After leaving the Wunkar silo (31st January 2023), I drove south along Curtis Road and then west on Farr Road. It wasn’t long before I reached the northeastern corner of the Mantung Conservation Park VKFF-1055.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Mantung Conservation Park. Map c/o Google maps.

Mantung is aboriginal for ‘water on a native road’. Nomadic aboriginal people who followed sandhills from Jadko north of Swan Reach to Loxton, via Bakara, obtained water from mallee trees. Needle bush roots also yielded water. When the Hundred of Mantung, County of Albert, was proclaimed on the 15th day of June 1893, the name was shown as an Aboriginal waterhole on an 1864 land tenure plan.

The town of Mantung was proclaimed on the 8th day of July 1915. The post office was opened in September 1915. The Mantung school opened in 1921 and closed in 1944. The school was reopened in 1961 and was conducted in the Mantung Hall.

Early in 1914 a meeting was called to arrange for the inauguration of an agricultural show when ‘a strong committee was formed’: Subsequently, owing to the dryness of the season, the committee deemed it wise to postpone the show and hold a farmers’ picnic instead… Thanks largely to the untiring energy of the capable secretary, Mr A.E. Solly, everything went with a swing… Before the folk dispersed in the evening three rousing cheers were given for ‘King and country’…

Above:- Article from the Observer, Adelaide, Sat 10 Oct 1914. Image c/o Trove.

The Mantung Conservation Park is about 1,695 hectares in size and was created on the 16th day of October 2014. The park is part of an extensive area of native vegetation containing the largest intact remnants of deep sand habitat in the Northern Murray Mallee, supporting numerous rare plant species including the rasp daisy bush.

The park can be located on the southern side of Farr Road. The northwestern corner of the park is located at the junction of Farr Road and Evans Road.

Above:- An aerial view of the Mantung Conservation Park. Image co Google maps

The park is important for the conservation of the following bird species – malleefowl, southern scrub robin, shy heathwren, inland thornbill, white-browed babbler and purple-gaped honeyeater.

I pulled into one of the dirt tracks leading off Farr Road. It was a hot afternoon and the flies were out in force, so I operated from the 4WD.

Above:- An aerial view of the Mantung CP showing my operating spot. Image c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

I ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole. For 10 & 15m SSB I ran the Icom IC-7000, and the Codan 9350 self tuning antenna.

I made the following QSOs on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3PF
2. VK5NIG
3. VK3SQ
4. VK5CZ
5. VK1AO
6. VK2MET
7. VK5PET
8. VK5FANA
9. VK3GRK
10. VK5MAZ
11. VK5BJE
12. VK3SMW
13. VK3BEL

I made the following QSOs on 20m SSB:-

1. VK1AO
2. Vk2MET
3. VK4FW
4. VK8MM
5. VK2IO
6. VK4EMP
7. VK4TI
8. VK3PF
9. VK4TJ
10. VK3MB

I made the following contacts on 15m SSB:-

1. VK4FW
2. VK8MM
3. VK3PF
4. Vk2IO
5. VK1AO
6. VK2MET
7. VK3MCA
8. VK7QP
9. VK2FR
10. VK4EMP
11. VK4TI
12. VK4TJ
13. VK3JLS
14. VK3UAO
15. VK4ABF

I made the following QSOs on 10m SSB:-

1. VK2FR
2. VK4TJ
3. VK2IO
4. VK4FW
5. VK8MM
6. WH6LU
7. VK3LVH
8. VK2FADV

With 46 QSOs in the log, I packed up and headed off to the Bakara Conservation Park.

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 4th February 2023.
2. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantung_Conservation_Park>, viewed 4th February 2023.

After activating the Pike River Conservation Park (Tuesday 31st January 2023) I headed to the Wunkar silo. I turned off the Sturt Highway and travelled southwest on Stanitzki Road and into Loxton. I then took Kingston Road and detoured down to Milich’s Landing.

Milich’s Landing was named after early pioneers Johannes and Ernstine Pauline Milich. It was a regular stop for paddle steamers. Johannes and his oldest sons arrived and set up camp in 1899. Ernstine Paule and the remainder of the family arrived in 1902. The family lived in a kerosine tin hut near the site before moving into their new home at Pyap which was completed in 1913.

Ernstine Pauline was a midwife and at that time was the only medical assistance for Loxton and surrounding districts.

Above:- Ernstine Pauline Milich. Image c/o Brighter Lives Townsville Hospital Facebook page.

Wunkar is a tiny town in the Murray Mallee region of South Australia, about 27km west of Loxton.

Above:- Map showing the location of Wunkar. Map c/o Google maps.

It was originally a station on the Moorook railway line. The township of Wunkar was surveyed in 1926 after the railway station name was approved in 1925. The railway closed in 1971. The Wunkar school opened in 1925 and closed in 1973.

Above:- Surveyor map of Wunkar. Image c/o Trove.

Wunkar’s population as of 2021 was 51 people. There are a few dozen homes, a hall, and the Golden Grain Hotel. Wunkar is an aboriginal word meaning ‘grass’.

Adjacent to the silo was another very impressive tower that I would like to have at home with my antennas on top of.

The Wunkar silos are located in Snograss Road. They are located alongside of the old railway line.

I operated from the 4WD for this action and ran the Icom IC-7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 self-tuning antenna.

Above:- the activation zone at the Wunkar silo. Image c/o SiOTA website.

I made the following contacts on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3PF
2. VK5FANA
3. VK5BJE
4. VK5DW
5. VK3ZSC
6. VK5ZSA
7. VK5ZLT

I made the following contacts on 20m SSB:-

1. VK5DW
2. VK2IO
3. VK3ZSC
4. VK3OHM

References.

1. The Advertiser, 2023, <https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/lifestyle/sa-lifestyle/the-az-of-the-meanings-of-south-australia8217s-town-names/news-story/eb38a61ae5809e40516b0b207a09a61b>, viewed 4th February 2023.
2. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wunkar,_South_Australia>, viewed 4th February 2023.

I packed up at the Paringa silo and headed to my next activation, the Wunkar silo. I stopped briefly at Paringa to look across the Pike River floodplain which was covered in water.

I then headed south on the Sturt Highway and stopped briefly at the roadside rest stop just outside of Paringa. There are some information boards here on the Pike floodplain, an old timber jinker, an information board from Maxwell Schmidt, and a large rock mined from Pinch Quarry.

The timber jinker was used in the 1930s at the Renmark Irrigation Trust’s No. 1 pumping station to haul red gum logs into the irrigation settlement for various purposes including pylons in culverts over the irrigation channels. It was hauled by a crawler tractor.

Maxwell Thomas Schmidt (b. 1929. d. 2004) served the Renmark and Paringa district for over 20 years as a Councillor, until he passed away in June 2004. He was a great advocate for improving the Murray River and its environment and was a Life Member of the Murray Darling Association Inc.

Although I had activated and qualified the park previously, I decided to drive into the Pike River Conservation Park VKFF-0831, and activate it for the World Wide Flora Fauna (WWFF) program.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Pike River CP. Map c/o Google maps.

The park is about 2.88 km² in size and was established on the st day of February 1979.

Access to the park is via the Sturt Highway.

Above:- An aerial view of the Pike River Conservation Park. Image c/o Google maps

The park is named after Pike River, a stream that flows through the park’s eastern end. On the 10th day of December 2009, crown land in section 84 of the Hundred of Paringa which was formerly the Mundic Forest Reserve was added to its extent.

An 1865 map held at the South Australian Library refers to the ‘Billy Bong Pike River’. In 1910 it was reported that ‘adjacent to the Pyke for a distance of five or six miles was a perfect forest of tobacco trees so dense and vigorous that nothing but bare soil is seen between… On the other side of the road are several farms, fallow land, fair looking crops and an abundance of feed…’

During my visit to the park, I had a pair of Wedge-tailed eagles soaring above. A brilliant sight!

I entered the park via the Sturt Highway and set up in the high section of the park. I operated from the 4WD running the Icom IC7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 self tuning antenna.

Above:- map of the Pike River CP showing my operating spot. Map c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB before the UTC rollover:-

1. VK3AHR
2. VK5MAZ
3. VK3PF
4. VK1AD/p (HEMA VK1/ HCT-040 & VKFF-0837)
5. VK1DA/p (HEMA VK1/ HCT-045)
6. VK5BJE
7. VK5FANA
8. VK3MCA
9. VK3SQ
10. VK2IO

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB after the UTC rollover:-

1. VK2EXA
2. VK3VAR
3. VK5BJE
4. VK5KSW

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK2IO
2. VK3PF
3. VK4TJ
4. ZL3MR/p (SOTA ZL3/ CB-416)
5. VK1DA/p (HEMA VK1/ HCT-045)
6. VK2MET
7. VK1AO
8. KG5CIK
9. VK4HAT
10. VK4FW
11. VK8MM

I worked the following stations on 15m SSB before the UTC rollover:-

1. VK4FW
2. VK8MM
3. VK4HAT
4. VK4FFAB
5. VK1AO
6. VK2MET
7. VK2IO
8. ZL1TM
9. VK4HMI
10. VK2DJP

I worked the following stations on 15m SSB after the UTC rollover:-

1. VK1AO
2. VK2MET
3. VK4TJ
4. VK2DJP
5. VK6NU
6. VK2IO
7. ZL1TM
8. KG5CIK
9. VK4KC
10. VK4MAD
11. VK4DOG

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 4th February 2023.
2. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pike_River_Conservation_Park>, viewed 4th February 2023.

On Tuesday 31st January 2023, I was on the road by about 7.30 a.m. The first stop was Mcdonald’s for a coffee and some breakfast. I then headed to the Paringa silo.

Above:- Map showing the location of Paringa. Map c/o Google maps.

Paringa is a small town just over the Murray River to the east of Renmark. Paringa is well known for its vineyards, almond, citrus and stone fruit orchards, and the Paringa bridge. You can also find the Black Stump in Paringa. It is the largest of eleven known black stumps in Australia and is about 600 years old.

The exact origin of the name Paringa is not known. Horace Cobden Talbot (H.C. Talbot) who was employed in the Lands Department in the 1860s and who authored nomenclature books suggested that Paringa was taken from a large waterhole opposite the original homestead and means ‘whirlpool’. It represented the boundary between the Erawirung and Ngintait Aboriginal people.

Other sources contend that Paringa means ‘land near or about the river’. H.M. Cooper, formerly of the SA Museum, believes it means ‘place at the river’.

Daniel Michael Paul Cudmore (b. 1811. d. 1891) arrived in South Australia from Tasmania in October 1837 with his wife and son. By 1858 he owned a property on the Murray River called ‘Paringa’. The property had originally been leased by Frederick C. Hayes in April 1851. Cudmore moved the homestead to higher ground due to regular flooding. It was reported that Cudmore owned a piano and he was concerned about it getting damaged due to the flooding.

Above:- Daniel Michael Cudmore. Image c/o People Australia.

The Hundred of Paringa, County of Alfred, was proclaimed on the 15th day of June 1893. The Paringa Post Office opened in 1912. The Paringa school opened in 1913. The town of Paringa was laid out in 1917.

Above:- Paringa Station, c. 1890. Image c/o State Library South Australia.

In 1880, Daniel Cudmore’s son, James Francis Cudmore, commenced construction of a mansion called ‘Paringa Hall’ at Somerton south of Adelaide. Construction took two years and it was not until 1882 that the family moved into the property. ‘Paringa Hall’ had 30 rooms and was renowned for its woodwork, elaborate fittings, and stained glass windows at the entrance hall that depicted the Cudmore coat of arms.

‘Paringa Hall’ had a clock at the stables and this maintained the correct time for South Australia. A large ell which hung in a belfry outside, summoned the men on the property.

Following the death of Mr and Mrs Cudmore in 1912 and 1914, the property was sold to the Marist Brothers who transformed the property into Sacred Heart College.

Above:- Paringa Hall. Image c/o State Library South Australia.

The water levels in the Murray River were still quite high at Paringa with lots of levees and sandbagging evident.

Many of the roads in the Paringa area were also closed.

One of Paringa’s attractions is the historic Paringa bridge which was opened on the 31st day of January 1927. It was designed to carry a single railway line in the centre of the bridge, with a road lane on each side. The bridge is on the South Australian Heritage Register. The railway closed in December 1990, however, the bridge continues to carry numerous traffic as part of the main road link between Adelaide and Sydney.

The Paringa silos are located on the northern side of the Sturt Highway just after crossing the Paringa bridge. Prior to bulk handling through silos and other grain storage facilities, grain was bag handled. The bagged grain weighed about 82 kg per bag. The bags were then loaded onto wagons or trucks and carted to the nearest railway siding or wharf for transport.

It was not until the late 1950s and early 1960s that South Australia moved into bulk handling through the South Australian Co-operative Bulk Handling Ltd. In 1966 a shed-type construction was built at Paringa. Following lobbying in 1978 two silos were built. In 1982 rail transport ceased to the Riverland region and transport from the silos was by road. The Paringa silo was closed in 2012.

There is an excellent information board at the silos explaining who and what is featured on the silo murals.

The Paringa silo murals were painted by Jack Fran and Sam Brooks. Each of the 4 silos features a local hero to the Paringa region.

This includes David James Jones @ Possum. He was born in 1901 at Ruapuna, New Zealand. In 1924 he came to South Australia where he was employed as a shearer. By 1928 his Australian Workers Union ticket had expired and in 1929 during the Depression he was turned away from the shearing shed at Lake Victoria Station in NSW. Jones was too proud to borrow money so he walked into the bush and remained there for over 50 years until his remains were discovered in 1982 by woodcutters near Lock 8.

Elaine Balfour-Ogilvy was born in 1912 in Renmark. In 1940 she enlisted in the A.I.F. as a Sister in the Australian Imperial Nursing Service. She embarked for overseas service in 1941. She was a member of the 2/4th Casualty Clearing Station in Singapore, tending to thousands of casualties. In February 1942 she was one of a number of nurses and civilians aboard the coastal vessel Wyer Brooke. It was attacked by the Japanese in the Bangka Straits. Elaine was one of 22 nurses who made it to shore in a leaky lifeboat. On the 16th day of February 1942, they were found by a party of Japanese soldiers. They were forced o form a line and walk into the sea where they were machine-gunned from behind.

I made the following QSOs on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5HS
2. VK5AYL
3. VK5MAZ
4. VK7ALH
5. VK2EXA
6. VK3AG
7. VK1DA/p (HEMA VK1/ HCT-045)
8. VK3PF
9. VK7LH
10. VK5EE

I made the following QSO on 80m SSB:-

1. VK5MAZ

I made the following QSOs on 20m SSB:-

1. VK3BCM
2. VK3PF
3. VK2IO

With 14 contacts in the log, I packed up and headed off to my next activation for the day.

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 4th February 2023.
2. Australian Silo Art Trail, 2023, <https://www.australiansiloarttrail.com/paringa>, viewed 4th February 2023.
3. Renmark Paringa Visitor Information Centre, 2023, <https://www.discoverrenmark.com.au/the-black-stump>, viewed 4th February 2923.
4. Wikipedia, 2023, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paringa,_South_Australia>, viewed 4th February 2023.

After leaving Mal’s house I headed towards Renmark where I had booked some accommodation for the night. Prior to leaving Berri, I had a look at the Murray River which was in full flow.

Upon arriving in Renmark I headed to the Cooltong Conservation Park VKFF-0823 for a quick activation. It would have to be quick as I had arranged to go out for dinner that night with Ivan VK5HS and Danny VK5DW.

I have activated and qualified Cooltong Conservation previously. The park is located about 282 km (by road) northeast of the city of Adelaide.

Above:- Map showing the location of the Cooltong CP. Map c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

The Cooltong Conservation Park is 3,710 hectares in size and is located on the northern side of the Sturt Highway. The eastern side of the park adjoins the Renmark airport. The park was proclaimed on the 8th day of April 1983.

Cooltong is an aboriginal word meaning lizard place’. The name Cooltong was applied to a division of the Chaffey Irrigation Area on the 5th day of June 1925. The town of Cooltong was proclaimed on the 1st day of March 1951.

Above:- Article from the Chronicle, Adelaide, Thu 29 Dec 1949. Image c/o Trove

The park’s main vegetation is mallee, with undulating dunes and shales. Mallee species found in the park include Blue-leaf Mallee, White Mallee, Narrow-leaf Red Mallee, and Red Mallee.

Birds SA have recorded 109 species of birds in the park including Malleefowl, Mulga Parrot, Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Purple-backed Fairywren (Variegated Fairywren), Southern Whiteface, Weebill, Grey Butcherbird, and Chestnut Quailthrush.

I set up just off Santos Road which travels through the park. I ran the Yaesu FT857, 40 watts, and the 20/40/80m linked dipole and the Codan 9350 antenna for this activation.

Above:- Map showing my operating spot in the park. Map c/o Location SA Map Viewer.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK3PF
2. VK5BJE
3. VK3GRX
4. VK4FW
5. VK8MM
6. VK5DW
7. VK2IO
8. VK1AO
9. VK2MET
10. VK3CWF
11. VK5AYL
12. VK3GJG
13. VK3UAO
14. VK4TJ

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK2IO
2. VK4EHI
3. VK4FW
4. VK8MM
5. IK4IDF
6. VK4EMP
7. VK4TI
8. ZL3MR
9. VK4TJ
10. VK5HS
11. SO5CAL
12. ZL2WE
13. VK1AO
14. VK2MET
15. OH1MM
16. IW2NXI
17. VK6XN
18. OH1XT
19. Iw2BNA

I worked the following stations on 15m SSB:-

1. VK4FW
2. VK8MM
3. VK6XN
4. VK5HS

I had 37 QSOs in the log, 7 short of the 44 for the global WWFF program. However I was really cutting it fine for time, so I packed up and headed to my motel, the Citrus Valley Motel at Renmark.

I had a shower and then walked to the motel’s restaurant “Ashley’s” and caught up with Ivan and Danny. We had a great night and a terrific meal.

References.

1. A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia, 2023, <https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/>, viewed 4th February 2023.
2. Birds SA, 2023, <https://birdssa.asn.au/location/cooltong-conservation-park/>, viewed 4th February 2023.