Crawlin' The Hume - April 2014
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Story & photos by David West
From Camden to Melbourne and Melbourne to Camden
“It never rains – it pours!!”
Thursday morning 10th – the Diamond T is packed and ready to roll. We head south from Camden then turn onto the Hume Freeway at Wilton-Picton interchange. The sky is very overcast and threatening.
Travelling south towards Goulburn we overtake a loaded tanker and a (Reefer) van. As they say in America “Boppin along to Slim Dusty, John Williamson and Willy Nelson (On the road again). Then the rain started! Getting heavier further south – fuel and comfort stop at Yass Service Centre. We rocked on towards Albury– front window rubbers leaking – maybe we should have brought a pump up raft.
Lunch at the roadhouse near Wangaratta and head to Melbourne. Heavy rain all the way to Kalkallo where it eased up.
Overnight it was still raining (even the motel room developed a leak). Friday 11th and still it is raining. Visited friends at Campbellfield and the rain became heavier. Saturday run could be washed out (gloom).
Saturday morning 12th “can’t believe it”. It is dark but the sky is clear – roll out to the Ford factory – 20 or so other trucks there. As the sun gets out of bed day lights up. Birds are singing and the start of a perfect day weather wise. (Melbourne has been in drought since last November).
Organisers of “Crawlin’ the Hume” are on the job. Coffee truck doing a busy trade. Catch up with some familiar faces and meet new ones. Photos and a lot of true lies. Then they start to roll. Trucks of every size, shape and colour. Some restored, some still in their working clothes. WSHTC was very well represented. Visitors from every State in Australia and one I believe from New Zealand.
We travel as much of the old Hume that is still intact. Stopping here and there at small towns to patronise local shops or just stop and watch the 30 year or more old trucks reliving the past. Winton raceway opposite the old truck stop is the venue for lunch. 220 trucks were assembled in the marshalling area. Had lunch and then like a kid in a lolly shop went looking and photographing. A very early 1900’s Albion truck with solid rubber tyres was the oldest still operating. Winton raceway was in use as well so we had entertainment over the fence from all the would-be boy racers.
A lot of visitors from surrounding towns came to look and enjoy as were the people along the sides of the old Highway and tops of hills, cheering (blow the horn) and taking photos. Back on the road through Glenrowan (stopped to photo Ned K), onto Wangaratta turn off into Chiltern, Barnawatha and into the Murray Valley Highway, left into Wodonga, over the bridge into NSW. Total distance 175 miles (282 kms).
A great run, weather perfect – a piece of history revisited.
On Saturday night the dinner and presentations and raffle were held at the Albury Racecourse. The food was very good, a cold breeze had us all rugged up but a very pleasant night. The raffle and auction raised money for Trans-Help.
Bruce and Dad Gunter had engine problems with the “knocker” but a can of fix-all allowed them to complete the run and return home.
Sunday morning breakfast was provided back at the Race Club for all participants and then a truck show and shine for all the locals. Great weather and catch up on fun on the run and true lies.
On the way home from Albury some of our members deviated into Tarcutta to visit the Truckies Wall of Remembrance. Hopefully in the future the Hume Highway Road Transport Heritage Remembrance Museum and Convention Centre will be open and the HTH and CTH runs can change over at Tarcutta. Lest we forget!
To Rob French and Roger Marchetti and all their helpers thank you for a very successful run.
Well done truckers!