Teacher’s Guide Tracks
by Robyn Davidson
**These notes may be reproduced free of charge for use and study within schools, but they may not be
reproduced (either in whole or in part) and offered for commercial sale**
SYNOPSIS
‘I was exactly the same person that I was when I began.’ (p 127)
‘I did not perceive at that time that I was allowing myself to get more
involved with writing about the trip than the trip itself. It did not dawn on
me that already I was beginning to see it as a story for other people, with a
beginning and an ending.’ (p 136)
Robyn Davidson set out in 1975 for Alice Springs with a dream to traverse
the continent with only a few camels for company. At that stage, though,
she had never even handled a camel, and so set about finding people to
teach her. She also had no money to fund the trip, so had to rely on local
casual work to support her training and later purchase of animals.
She initially visited three cameleers in order to find a person willing to train her in camel management: an
old Afghan trader named Sallay Mahomet, a tourism operator, and Kurt Posel. She began her
apprenticeship with the latter who proved to be both a cruel taskmaster, and an Indian giver, and she
eventually found her savior in Sallay, who offered her two months work in return for two camels for her
proposed trek. But this was only the beginning of an arduous process of nearly two years tending two
animals, one of which eventually had to be put down, and during which she almost gave up the challenge.
Her real savior, though, arrived in the person of National Geographic photographer Rick Smolan who
suggested she write to his employer for financial support. Her letter was unexpectedly successful so that
she found herself with the wherewithal to embark on the journey, but also vexed by the need to submit
to the prying eye of Rick’s camera for some parts of the journey, and eventually to the need to write her
story, as well.
In 1977, Robyn Davidson successfully travelled from Alice Springs across 2,700 kilometres (1,700 miles) of
Australian deserts to the Indian Ocean with her dog and four camels. Rick Smolan documented her
journey. She also became an international phenomenon as the ‘camel lady’. And the rest, as they say,
was history.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Robyn Davidson was born on a cattle property in Queensland. She went to Sydney in the
late sixties, then returned to study in Brisbane before going to Alice Springs where the
events of this book began. Since then she has travelled extensively and has lived in
London, New York and India. In the early 1990s she migrated with and wrote about
nomads in north west India. She is now based in Melbourne, but spends several months a
year in the Indian Himalayas.
AUTHOR BACKGROUND
Robyn Davidson was born on a cattle property in Queensland. She went to Sydney in the late sixties, then
returned to study in Brisbane before going to Alice Springs where the events of this book began. Since
then she has travelled extensively, has lived in London, New York and India. In the early 1990's she
migrated with and wrote about nomads in north-west India. She is now based in Melbourne, but spends
several months a year in the Indian Himalayas.
See also Interviews:

Krien, Anna ‘Robyn Davidson is a Nomad’ Conversations with Extraordinary People’
First Quarter, 2012 http://www.dumbofeather.com/conversation/robyn-davidson-is-a-nomad/

Morris, Linda ‘One hell of a life, born of claypan and coolabah Sydney Morning Herald, September 29,
2012 <http://www.smh.com.au/national/one-hell-of-a-life-born-of-claypan-and-coolabah-2012092826qng.html>

Thompson, Peter ‘Talking Heads Interview with Robyn Davidson by Peter Thompson’ Screened ABC1
1/09/2008 <http://www.abc.net.au/tv/talkingheads/txt/s2345772.htm>

Verghis, Sharyn ‘Angel and Beast’ The Australian January 12, 2013
<http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/angel-and-beast/story-fn9n8gph-1226551085370>
Other:

Davidson, Robyn No Fixed Address: Nomads and the Fate of the Planet. Quarterly Essay No 24,
December 2006. (Black Inc.)

Davidson, Robyn and Rick Smolan From Alice to Ocean: Alone Across the Outback Addison Wesley,
1993.

Maloney, Shane and Chris Grosz ‘Robyn Davidson and Bruce Chatwin’ The Monthly No. 20, February,
2007 <http://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2007/february/1290560449/shane-maloney/robyndavidson-bruce-chatwin>

‘Robyn Davidson’ <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robyn_Davidson>
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THEMES
SCIENCE
Camels
Discussion Point:
Robyn Davidson begins her training knowing nothing about camels, but learns during
her training from Kurt Posel a great deal about them: ‘I will now, once and for all,
destroy some myths concerning these animals … I was hooked.’ (pp 13-4) Research
the species and the qualities which make camels such excellent pack animals and
why they have adapted to Australia’s climate so well.
Activity:
‘When this book was written in 1980 there were ‘approximately ten thousand
camels’ (p 4) roaming the outback. ‘As of 2009, the feral population numbered about
one million, with a doubling time of about nine years.’
(<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_feral_camelNow>)
See also Janeen Brian’s Hoosh! Camels in Australia (ABC Books, 2005) for more
details. Read about The Australian Feral Camel Management Project
(http://www.feralcamels.com.au/) which is designed to reduce these numbers.
Research and discuss the growth of this feral population.
Activity:
Research the fascinating story of Afghan cameleers in Australia
(<http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/afghan-cameleers>)
Activity:
Research the trade in camel products at Camels Australia Export
(<http://www.camelsaust.com.au/history.htm>)
Discussion Point:
Davidson is appalled by the brutal treatment of his camels by Kurt (p 25), but later
she bemoans some of the treatments she sees administered such as castration
without anaesthetic (p 83). Are cameleers unnecessarily cruel to their animals in your
opinion?
Australian Flora and Fauna
Activity:
The book mentions many forms of plants and animals which live in the deserts.
Choose any one of them and research it further.
Discussion Point:
What effect has the large camel population had on the flora and fauna of this
country?
HISTORY
Alice Springs
Discussion Point:
‘It is a frontier town, characterized by an aggressive masculine ethic and severe racial
tensions.’ (p 8) Research the history and cultural make-up of Alice Springs and
discuss the origins of this statement.
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Discussion Point:
‘It is said that anyone who sees the Todd River flow three times falls in love with the
Alice.’ (p 7) What makes the Alice so appealing to both visitors and inhabitants?
Explorers in the Interior of Australia
Activity:
Research the history of key events in cross-country exploration in Australia. Davidson
passes several landmarks which refer to this history.
Activity:
Research the history of any other towns she mentions on the journey.
GEOGRAPHY
Activity:
Study the map at the front of the book and trace the journey which Davidson made
through this country.
BUSINESS / ECONOMICS
Activity:
Your students might wish to investigate the growing business of extreme travel or
tourism since the time in which Davidson’s journey took place. Without sponsorship
or personal wealth such a journey was then impossible. Her aim was not so much to
invite danger but to experience complete freedom and to test herself in that
environment. These days, people pay to be taken on such adventures to places such
as the Antarctic. See for example, ‘World’s Most Extreme Adventures’ by Christine
Pfeiffer February 15, 2013
<http://www.news.com.au/travel/holiday-ideas/worlds-most-extreme
adventures/story-e6frfqer-1226377662951\>
The ‘ultimate’ will be the tickets to the moon which are said to be planned by Sir
Richard Branson. Research the business of ‘Extreme Tourism’.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extreme_tourism> or ‘Adventure Tourism Products’ by
R. Buckley
http://www98.griffith.edu.au/dspace/bitstream/handle/10072/17265/47330_1.pdf?
sequence=1
CIVICS AND CITIZENSHIP
Australian Culture, Misogyny and Feminism
Discussion Point:
‘One does not have to delve too deeply to discover why some of the world’s angriest
feminists breathed crisp blue Australian air during their formative years, before
packing their kangaroo-skin bags … I mean.’ (p 18) Is Australia still like this or has
feminism successfully challenged stereotypical macho Australian culture?
Discussion Point:
Davidson traces the ‘Australian cult of misogyny’ (pp 18-9) back to convict times.
Research and discuss this history further.
Discussion Point:
Davidson maintains that her fame grew from an out of date concept of what a
woman is capable of. Her description as the ‘camel lady’ became a burden to her.
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Read about the mythologising of her role in this journey (pp 236-7). Discuss what this
reveals about attitudes to women.
Aboriginal People, Culture and Conditions
Discussion Point:
Is the description of conditions in Aboriginal camps (pp 44-8) any better today?
Discussion Point:
Robyn gives a brief history of the re-settlement of Aboriginal people and the growing
threat of multinationals (p 118). She was not to know then that later multinationals
would be required to pay for use of land under legislation introduced in the 1990s.
Discussion Point:
The concept of land being sacred is discussed in relation to Uluru (p 131) and the
tourism trade which challenges Aboriginal rights to claim it as a sacred site. How
much has it been protected since by legislation?
Discussion Point:
White workers in Aboriginal communities face the challenges outlined in Glendle’s
situation (pp 163-4). Research further and discuss.
Discussion Point:
Aboriginal connection to the land is essential to their cultural beliefs (pp 165-7). Have
an Aboriginal elder come to your school to speak to students about this aspect of
culture.
Discussion Point:
Another Aboriginal cultural belief is in the magic treatment of the Nankari (pp 171-2)
which seemingly cures Mr. Eddie. Research this further.
Discussion Point:
Davidson writes of the powerful role of women in Aboriginal culture (pp 169-70).
Research this further, and discuss.
Discussion Point:
The prevalence of blindness (pp 120-1) and the work of Professor Fred Hollows is
mentioned along with other chronic illnesses amongst Aboriginal people. Research
Aboriginal health today.
Nomads and Nomadic Cultures
Activity:
Robyn learned about the wild foods or ‘Bush tucker’ (pp 111-2) from Aboriginal
people and an ethnobotanist in Alice Springs. She describes the abundance of such
foods, once you know how to recognise them and points out that Aboriginal people
were once very healthy but that an introduced diet has depleted general health
markedly. Research nomadic cultures further. Read Davidson’s essay listed under
Tourism
Discussion Point:
Davidson describes tourists in very unflattering terms (p 126). Is she right about this?
And what would she make of the sophisticated equipment that people take with
them these days?
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LANGUAGES
Discussion Point:
Davidson refers to learning words of Pitjanjara language. Read about the many
Aboriginal languages and how they have evolved. Visit sites such as ‘Aboriginal
Languages and Research and Resource Centre’ <http://www.alrrc.nsw.gov.au/>
or the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
<http://www.aiatsis.gov.au/collections/library.html> for more details.
HEALTH AND PE
Survival
Discussion Point:
What are the necessary qualities for survival? Read the following two quotes and
then discuss this question. ‘There is nothing so real as having to think about survival.
Believing in omens is all right as long as you know exactly what you are doing.’ (p
123) and ‘And my fear had a different quality now too. It was direct and useful. It did
not incapacitate me or interfere with my competence. It was the natural healthy fear
one needs for survival.’ (pp 193-4)
Discussion Point:
‘The trip was easy. It was no more dangerous than crossing the street, or driving to
the beach, or eating peanuts … the most difficult part of any endeavour is taking the
first step, making the first decision.’ (p 254) Is survival as much about the power of
the mind as it is the body?
Discussion Point:
Davidson obviously tested her own health in this journey. Despite her claim that she
became extremely fit and healthy, what permanent damage might she have done to
herself?
DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY
Activity:
Using a simple design program, design a cover for this book, based on your reading
of it.
Activity:
Conduct an online search to locate information about some of the areas over which
she travelled.
MATHS
Activity:
There are numerous examples of mathematical applications in this book relating to
distance, time, costs etc. Choose one example which you find in the text and conduct
an activity based on it. (www.australiancurriculum.edu.au)
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WRITING STYLE
Structure
Discussion Point:
The story begins with a quotation, a contents page, and a map, and is told in four
parts with a postscript written thirty years later. Discuss the relationship between
these various parts. What other additional information might have been included?
Journal Writing
Discussion Point:
This is a journal of her trip, and as such is written in first person, past tense, although
much of it was written two years after she completed the journey. How much do we
remember of past events and how much is imagined? Try to write your own journal
of an event which happened some time ago and see what details might be hard to
recall.
Authenticity
Discussion Point:
Some non-fiction memoir writers have been challenged about the veracity of their
achievements. In the time of this story, media coverage (apart from photos) was rare
in the remote areas in which she travelled. Encourage your students to discuss the
issue of personal ownership of a story. How might Rick’s version of these events have
differed from Robyn’s, for example?
Discussion Point:
People in society, Davidson suggests, play roles to hide their uncertainties. ‘Back
there, there was no nakedness, no one could afford it. Everyone had their social
personae well-fortified …’ (p 197) Doe we all pretend to be something we’re not?
Travel Writing
Activity:
Doris Lessing is quoted on the cover: ‘This will rank among the best of the books of
exploration and travel’. What makes a good travel writer? Visit ‘Travel Writing Tips’
on the Australian Society of Travel Writers’ website
<http://www.astw.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=87&Ite
mid=178>
Activity:
Conduct a unit on writing travel literature. Visit other websites such as:
Australian Festival of Travel Writing <http://www.aftw.com.au/> or‘Ten Ways Not to
be a Travel Writer’<http://www.lonelyplanet.com/blog/2011/05/17/10-ways-not-tobe-a-travel-writer/> or
‘Travel Literature’ <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travel_literature>
Discussion Point:
Meeting Rick Smolan, the National Geographic photographer (p 81), was a turning
point for Robyn, in that for the first time she began to think of writing about the
journey, and this would change her life. She might simply have gone on the journey
without the backing of NG, or not gone at all. Either way, her life as a bestselling
author was about to begin. What might her travels have been like without this
support?
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Photo-Journalism
Discussion Point:
The ethics of photo journalism is a topic she returns to constantly. She resents being
made to look beautiful in Rick’s early photos and claims that the camera lies (p 133).
Later (p 141), when he takes picture of Aboriginal people, she is even more
uncomfortable with the invasion of their privacy. Is a camera a threat to veracity or
truth?
Setting
Discussion Point:
Robyn Davidson describes the setting in evocative language: ‘To enter that country is
to be choked with dust, … moonlight.’ (pp 22-3) and ‘It was one of those brittle bright
days … Australian afternoons.’(p 39) Analyse these two passages, or any other
striking passage in terms of her use of language in description of landscape.
TEACHER ACTIVITIES/NOTES
1.
The overt racism described (pp 5-6) is quite shocking. Would this sort of commentary be tolerated
today? Is such racism still prevalent in some areas in Australia? Discuss racism and how it manifests
itself both overtly and covertly in our society.
2.
How might Alice Springs residents have read the following descriptions of their town? Would it
offend them? ‘My first impression as we strolled down the deserted street was of the architectural
ugliness of the place, a discomforting contrast to the magnificence of the country which surrounded
it.’ (p 5) or ‘The place seemed soulless, rootless, but perhaps it was that which encouraged, in certain
circumstances, the extraordinary.’ (p 7) Read more about Alice Springs to see what it is like today.
3.
‘It was the inauspicious beginning of the ‘camel lady’ image which I should have nipped in the bud
right there.’ (p 29) What does Robyn Davidson mean by this passage? What was wrong with being
known as the ‘camel lady’?
4.
When Robyn visits her friend Nancy she reflects on the reasons for her journey (pp 236-37). Discuss
these two pages in relation to the journey which she undertakes. ‘One really could act to change and
control one’s life; and the procedure, the process, was its own reward.’(p 37) She begins the book
with a quote from Doris Lessing’s The Golden Notebook which relates to this theme as well. Does she
find what she is seeking?
5.
In a moment of insight, Robyn Davidson reflects on her deliberate choice to live her life alone: ‘For
the first time it flashed on me that the way I had conducted my life was always to allow myself that
remoteness, always protect that high, clear place that could not be shared without risking its
destruction.’ (p 40) Is it difficult to be a traveler unless you are alone? And, given that Davidson has
obviously made many friends in many places, has she really been alone?
6.
Communications in the late 1970s were very different to today. For example when the camel baby
Goliath is born, Robyn is sent a telegram (p 83) to let her know the news. She has no contact with the
outside world except via an unreliable radio. How different would her trip be today with mobile
phones, email and other forms of communication so readily available? She bemoans the photos of
her trip, but today it would have been under far more constant scrutiny. She admits as much in her
Postscript (pp 255-261). Discuss.
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7.
The young politico at Utopia falls into the same trap that many idealists do; he fails to see ‘what was
actually happening there, and what the people themselves wanted and needed.’ (p 89) because of
his own preconceived ideas. Discuss social services and how they operate in such communities.
8.
‘I had sold a great swatch of my freedom and most of the trip’s integrity for four thousand dollars.’ (p
91) Was she too hard on herself, or was this the truth?
9.
Robyn’s struggles with Rick’s presence on her trip, and their relationship becomes complicated by a
brief love affair (pp 138-9) after which a firm friendship develops between them. Is such an extreme
journey likely to lead to friendships or enmity?
10.
Mr. Eddie teaches her to ‘enjoy the present’ (p 173), a lesson which we might all take heed to. Does
our society place too much importance on aiming for the future rather than being contented with
the here and now?
11.
‘The good Lord in his infinite wisdom gave us three things to make life bearable – hope, jokes and
dogs, but the greatest of these was dogs.’ (p 207) Davidson is half-joking here, but there is truth in
this statement. Are pets more faithful than human beings in your opinion? Discuss.
12.
Davidson’s fury about the media coverage of her arrival in Wiluna was a rather naïve reaction wasn’t
it? She had sold her story to the National Geographic and must have expected some sort of
response?
13.
Do we all need to ‘rattle the foundations of habit’ (p 220) from time to time?
14.
Her postscript describes the social background to her decision to undertake the journey. How has
society changed since then? Discuss women’s attitudes in the 1970s, compared to those of today’s
young women, with your students?
15.
Watch the recent film of ‘Tracks’ Film (2013) Director: John Curran. Discuss with your students how
well the film interprets the book?
There are also numerous study guides and reading group notes available online to supplement these
notes.
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