In April the Bottchers and a crew of friends in 4wds went on an outback holiday in NSW and South Australia. We travelled to the NSW Corner Country and Tibooburra, Cameron Corner, then onwards to Innamincka in SA to camp on the Cooper Creek. From Innamincka we travelled south on the Strzelecki Track to Arkaroola, then south again to Wilpena Pound. Two weeks of corrugations, dust, and campfires in the beautiful Australian outback.
We took our 1981 Giulietta sedan – suitably prepared with raised suspension, a bash plate, and some old rally tyres. We had a couple of major mishaps. The bumper fell off on the Strzelecki track near Moomba, and was carried for the next few hundred km on a Bruno’s roof rack. Then we hit the rocky bed of a dry river crossing VERY hard, and broke the exhaust headers in three places. The repair job of tin cans and sealant with hose clamps held on for the next 1200-odd kms and got us home, a bit noisy but we made it nonetheless.
A brilliant experience, and the looks on some of the locals faces when we turned up in a small Italian sporting saloon were priceless.
