End of an Era

Description

Hard work and adventure for the Gunbarrel Road Construction Party as they surveyed and built their last three highways across the deserts of Central Australia. Len Beadell’s team had to contend with flat tyres and broken gear boxes as well as all the natural difficulties of the outback as they endeavoured to build three highways in one year! On one forward reconnaissance Beadell discovered a small group of Aborigines who had never before seen a white person, as well as rediscovering two wells on the Canning Stock route. These and many other adventures of the outback are retold in Beadell’s own lively and entertaining style.
Lean Beadell, who has been called the last of the true Australia explorers, was born on a farm at West pennant Hills, NSW, in 1923. As a surveyor and road builder he has worked all over the Australian outback from Arnhem Land to the Gibson Desert. In 1958 he was awarded the British Empire Medal for his work in building the Gunbarrel Highway across central Australia. In 1987 he was made a fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Mining Surveyors (Aust) and the following year was awarded the Medal of the order of Australia. The author of six best selling books, he was married with three children, all of whom have features in outback Australia named after them.