Bruce had taken the trouble to copy of the river charts for us.
Invaluable even with a high River as the Murray is full of sand bars dead trees on banks and numerous other obstacles. In spite of these potential obstacles one is able to sit back and enjoy the ride.
It takes far less concentration to drive a GPA on the water than on the road, things just happen a lot slower. The occasional check of the bilges is advisable, and a glance at the gauges quickly tells you all is well. I had fitted a temperature gauge to the gearbox and was delighted to see that it stayed around 130 F, it is handy to have this as temperature will quickly rise if water enters the box or the oil leaks out.
The GPA is very happy in the water the steady hum of the engine and propeller has a somewhat soothing note to it once you get use to the
that it is unlikely to sink.
Swimming with 3 other GPA’s is a unique experience as there is back up should help be required. These experienced drivers know that one should not over do it and its not long before we all settle into the daily routine of departing by 9.00am, morning tea around 10.30 lunch around 1.00pm and look for a nice camp site by 3.30pm.
“A tough schedule in any ones books”.
The only problem with this being, trying to get out of the River.
Australia is still somewhat sparsely populated, and with a high river the normal sand banks are well under water. Boat ramps are few and far between so considerable time was taken to locate a suitable exit point. Then a run would need to be made for the bank. With the back of the GPA heavily loaded it was not always so easy to get enough traction to come a shore. This would lead a number of attempts and the occasional use of a tow rope.
It is an incredible experience to use the GPA as it was designed, and
Not hard to imagine what it must have been like for 4 vehicle to be used behind enemy lines scouting a river. At any moment the every present risk of some one shooting at you. A veritable “Sitting duck”. I quickly dragged my mind back to the present not wanting to think too long on such a thought.
One might think you could become tired of the same thing day after day, but the River is ever changing as it snakes its way across the country, the cliffs, the trees and the huge open sky. The periodic ventures in to the locks and the fascinated locals who appeared each time we stopped in a small town for supplies made the days seem very short. Water flows in the Murray vary enormously. In order for larger vessels to navigate the river locks were installed in the 1920’s to maintain the level of the river. These locks are still in use today and our journey had us passing through three of them. The locks are large enough to take the four GPA’s with ease. Some care is need to stop them bumping into each other as the water is lowered. An
l opportunity to try out the boat hock, and a good to have some fenders ready just in case.
For most of the trip the weather was perfect with only one wet day and the river calm. A Southerly wind soon pushes up a swell on the long straights and its not long before water was washing over the decks. It is a great feeling to have the GPA splashing into the waves the spray hitting the windscreen. With my wife driving it was not long before there was “Whoops’ of Joy to see and feel the GPA ploughing into the waves. (They were not really that big but fun).
Lazy evenings were spent around the campfire telling stories of the day and enjoying the remoteness of this land.
All to soon we arrived in Morgan at the end of our journey. A farewell meal in the local Hotel, and the next day the road trip back to the vehicles in Remark. What had taken us a week by River was only 2 hours by road even in a GPA. It is not surprising the River trade could not survive against the road and rail.
After nine days away 220 km on the river and 120 road miles it is time to service the GPA. An inspection of the axles reveals no water has entered the wheel bearings or differential centres. The gearbox oil is clean, the engine oil is changed, and the drive line and steering greased. All the floors are removed and the bottom of the hull wiped out and cleaned. In short, very minor servicing for such a long swim. The original seat is fitted back into place and the rear deck frame for the tent removed.
The only real signs that she has been any where is a few minor scratches on the side steps where we have stepped into the GPA.
(I have since decided I quite like the scratches on the steps as they will always remind me of how they got there.)
After all GPA’s were always meant to be used.
“The Show Pony “ is back in her stable none the worst for ware.
This proved to be an excellent opportunity to really discover what a GPA was designed to do, a chance to resolve a few minor issues after a major restoration and an opportunity to enjoy all the fruits of our labour.
Now all that remains is to plan our next adventure.
Richard Sanders
