Heyfield has six visitors tonight – John Elliott, his dog and four camels.

John is on a trek that began last year in Queensland and is heading through to Western Australia. They arrived in the Heyfield area late this afternoon from Jamieson and Licola, spotted by Brenton Dinsdale who took this photo about two kilometres out of town. John told Brenton that he intends to stay in the Heyfield area for a couple of days before heading out again, and is happy for photos and visits from kids.

You can check out John’s web site for more details and he is posting on Instagram and Facebook. You can also track his camel trek via this map.

John’s story is a bit unusual – he gave away his house, dream car and most of his other possessions and abandoned the life he knew to spend a year training camels. Then in April 2019 he set off on a two-year trek around Australia with his four camels Ted, Jackson, Arthur and Bill and his rescue dog Bruski.

“I’ve embarked on a journey for the next few years,” John said, “town to town around Australia and the world entertaining.

“The most exciting, dangerous and challenging experiences I can find, or make up, connecting with locals to understand how they design their life and happiness.

“I’m speaking to people from different cultures and walks of life and unlocking real stories of success and happiness, and inspiring people to challenge the future they feel locked into.

“As I meet the challenges of living a life completely by my own design, I hope to learn more about myself and the many different people on my journey,” said John.

Having been treated after discovering melanoma on his back, John is now working with Beard Season to talk to people along the trek about getting checked.

“Melanoma is responsible for more deaths than any other cancer in younger males, and most young males under 30 have never been checked.

“I want to make sure that many more can share the same story as mine, early detection and removal.”