The Birdsville Track is one of the best known--and loneliest--tracks in
Australia, and for twenty years Tom Kruse was the mailman, battling the
searing heat, floods, and mechanical breakdowns. He made the run every
fortnight, and was a lifeline to the isolated settlements and stations
along the way, delivering everything from letters to essential supplies.
The Track is still just that--a track through the desert and sandhills.
Tom began in the days before reliable vehicles, good communication and
air access in case of emergency. He made running repairs of his truck,
he loaded and unloaded tons of stores to ferry his cargo across flooded
creeks. He kept people in touch with the outside world--and was
sometimes caught up in the grief of a lonely death.
Tom Kruse always got the mail through--come drought, hell or high
waters. This is truly a classic Australian story, and captures part of
our history that is fast vanishing.
