GATHERING OF THE CLAN
Courtesy of Overlander magazine. Story by John Denman 2003

There is an 80,000ha chunk of land in far north Queensland known as the Green Ant Block. It was once a part of Kalpowar Station, and when that station’s grazing lease expired, it was taken over by the Queensland Government. The Government had plans for the Green Ant Block, but so did a bloke called Les Hiddins. Les reasoned that the land had originally been a Soldier Settlers block, and put forward the idea that it should be made available for the use of Australia’s war veterans. Les called the place Pandanus Park, named for the palm-like tree that grows along the banks of the Normanby River. He had no plans for any buildings, just a memorial. It was Les’ plan that nothing should be done to the land. He didn’t even want title handed over to the veterans, simply unfettered access. The Queensland Government didn’t see it his way, and to date, they’ve done every thing they can to distance themselves from the idea.

There is one day each year, apart from Anzac Day, that those who went off to South East Asia in the ‘60’s and ‘70’s always observe: the 18th of August. It was on that day that one of the Australian Army’s most decisive battles of the Vietnam War happened, at a place called Long Tan. So it was to Pandanus Park they all travelled this year, for the consecration of that memorial. A memorial not just to Long Tan, or even to Vietnam, but to all the veterans of all conflicts Australian Troops have been involved in. They had come from all across Australia in answer to Les Hiddins’ call for a united response to the Queensland Government. Pandanus Park had become a rallying call to the veterans of Australia.

The sun had yet to filter through the bloodwood trees along the Normanby River, and some 350 vets and their mates and wives were already gathered. Medals gleamed in the dull pre-dawn light, and blokes shuffled about in a rough semi circle with a flagpole and a rough bush memorial at its centre. Along the banks of the Normanby, a network of camps had sprung up. Some had been there for weeks before, while others were still arriving. Every popular brand of 4wd was represented, and each one sported an Australian flag, some carried the insignia of units they had served with.

As the sun gradually made its appearance, the ceremony got under way. Dick Schafer, one of those who had been involved in the Pandanus Project from the very beginning officiated, and Padre John Newman, who currently works with the Queensland Police, blessed the memorial. After the main part of the ceremony, veterans and their friends and families were invited to place a battlefield memento on the memorial, or lay a wreath. Once the serious part of the day was finished a supply of rum was opened up, and the mood noticeably lightened.

Pandanus Park is not some plan to grab land from the public of Australia, nor is it a place in the bush where combat affected vets can go and hide. This day, the 18th of August demonstrated that the project goes far beyond that. It is an idea, a symbol more than anything that every Australian veteran, past, present or even future will be able to go and camp in the bush without having to stand in line, or be told where to camp and where not to camp. It would be difficult to argue that they have not earned that right.

Overlander was on the ground at Pandanus this year, and there was a spirit of camaraderie that is impossible to put into words. Will it continue? If that spirit is any guide, unquestionably yes! Want to know more? Just go to Pandanus or type Project Pandanus into your search engine on the net and it will give you the details to view the website. To locate the Pandanus area on a map, try Hema’s Lakefield NP Map. If you need more detail, try the 1:100,000 topographical map “Lakefield.”