9 May 2009

Nice folk of Captains Flat

| Pommy bastard
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Yesterday being my day off, I decided to take a run out on my motorbike (Cochyn as I call her), and as is my wont, to take some photographs. I particularly wanted a good photo of my bike, one with a vista of long sweeping empty road behind her in it. I wanted this shot for two reasons.

a) She’s just had the riders seat recovered, and it’s bright red. It looks rather fetching, I may have the passenger seat recovered in the same colour. (My wife thinks it looks dreadful.)

b) I wanted to show all my UK based biker mates one of these magnificent “bikers roads” we have here. They aren’t used to such long sweeping roads. Not empty ones in any case. And definitely not empty, dry ones, with the sun on them. So it would annoy the hell out of them. Neat.

I remembered there being such a road out to Captains Flat from Queanbeyan. I also remembered there being a pretty, and pretty old by Aussie standards, church which would be a suitable subject for some HDR shots, on the route. Oh, and the old copper mine at Captains Flat would be a good subject for HDR to. Sorted then.

So I set off. I only got lost once, in the new rats maze at the airport, and soon found myself on suitable stretch of road, one which spanned to the horizon, with a perfect vanishing perspective. I parked the bike blocking the left hand lane as traffic was infrequent. After shooting some snaps I noticed cars heading my way, and stopped taking shots, as I didn’t want other traffic in them.

I soon had enough of this view, and did the same thing at another couple of points on the road. But now, here’s the point of this whole long boring screed.

Without fail, any and all passing cars stopped to ensure I was ok, and not broken down, (or just mad and taking pictures of a bike on an empty road. Oh, hang on…)

I was highly impressed, and not a little touched by this. In the UK people would have only stopped to shout; “Haaa Haaaa!!”, or to mug you.

Very nice Captains Flat people. Thank you, you’ve made a slightly batty pommy a very happy man.

(Yes I did get some cracking shots of the bike, the church, and the mine.)

“Captains Flat what?” I keep wanting to ask..

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Sadly, not all Captain’s Flat folk are nice – but the meanies are usually blowins. Case in point: a woman, originally from Sydney, who is now a pro vice chancellor at a nearby university had a house at Captain’s Flat that she had bought for $5000 in the early 1970s. She had it insured for $28,000 by the early 1980s – some $10,000 more than its value. It burnt down in the middle of the night, and the uninsured young tenants barely escaped with their lives – one was actually naked and had to be given a dressing gown by the neighbours. The owner did not inquire after their welfare, offer temporary accommodation, or even stump up with a mere 100 bucks for the young couple from the $10,000 profit, to buy some clothes. She reaped her just desserts eventually, however: her grown-up son has disowned her.

The Captains Flat Road is busier on weekends, with daytrippers and particularly trailbike riders (usually with the bike in a ute or trailer) and at this time of year people out “fossicking for” (i.e. stealing) firewood, than it is on weekdays, especially during the day on weekdays when commuters are safely tucked up at work.

More info than you could poke a stick at is available at http://www.captainsflat.org and no of course I’m not the webmaster (well, okay then, I am really).

Have lived here since 2002 and no plans to go anywhere else.

Pete

Pommy bastard3:14 pm 11 May 09

Oh god, my spellink, please shoot me.

Pommy bastard3:13 pm 11 May 09

ant said :

You’re lucky you found the road quiet and deserted; in the working week, Captain’s Flat Rd is bloody busy. There’s a lot of people living in this district, all using it.

Relative to the UK, as I was intimating above, it’s like an epmty, deserted road in the middle of nowhere, with no traffic at all on it, ever.

(England, where my mates are, covers an area of 130,410 sq km, as compared to NSW at 800,642sq km, it has a population of 50 million as compared to NSW’s 6.7 million. Thats’s 383 people per ksq as opposed to 8 people per ksq. )

I haven’t been to the pub recently, I believe it’s still open although I think they’ve closed off the full length of that room. And I’m not sure, to be honest, if they still run the accommodation part of it! You never seem to see them advertising like the Bungendore pubs do.

Pommy bastard12:10 pm 10 May 09

I agree totally ant. A railway would have made it into a very attractive proposition to live in. It’s in a beautiful setting,with some really good nature reserves close by.

Is that huge hotel still open? Any good?

Pommy bastard said :

Thanks for the info Kid 2, interesting the way it got its name. I was wondering if it was named after a retired sea captain, or millitary man. Now I know it’s just a load of old bull! 😉

Yeah, I’ve always vaguely wondered too… was it a military man, or a person who was named Captain… nope, it was a tough old bull grumping away in his paddock.

It’s an interesting town, to see that whopping hotel there, in such a quiet town, really reminds you of how some towns have had this boom/bust thing for a whole. It’s a shame the rail line is broken up, The Flat would have had a bright future as a dormitory town with a railway. quite a few people commute to Canberra from there anyway but it’s quite a drive.

GardeningGirl10:54 am 10 May 09

Nice story. Good on the Captains Flat folk! (Interesting to know the name’s origins.)

GardeningGirl10:54 am 10 May 09

Nice story. Good on the Captains Flat folk! (Interesting to know the name’s origins.)

Pommy bastard10:09 am 10 May 09

adeptacheese said :

hdr is yuck

Not generalising a bit to much there are we?

I think that Church is the one at Carwoola, my local. You’re lucky you found the road quiet and deserted; in the working week, Captain’s Flat Rd is bloody busy. There’s a lot of people living in this district, all using it.

adeptacheese7:24 pm 09 May 09

hdr is yuck

Love to see the photos

Pommy bastard3:45 pm 09 May 09

Thanks for the info Kid 2, interesting the way it got its name. I was wondering if it was named after a retired sea captain, or millitary man. Now I know it’s just a load of old bull! 😉

Rawhide Kid No 22:01 pm 09 May 09

““Captains Flat what?” I keep wanting to ask..”

Named after a bullock bull “The Captain” who use to have his own paddock about where the oval is now.

As for Foxlow. my grandfather use to manage that property way back.

Pommy bastard1:31 pm 09 May 09

p1 said :

I like stories with happy endings. I assume the photos will be featuring in a post soon?

Johnboy willing, I’ll be happy to share.

Deadmandrinking said :

Btw, was that the church just between Carwoola and Foxlow?

I’ll just check on Google maps…

This one here

That’s the one.

The bright new red seat was done by Peggs Autio Trim. Highly reccomended.

(11 Lipscomb Pl, MacGregor, ACT 2615. 6254 9988)

Deadmandrinking12:40 pm 09 May 09

I’ve actually got a few pics of in town (I grew up in the country around Captain’s Flat and my Mum lives out that way). I can post them up here if you guys want.

Btw, was that the church just between Carwoola and Foxlow?

I like stories with happy endings. I assume the photos will be featuring in a post soon?

On that note, I’ll be leaving my ‘puter and going for a motorcycle ride.

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