There are a few things that is not mentioned in the Droving story, things that some would not normally think about, but are an intrinsic part of the job.
Washing clothes and bathing: On a rare occasion, in warmer weather one would find a reasonably clean water hole, dam or tank and the ritual of bathing and washing clothes were conducted in the one ablution.
Boots, belt and hat would be left on the side of the water source, and then you would dive into the water, diving as far out as your legs would propel you so as not to get bogged in the mud, getting out would be a problem in this department.
A bit of a splash around, a thumping of various parts of the clothing and a scrub of the neck, under the arm pits and if no one was watching, around the family jewels.
It would not take long before you dried out and felt like you were Mister health and Hygiene himself.
Winter, of course, brought a different approach to bodily hygiene. It was not a good idea to bath much in the winter, as the body would build up a goodly amount of external fat excretions that would act as insulation once soaked into the clothing. The same applied with blankets in the swag.
The one problem with the blankets, once at their warmest capability with the added treatment of body grime was the by the time you rolled up the swag in the morning ad unrolled the swag at night, the local blow flies would have a bonanza, and maggots would greet you as you were about to have a good kip.
A couple of shakes into the camp fire would soon get rid of that little inconvenience.
Dust was the bane of the drover, not the boss, of course, he would ride up front and make sure he is position was never challenged. tailing any stock in unfavored wind was most undesirable.
The above also contributed to the extent of the mundane mental stimulation of the drover. Imagine, if you will, looking up the rear end of three thousand sheep, or five hundred head of cows and tell me how far your mental horizons would stretch.
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