IT’S STILL DARK WHEN WE START the slow ascent to the top of Headings Cliff. The air is breathless and cold, and the only sound is the distinctive cry of a whistling kite. As we climb a spiral steel lookout on the cliff edge, the sky begins to lighten, revealing a majestic sweep of Australia’s longest river and epic, horizon-straining views of the Murray-Darling basin.
It’s fair to say I hadn’t been enthusiastic about today’s
