The days are hot and long for drover Brian Glendinning, but as he searches for feed for the cattle he has been tasked with looking after, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Since he was a teenager, Mr Glendinning has spent his days with his horses, dogs and cattle, droving from one town to the next.
At his campsite at Barraba last week, near Tamworth in northern New South Wales, the 38-year-old was taking a well-deserved rest in the shade.
It’s a 30-degree Celsius day.
His little washing machine is hard at work. The cattle and horses graze around their temporary home.
There are no fences but the dogs keep a close eye on the stock.
There is also a horse saddled and ready to go if any of the cattle decide to stray a little further than the nearby roadside.
He’s been on the road for six months this time, contracted by two local producers to move 700 head of beef cattle along the stock routes throughout northern New South Wales to find feed in the dry conditions.
With an El Niño officially declared, that roadside grass is more important than ever, but it’s dried off quickly since he left the saleyards at Inverell earlier in the year.
“We started out with a pretty good season … it’s starting to dry off pretty well now,” Mr Glendinning said.
“A lot of the paddocks are pretty bare now so the stock route has the most feed on it at the minute.
“It’s just [about] keeping the cattle full and happy.”
The dry conditions are a far cry from the same time last year, when Mr Glendinning was droving a different mob of cattle through floodwaters.
“I was out in the west because the Macquarie Marshes were full of water and they were letting Burrendong Dam out fairly regularly,” he said.
“We were getting around in two foot of water most of the time and the feed was just that abundant. The clover was coming up two or three foot out of the water.
“It was a big difference last year compared to this year, but it’s (the grass has) gone off real quick here too and out to the west as well.”
A one-man show
As well as 700 head of cattle, some horses and dogs, Mr Glendinning also has his van, horse truck, ute and water tanker to move from stop to stop.
Moving each day has its challenges.
“It’s a bit like a duck sitting on water — looks all calm and collected on top but underneath paddling like hell,” he said.
“I usually just move one vehicle along and lead a horse and then ride a horse back and grab the next vehicle and keep poking along like that.
“You’ll get people that come along and offer to give you a lift and help shift camp, which makes things a bit easier.”
You might be wondering why Mr Glendinning doesn’t have anyone working with him to lighten the load.
He says he has had little luck when it comes to workers with two legs, so he sticks with his four-legged mates.
“I just enjoy living with my my horses and dogs and cattle and just the life of it,” Mr Glendinning said.
“Every now and then you get someone that will work for a bit but trying to find people to hang around and want to work and not sit on their phones all day is pretty hard.”
Next leg of the journey
While he makes the most of his rest, it is never for long and his attention turns to the next leg of the journey.
He has to make a decision on which direction to go next.
With feed fast running out, he’ll make his way to Attunga, 70 kilometres from Barraba, and then he will reassess.
That decision will depend on where the best feed is and whether any stock routes are closed or permits changed by Local Land Services or the NSW Department of Industry – Lands and Water.
“They’re talking about bringing in destination-only permits so you have to do 10 kilometres a day and have a destination to go to,” Mr Glendinning said.
“If they bring that in I’ll have to go for a drive and see where is the best for me to take these cattle.
“These little cattle won’t do real well doing 10 kilometres a day but if that’s what we have to do, that’s what we have to do.
“We’ll try and head back to the west I guess, if we can find good enough feed.”
Posted , updated
