Host: Yarrie Station
Managers/ Owners: Annabelle Coppin
Region: Pilbara, Western Australia
Nearest town for shopping, doctors etc:
Marble Bar – approx. 90kms via gravel then 50km sealed (nurse, pub)
Port Hedland – approx. 50km gravel, 200km sealed (Stores, parts, freight)
Nearest roadhouse: Pardoo 100km
Number of cattle: 5000 head
Number of staff: 8 in mustering, 3 permanent (including southern property north of Perth)
Size of station: 250,000 Ha (617,700 acres)
How often and how the mail is delivered: Once per week via plane at Yarrie airstip, 5km from house
Yarrie has been in the Coppin family for 5 generations and after 5 years of management, Annabelle has this year been privileged to have the opportunity to purchase Yarrie from her parents. Muccan is an original separate lease that has been running conjunction with Yarrie over the past 25 years. It has now been purchased by her brother and wife and is in the process of being rebuilt and run as a separate enterprise. Exciting times are ahead for these two properties and a new generation to take them forward into the future.
Yarrie also runs in conjunction with a 1300 Ha farming property 1400km south in the Mid West region of the state, that is leased off Annabelles parents. This relieves the numbers of cattle on the property every year especially in dry times and also has the ability to value add to them with more intense temperate pastures.
Yarrie Station provides around 3 million meals of quality beef meals to both Australian and the world annually. I grew up on the property with my parents and older brother and have now managed Yarrie for 3 years. Before this I was working in the Middle East with Meat and Livestock Australia in the livestock export industry improving animal welfare in feedlots and abattoirs. A great experience to spend time with people and develop a stronger understanding of the live export market beyond our front gate. I believe I now have a fair and balanced view of the necessity of this trade to not only Australia but the rest of the world who demand our livestock.
Yarrie is not only our livelihood, it is our home and we are deeply connected with the landscape. We have a team of mainly young people that help us on the property, many of which have lived here for years and also class as their special home.
Our industry is innovative, exciting with a future that is in our hands. We are all passionate about improving our landscape, having solid animal welfare practices and a importantly a viable dynamic business to allow us to remain in a position to keep improving our property and practices in the future.
I look forward to being apart of Central Station to share our story with the rest of Australia.
The Yarrie Team 2014
Flying over a creek running through Yarrie
The Gazebo – a recent addition built by the 2013 team for a warm gathering area
The DeGrey River runs though the station
Yarrie cattle on our southern farm – look at that grass!
Other places to follow us:
· Become friends with ‘Yarrie Station’ on facebook and follow @abcoppin on Twitter
· http://www.target100.com.au/Farmer-stories/Annabelle-Coppin
· http://www.abc.net.au/landline/content/2010/s3293024.htm
· http://www.abc.net.au/heywire/stories/2013/05/3756497.htm
· http://www.livestockexportreview.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/1964754/Annabelle-Coppin.pdf

Take a Chill Pill-bara
Written by Lydia Inglis – Stationhand, Yarrie Station. The Pilbara. The land of where: Having one spare tyre is asking for two flats. A trip to town is 5 hours of driving. And if you dare to say how great all your bores are it’s guaranteed they’ll pack it in tomorrow. It’s a land of […]

A meeting with a wild horse
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Martha Lindstad, Stationhand, Yarrie Station It had been one of those perfect days. We weren’t far out in September, and were getting closer to the end of mustering. As many times previously this year, a team of us were sent to our leased block, Coongan. Coongan had more rainfall than […]

The Pilbara Mexican
Host: Yarrie Station Written by David Drexel, Stationhand You know is not going to be easy to be in the Pilbara for a mexican when he finds out that they call avocados an “avo” and after 3 months thinking that they were all speaking every day after lunch time about that “Avo”, he realizes that […]

From the Blue mountains to red ranges
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Tara Shiels, Stationhand Why did I move from the high altitudes and rolling mountains coated in rich green gums trees, icy waterfalls and the glistening sandstone cliffs of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales to red dirt plains further than the eye can see? With sandy river beds lined […]

Cattle chemistry
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Kate Woodward, Stationhand. What’s a pharmacist doing on a cattle station in the East Pilbara? Well this year was about doing the things I’ve always wanted to do. With a family background in station management and livestock trade I was keen to experience station life for myself. After a bit of […]

Dating in the bush – a Tinderella story
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Martha Lindstad, Stationhand, Yarrie Station “Go up north and find yourself some handsome young cowboy”, is a saying quite a few young girls hear when they decide to work on a station. Is it really that easy, finding someone and dating in the bush? When I first arrived at Yarrie […]

Pain in the Pilbara
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Georgia Goode, Stationhand, Yarrie Station The thing that concerned me most about relocating to the Pilbara for the 2018 mustering season was the real possibility of making the acquaintance of the slithering reptiles that inhabit it. As it turns out, it was something much smaller I should have been nervous […]

There, and back again
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Martha Lindstad, Stationhand, Yarrie Station After finishing my time at Yarrie in October 2017, I went to New Zealand for a month to catch up with friends and do a number of horse treks. Through December 2017 and January 2018 I was lucky to work for Harmony Agriculture and Food […]

The harder I work, the luckier I am
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Lydia Inglis – Stationhand/Technical Assistant, Yarrie Station When I finally made the decision to move to Pilbara and work as a station hand, I had mixed responses such as: “That’s amazing, you’ll have so much fun!”, “That’ll be a nice wee break from your career”, and let’s not forget the never-ending “Why?”. […]

Bringing the Pilbara to your plate
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Annabelle Coppin, Owner. Find part one here. Find part two here. ‘Town life’ was kept busy with the launch of our branded beef product into the Pilbara! A little step into the big dream. Jude Taylor a family friend and talented artist painted our new Outback Beef Logo, which is […]

A Pilbara wedding & one extra for the 2017 calf tally
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Annabelle Coppin, Owner. Find part one here. Over a few days before hand near on 300 people arrived from all across the country! Many flocked to the Iron Clad Hotel and then trickled their way to Yarrie to pitch camp for a dawn wedding in a very special little George […]

Planning a wedding during mustering season
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Annabelle Coppin, Owner. This blog continues on from Annabelle’s last post in 2017, which you can read by clicking this link. Mother nature certainly dealt us a challenge, however we conquered the muster in late August. Amongst that we also managed to build a set of cattle yards and complete […]

The year everyone got naked
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Martha Lindstad – Stationhand, Yarrie Station. We were about halfway through the mustering season, when Tara and I went down to one of our mustering camps to pick up some gear. “Lets do pants off Friday, and take a photo”, Tara said. I was in my own little world, and […]

From Hyde Park to the Pilbara
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Susan Lymbery I’ve enjoyed the most amazing outback experience by getting involved in the development of Yarrie Station’s Great Sandy Desert garden, an innovative project to explore viable and sustainable uses for native Pilbara desert plants. It is a joint project between Yarrie Station and Outback Trees, and covers area […]

Pit and Peak
Host: Yarrie Station Written by Martha Lindstad – Stationhand, Yarrie Station. Most nights during dinner we do Pit and Peak at Yarrie. Some love it, others aren’t overly excited about it, but it’s a great way of getting a conversation going around the dinner table or camp fire, and no matter how dumb you feel, […]