Our three minute speaker this week was Rowan Miller who spoke on the topic of Muloorina Station in South Australia, visited by Margaret & Rowan during their flying holiday in August last year.
 
The text of Rowan's talk follows:
 
As most of you are aware.. I am a private Pilot who in later life gained my Pilots licence and overcame one of my greatest fears, that of flying!! Since then I have conducted a number of Angel flights and have also done some amazing trips or journeys around Australia. 
 
It is interesting that through history some of our most noted or famous events that we all know about may have happened at places where we have never even heard about or noted in our minds even to this day. 
 
Last year I was lucky enough to fly into Muloorina station ....where's that most of you will ask ?
 
Muloorina station is located to the south of Lake Eyre .. .and lets say 100 miles (or 160km) east of William Creek and 30 miles (50 km) north of Maree in South Australia 
 
We were there last year,  and there was an abundance of water in lake Eyre along with the amazing amount of wild life!~ 
 
We arranged to stay with Cindy Mitchell, the station owner, in the shearers accommodation which was more than satisfactory and we dined with the staff, workers & station owners. 
 
Muloorina has been owned by the Mitchell family since 1936 and they are related to the the Price family who have had it since the 1880s. 
 
What about Muloorina? The property is 1 million acres, and is licensed to carry 10000 sheep and 3000 cattle.. but one wonders how,  as there is a limited amount of Spinifex and a Coolibah tree or two and thus appears there is nothing for the stock to live on.
 
It has a hot, natural thermal bore and one can relax in hot natural springs of mineral water, which is most refreshing... without paying an exorbitant price.. or even a cent!
 
This bore flows into the Frome Creek and then into the Muloorlina water hole,  which is a kilometre west of the homestead & teems with a abundant bird life,  along with a camping ground for visitors.
 
Recently accommodation for outsiders has been limited or nonexistent as they are building a pipeline from Muloorina to Olympic Dam (Roxby Downs)  to supply water there for the mining. The crews have been taking all available accommodation, however we were lucky enough to sneak in.
 
Why do I say places we have never heard of are so important in history? 
 
Most of you, being of my era will have heard of Donald Campbell!!
 
In 1963 he took his prized Bluebird Proteus CN7 gas turbine powered car and stationed himself along with a a crew and entourage of nearly 500 people, engineers, technicians, police, army personnel, along with reporters and others at Muloorina as their headquarters, with the Price / Mitchell family who aided and helped for the failed attempt on the land speed record on Lake Eyre.
 
Unprecedented torrential rains were seen at Lake Eyre for the first time in a number of years, forcing the 1963 attempt to be cancelled.
 
The car and all equipment were just left in the woolshed at Muloorina till the following year.
 
Only a small few of the team returned and on 17 July 1964 Campbell broke the land speed record with a speed of 403.10mph (648.73kph).  Not even the Cessna will do that in a out of control dive. 
 
The record stood for over 19 years and Sir Donald Campbell is still the only person in history who has held both the land speed record and the water speed record.
 
Now before tonight, most of you would have known about Donald Campbell, but I doubt if any of you would have been able to tell me about Muloorina station.
 
Thus, as I see it, often in history famous events will highlight little known places or even little known people, but we will not remember them!  
 
 
 
Lake Eyre with water August 2019
 
Waterhole at Frome Creek Camp Grounds
 
 
Swimming in the Frome Creek Waterhole
 
 
Rowan & Margaret's Plane with the family home in the background
 
 
Donald Campbell Memorial in the Dining Room 
 
 
Sunrise at Muloorina Station
 
Sponsors