Thread: The gibson , know how it was named?

As I own a facsimile copy of Giles's two volume "Australia Twice Traversed", which I have read several times, I do know how the Gibson Desert got its name.

I have always been fascinated by Giles and have visited several of the places that were part of his story. When I visited Palm Valley several years ago, I had photocopied copies of the relevant pages so that I could read Giles's description of the area while I was actually there.

Len Beadell also makes a number of references to Giles in writing about opening up the centre in the Woomera/Maralinga era

Len's written some great books, as we know. " Blast in the Bush" covers the time he was employed by a joint Australian/ British effort to find & survey a suitable rocket testing range somewhere in the Australian outback. After Woomera he found & surveyed Maralinga, the site for the British nuclear tests in the 60's. After that he plotted the most remote road in the World, the impressively named Gunbarrel Road Construction Party consisted of a Land Rover, bulldozer, & grader. With these they completed the missing link of the of the East West cross Australia road.


When we travelled down the gunbarrel, in the 80's, Lens' grader was on display at Giles Met. Station. Also at Giles now is part of a Blue Streak rocket, found in the desert, which was the reason we were in that part of the World, part of a Military/NT Police/ Customs convoy collecting information on infrastructure on properties west of the Stuart Highway. Down the Tanami, thru Kings Canyon, out to Giles, down the gunbarrel, then back to Alice, & up the Hwy again.


The reason we checked the part of the rocket was a member of the public reported there was a box in the shell which had " danger, radioactive" on it. Turned out fine, of course, but it was a good drive. Lonely country, out there. Interesting snippet about Giles, apart from the excellent hospitality, was their power was supplied by a WW2 German U-Boat engine, part of the War reparations after WW2. Another lonely place , spooky even, was Lasseters cave, where H B Lasseter died.


You certainly gain respect for the early explorers, when you get out in that country. Bob