December 2004

Lynne samples life down under...

The Australian way: Lynne Grieve tries her hand at scuba diving on the Barrier Reef and branding a steer.

Harrison & Hetherington fieldsperson Lynne Grieve had the trip of a lifetime when she spent three weeks in Australia with fellow young farmers.

Lynne, 26, was one of 17 Northumberland young farmers who organised the visit joined by three young farmers from Cumbria, travelling more than 5,000km from Sydney to Cairns.

The group visited two cattle stations - Pajingo was 147,000 acres with 5,000 Brahman cattle. "The owner had just sold 1,000 calves privately before we got there. It was stocked at one beast to 36 acres," said Lynne. "In one particular paddock which was 10,000 acres there were 800 heifers waiting to go to the bull!"

The second cattle station Lochenbar was 10,000 acres with 1,000 head of finishing cattle," she said.

While the visit was an eye-opener on Australia's agriculture, the group also enjoyed the Australian way of life scuba diving off the Barrier Reef, swimming off Whitsunday on Long Island. They also took in a rainforest at Daintree and saw the sights of Brisbane and Sydney.

"It was a fantastic experience which wouldn't have been possible if Harrison & Hetherington hadn't allowed me to take an extended holiday," said Lynne, whose family farms at Bellingham and whose brother David, 24, joined her on the trip.

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