Category Archives: Uncategorized

A Road Trip from Sydney to Uluru – Day 1

Posted on November 14, 2017 by dazzlerplus

Before I stopped doing regular Bobby Dazzler trips, I was a bit reticent about giving a detailed account of my itineraries for fear that lots of people would start using them, and the splendid isolation of travelling on lonely Outback … Continue reading →

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Try Some Exploring

Posted on October 22, 2017 by dazzlerplus

This blog has been running for more than six years, and contains more than 220 posts (articles), mostly about the Australian Outback. If you haven’t been a regular reader, I can tell you it would take you quite a while … Continue reading →

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Outback Oddities #1

Posted on August 14, 2017 by dazzlerplus

The first camels were brought to Australia in 1840, but a total of only seven prior to 1860, when 24 were brought to be used in the Burke and Wills Expedition. Nearly all the camels brought here have been dromedaries, … Continue reading →

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Big Living Things

Posted on July 22, 2017 by dazzlerplus

Earlier this year, my daughter Kate walked the Bibbulmun Track, a 1000-kilometre walking track stretching through the forest from Kalamunda, an eastern suburb of Perth, to Albany on the south coast of Western Australia. It took her 63 days. She … Continue reading →

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Just a Decade Ago

Posted on June 29, 2017 by dazzlerplus

This has nothing in particular to do with the Outback, but I thought it was worth drawing attention to the fact that today marks exactly ten years since the first Apple iPhone was sold in 2007. There were of course already … Continue reading →

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Under the Influence

Posted on June 26, 2017 by dazzlerplus

A recent post on this blog titled “Big is Beautiful?” (June 2) led to some interesting points being made in the comments from various readers. I suspect that not all readers bother looking at the comments (which can be viewed … Continue reading →

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Any Kangatarians Here?

Posted on June 15, 2017 by dazzlerplus

Need something to talk about at the next cocktail party? How about trying this line:             “Anyone here a kangatarian?” Of course, you’ll need to know what a kangatarian is, and that’s where Bobby Dazzler’s Blog comes to your aid. … Continue reading →

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Big is Beautiful?

Posted on June 2, 2017 by dazzlerplus

I sometimes think that one could write an autobiography based on books that have had a significant influence at various points along the way in one’s life. For example, my years from about 9 to 12 were influenced by reading … Continue reading →

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Getting Away From The Crowds

Posted on May 16, 2017 by dazzlerplus

Anyone who’s travelled around the Outback more than a bit will be aware that it can be a very lonely part of the world. To travel 100 kms without seeing any sign of a house or a person is not … Continue reading →

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It’s Different in the Outback

Posted on May 7, 2017 by dazzlerplus

I recently came across the word “Outbackistan”. It was on the ABC’s Conversation Hour, in which Richard Fidler interviewed Gav Dear, songwriter and frontman for “The Roadtrippers”. “Outbackistan” is the title of their most recent album. The album is described … Continue reading →

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Don’t Fence Me In

Posted on April 12, 2017 by dazzlerplus

Australia has had three major fences: 1. The Western Australian Rabbit-Proof Fence Completed in 1907, this fence runs roughly north-south from near Port Hedland to the Great Australian Bight, and was originally 1800 km long. It was intended to keep … Continue reading →

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Eagles and Duty

Posted on March 8, 2017 by dazzlerplus

(This article originally appeared in the Bobby Dazzler Newsletter #10 in May 2004. To subscribe to the free six-times-a-year Newsletter, send a request to brennan@bba.com.au). Ogden Nash, in his wonderful poem, Kind of an Ode to Duty, wrote: O Duty, … Continue reading →

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The Barkly Tableland

Posted on February 11, 2017 by dazzlerplus

The Barkly Tableland is a large plain stretching from the middle of the Northern Territory across to the western edge of Queensland. It was encountered by explorer William Landsborough in 1862, while he was leading a party in search of … Continue reading →

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Terra Nullius

Posted on February 5, 2017 by dazzlerplus

In the Bobby Dazzler Newsletter* #78 (December 2016), I wrote a review of Bruce Pascoe’s book “Dark Emu”. In it, Pascoe describes how Aboriginal people, despite common perceptions to the contrary, did build houses, did build dams, did sow, irrigate … Continue reading →

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Ow yu goin mate orright?

Posted on November 17, 2016 by dazzlerplus

Being myself an Aussie bloke, I can walk up to another bloke and say that. If the other bloke is a true blue Aussie, he can ignore the questioning aspect, and simply reply “G’day mate.” And thus it is established … Continue reading →

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