Rabbit Flat Roadhouse

Lang
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10 years 2 weeks ago #141082 by Lang

Rabbit Flat Roadhouse was created by Lang

Rabbit Flat Roadhouse.

Many people have asked about the Rabbit Flat Roadhouse, which operated for 41 years on the Tanami Track. I found the following on the Halls Creek website. To check the full story av-relay.hcshire.wa.gov.au/docs/Public/H...%5B2012.08.28%5D.pdf

In May 1968 we drove out to Tanami to erect the "Tent Motel" for Ansett Pioneer but it was washed out in mid 1968. After living and working in Alice for the next 10 months and negotiating widely, we commenced our Rabbit Flat venture in June 1969, on 5 acres of land, beneath a mulga tree and on the edge of the rapidly drying waterhole. Just prior to Jackie and I arriving on site in 1969, an airstrip was graded three miles to the north of our campsite, on a laterite ridge, for Geo Peko. Bureau of Meteorology Darwin installed the first Weather Station in August '69.

Only one coach came through while we were under the mulga tree and that was an Ansett Pioneer, chartered by the Australian lnland Mission from Melbourne. The years of 1971 - 1973 were very busy, until the three very wet years of 1973 - 1975 stopped a lot of traffic.

King Ranch (of Texas, USA), owners of Brunette Downs Station on the Barkly Tablelands, began to de-stock the British Breed cattle from their Mount House Station in the Kimberleys and re-stocked with Santa Gertrudis. As a consequence, thousands of cattle came through here, en-route to Alice, as other Kimberley stations also took advantage of the outlet. The Truckies were a rough and ready breed of blokes, extremely hard working and always operating under tiring and adverse conditions. No whinging, but decent to a man (and woman). Frank and Oriel Fidler (especially Oriel), who were no 'spring-chickens, were continually amongst the fray. Oriel's courageous efforts over the years were nothing short of awe inspiring. Characters like Wally Spears, who drove a 'cab-over' Mercedes truck. He named it "Hitler's Revenge". Another Truckie drove a Hino and he called it "He No Good". The names of the Truckies are too numerous to name and many I have forgotten or didn't know, but a breed unto themselves. Like the cameleers in bygone years, these men and a few women, carted every conceivable item imaginable to build and supply the outback. They still do it to this day.

Mining companies began to proliferate. Seems that Uranium and Gold were on top of the agenda. Geo Peko drilled and explored in the Granites area extensively for gold.

As the early 1970s began to roll, the tourist coaches began to proliferate. Most memorable were Ansett Pioneer, Bill & Doreen Hand's "Sundowner" and Bill King's 4x4 20 seaters.

Ansett pioneer's Drivers/Coach Captains in those early days preceding "Political Correctness" took no prisoners and the adventurous tourists lapped it up'

ln 1975 and 1976 large Works Dept teams and contractors began to clear and form the new alignment for the Tanami Track. As the years have progressed, some bitumen has been laid and with continual up-grading, it is fair enough to now call the track a 'road' or flasher still, a 'Highway'.

ln the big 'wets' of 1973, 1974 and into early 1975, the road was so bad that we went practically 18 months without any trade. As the 1980s rolled into the 1990s the pressure from so many disparate groups of travellers became so worrying that we began a partial closure in 1989 (closed 3 days a week). This lasted for 18 years but was obviously fraught with numerous problems.

Before the desert became civilized with proper 'dog & bones' and mail services, the stock and station agents, namely Elders and Bennetts, always dropped in with a loaf of bread and the mail. A time honoured outback tradition, much appreciated.