Hi folks,
another prospecting season is upon us, so good luck to all of you and especially those making the trek across the Nulaboring for the first time and those visiting Erlistoun Station.
Erlistoun Station prides itself on being prospector friendly, and with your help will remain so. All we ask is a few simple courtesies.
1. Please make contact.
Let us know you are coming and the general area you will be camped.
Contact is essential for your safety and ours. Erlistoun is a working cattle station and we are culling feral animals daily with firearms, traps and baits plus we conduct continuous rolling musters.
Every year we get called on by Police or family members to go look for someone overdue or missing. Erlistoun is aproximately 1000000 acres, we can't help if we don't know where to begin to look.
We can be contacted here on the forum, (just pm me) or via email -
[email protected], by phone - 9031 3954 or by visiting the homestead which is located aproximately 40klm out of Laverton on the Erlistoun/Nambi road.
Mail address is Steve Fisher P.O. Box 189 Laverton W.A. 6440
2. No firearms.
This is non negotiable. Unlike some states, there is no shooting on crown land in WA. Also, you can only shoot on a pastoral lease with a pastoral letter which we do not give out. Erlistoun is also covered by a number of mining leases which also enforce a strick no gun policy.
Every prospecting season we find numerous ferals, natives as well as cattle shot. So persons found with a firearm will be reported to the Police without exception.
3. No dogs.
We have had verbal threats "if my dog takes a bait I'll shoot the station owner". To save being in that position we've adopted a no dogs at all policy. (so have many other stations)
Every year I find people with dogs and they all say "my dogs will only eat from his bowl" or " he's old and won't leave the van".
Dogs attract dogs. Your little old dog who won't leave the van and only eats from his bowl may attract wild dogs into your camp.
I can pretty much guarantee he will also eat a bait even if it's not in his bowl. Baits are like Smackos, they are that appetising I've come close to eating a few myself.
We have just come through one of the worst summers I can remember. I can't tell you how many calves and cows we lost due to heat and stress. Not saying your dog will, but many dogs chase cattle. Our cattle calve all year round and we don't want them stressed any more than they already are.
4. Don't drive on wet tracks.
You might have the worlds most capable 4x4 with all the bling, 10 inch lift and 65 inch muddies. But you wreck our tracks! Station tracks are put in and maintained by the station owner at substancial costs. The fine for driving on a closed public road is I think $1000 per wheel. A couple of station have recently taken legal action and have been awarded costs to repair damaged tracks and more now are following suit.
5. Take your rubbish with you.
By all means burn your burnables in your campfire, but please don't bury your rubbish. Dogs dig it up. Never drop your rubbish down old mineshafts. You brought it in so please take it out.
When you pack your van or vehicle, remember to pack an "R space". Somewhere to put your Rocks, Relics and Rubbish.
6. Know where you are and be legal.
Make sure you have your 40E permits or permissions if prospecting on leases. Ilegal mining and prospecting is a huge problem in WA and there is a dedicated proactive Police unit, the GSDU based in Kalgoorlie that actively prosecute poachers.
Make sure you fill in and submit your 40E returns promptly. The mining companies don't want your gold, they want your time and knowledge as it helps in thier exploration.
7. Respect infrastructure.
Last season we had a total of 12 solar panels stolen and 1 windmill severely damaged by prospectors. We had some grub give birth to a mud baby through the top of a water tank. The mines have resorted to using drones to patrol thier bore lines to stop diesel theft.
You steal our panels and our solar pumps don't work, you break our mills and our mills don't pump. No water means cattle die. Steal mine property and more areas get shut off making it harder for those that do the right thing.
Finally, most times Erlistoun staff can be identified by thier blue shirt with Erlistoun Station above the left breast and Moore River Beef above the right. Muster crew can be identified by thier scrapes, bandages, rips and blood stains. Please heed all instructions from muster crew if they are working in your area.
Because we carry firearms and have been verbaled in the past, we now carry cameras and most of our vehicles are now fitted with cameras. This season poachers and thier vehicles will become Youtube stars as well as being reported to the Police.
Again, please make contact and be respectful of leases and boundaries. It's very disheartening when a forum member can travel 4000+klms yet not have the decency to travel another 30klms or pop you an email to say they are on your station. Not to mention being camped and detecting on someone elses lease and with thier pooch.
With all that said, please have fun, be safe and find heaps.
Cheers,
Steve