Tuesday, Jan 28, 2020 at 19:16
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No Gazz, I haven't been to the
Curdimurka Ball. And its a pity missing out on photos of the
Young Gazza. lol
But I can throw some light on the derivation of
Curdimurka.
It is an Aboriginal word meaning "Swamp Monster".
And how do I know this?
Well, when the ICI chemical company had salt fields at Dry Creek in South Australia they built a machine for harvesting the salt which was used in their nearby factory.
This machine was mounted upon a Caterpillar D8 and totally enveloped the tractor. It had a 5m scoop with scroll across the front with elevators to carry the salt up to cross
conveyor belt that then deposited the salt onto a lengthy travelling
conveyor across the pan to deposit it in heaps at the 'shore'.
It was a monstrous contraption that deserved its name of
Curdimurka, Swamp Monster. Wish I had a photo.
The machine was named by the salt field manager Warren Bonython, a conservationist, explorer and author who in 1973 walked, with his friend Charles McCubbin, across the
Simpson Desert from north to south. He walked 500k right around Lake Eyre, walked the full length of the
Flinders Ranges and at age 75 climbed Mt Kilimanjaro. He was tall, lanky and as tough as they come. He also conceived the
Heysen Trail. Not surprisingly, he was acknowledged as the 'authority' on Lake Eyre.
There is much more to Warren, the son of the prominent South Australian Bonython family as can be read
here.
I worked at the ICI factory and knew and respected Warren for his bushwalking exploits.
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