Rutland Plains first appears on the 1922 cadastral map in an area previously covered by the Dunbar lease on the 1896 map (see 'Historical maps' above). The northern end of the property is in Kokoberra country and to the south it is in Kokoberrin country. Beyond Rutland Plains towards Normanton the stock route is largely in Kunjar country and crosses the Galbraith, Inkerman, Van Rook, Delta Downs and Maggie Vale stations.
The stock route extends northwards over Topsy Creek along an ungazetted track to Trubanamam on the Kowanyama boundary (also known as 'Old Mission Yard') and no further. The route southwards to Normanton consists of sections of unimproved station track which are managed by respective station owners.
The main river crossings are at the Scutton, Nassau, Staaten and Gilbert Rivers. Wet season traffic is occasionally possible between rivers but is not possible over the whole route. The main yards (stock collection and transfer points) are in close proximity to river crossings.
There are many stock watering points (bores, yards and water tanks) in close proximity to the route. In particular, on the Mitchell River (at Rutland Plains) and the Gilbert River Fan aggregations (at Van Rook and Delta Downs). These alluvial deposits have the greatest concentration of watering points in the Northern Gulf region and so supported regular dry season movements of cattle.
Colin Lawrence, an experienced stockman and a Kunjen Elder, worked along this route and drove cattle past Normanton to Julia Creek in the 1960s and 1970s. He estimated that in good conditions cattle could move at 'six miles a day', that is 9 - 10 kilometres per day. This translates into a journey of about 28 days to take cattle from Rutland Plains to Normanton, and another 48 days to take them onwards to the railway at Julia Creek. Today, this whole journey would take up to 15 hours along the Burke Development Road from Dunbar : perhaps even 10 hours in the later dry season before the rain starts.
Many old drovers and stock workers speak fondly of their droving life. Cattle droving was agnostic. It was an activity undertaken by people of different tribal backgrounds who shared respect for and knowledge of country as they passed through different landscapes. They have spoken to me of the good humour of camp life at night. An intimacy that was rarely reproduced in the same way when they returned home to the Mission (Kowanyama) and to their family and tribal commitments. It also disappeared when they arrived at Normanton or Chillagoe and white co-workers were allowed to have a beer in any pub but Aboriginal people were not allowed to enter. They had to sit outside and take soft drinks.