Tracks by Robyn Davidson

It’s not often that I see a movie if I’ve read the book. I prefer the visuals in my own head and I’m usually disappointed if the story has been changed. It’s even more unlikely that I see a movie and then want to read the book, but that’s what happened this summer when I saw the movie Tracks. I saw the trailer for the film at the beginning of the summer and was thrilled to find it playing in Vancouver.

Robyn Davidson on the cover of National Geographic

Tracks is the story of Robyn Davidson’s solo trek across the Australian desert in 1977 by camel. Davis walked for nine months over 1,700 miles through the Australian outback to the Indian Ocean with her dog and four camels: Dookie, Bub, Zeleika and Goliath. I wanted to see the film because of the amazing cinematography and I wasn’t disappointed, but I was also taken with the story of how Davidson was able to organize her trip. She had never worked with animals or undertaken any major treks before moving to Alice Springs to learn about camels. She had no money, and it was only when National Geographic offered to sponsor her that her trip became a reality.  Davidson wrote an article about her experience for the magazine.

Actress Mia Wasikowska as Davidson in the film Tracks

 After seeing the movie, I wanted to read the book. While the movie plays up parts of the film that make for good drama, such as the threats of wild camels and invasive tourists, and the relationship between photographer Rick Smolan and Davidson, the parts I loved most in the book were about Davidson’s desire to be alone in the desert. She wanted to walk through the desert by herself, and yet most of the time she was incredibly lonely. I’ve been thinking a lot about this anachronism: how to be alone without being lonely. Conversely, I also think a lot about how to be surrounded by people and still be alone, which is closer to my reality.

At the time of Davidson’s trek the media made a big deal that she was a woman alone doing the journey. Sure that’s remarkable, but the best part of Davidson’s story to me is that she went on a long journey without a defined purpose, other than to experience a place. Thinking about Davidson in the desert makes me want to go on a long walk, somewhere with open vistas. That’s unlikely in my wooded part of Ontario, but sometimes when I’m out alone in my canoe, I get that open feeling of space, and it’s like nothing else.