Analysis

Nothing quite prepares you for it.

We have covered the drought extensively on News Breakfast, but it isn't until you go and see the vast areas in the grip of the big dry that you get a full understanding of just how dire the situation is.

Parched, dusty paddocks as far as the eye can see; farmers relying on increasingly expensive fodder to keep their livestock fed; and rural towns struggling to survive.

Share It's red and brown as far as you can see in Guyra, NSW.

This week I have travelled from Queensland's Darling Downs to the NSW Central West as part of the ABC's special coverage of the drought.

The 900-kilometre journey has taken in big regional centres like Tamworth to a string of small communities that haven't enjoyed decent rainfall for several years.

Share Michael's route for a week of drought coverage.

I spoke to farmers, shop owners, mayors and dozens of locals.

There's been desperation, anger and tears — but also a steely determination to get through the crisis. This is what I've learnt.

1. It's a drought like no other

I lost count of the times I was told this was the worst drought people were living through.

Farmers used to enduring extended periods without rain have been taken aback by the severity of this dry spell.

Share The iconic image of drought is stark in Condobolin.

Not only is it the lack of moisture, but the intense heat over the summers that has increased the evaporation of already dwindling dams.

Sam White, a cattle farmer just outside Guyra on the NSW Northern Tablelands, has been working the land for more than 30 years and declares this is by far the worst of the five droughts he has experienced.

Share Sam White's family has farmed in the region since the 1890s.

The Bureau of Meteorology, the CSIRO and any number of scientific bodies are pointing out that climate change will produce more frequent and severe droughts in the years ahead.

It's an issue National Farmers Federation president Fiona Simson says rural communities need to stop tiptoeing around.

Sam White says he simply has to deal with the climate situation he now finds himself in and try to make his property as drought-proof as possible by changing farming practices and locating more groundwater sources.

Sam has an operation big enough to survive, but I also heard from other farmers who are on verge of walking off the land.

2. It's not just the farmers

The drought is having a terrible impact on the towns that rely on farming for their existence.

A shop owner on the main strip of Stanthorpe in southern Queensland wept when I asked how things were going.

Farmers make up a lot of her customers and, because they are struggling, she is in dire straits.

Share Debbie Wilmot knows how hard it is in Stanthorpe.

Debbie Wilmot, who owns a gift shop in Stanthorpe, told me she hadn't collected an income in three years and worried about her future.

It was the same story in most of the other places I visited, with empty shopfronts and not much activity in the stores that were open.

There is grim talk of more closures and job losses in the months ahead.

Many retailers are hoping the tourist trade will save their businesses, but they fret the dry conditions will turn away even the most enthusiastic traveller.

3. The water crisis

Imagine turning on your kitchen tap and nothing coming out.

That is the stark reality several country towns are scrambling to avoid as the drought lingers.

Share The battle is on to change behaviour in regional NSW.

Dam levels across northern NSW and southern Queensland are perilously low. The NSW town of Guyra has already run out of water.

The local dam has long emptied and water is now being trucked in to ensure basic needs are met until a pipeline to another dam is completed in mid-August.

Share Water is literally being trucked into Guyra each day.

The dam servicing Tamworth's 60,000 residents is at just 23 per cent and dropping.

The new normal in many of these places, drought or not, will be permanent water restrictions and local authorities are busy trying to educate people that hosing driveways or putting the sprinkler on in the middle of the day are now very much things of the past.

Simon Murray, the mayor of Armidale Regional Council, is keen to follow the example of Cape Town.

On the verge of running out of water last year, the South African city put in place tough controls and changed enough mindsets that a water crisis was averted.

4. We're all about to feel the pain

One of the reasons we embarked on this week of special coverage was to keep the drought crisis on the media radar.

It is so easy for city people to forget how hard many of their fellow Australians are doing it in the bush.

Share Farmers are warning the drought will be felt at the checkout.

But it won't be too long before the national impact of the big dry will be felt.

Angus Ferrier, who represents the farmers in Queensland's Granite Belt who provide much of Australia's fruit and vegetable produce, reckons people in the big cities will be paying much more for their apples, stone fruits, tomatoes and salad greens this summer because of the drought's devastating effect on this year's crop.

Share Angus Ferrier says things will get worse before better.

Wool production and sheep numbers have hit 100-year lows and Australia has had to import wheat for the first time in more than a decade.

This drought will have a significant impact on Australia's bottom line for some years to come.

5. Country bakeries are the best (and so are the people!)

I promised to do my bit to help struggling local economies by trying as many meat pies and vanilla slices as I could, and I'm pleased to report our country bakeries are world standard.

Share Michael Rowland tucks into a classic egg and bacon roll.

There's nothing quite like a freshly-baked pie from a small town bread shop to lift the spirits.

Even the unique spaghetti bolognaise pie from the Guyra bakery did the trick!

We regularly came across vanilla slices the size of small house bricks.

And this leads me to finish with the overriding observation that country Australia is truly a special place.

Share Tom Hancock from the Collie Hotel delivers the goods.

People live there for a reason and are used to dealing with the challenges posed by this land of droughts and flooding rains.

But so many are feeling forgotten by those in the big smoke and were grateful for the opportunity to tell their stories.

It is undeniably tough in large swathes of the country at the moment, but the people we met displayed both a quiet stoicism and a steely determination to get through this enormous challenge.

The common refrain, from Warwick to Condobolin: "Today is a good day because we are now one day closer to rain."