20/10/2026
Floodwaters and wildflowers: Cooper Creek and the Flinders Ranges💧🌄🌺🚙
From 11 to 17 September 2026, Ted and Samak Sanderson, Alan Pickering and Alyson Turner set off with their caravans for Cooper Creek and the Flinders Ranges. Their timing could hardly have been better: floodwaters had created temporary lakes near Lake Eyre, while the Flinders Ranges were flourishing after the wettest winter in years.
Their first night was spent among the gum trees beside flowing Parachilna Creek in Parachilna Gorge. From there, they settled in for several days at the Lake Eyre Yacht Club’s Regatta Campsite on Etadunna Station, using it as a base for day trips to the Birdsville Bypass Road ferry and the surrounding country.
On the journey home, the group travelled through the Northern Flinders Ranges and camped in Mount Chambers Creek Gorge, where they also visited an Aboriginal petroglyph site. Many thanks to Alan for leading this trip!!
Colour was everywhere: wattles, striking outcrops of Sturt Desert Peas and prolific displays of Rosy Dock, also known as Wild Hops. Further south, Salvation Jane spread across the green hills and plains of the Northern Flinders.
The travelers marked the end of their adventure with dinner at the Cradock Hotel before parting company.
It was another memorable example of what the Club is all about: friendship, shared experiences and touring together to faraway places.
