Aussie Cyn: Wwoofing on Kondoolka Station

Pounding fencepost with tractor hammer

G'day!

Sheep are top priority on Kondoolka. But when not working directly with sheep, there's always plenty to do. One of the most time consuming tasks is fencing. There's always something to do with fences and every wwoofer works on fencing. Last year, Kondoolka has a fast ranging wildfire which burnt out parts of several paddocks and their fences, so there's even more fencing to do than usual.

Putting tension on the strainer wires

A fenceline

I helped with all aspects of fencing; just a little of each to get a taste of it. (Dave was really great about showing me as many different tasks as possible, even if all I could do is observe.) I took apart old fences, snipping and rolling up old wire and wrapping chain around the 30+ year old black oak posts for Stefanie to yank them with the tractor. I used the tractor's hammer attachment to pound posts into the ground. A drill is used to get through claypan or rocks. I rode along while Dave was stringing wire from the wiring trailer to watch out for kinks. I hammered staples to attach the wire to the posts at the correct intervals and wired black plastic spacers onto the fences to maintain tension and make it more visible to the sheep/wildlife.

Making fences is a perpetual chore

Modern fencing uses design and hi tech wire to keep sheep where they're supposed to be yet allow wildlife like emu and kangaroos to get through safely. I saw emus and kangaroos run into fences and bounce off and/or through; neither the animals nor the fences were harmed.

Fence spacers

The 2 meter long posts are pine, treated to be fire resistant (oily spots are left on your clothes when wrestling with them). The wire is a high tensile metal and plastic blend. Posts are installed 20 meters apart (about 28 paces for me) except for next to gates and corners; the strainer posts (cuz they take the strain of the tension wire?) are longer and placed closer together. Posts for holding paddocks are generally 9 meters apart. Dave uses a special ratcheting tool with a chain to tighten the wire around the strainers. It's pretty cool to see how a fence gets put together.

Major Mitchell cockatoo - under wings are gorgeous

Other fence/gate related jobs: I used an oxy/acetylene cutting torch to blow holes in pieces of metal for the strainers (fun!!) and did some arc welding to make regular gates 600 cm higher to deter sheep visually from jumping during drafting. (Fugly welds cuz I'm way out of practice but they should hold.) I used a circular saw to cut the metal pipes for the gates and a hammer and anvil to pound the ends into the proper shape. I like working with metal! I also took out wire from the old posts so that Dave could saw them up for firewood. The black oak burns long and hot.

Picnic at Johnny's Dam

The station has an entire fleet of vehicles; boys must have their toys! There's a trend toward having multiple stations or farms to take advantage of scales of economy. Equipment is expensive and if can be used more regularly, the average cost per use is lower. The grader is used to clear bush and make roads. The road to the homesteads is made and maintained by the government. All roads on stations are made and maintained by the station.

The loader is used to unload the bundles of 40 fenceposts from the truck to the ground or to load a bundle onto the ute. A hook attachment is used to make a line to indicate post placement for a fence. A chain attachment helps pull fenceposts from the ground. The loader is also used to dig out and then fill wombat holes.

Australian gecko

The "truck" is what we would call a semi. It's used to transport large and/or heavy loads such as the fenceposts and (maybe) the rolls of fencing wire, onto the station. A framework for transporting sheep can be bolted onto the truck. The carrier is two levels and and can be sectioned off for ease in loading the sheep.

The/Stefanie's tractor is used for pounding in, drilling holes for, and pulling out old fenceposts (like pulling teeth). There's also a fleet of motorbikes for mustering or just for getting around.

Young emu running

There are two utes; one was a spare that needed a tow or push start. Utes have a cab for passengers and a tray for cargo. The tray is a flat bed with no wheel wells. The sides and back can be up or down. Very utilitarian; much more so than pickup trucks. The ute has a crane which came in handy for several jobs.

I drove the ute a few times on the station. The good thing: no traffic for me to worry about right or wrong side of the road. Not so good: I kept trying to shift with my right hand and had to switch hands when all my right hand encountered was the door. LOL!

Kangaroo

Resource management includes monitoring water and feed levels and keeping sheep populations to a sustainable level. Australia has endured many droughts historically and will probably continue to do so. Rainfall at the homestead is measured and charted daily. Dams (watering holes/ retention ponds) and huge cisterns with watering troughs are scattered throughout the station. Some of the dams are fed by drilled wells; in other areas, water is piped in from larger dams. Windmills power the pumps, with solar and/or petrol powered generators for backup.

Wombat hole on brand new fence line! Argh!

Being in the outback means self sufficiency. Electricity is from an array of directional solar panels with a back up generator. Diesel and petrol (unleaded gasoline to Americans) is delivered directly to the station by BP (British Petroleum) to the station tanks, the generator tank, as well as a portable fuel tank trailer. Dave pays less per liter to have fuel delivered than he would pay at a petrol station in any town, near or far. For long trips, he carries extra fuel in gas cans.

A tower in the front yard provides land line telephone service. A satellite dish provides a few television stations. We also had wifi. The mail comes twice a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. The house, ute, and truck are equipped with CB radios and portable units are used when on the motorbikes and other equipment.

Young adult emu

I saw heaps of wild life on Kondoolka; kangaroos, wallabies, emu, rabbits, goats, wombats, foxes, feral cats, lizards, and geckos. The smallest emu I saw were 5 chicks about 1 foot tall. The younger they are, the lighter in color. Most of the ones I saw were on the young side. When emu run, their feathers dance around like hula skirts. Funny and beautiful. The most colorful birds include Major Mitchell cockatoos, galahs, and Australian ringnecks. (I know emu are birds but they are flightless and act like animals.)

Sunset on a Kondoolka salt lake

Most of the time, I enjoyed seeing the wildlife. But they can be pests and dangerous too. Sometimes they are hit while crossing the road; other times they seem to choose to run into moving cars. And the problem is worse at dusk. Additionally, wombats sometimes start their burrows IN the road. The holes are large and deep enough for the front end of a car to fall into; we had to swerve to avoid new holes several times.

The outback is beautiful with red soil and blue, silver and green ground cover. The land varies from flat plains with scrub to rocky areas to small wooded ravines. Typical mallee/outback plants in this region include bluebush and saltbush, heather, mulga, myall and black oak trees, and a plethora of Acacia and Eucalyptus species. There are several salt lakes on the property; some are small and reasonably deep while others are large and very shallow.

More work on fencing in front of vegie garden

I got a tour of almost half the property while we checked pumps and generators, and cistern and dam levels amongst other chores. We went on a short hike on Mount Wallaby, a small mountain on the property with several caves, barbecued at Johnny's Dam with friends who came out to visit, and enjoyed a gorgeous sunset over the large salt lake.

We went to Wirrula (population about 500), 110 km away (75 minutes) to drop off the truck's fuel tank which had a crack. Wirrula is the closest town and has a general store and a pub where Dave and Stefanie attend Australian rules football (footie) home games. We went to Streaky Bay (pop 1000) another 60-80 km from Wirrula (2 hour drive) to do the bi weekly grocery shopping. We saw heaps of jellyfish off the fishing pier.

Jellyfish off Streaky Bay pier

I was dropped off at Poochera (45 km SE of Wirrula), the nearest bus service for my 9 hour ride to Adelaide. I got a good sampling of life on a sheep station and in the outback. I am gobsmacked (surprised) to know that one person runs the station himself. Dave has to be so organized to keep the station running smoothly and to monitor, diagnose, and fix everything on the station with spare parts and supplies so far away.

This wwoofing job was one of the highlights of my travels. Thanks again to Dave and Stefanie.
Cheers!