Written by Debbie Dowden, Challa Station Raucous laughter fills the workshop as the mustering crew gathers for ‘tribal council’ after a long hard day of mustering. Stories are shared, grievances aired and points handed out for mistakes and misdemeanours. The points are tallied and a pink nightie is handed over to the person who won […]
Ben Smith and Archie Pollard work on Murray Downs Station, just south of Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory. I recently took the 120km detour off the main highway to pop in for a cup of tea, and within minutes of my arrival Ben made a massive faux pas. So, of course I used it […]
I feel like Tarzan the first time he set foot in civilisation. Or even Mighty Joe Young (yes, the gorilla – but that may just be because of my lack of waxing up on the station). I’ve finally made it to town after last weeks debacle and all of a sudden I am faced with the perplexing […]
I am literally penning this entry from the safety of my single horse trailer, wedged firmly in sand, along with my trusty ute…somewhere in the outback. We are meant to be heading back to the big smoke. The next post was meant to be about reacclimatising after the isolation of the station. Instead I find myself laden with all […]
Most stations have a plane or a helicopter, and at some point you’re going to get offered a flight. Here’s how to totally ruin your chances of ever having a second go. 6am and we’re just pulling up to the airstrip – a wide gravel road a short way from the homestead. Inside the old […]
When is it too early to ask your new boss about the existence of aliens? Day two, probably. So we’re out on a windmill run. The station owner might need a hand pulling a windmill (or is it pulling a bore? Not sure….) As he climbs the precarious ladder up the side of this rusty […]
Written by Kate Fairfax – Margaret River Station, WA On a scale of one to ten, how dangerous is a chicken? I mean, compared to the feral bulls, snakes, crocodiles, wild cattle and dingoes that live in the Kimberley, I wouldn’t have thought chickens could be any worse than a 3… and it’d have to […]
This article has been contributed anonymously under the pen name “Howgirl Cowgirl”. I’m a bit of a hippy at the best of times, there’s no denying that. So it’s no wonder that, when faced with the prospect of raising babies, I like to break convention and embrace new age ideas. My poddy calves were the […]
Written by Steph Coombes – Central Station editor I’m known to my friends for my shocking lack of direction. And, in my old age I’ve come to learn to laugh at myself and the silly things I’ve done, rather than shrink away in embarrassment as I used to do. So, I’ve decided to share a […]
Written by Steph Coombes – Central Station editor I’m known to my friends for my shocking lack of direction. And, in my old age I’ve come to learn to laugh at myself and the silly things I’ve done, rather than shrink away in embarrassment as I used to do. So, I’ve decided to share a […]
Written by Steph Coombes – Central Station editor I’m known to my friends for my shocking lack of direction. And, in my old age I’ve come to learn to laugh at myself and the silly things I’ve done, rather than shrink away in embarrassment as I used to do. So, I’ve decided to share a […]
Written by Connie Wood – Blina Station Jim Lindsay, Eat Your Heart Out. She lowers her head, shakes it a little and a bit of snot comes out as she snorts and stomps the ground with her foot. He’s not sure if its fear, adrenalin, or pure fury that’s got her shaking like that but […]
Written by Monica Haslet – Meda Station Over the Easter weekend we decided to take the kids out for a nice family ride for the first time. The result was not quite what we hoped for… instead of the nice fun little walk past the billabong, around the house and back to the horse yards, […]
Written by Jodie Grant – Florina Station. So you have met the man of your dreams, your knight in shining armour… it just so happens that he is a cowboy. No not a concrete cowboy but a fair dinkum horse riding, cow roping, gun slinging cow boy. This is something you never expected – let’s face […]
Written by Katie O’Donoghue – Stationhand, Mandora Station The alarm goes off. It’s early, the sun is barely out of bed itself. It’s a new day, another busy day ahead and so, with one final stretch I jump out of bed head outside springing off the deck and head off in search of the crew. […]
Written by Kirsty Williams, Mount Sarah Station I was nervous with George starting kindy given all he wants to be when he grows up, “is a worker!” But easing into kindy days bit by bit, stretching the time out longer and longer over the weeks (and a few bribes of toy tractors and the like) saw […]
Written by Steph Coombes – Editor, Central Station. You might remember a story in the media from about 10 years ago. 18 teenage girls from the same high school in Massachusetts, USA, became pregnant at the same time. The story goes that they planned their pregnancies after making a “pregnancy pact”. They wanted their kids […]
Host: De Grey Station Written by Mark Bettini, Owner – De Grey Station Mustering pilots get to see many funny things – bike riders are always good for a laugh. When they stack it they quickly look around to see if anyone saw them. Once you have determined if the rider is ok I think […]
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 […]
Host: Donal Sullivan If you missed my post yesterday, you’ll read below some of my observations on characters you commonly find on cattle stations, inspired by Sir David Attenborough. These are written entirely as a joke, and anything that sounds illegal is definitely not based on a real person or real events. ‘The Chopper Pilot’ […]
