7^th Leg

It’s Monday evening and I’m writing to you from Mount Isa and have I got a tale to tell tonight. We decided to set off from Borroloola early Sunday morning and so bright and early we were up and the car was packed and we said goodbye yet again to Till and Gerlinder. The Camel had recovered from its injury with a little help from Till and they were also planning to set off bright and early. We climbed into the car and with a final wave drove out of the drive and across the road to the petrol station. The car was misfiring so badly that Tom turned straight around and drove back to the motel where Till and Gerlinder were just getting ready to leave.

Tom had decided he had a new solution to the problem. Together he and Till took the carburettor jet out, soldered the hole up and then made a smaller hole where the appeture should be. Pleased with result we climbed back into the car and drove out AGAIN!

The car was still misfiring but we, or should I say Tom, felt the problem may clear itself. As we were driving along who should arrive but the camel and Till and Gerlinder. They drove slowly along with us for some time but finally reassured they drove off to their appointed destination. To Tom’s credit the car did suddenly clear and we picked up speed and everything felt good again. We arrived at Cape Crawford and fueled up, ready to tackle the 375kms of the Tablelands Highway to the Barkley Homestead. We were just driving out of the service station when who should arrive but the camel. Till and Gerlinder were relieved to see we had done so well and so we parted very happily for the final time.

As we drove off the little car gave a few miss fires and Tom gave a few last adjustments and off we went. The old girl drove well and we just went on and on in the heat. Once again it was well into the mid forties and it remained over forty until well after 6pm. We gained a new appreciation of the incredible strength of character required to live in these remote desolate areas.

We finally reached the Barkley Homestead at about 8pm, tired hot and dirty. We had on us about $6 cash and without drawing more out of our account had to toss up between a shower or a cold drink. Would you believe it, (and those who know me will find this hard to believe) the drink won. We worked out we could afford a beer for Tom and a lemonade for me. It was the best drink we had had for ages, poured into a tall glass filled with ice (even Tom had his beer over ice he was so hot). Lucky for us the landlord had noticed our car and brought us another drink. So it was well worth sacrificing a shower for. Right in the middle of our drinks we noticed that the heavens had opened and the rain, the first in ten months, had started to fall. We raced out to put the hood up as we had been driving with it down.

Drinks over, we thanked everyone and drove off into the night. About ten minutes after we left the Homestead the rain stopped and we had some hope of finding somewhere to camp for the night. We drove for about 30-40 kms with Tom and I both looking for a parking layby but nothing appeared. Finally Tom was just too tired to go on and so we spotted an area with devoid of weeds, trees or large rocks. We pulled in, took out our bedroll and fell into it and fast asleep. Next morning we found we were just about two kms short of a lovely camping area.

In the morning I was up about 4:45 getting ready for the day ahead. A full sponge in the bowl, a plate of weetbix and a final adjustment of the carburettor by Tom and we were off. Tom was ever so pleased with the carburettor. For the first time since we had the car it was performing well and the petrol consumption was down by at least 10%. Our speed was consistently around the 50kms/hr and so we were feeling really happy about things.

Talk about a calm before the storm. Here we were driving peacefully along feeling very happy when suddenly the car gave a shudder and immediately lost all power. We jumped out and looked under the bonnet immediately. Tom was horrified with what he saw. In place of a nice shinny brass carbureter, there on the ground was a pool of petrol and where the carburettor should have been, there was nothing, absolutely nothing at all. We walked back along the road looking for our missing part and to Tom’s enormous dismay he saw the float from carburettor squashed down to about 1/3^rd of its rightful size lying on the road.

In spite of much looking we never did find the rest of the missing carby. While this was in progress along came a four wheel drive with three men to offer their assistance. They were busy discussing the possibility of becoming a camel, but Tom had no such plan. He took a piece of tubing, a length of wire, a small graduated tube and a piece of rag and cobbled together a pseudo carby. The guys thought he was bonkers, but in he got and the car started almost first time.

They were still standing, mouths gaped open as we drove off down the road. The car drove perfectly with Tom regulating the petrol with the petrol tap inside the car. . It went up hills without so much as a shudder and we were thrilled with it. Now it continued in a wonderful fashion for some time until we ran out of petrol but once we filled up it did not run quite as well although it has carried us the 350kms from the point of loosing the carby to Mount Isa. At Mount Isa we pulled into a caravan park and the car gave the most awful noise and stopped. On checking it was only the prop shaft bearing which had come loose. Tom will tightened it in the morning.

Tom has spent the evening trying to locate another Carby, either Citroen or Austin Seven Ruby which fits equally as well. We have decided to drive on to Cairns with our temporary carby and try to fix it there.

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