Condon To The Bar
4x4 Magazine Australia|August 2019

From the sea to the iron- and gold-rich mountains of the Northern Pilbara.

Ron Moon
Condon To The Bar

The wheel marks went up and over the dry, grass-covered sand hill, but as we’d been asked by the property manager not to drive on the dunes I got out of the Cruiser and wandered to the top of the low rise. To the east and south, flat and grassy plains near devoid of anything taller than half a metre stretched to the horizon; while to the north a salty flat bordered an inlet of light blue-green water where short and narrow strips of mangroves gathered to find a foothold on this remote coast.

As I topped the hill, a series of dunes parallel to the one I was standing on marched their way towards the ocean just a few hundred metres away which was wild and wind-capped. Almost at my feet, near smothered in the grass, was what we had come to find: an old cemetery from a long-abandoned pearling port … if you can call three or four markers a cemetery.

We were at Condon, the once important shipping outlet on the far north-west coast of WA, which few people have heard about and even less have visited. Gazetted as Shellborough but rarely known as such, Condon was the first port established along this long-deserted section of coast. Situated north of the De Grey River mouth, the area was surveyed in 1872. The surrounding De Grey pastoral station, then running sheep, had begun 10 years earlier, a year after Frank T Gregory had explored the area and reported the expanse of rich grasslands.

The tiny hamlet initially provided a shipping point for wool sent direct to London, but it grew in importance with the discovery of gold at Marble Bar and Nullagine in the 1880s. Pearling luggers also used the shallow harbour, with up to 80 boats anchoring here – it’s hard to believe that these days, when the only boat within cooee would be a fisherman’s tinnie.

Denne historien er fra August 2019-utgaven av 4x4 Magazine Australia.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra August 2019-utgaven av 4x4 Magazine Australia.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA 4X4 MAGAZINE AUSTRALIASe alt
CORRUGATIONS.SAND, AND SPINIFEX
4x4 Magazine Australia

CORRUGATIONS.SAND, AND SPINIFEX

WHEN TALKING LEGENDARY TRACKS, THE CANNING STOCK ROUTE HAS THE TITLE OF LONGEST HISTORICAL STOCK ROUTE IN THE WORLD, BUT TACKLING ITS 1850KM IN A 1970S LAND ROVER MAKES FOR ONE INTERESTING DRIVE FOR THE TV CREW FROM SERIOUSLY SERIES. YOU CAN SEE FOR YOURSELF BY VIEWING ROAD TO RUIN

time-read
2 mins  |
November 2024
PURE WATER
4x4 Magazine Australia

PURE WATER

THE GUZZLE H2O STREAM IS THE IDEAL WATER PURIFICATION SOLUTION FOR PROVIDING A RELIABLE SOURCE OF CLEAN DRINKING WATER OFF THE GRID

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2024
DOES IT GET ANY TOUGHER FOR THE AT52S?
4x4 Magazine Australia

DOES IT GET ANY TOUGHER FOR THE AT52S?

HAVING TACKLED SOME OF THE ROUGHEST TRACKS IN THE COUNTRY, THESE ALL-TERRAINS HAVE PASSED THE TEST

time-read
2 mins  |
November 2024
TOP 5 4X4 SPOTS IN SA
4x4 Magazine Australia

TOP 5 4X4 SPOTS IN SA

HERE ARE FIVE OF THE BEST 4X4 DESTINATIONS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA

time-read
10+ mins  |
November 2024
PLUGGING IN
4x4 Magazine Australia

PLUGGING IN

GWM IS STUDYING THE VIABILITY OF PLUG-IN HYBRID VERSIONS OF ITS POPULAR 4X4S FOR THE AUSTRALIAN MARKET. WE GOT A CHANCE TO SAMPLE THEM ON TRACK

time-read
3 mins  |
November 2024
TOP TANK
4x4 Magazine Australia

TOP TANK

WE HAVE COME AWAY IMPRESSED AFTER A WEEK IN GWM’S TANK 500 HYBRID 4X4.

time-read
6 mins  |
November 2024
HARD EARNED
4x4 Magazine Australia

HARD EARNED

HARD WORK AND THE RIGHT ADVICE HAVE HELPED JAMES ATKINSON BUILD THE PATROL OF HIS DREAMS

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2024
DYNAMIC DEBUT
4x4 Magazine Australia

DYNAMIC DEBUT

OUR FIRST TASTE OF THE LC250 COMES IN THE FORM OF THE LEXUS GX550 OVERTRAIL, AND THIS LUXURY 4X4 WAGON IMPRESSES BOTH ON THE ROAD AND OFF IT

time-read
5 mins  |
November 2024
BLACK GROWLER
4x4 Magazine Australia

BLACK GROWLER

IF YOU’RE GOING TO SWAP FROM A DOUBLE-CAB UTE TO A 4X4 WAGON, YOU MIGHT AS WELL GO WITH THE BEST AVAILABLE. BRUCE HAS DONE JUST THAT AND EQUIPPED HIS GR SPORT 300 WITH THE BEST GEAR ON THE MARKET

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2024
2025 NISSAN PATROL MAKES GLOBAL DEBUT
4x4 Magazine Australia

2025 NISSAN PATROL MAKES GLOBAL DEBUT

CURTAINS DROP ON SEVENTH-GENERATION PATROL BUT NOT HERE UNTIL 2026

time-read
4 mins  |
November 2024