If you have driven in the northern or central areas of the state you may have seen a bright orange 1960 Chamberlain 9G tractor covered in stickers, with a dinghy and the body of a gyrocopter atop its roof, and towing a trailer with a small replica Royal Flying Doctor Service plane mounted to the roof.
The young man behind the wheel on the epic adventure around Australia is 21-year-old Sam Hughes.
He is better known to his 225,000 Facebook followers as the 'Travelling Jackaroo'.
In February 2021, Sam set off from his home in Maleny, Qld, in the tractor known as Slim (named after country music legend Sim Dusty).
Along the way, Sam has clocked up 22,000 kilometres raising funds and awareness for three charities - the RFDS, Dolly's Dream and Drought Angels.
"The majority of the population live along the coast in Australia so the smaller number that live inland are often forgotten," he said.
"All three charities I have chosen support people from the bush - the RFDS with its medical services, Dolly's Dream for its bullying, particularly cyberbullying in regional areas, and Drought Angels, which helps people in drought not only feed their stock, but the farmers themselves
"They also do a lot of great work around mental health in regional areas, which is really important to me."
For much of the three years, he has been on the road - although he did a six-month stint working for a tow truck company in Darwin to raise some funds.
He also went on the road with the Great Moscow Circus, who helped him fundraise, from Darwin to Perth for a year.
Earlier in the month, he entered SA for the second time via NT before heading south again through Coober Pedy and Woomera.
Last week, he lobbed into Strathalbyn where Bates Farm Machinery have given him access to their workshop to fix some leaks.
Later this week, he is off along the Dukes Highway to Tailem Bend and then Keith before heading through the Limestone Coast to Mount Gambier to reunite with mates in the Moscow Circus.
To-date, Sam has raised just shy of $230,000 largely by "shaking donation tins". He says it has been fantastic to combine his love of tractors with a desire to help others.
"There have been a few online donations too, which have boosted the amount, but everyone has been so generous and made me feel welcome," he said.
For a 60-plus year-old tractor, 'Slim' has been pretty reliable aside from when he needed a new motor in Geraldton, WA.
It can reach 60 kilometres an hour in road gear, but Sam prefers not to push it at 35-45km/hr.
"When you drive down the road at 100km/hr, you are like a horse with blinkers on only looking ahead, but I get to see all the wildlife on the side of the road and look into the paddocks," he said.
After leaving SA, Sam will head into Vic and NSW, with his goal to be home on the Qld Sunshine Coast by Christmas.
His next project is decking out a trailer as a mobile museum, which he hopes to take around to agricultural shows and schools.
"I really want to continue helping rural communities, so many kids miss out on things like going to a museum because they live so far away - so why can't I bring it to them?" he said.
"A lot of it will be about the rural Australia."
- Follow the Travelling Jackeroo on Facebook for location updates
