by Frances Frahn, Holowiliena Station, Flinders Ranges SA Families who school their kids through distance education usually either employ a governess for day-to-day supervision in the schoolroom, or the Mum teaches her own kids. I’ve got a bit of experience in both situations now – here’s some of my story. […]
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Watch what you say (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 8)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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The Minister for War and Finance
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor I had a boss once who had spent a fair part of his career working in the Defence Force and was still heavily involved in the Army Reserves. He’d often mention how he had to go and pick up the Minister for War and Finance or go meet […]
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Office live versus station life
Host: Mulyie Homestead (De Grey Station) Written by Duggie Brownlie, Overseer Office Life Station Life 5 AM Still in bed Waking up to the splendours of pre-dawn 5:30 AM Still in bed Home cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast 6 AM Still in bed Team meeting, discussing the days plans and preparing work vehicle, Be […]
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From Ireland to isolation (not a backpacker story!)
Host: Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Written by Olivia O’Neill, Derwent Station, Northern Territory My name is Olivia O’Neill and I live at Derwent Station with my husband, Padraic and we have 3 children, Patrick (8), Kathleen (6) and Ashling (4). My husband and I are from Ireland and on 11th March 2011, we flew into our […]
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“Social license” – more than a buzz word? (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 7)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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From Perth to the Pilbara
Host: De Grey Station Written by Hayley Goad, Office Manager – De Grey Station So, how did I go from the Perth Hills to the Pilbara… well let me tell you my story thus far. I had a taste of agriculture as a child and whilst in high school. It was an escape route for […]
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Working with your children
Host: Mallina Station Written by Lindsay Newland I count myself fortunate that we live on a property that is ok with my children coming with me to work. When I had my first child we were managing a station that didn’t allow this and I really struggled with being house bound as well as the […]
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A day in the life of a Kimberley Governess
Host: Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Written by Tayla Clark, Governess – Blina Station Me: “Hey Siri, what’s the definition of a Governess”? Siri: “(especially in former times) a woman employed to teach children in a private household”. That was me early December (2017), trying to figure out what a governess was, and what the position would […]
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Public behaviors relating to farm animal welfare (Agriculture vs the public – Part 6)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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Staffing on a station
Host: Mulyie Homestead (De Grey Station) Written by Duggie Brownlie, Overseer Ah yes, staff… they can make a bad season easy and a good season seem like the end of the world would be a good thing. They come in many different shapes and sizes, breeds and races, and more personalities than you can poke […]
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Have you listened to our first 3 podcast episodes yet?
On June 15 the Central Station podcast was launched through Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can find the podcast on the Apple Podcast app by clicking here (https://podcasts.apple.com/…/central-station-s…/id1467605720) and on the Spotify app by clicking here (https://open.spotify.com/show/0RWVauWr3S6Ht5zb7qCx78…) Episode 1: Tom & Annabel Curtain, Katherine Outback Experience The story of how Katherine Outback Experience came to […]
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Ringers Western EOFY Sale!!
RINGERS WESTERN EOFY SALE . With up to 70% off SITEWIDE – this is Ringers Western’s biggest sale of the year yet! Sale finishes at 11:59PM Saturday 29th June. Head to www.ringerswestern.com because this isn’t a sale you want to miss!
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Kiralee Thompson – Scholarship winner update!
My name is Kiralee Thompson, and I am the recipient of the inaugural Central Station Katherine Rural Campus pre-employment scholarship. The scholarship supports a person wanting to undertake a 10 week training course to develop the skills to work on a cattle station. I must have said something good in my application, because here I […]
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100 years of feeding Australian livestock
Written by Dean Maughan Milne Feeds has been around for over 100 years but has been owned by the Laitt family for the last 40 odd years. With the company’s close involvement over time with chicken, cattle, sheep and pig production, Milne Feeds has become a feed mill that is not just interested in producing […]
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Four at foot
Host: Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association Written by Petie Rankin, The Twins Station, South Australia I cannot believe how very fitting it was that when I was asked to write a piece for Central Station, it would be the EXACT week that my govie had to go home for a few days and I had to dig […]
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Public expectations of farm animal welfare (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 5)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate […]
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The “incident”
Host: Kalyeeda Station Written by Hugo Rickard-Bell Dear Mum, The following letter details my version of events for an incident that occurred on the 12th of July 2017. It was a moment in time that has changed my life forever. Please destroy all evidence of this document once you have finished reading… The sun had risen […]
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Helping weaners
Written by Dean Maughan In my last blog I discussed how I got hooked on the Kimberley and how I developed this passion to bring some of my knowledge and experience from working with dairy cattle to the north to help with weaner beef cattle management. Over a period of four years of taking annual […]
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Introducing the Central Station Podcast!
On Saturday June 15 the Central Station podcast was launched through Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Central Station was launched in June 2013, and has since published over 1100 short stories, and one book. You can find the podcast on the Apple Podcast app by clicking here and on the Spotify app by clicking here. Episode one […]
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Factors influencing perceptions of farm animal welfare (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 4)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate […]
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A different way to get to work
Host: Kalyeeda Station Written by Barbara Camp We’re drafting at the yards today. Out at Rodney’s bore that 17kms from the homestead. Yesterday we mustered in the breeders from the paddock with horses, bikes and choppers and today we’re ready to start pulling off those big sappy weaners, vaccinate the cows and brand the baby […]
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Communities in drought
Host: Callanna Station Written by Lucy Goldspink The bush is a marvellous place where people are selfless and generous. Sure, in times of hardship you can become engrossed in your own life and the difficulty you are facing, but when someone needs something others are always there to help. Our community has been tackling severe […]
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The public’s concern with animal production (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 3)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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The farmer wants a son-in-law
Host: Kalyeeda Station Written by Barbara Camp NOTE: For a bit of context this blog is a follow-up to a bit of a funny situation I found myself in after writing what I thought was a joke piece a few years ago about diversifying our station into a dating scheme due to the high number […]
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Across the table
Host: Callanna Station Written by Lucy Goldspink I now see drought from another angle. I have always been on the land, but now I live in a small city 380kms from my new husband. There are a few reasons for the change; opportunity, and mounting pressure, both financial and personal. It hasn’t rained at home […]
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The evolution of animal agriculture (Agriculture vs the Public – Part 2)
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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The dream that “took a while”
Written by Dean Maughan As a kid, I grew up on a dairy farm in Harvey, southern WA. Right from a very young age I became involved in horses and dairy cattle. This progressed to me developing the “dream” that when I finished school, I would like to be a “Ringer” and spend a year […]
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Advice for a bush wedding
Host: Callanna Station Written by Lucy Goldspink “Planning an outback wedding?” you say, “How romantic! How fun! How wild!”. I say, “How much bloody work!” My darling husband and I got engaged in February 2018 and married at home on the station in April 2019. We chose to get married at home against many people’s advice, […]
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Agriculture vs the Public (Part 1)
Written by Stephanie Coombes, Central Station editor In 2015 and 2016 I attended Kansas State University, studying a Master of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication. As a part of my degree, I was required to undertake a research thesis. It wasn’t difficult for me to choose a research topic. I’ve been a passionate “agvocate” […]
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Woulda, coulda, shoulda
Written by Steph Coombes, Central Station editor If I had a dollar for each time someone has said something to me along the lines of “That’s so cool, I wish I could do that”, I’d probably be able to afford to buy myself a station … or at the very least a new Landcruiser (ok, […]
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Managing the managers job
Host: Rutland Plains Station Written by Liz Cameron (@dusty_lens_ and @gulfcountryworkwear) Before managing, everyone told us the hardest part about the job was staff. I couldn’t agree with this statement more. I don’t think many staff realise what a huge role they play in the operation of a cattle station. I’ve always been a firm believer […]
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Infertility and loss
Host: Rutland Plains Station Written by Liz Cameron (@dusty_lens_ and @gulfcountryworkwear) The yearn for children can be a strong one. One you can’t shake no matter how many times you try or how many times someone tells you to just relax and forget about it. The reality of being childless is one that cuts deep […]
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Character building
Host: Rutland Plains Station Written by Liz Cameron (@dusty_lens_ and @gulfcountryworkwear) Our first managers job was in 2012, just up to road from Miranda Station at a place called Inkerman Station working for a company called Gulf Coast agriculture. Nothing could have prepared us for our first 2 weeks. Most of it was spent cleaning. […]
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Retail to ringer
Host: Rutland Plains Station Written by Liz Cameron (@dusty_lens_ and @gulfcountryworkwear) We finished our season at Coolibah in 2006 where I cooked and Ken was flying. We then made the move back to Katherine in 2007. Ken was predominantly flying in the Barkly region, so he was never home. Even when his helicopter was due […]
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Can you cook?
Host: Rutland Plains Station Written by Liz Cameron (@dusty_lens_ and @gulfcountryworkwear) “Can you cook?” I thought, “well, yes I can…”, but could I cook for 19 men with 2 camp ovens, 1 hot plate, 1 small chest freezer and a large pan used for salting beef, in a buffalo catching camp in the middle of […]
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How to Make it Rain: Organise a Campdraft
Host: Dr Jillian Kelly We have just recently run the fifth annual Coonamble Challenge & Campdraft, and I’m one of the committee members. Organising an event of this size and calibre takes a full twelve months – we start organising the next one virtually the minute the previous one wraps up. Needless to say, we had put […]
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Fashions in the Field
Host: Dr Jillian Kelly What I wear to work every day may not be gracing the catwalks of Milan or Paris any time soon, but it’s practical and works for me, and many other ladies on the land across Australia. Here are some fashion and functionality tips for those unacquainted to bush style. The Hat: one […]
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Too much of a good thing
Host: Dr Jillian Kelly If I had a dollar for every case of grain poisoning I’ve seen in the past few years, I’d be a rich lady. You see, we’ve been in drought and people have been hand feeding livestock for several years. Now you might think that if they’ve been doing it for so long […]
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CSI: Coonamble, is back!
Host: Dr Jillian Kelly I often think that my job should be fictionalised into a TV show. I think I’d call it “CSI: Coonamble”. It probably wouldn’t be suitable for viewing anywhere near meal times, and maybe it wouldn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but it would certainly be educational. You see, I’m a large animal […]
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The privilege of touching life and death
Host: Latrobe Station Written by Jody Brown One of the greatest privileges of life on the land is also the most humbling of responsibilities: to not only bear witness to life and death, but to be implicit in the circle of life. Animals will live or die, flourish or falter, under our watch and beneath […]
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Jungles further north
Host: Latrobe Station Written by Jody Brown While writing my previous blog entry, One for the Women, I came to the realisation that what began as a brief shout out to an irrepressible woman and her extraordinary escapades, would actually require a little more elbow room than one paragraph allowed. The following words hardly do […]
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One for the women
Host: Latrobe Station Written by Jody Brown As I write this, it is International Women’s Day. By the time you read this blog, the social media frenzy will have moved on; regular news items will have reclaimed their pride of place and fresh and evolving issues will be hash-tagging their way across the digital stratosphere, […]
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Best loo with a view!
Host: Remote Building Services Written by Lise Browning, co-owner – Remote Building Services. A rare weekend escape in the magical far north Kimberley. The amazing view from the loo! It had been a jam-packed few months renovating and building at Kalumburu Mission on the northern most point in Western Australia. Being so remote with few […]
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Off-road to Kalumburu
Host: Remote Building Services Written by Lise Browning, co-owner – Remote Building Services. We were meant to leave from Drysdale Station and head to Kalumburu Catholic Mission, and had expected the council to finally open the final stretch of road only to find that they said it may take up to three weeks. Mmmm, what […]
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The fire circus
Host: Remote Building Services Written by Lise Browning, co-owner – Remote Building Services. We arrived home late last night after a 7-hour drive from Darwin airport dropping the kids off to go back to boarding school. This morning we woke up and opened the blind to see black everywhere over the fence. The paddock in […]
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Building in the bush
Host: Remote Building Services Written by Lise Browning, co-owner – Remote Building Services. Here is a day in the life of a remote builder… 5:50am Wake up. There is smoke haze everywhere, definitely fire season now in remote Northern Territory. 6:00am Queue for the loo. Mustering camp here, 20 people and 2 loos, yay! Queue […]
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A letter home
Host: Remote Building Services Written by Lise Browning, co-owner – Remote Building Services. The following is an example of the types of letters we send to our friends and family while working in remote Australia. Hi, Sorry to do this as a group email but it’s the only way I can think of to keep […]
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Meda’s bovine family
Host: Meda Station Written by Monica Haslet, Manager’s Assistant – Meda Station A lot of cattle stations have their special cow, steer or what ever it may be. Generally he or she is a quiet poddy that was hand raised and has remained quiet for years. We are one of those stations and as it […]
