On Sunday, the 19th day of October 2025, Marija and I headed to the Balranald Roadhouse for breakfast. We had filled up with diesel there the day before and saw that they had a retro theme restaurant. We enjoyed a nice breakfast and coffee, and admired the retro surroundings and the truck pictures, which our little grandson Flynn would love.
On our way out, being the owner of a 1972 Valiant VH Ranger, I noticed the Valiant below on the back of a truck, no doubt headed to a collector somewhere.
The parking lot of the service station was full, indicating that the food at the roadhouse was pretty good.
We then drove a short distance and activated the Balranald silo VK-BLD2 for the SIlos On The Air (SiOTA) program.
The silos are located on Duryea Street, southeast of Balranald.
Marija and I parked adjacent to the silos and operated from the 4WD, running the Icom IC-7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 antenna with the 1.5 metre stainless steel whip.
Above: the activation zone at the Balranald silo. Image c/o SiOTA website.
Sadly, we found band conditions to be extremely poor.
Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
- VK2IO
- VK3PF
- VK5GY
Marija worked the following station on 20m SSB:-
- ZL3MR (SOTA ZL3/ CB-678)
I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-
- VK2IO
- VK3PF
- VK5GY
I worked the following station on 20m SSB:-
- ZL3MR (SOTA ZL3/ CB-678)
Marija and I then had a look around Balranald. The Welcome to Balranald sign features a Funky Frog.
Current-day Balranald lies in the traditional country of the Muthi Muthi Aboriginal people. In 1848, the Commissioner for Crown Lands for the Lower Darling District, George James MacDonald, and a police escort, arrived at the site of present-day Balranald. The site was chosen as a base. In that same year, a general store was established at Balranald, and a public-house known as the Balranald Inn was opened. (Wikipedia 2025)
The following year, in 1849, Commissioner MacDonald recommended to the Colonial Secretary that a township be established at the location. MacDonald was a Scotsman and was born at Balranald, so his birthplace was the natural choice for the name of the new settlement. (Wikipedia 2025)
Later that year, surveyor Francis MacCabe laid out large sections of land in the region of the Lower Murrumbidgee / Murray-Darling junction. In November 1849, a decision was made to lay out Balranald township. On the 4th day of April 1851, the township of Balranald was gazetted. The first land sale took place on the 14th day of January 1852. (Wikipedia 2025)
Above: NSW Govt Gazette, Fri 4 Apr 1851. Image c/o Trove
Our first stop in Balranald was the old Balranald Lock Up. This time we picked up the key and had a look inside.
We then visited the Southern Cross Museum in Balranald. The museum features a replica of the Southern Cross and the Lady Southern Cross.
The Lady Southern Cross was a Lockheed Altair monoplane owned by the Australian pioneer aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith. It was in this aircraft that, in October and November 1934, Smith made the first eastward trans-Pacific flight from Australia to the United States of America. (Wikipedia 2025)
The Southern Cross was a Fokker F. VIIb/3m trimotor monoplane that Smith flew in 1928 in the first ever trans- Pacific flight to Australia from the United States of America. (Wikipedia 2025)
Below is a short video on Sir Charles Kingsford Smith.
The museum also features several historic motorcycles and vehicles.
You can also view part of the old wagon used in the Burke and Wills expedition when they passed through Balranald. The wagon was sold following the party reaching the Darling River. The wagon was then transported back the way it originally travelled; however, it broke a wheel and was left to be repaired at a later time. Whilst sitting there, it was burnt in a bushfire. It sat there for over 150 years until it was loaned to the museum for display.
There is also a wooden post from the Burke & Wills camp at Maffra.
We then visited the magnificent Moreton Bay fig trees in Balranald, which are reputed to have been planted by the Burke & Wills expedition party.
Nearby is the old Harben’s general store, which was built in the 19th century.
Marija and I then drove out of Balranald on our way to the Kalyarr National Park.
References.
- Wikipedia Contributors (2025). Southern Cross (aircraft). Wikipedia.
- Wikipedia Contributors (2025). Balranald. Wikipedia.
VK5PAS 