Ellery Creek bed - almost a half moon, with a slight breeze, a beautiful night.
We are lying beneath the stars on the dry river sand near a huge river red gum. Not far away is a large water hole with red stone cliffs either side of a sandy gorge. The water was freezing but we swam across to the gorge and walked up between the cliffs to a valley where there were cattle and burrs.
The adventure of a wild swim gave the children (especially Emily) a new enthusiasm for this trip (much to my relief) It has been hard on them spending so much time cramped in the car and I guess this is an arrival of sorts.
First stop this morning was to drop them off at the pool again and then call on the Finke River Mission to see Paul Albrecht, the son of Pastor Albrecht of Hermannsburg Mission. It was right next door to the Lutheran church and not to be confused with the Inland Mission. He was a thick set man with bright blue eyes and looked very much like his father. It turned out that the photo I thought I had of him as a child was actually his brother Theodore. He also wrote down the correct spelling of Ntjikitjikurrpa. He was very busy with Mission work when we arrived so we did not stay for long. I promised to send him a printout of the journal.
Susan and I then went to meet David Hugo at the Strehlow Research Foundation. This time we were let in through the back door. After a short wait he joined us in the exhibition area which I must say I found to be a little sparse and more like an afterthought. Perhaps the design made us miss the main room, if there was one. What was on display was admirably presented. He was a genial man and took us to his office where we spent the whole morning talking about the Strehlows and some of the issues in looking after secret/sacred objects. Overall, I was impressed with his careful and responsible approach. He was unexpectedly deferential to Aboriginal claims and vulnerabilities.
By way of summary, and following these discussions with both David Hugo and Julia Munster my impression of the custodial ground on which I am standing re. The Flight of Ducks is as follows:
Photographs and names of deceased can cause distress and should be preceded by warnings. Boomerangs, spears etc are of no concern to Aboriginal interests. However, contrary to my previous belief, there are almost certainly unbroken lines of traditional knowledge and culture remnant amongst the tribal groups through whose land the expedition travelled. That some of the artifacts (tjurungas/bull roarers) may still be of primary significance to the men or women who hold on to these lines is hard (even for experts) to judge. The problems in making such judgements about secret/sacred Objects are manifold:
David Hugo produced a photocopy of Strehlow's field diary from the 4th of March 1933 in which he recalled the visit of the group from Sydney University. The field diaries began about this time. they were not available for inspection because secret/sacred material was dispersed throughout the entries and the Foundation was concerned that this would be seen by people without authority. I asked him about the Duck Song (given that Strehlow recorded hundreds of hours of songs)and he said circumspectly that it might be possible but that it might also take a while. I need to put my request in writing. The lengths to which the Foundation goes in order to safeguard their collection is very impressive. I felt almost irresponsible about the way we have been looking after the Pockley collection. Certainly this visit has given me a sense of its importance. The secret/sacred issues are much more significant that I thought. Their digital expression is even more difficult. David Hugo was certainly not prepared for the rising digital tide. He saw the Foundation's role as being outside of these issues because of the physical nature of the material. But he was concerned about the implications of access. I don't think he really understood what I meant when I said that in the digital world preservation and access were inseparable. I will have to send him my paper.
When we left we headed out through Heavitree Gap to the Transport Hall of Fame where we looked around for the Ghan and Kurts truck etc. We spoke to Perry, who was very welcoming and interested inthe photographs of the Ghan and Kurt. He said we should contact Liz Martin who would be even more interested. On the way back into town I took a photo of Heavitree Gap and we raced around shopping for food, filling up the gas bottle, visiting the Old Telegraph Station. With amazement we found that our permits to go th Mount Liebig and Haasts Bluff were ready. Someone (maybe Julia) must have pulled some strings.
The drive out here this evening was spectacular - the mountains have a slight Warrumbungle feel. They are invested with a remarkable presence, made all the more intense by the knowledge that every crack has its own story and significance. After our swim the children were eager to look at the map of where we were going. At one point in the torch-light a little beige frog jumped out of the sand on to the page. By firelight, I read out sections from their grandfather's journal in an effort to increase the sense of anticipation and geographic continuity. A whole family of dingoes have been howling somewhere up in the cliffs. They must be young, the sound is quite shrill.
