The remote isolation of Forrest’s resident couple fully hit home while flying south after takeoff. The nearest civilisation to Forrest is Eucla, a tiny settlement perched on the edge of the Great Australian Bight near the boarder separating the states of West and South Australia. Bazflyers were told a drive down the track to Eucla, in good conditions, takes five hours in a 4x4 vehicle not including any enforced stops along the way due to punctures from sharp rocks. Now that’s got to be extreme isolation...!
Forrest to Port Lincoln. Magenta line traces the Bazflyer’s actual flight path
An insider’s perspective
The Great Australian Bight, that huge bite shaped landform abruptly defining the southern extremity of the Australian Continent, came into existence when Gondwana broke apart and separated Antarctica from Australia over 50 million years ago. Reminiscent of a giant Tiramisu dessert, the magnificent Bunda Cliffs made up of fossiliferous limestone, occupied the view for approximately 180 km of the flight along the Great Australian Bight.
The sole highway connecting west and east Australia roughly parallels the Great Australian Bight. Here a section of highway has been dual-purposed as an emergency landing strip for use by the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Almost abruptly the camouflage brown Nullabor Plain gives way to bright green cultivation and we were preparing to land at our destination, Port Lincoln.
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