Travellers in awe of 'rare' sight along remote Aussie road: 'Pretty spoiled'
The couple was driving along a 'rough dirt road' when flashes of vibrant red wildflowers 'commanded' thier attention, forcing them to pull over.
A couple travelling along a "really rough dirt road" in a remote Australian town were thrilled after stumbling upon a "pretty rare" outback phenomenon. Flashes of vibrant red "commanded [their] attention" and made them pull over, and what they saw was "really exciting".
Grant and Linda Hanan, travel writers based in South Australia, were driving along the Anne Beadell Highway — a 1,000-kilometre road between Laverton, WA and Coober Pedy, SA — when they caught a glimpse of one of the outback's "most iconic flowers".
"We were doing a small section of the highway before returning off, which is when we saw the first sturt desert pea," Linda told Yahoo News Australia this week.
"We got really excited coming across just one lonely flower, not expecting to see anymore. But the further we drove, we came across patch after patch where their vibrancy commanded our attention and dominated the surrounding landscape," she said.
The sturt desert pea is one of Australia’s most famous desert wildflowers and is found across inland arid regions of Australia. Linda said they were "pretty spoiled" because the outback flowers "are quite unique to see when you're travelling" and it's "unusual to see so many patches in one spot".
The couple, who were travelling with a group, had seen them before in other parts of Australia including Broken Hill, NSW and Roxby Downs, SA, but "they're just not normally in large patches as big as that," she said.
"It's also South Australia's emblem so there was a connection for us being South Australian. But the fact that we were in Western Australia and it was the first time we had seen that many, I was just a happy snapper."
Aussies rave about 'absolutely stunning' wildflower find
The couple shared incredible images of the wildflowers on their Facebook page, My Aussie Travel Guide, where they document their travels. Understandably, the images left scores of Aussies in awe.
"Absolutely stunning," said one of the "magnificent" abundance of flowers. "What a thrill," another chimed in.
"Wow, you are so lucky to see so many, we saw a few patches. They are so beautiful," shared another.
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The state's wildflower season — which runs from August to November — has been "wonderful" this year, many noted, including conservation biologist Steve Hopper who said it's been more striking than previous years.
Every 10 years, presumably due to the amount of winter rain, the “countryside lights up”, he told Yahoo.
WA's 'exciting' wildflower season better than previous years
Last month, while “cruising” along a dusty red "back road" in WA's Kellerberrin Shire — about 200km inland from Perth in WA’s Wheatbelt region — one woman was left speechless after discovering dozens of bright pink wildflowers growing in two almost perfectly straight rows.
The plants are a native succulent named disphyma crassifolium, otherwise known as round-leaved pig face, "which is a bit unusual in Australian deserts", Hopper explained. And the incredible sight left locals and tourists gushing with glee.
Speaking of the sturt desert pea this week, he agreed it's "really rare" to see so many. "There's usually only one or two plants," he said. "But occasionally, just as this couple described, you come across these wonderful swaths of many plants in an area. And it really does fold you over".
As for why there are so many this year, he said it's "very complex" but it "just so happened to be a good year". "Seeing the ground is carpeted with multiple plants in full flower is pretty exciting," he added.
Meanwhile, close to 10,000 travellers come from all over the world every year just to get a glimpse of the “incredibly rare” sight along Beringarra-Pindar Road in the heart of WA’s wildflower country just to witness patches of iconic wreath flowers — otherwise known as lechenaultia macrantha.
Elsewhere in Queensland, a “splash of pink” tucked away on the side of a rural road caused a man to suddenly stop in his tracks.
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