One of the lesser known Central Australian explorers, Henry Vere Barclay, was back in the news this week. Shown here on horseback sometime in the late1880s, he was best known for surveying part of the the Simpson Desert in 1904. But he got into trouble on the expedition and was forced to abandon an enormous stash of equipment and personal belongings in order to make it to a nearby water source. The exact location of his abandoned possessions has baffled historians since 1915. The mystery intrigued legendary Australian race car driver Larry Perkins and his brother Peter Perkins, who this week revealed that they had finally found Barclay’s belongings on a four-day search using quad bikes. Afterwards he told the ABC that "I turned around to Peter and I said, 'We've found it'. It was a fantastic feeling that I will never forget."

Image: State Library of NSW

Published: 22 July 2018