On Monday 22nd October 2001 the " Indian Pacific Great Southern Rail " Tracks to Federation Tour " commenced its journey from Adelaide in South Australia to Perth in West Australia. During its journey it was scheduled to stop at various stations on its planned route to Perth. The first of these being Port Pirie where a Civic Reception took place. Its second stop was at Port Augusta known as the " Crossroads of Australia ", this is where the first train had set off on its journey to Perth on the 22nd October 1917.
On their arrival at Port Augusta the passengers were greeted by ' The Ghan " the original old steam engine which then led them into the station. A Civic reception followed with many other historic functions taking place throughout the afternoon and into the night.
On the following day " Tuesday 23rd October 2001 the " Indian Pacific " resumed its journey on its Federation Tour arriving at the " Pimba Siding " approximately five kilometers from the Woomera Township.
The Community of Woomera and ASRI the ( Australian Space Research Institute ) had also planned a Civic Reception and Zuni rocket launch program. After detraining the passengers were greeted by officials of the township and after boarding their coaches were driven to Launcher 9 area about 50 kilometers from the Pimba Siding.
Approximately five hundred people consisting of 300 train passengers and 200 visitors eventually arrived at ASRI's Area nine. A committee from the Woomera village had set up decorative stalls containing drinks and other food items. The passengers from the train were then presented with commemorative wooden lunch boxes containing a pre-packed meal. These lunch boxes were replicas of a type issued to the workers who had helped to set up the Range in the early days of 1947. These were also special because they had been constructed from timbers from houses which had been used in experiments from an explosive trial project carried out on the Woomera Instrumented Range. The passengers from the " Indian Pacific " and other visitors to the launch program were then welcomed by ASRI's Shaun Wilson who gave a short talk on the proposed activities for the day. A bush band played and whilst everyone ate their lunches a sighter rocket was launched. Soon after the initial launch everyone was treated to two further successful Zuni Rocket launches which went down well with the assembled crowd. On completion of the launch activities the passengers and visitors left for the Woomera Village to continue with the next segment of their reception.
It was soon time for them to leave Woomera however and so they said their farewells and boarded their transport for the short journey back to Pimba. I left with them and was able to take a video and photographs of the Indian Pacific as it left the Pimba Siding to resume its journey on the next leg of its tour to Western Australia.
I produced a set of 100 commemorative envelopes for this special occasion one of which is pictured . Regards from Jim Hill in South Oz.
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