As the sun's last golden rays of the day set over the ancient rocky landscape of the outback, there's a familiar silhouette making its way across the shimmery horizon.
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It could be mistaken for the mirror image of a bygone era when camel trains played a key role in transporting essential goods and materials across the country's outback in the 1860s to 1920s.
But instead among the harsh and arid landscape of Silverton that's pockmarked with salt bush, mulga trees and woody weed, there is Petah Devine who runs Silverton Outback Camels.
She walks her camels across the same landscape that was once home to Afghan cameleers and miners but is now inspiring a new generation of artists and a thriving tourism industry.
She also walks them along a path not far from the route taken by explorers Robert Burke and William Wills who had camels on their expedition.
"Silverton and Broken Hill have a long rich history involving camels," Ms Devine said.
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Without the camels, she said the outback would not have opened up as quickly as it did.
Camels could go without water longer than horses when travelling the long distances across the vast terrain.
But the camels were then replaced as a mode of transport by trucks in the 1920s.
"The camels were used to open up the outback to the rest of the country as it was the only way to get stores to the stations," Ms Devine said.
"They were big in transport because they could cart wool bales to major centres due to how much they could carry.
"So you could say Silverton was founded on the back of camels."
Ms Devine said she had original photographs of camels on the same property dating back to the 1880s.
"We are fortunate enough to know direct descendants of the original pioneering cameleer families in this region," she said.
"It's important we help preserve the local history and tell the story of cameleers along the way.
"It's special to be able to walk along the same path of those who have come before us."
But camels haven't always been part of Ms Devine's life.
Having served as a police officer across regional NSW for 23 years, Ms Devine was looking for a change of pace when the opportunity to run her own tourism business came up.
Ms Devine had been posted at Broken Hill as a police officer and would commute from her property at Silverton, which she purchased in 2017.
"When I bought the farm everyone said I should get a couple of camels as Silverton was renowned for camels," she said.
And so she did.
That same year she purchased Chocolate and Spencer, both one-year-old female camels, from a family who lived in the region.
She still has both camels who had calves last year.
"I found hanging out with them was better than working as an officer so I left the police," she said.
From there she started to accumulate more animals, which were either rescued or re-homed.
"People would find something on the road and ring either RSPCA, animal rescue or me, but either way I would end up with them," she said.
In 2020 she started her tourism business Silverton Outback Camels, which consists of camel tours and rides as well as farm visits, camping and an AirBNB.
Now she has 17 camels and four calves as well as an array of emus, alpacas, deer, goats, sheep, pigs, miniature donkeys, ponies and ostriches.
Some camels have even featured in documentaries by overseas film companies who have visited the region to retell the story of the cameleers.
When asked how many animals she had, Ms Devine said: "I know how many of each type I have but I have never counted a total as I think it would scare me."
Ms Devine's day start as the sun rises where she spends two to three hours feeding all the animals with friends and farm hands before the first rides of the day are held.
By the time the first feed is done there's a couple of hours before she is back at it again for the afternoon feeds. Then she hits the road for the camel sunset tours.
To feed her animals she has built relationships with local cafes, restaurants and supermarkets for leftovers.
"Instead of them throwing out food I work with them to collect their leftovers, which helps feed the animals," she said.
Since starting her camel tour business in 2020, she has also developed an education tour for schools and students with disabilities to come and work with the animals.
"Camels are a unique animal," she said.
"They are big, a little unpredictable so you still need to have caution but despite their size they are extremely affectionate.
"Once you get to know them you see they have so much trust in you and they are also very clever."
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Back on the road at Silverton, as the sun sets on the horizon, the hues of orange and red light up the sky.
"Where else would you rather be," she said.
"It's not lush green, there is no beach but no sunset is the same especially when it sets over the outback.
"You get to watch this amazing sunset in the outback on the back of a camel, there is nothing cooler than that."
