ADE's historical link to desert
exploration
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The Australian Desert Expeditions (ADE)
heritage stretches back to 1860/61 when camels were brought to Australia for the Burke
& Wills Expedition. Prior to 1860 horses were used for major inland explorations and
as the explorers encountered the great deserts it was very quickly realised that camels
would be the only way to effectively explore the continent as they would be best suited
tot he dry conditions.
Even though camels has been brought to the
country beforehand in 1840, it was not until the Royal Society of Victoria instructed that
camels be brought from the sub continent for the Victorian Exploring Expedition (later
officially
renamed the Burke & Wills Expedition).
The primary purpose of the Burke &
Wills Expedition
was to find a way north to the Gulf and thus become the first exploring party to
succeed in crossing Australia, thus opening up new country for settlement and cementing
the colony of Victoria as the
Although Burke & Wills succeeded
in crossing the country, the expedition ultimately ended in disaster as a combination of
ill-timing, incompetence resulted in the deaths of several of the party including both
Burke & Wills themselves at Cooper Creek in April 1861.
Nevertheless, the value of camel based exploring
was guaranteed and exploration of Australia by the 1890's was of a completely
different nature from that of the preceding decades. The last unknown areas were now being
closed in and the overall approach was changing to scientific research. There were several
major explorations, the most notable being:
- Elder Scientific Exploring Expedition 1891
/92
1894 Calvert Scientific Exploring
Expedition
The 1896 Horn Scientific Expedition
Cecil Madigan's 1939 Simpson Desert
Expedition
Private sources were also by then
playing a considerable role in providing funding. All of John McDouall Stuart's
expeditions were backed, in whole or in part, by Chambers and Finke (after whom the
central Australian landmark and town are named respectively). John Forrest's expeditions
were supported by a mixture of government funding, private donations and grants from
scientific societies. Peter Egerton-Warburton as financed by Sir Thomas Elder, who also
provided the camels fox broth his and Ernest Giles expeditions. Giles' five expeditions
were funded by himself and his brother-in-law. Ferdinand von Mueller, and the South
Australian Government.*
Madigan's scientific expedition across
the northern Simpson Desert was supported by Allen Simpson, the then President of the
Royal Geographical Society in Adelaide, and a major financial backer of Madigan's work.
This expedition contributed greatly to the scientific and popular understanding of the
Simpson Desert.
Dr CT Madigan and Sandy loading camels
for the Simpson Desert Expedition in June 1939
Early expeditions were prepared for every eventuality! Camels
are the ultimate desert vehicle - there is nothing they cannot carry.**
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Bejah Dervish photographed with expedition leader LA Wells's
camel 'Warrior' at Mullewa, Western Australia - the starting point for the Calvert
Expedition, June 13 1896***
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ADE's first expedition
ADE conducted its first dedicated research expedition - The
Arid Rivers Expedition - in 2007 along the Kallakoopah Creek in the Simpson Desert
Regional Reserve in South Australia. The scientific & ecological team included members
of South Australia's Department of Environment and Natural Resources (formally the Dept of
Environment and Heritage), archaeologist Dr Mike Smith from the National Museum of
Australia and several paying members of the public. The expedition discovered and
documented a wealth of aboriginal artefacts, palaeontological (megafauna) specimens and a
comprehensive collection of plant specimens as well a dedicated ornithological list.
The success of the Arid Rivers
Expedition exposed the obvious need for dedicated research expeditions to explore and
document those areas of the map that are never visited by conventional means - in many
cases, these areas have never been surveyed.
Further expeditions in 2008 and 2009
provided ample worth of the benefits of camel based scientific & ecological research
surveys and so at the end of the first decade of the 21st Century, we find that one of the
most effective ways to explore and understand our arid interior is to return to the ways
of the first Australians - by walking the country, so that we may as a nation understand
how to manage this fragile and solitary resource.
Read
ADE Supporter Robyn Davidson's recent article
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