We are traveling the block at the end of the month (Sydney, Broken Hill, Port Auguster, Darwin, Broome, Perth and Sydney with various side trips).
Due to our rig it will be bitumen and good gravel (no off road). We would like some tips on the Do's and Don't's along the way. Like I was told in WA country areas you can't tow a van on the road after 3pm, true or untrue?
We will be taking extra water, food and fuel and have mobile and sat phones an a CB.
Roving-Dutchy said
04:48 PM Apr 6, 2013
If you are planning on staying on sealed roads and some gravel there is no real need to carry any extra fuel and food, may be some extra water in the car say 10 or 20 litres, there are are road houses at least every 200k's don't go past without filling up with fuel and there are usually large supermarkets in every major town, water is readily available and drinking water is always available but sometimes not in large enough quantities to fill your tanks 5 and 10 litres are always available to purchase at most supermarkets don't load your van down with unnecessary weight it just costs more in fuel and places extra strain on your vehicle.
Cheers
David
elliemike said
06:13 PM Apr 6, 2013
Dutchy Hope you have a great trip. Take it easy and smell the the roses. You still wont see every thing.
You can tow your rig at any time on WA roads. I wonder if your informant meant "You need to start looking for a campsite at about 3 oclock" Which is what most travellers do. Trying to set up in the dark, or worse still looking for a place to stop late in the day in the dark is not fun.
Have a serious look at your Rig and what you have stowed away in it.
You can get food and fuel (as Freebee say's) almost every day on a journey like this. Why carry large ammounts of it.
All those bush village, town, have a shop IGA etc. Give them your patronage they need it.
Every Kilogram of unessasary weight will cost you in fuel, and can compromise your towing if overweight or badly stowed.
If you are staying in a Caravan Park each night you can top your water up daily. Every litre of water is 1 Kilogram of weight, as is fuel.
Most people even the ones who have done this sort of travelling for years admit to taking stuff they never use. We say this every trip about stuff we packed just in case ? and never used it.
Keep your rig Lean and Mean and leave all those extra clothes behind.
Enjoy your trip.
Mike and Ellie
herbie said
07:54 PM Apr 6, 2013
Just make sure your parked up before sundown 1st reason nothing worse than trying to set up in the dark..2nd reason the road kill come out to sit on the warm bitchy once the sun goes down.And after driving all day your eyes don't pick them up quick enough to miss them.And getting help at night out in the out back can take hrs to arrive.
Cupie said
08:54 PM Apr 6, 2013
herbie wrote:
Just make sure your parked up before sundown 1st reason nothing worse than trying to set up in the dark..2nd reason the road kill come out to sit on the warm bitchy once the sun goes down.And after driving all day your eyes don't pick them up quick enough to miss them.And getting help at night out in the out back can take hrs to arrive.
Agree about being off the road early. I plan my day so that I can usually set up by around 3.30 at the latest.
The comments about getting rid of useless 'just in case' stuff is spot on too. I have a number of check lists of stuff that I continually revise down & modify for the type of trip that I intend doing.
Right too about carrying excess fuel, food & water.
You need to be very aware of your expected fuel consumption in different conditions & plan your day around that. I carry 3 extra jerry cans (Patrol only has a small fuel tank). Two are usually empty & the other is the emergency one in case of extremely strong head winds et. al. Being a cheep skate, I fill them all before tackling the Nullarbor. Possibly false economy but it makes me feel good. Never pass an opportunity to top up the fuel tank. I always fill up the afternoon before leaving a town & top up at lunch if in a reasonable town. I have my water tanks about half full in case of an unexpected roadside overnighter .. never happened though. I have a large drinking water container in the Patrol. ... probably too much. Spare space in the van fridge is taken up with a few frozen wine bladders of water. No shortage of them!
We always buy local as we go ... particularly food, but I keep a spare cask of white & red just in case I run out in one of those dry day or restricted sale indeginous towns. Bottles of wine too heavy. Cans of beer cool down more quickly than stubbies & are lighter too. I carry a large jar of SR flour & baking soda in case of a need for bread/damper. I have recently thrown out most of the other 'staples' that were never used. Noodles, pasta & packet soups are good light weight standbys that I carry along with a range of dried herbs & spices.
I find the UHF rather useless but maybe nice to have. Telstra Broadband dongles are essential for me.
Enjoy your adventure & most of all TAKE YOUR TIME. Drive slowly & enjoy the experience. No prize for first there on any stage.
Freebee said
08:28 PM Apr 8, 2013
Thanks for the info.
Looks like I declutter BIG time. I didn't know what fuel, water and food supplies would be along the way.
We are going at the end of June too. However, how do I convince the little lady to pack light? We went up to Tamworth on the long weekend and she packed enough clothes for at least 10 days. Had heaps of food left as well. I will carry 20 ltrs of diesel, only because I hate the idea of running out. Regards, Andy
elliemike said
01:51 AM Apr 11, 2013
two dogs wrote:
We are going at the end of June too. However, how do I convince the little lady to pack light? We went up to Tamworth on the long weekend and she packed enough clothes for at least 10 days. Had heaps of food left as well. I will carry 20 ltrs of diesel, only because I hate the idea of running out. Regards, Andy
Yes good idea to have at least 10 litres on the back if you run a diesel. On a long trip like this across long distances between servos you never know when you might find one CLOSED. I carry 20 litres.
We have a set of Camping Clothes, shoes boots, we keep in the Van for each of us. Nothing gets hung up as we keep it folded in our individual lockers. We have a combination of Storm Jacket, (with removeable Liner, that is a warm fleecy jacket by itself as well), Sleveless Jacket, Jersey, etc All can be worn in various combination singly or all together depending on the weather. We are both very good about keeping the clothing to a minimum but still manage take stuff we never wear.
Regards
Mike
herbie said
10:02 PM Apr 11, 2013
Elliemike,re trying to convince you wife about packing too much, just thought this little bit of info might give you some weight in convincing her to pack light,!!!It works out to be about 1.12 cents for every kilo carted for a distance of 100kms. I know that dosn't much but those cents quickly turn into $$ In fact by shaving 80/90kilos over a trip of 1000km you would save just $10 but that same weight reduction if you did the big lap say (30.000ks it would add up to $337 give or take a few $.
-- Edited by herbie on Friday 12th of April 2013 12:04:24 PM
herbie said
02:35 PM Apr 13, 2013
Cruising Cruze wrote:
Herbie must be an ex accountend that wants to save 1.12 cent lol
Cheers John
I was just trying to show how extra weight can help increase the cost of travelling with just as little as 60/80Kils over recomended weight allowance .For some one doing travelling just relying on thier pension every cent counts. Sorry if i sounded like a tight a...
-- Edited by herbie on Saturday 13th of April 2013 09:10:11 PM
elliemike said
05:03 PM Apr 13, 2013
herbie wrote:
Elliemike,re trying to convince you wife about packing too much, just thought this little bit of info might give you some weight in convincing her to pack light,!!!It works out to be about 1.12 cents for every kilo carted for a distance of 100kms. I know that dosn't much but those cents quickly turn into $$ In fact by shaving 80/90kilos over a trip of 1000km you would save just $10 but that same weight reduction if you did the big lap say (30.000ks it would add up to $337 give or take a few $.
-- Edited by herbie on Friday 12th of April 2013 12:04:24 PM
Herbie thanks for the info.
We dont have a problem with packing too much gear/weight as we are both very light travellers and always have been. We have both travelled the world with backpacks. Just off to Europe in two weeks again. The bags packed are 15 kg and 18kg all up this is two Kg heavier than last trip.
I would think the total of our cloting in the van would be simmilar minus the weight of the wheelie bags.
Cupie said
05:47 PM Apr 13, 2013
elliemike wrote:
herbie wrote:
Elliemike,re trying to convince you wife about packing too much, just thought this little bit of info might give you some weight in convincing her to pack light,!!!It works out to be about 1.12 cents for every kilo carted for a distance of 100kms. I know that dosn't much but those cents quickly turn into $$ In fact by shaving 80/90kilos over a trip of 1000km you would save just $10 but that same weight reduction if you did the big lap say (30.000ks it would add up to $337 give or take a few $.
-- Edited by herbie on Friday 12th of April 2013 12:04:24 PM
Herbie thanks for the info.
We dont have a problem with packing too much gear/weight as we are both very light travellers and always have been. We have both travelled the world with backpacks. Just off to Europe in two weeks again. The bags packed are 15 kg and 18kg all up this is two Kg heavier than last trip.
I would think the total of our cloting in the van would be simmilar minus the weight of the wheelie bags.
I can't immagine how we could travel o'seas with 15 & 18 Kg. That's probably the weight of our carry on luggage.
On one trip to the USA we were delighted to find that we were allowed two pieces of check in luggage each. SWMBO rushed out & purchased two cheap cases & filled them up with Leggo and stuff ... mostly presents for the grandchildren & any one else that she could think of.
Same baggage allowance on this year's Hawaii trip ... !!!!! Looks like I'll be able to take an extra pair of swimmers & a Hawaiian shirt or two. My carry on for that trip will be a backpack with Laptop, E-reader, toothbrush & spare undies.
Gerty Dancer said
05:55 PM Apr 13, 2013
Freebie, do check on the times of school hols in NT and WA. If you are there during school hols the camps and caravan parks will be packed, and you will need to do some research and book ahead... especially for Broome.
Also be aware of the quarantine Check-points at state borders, plus the fruit-fly quarantine place before you get to Broken hill.
Herbie must be an ex accountend that wants to save 1.12 cent lol
Cheers John
Roving-Dutchy said
07:01 PM Apr 13, 2013
I can't immagine how we could travel o'seas with 15 & 18 Kg. That's probably the weight of our carry on luggage.
On one trip to the USA we were delighted to find that we were allowed two pieces of check in luggage each. SWMBO rushed out & purchased two cheap cases & filled them up with Leggo and stuff ... mostly presents for the grandchildren & any one else that she could think of.
Same baggage allowance on this year's Hawaii trip ... !!!!! Looks like I'll be able to take an extra pair of swimmers & a Hawaiian shirt or two. My carry on for that trip will be a backpack with Laptop, E-reader, toothbrush & spare undies.
Have always tried to travel as light as possible on an overseas trip usually 12kg's each as I am the one that ends up having to hump the luggage, even then we end up with things that are never used. Did one trip to the UK on my own with just suit bag for 2 weeks, just washed and dried shirt, socks and undies each night, meant you were nearly always first thru customs.
Cheers
David
herbie said
09:14 PM Apr 13, 2013
Cruising Cruze wrote:
Herbie must be an ex accountend that wants to save 1.12 cent lol
Cheers John
I was just trying to show how extra weight can help increase the cost of travelling with just as little as 60/80Kils over recomended weight allowance .For some one doing travelling just relying on thier pension every cent counts. Sorry if i sounded like a tight a...
I am one of the unlucky one's i am still working,but hey i enjoy my work and i am one of the lucky one's who has a job that i can work all over the country.So in a way i get payed to see this grate country.
-- Edited by herbie on Saturday 13th of April 2013 11:19:50 PM
Cruising Cruze said
01:29 AM Apr 14, 2013
I was only joking Herbie
vk6tnc said
04:42 AM Apr 14, 2013
herbie wrote:
I am one of the unlucky one's i am still working,but hey i enjoy my work and i am one of the lucky one's who has a job that i can work all over the country.So in a way i get payed to see this grate country.
Ok Herbie, share the secret. What job should my guidance counsellor really have suggested ???
herbie said
06:19 AM Apr 14, 2013
I started out in the Army at the ripe old age of 17 and after doing my duty for queen and country i went back to uni and got a real job.So now i contract myself out to mining/ oil and gas/as a health and safety and enviro engineer. Was going to retier three years ago but tryed it for 12 months and got bored .Must be a little crazy.
Freebee said
03:29 PM Apr 14, 2013
I retired four years ago and I have found there are not enough hours in the day. Of cause we don't get up till 8am now. Being an elec engineer at work up to 14 hours a day it was a pleasure to close the door on all that.
As to you being a little crazy, you have worked for about 50 years, get out and smell the roses mate.
Alan
Cupie said
04:26 PM Apr 14, 2013
herbie wrote:
Elliemike,re trying to convince you wife about packing too much, just thought this little bit of info might give you some weight in convincing her to pack light,!!!It works out to be about 1.12 cents for every kilo carted for a distance of 100kms. I know that dosn't much but those cents quickly turn into $$ In fact by shaving 80/90kilos over a trip of 1000km you would save just $10 but that same weight reduction if you did the big lap say (30.000ks it would add up to $337 give or take a few $.
-- Edited by herbie on Friday 12th of April 2013 12:04:24 PM
I'm intrigued Herbie...
I absolutely agree with the concept that weight carried impacts on the fuel efficiency but -
How did you come up with the very precise 1.12 cents per kilo for every 100kms figure?
I've racked my rather deficient brain (too many happy hours) & can't come up with a method.
two dogs said
10:33 PM Apr 14, 2013
Maybe if I show Herbies calculations, she might pack less! The big problem is that she packs for all climates, not just a little bit but a lot. You should see what we took to Tassie!!! Andy
We are traveling the block at the end of the month (Sydney, Broken Hill, Port Auguster, Darwin, Broome, Perth and Sydney with various side trips).
Due to our rig it will be bitumen and good gravel (no off road). We would like some tips on the Do's and Don't's along the way. Like I was told in WA country areas you can't tow a van on the road after 3pm, true or untrue?
We will be taking extra water, food and fuel and have mobile and sat phones an a CB.
If you are planning on staying on sealed roads and some gravel there is no real need to carry any extra fuel and food, may be some extra water in the car say 10 or 20 litres, there are are road houses at least every 200k's don't go past without filling up with fuel and there are usually large supermarkets in every major town, water is readily available and drinking water is always available but sometimes not in large enough quantities to fill your tanks 5 and 10 litres are always available to purchase at most supermarkets don't load your van down with unnecessary weight it just costs more in fuel and places extra strain on your vehicle.
Cheers
David
Dutchy Hope you have a great trip. Take it easy and smell the the roses. You still wont see every thing.
You can tow your rig at any time on WA roads. I wonder if your informant meant "You need to start looking for a campsite at about 3 oclock" Which is what most travellers do. Trying to set up in the dark, or worse still looking for a place to stop late in the day in the dark is not fun.
Have a serious look at your Rig and what you have stowed away in it.
You can get food and fuel (as Freebee say's) almost every day on a journey like this. Why carry large ammounts of it.
All those bush village, town, have a shop IGA etc. Give them your patronage they need it.
Every Kilogram of unessasary weight will cost you in fuel, and can compromise your towing if overweight or badly stowed.
If you are staying in a Caravan Park each night you can top your water up daily. Every litre of water is 1 Kilogram of weight, as is fuel.
Most people even the ones who have done this sort of travelling for years admit to taking stuff they never use. We say this every trip about stuff we packed just in case ? and never used it.
Keep your rig Lean and Mean and leave all those extra clothes behind.
Enjoy your trip.
Mike and Ellie
Just make sure your parked up before sundown 1st reason nothing worse than trying to set up in the dark..2nd reason the road kill come out to sit on the warm bitchy once the sun goes down.And after driving all day your eyes don't pick them up quick enough to miss them.And getting help at night out in the out back can take hrs to arrive.
Agree about being off the road early. I plan my day so that I can usually set up by around 3.30 at the latest.
The comments about getting rid of useless 'just in case' stuff is spot on too. I have a number of check lists of stuff that I continually revise down & modify for the type of trip that I intend doing.
Right too about carrying excess fuel, food & water.
You need to be very aware of your expected fuel consumption in different conditions & plan your day around that. I carry 3 extra jerry cans (Patrol only has a small fuel tank). Two are usually empty & the other is the emergency one in case of extremely strong head winds et. al. Being a cheep skate, I fill them all before tackling the Nullarbor. Possibly false economy but it makes me feel good. Never pass an opportunity to top up the fuel tank. I always fill up the afternoon before leaving a town & top up at lunch if in a reasonable town. I have my water tanks about half full in case of an unexpected roadside overnighter .. never happened though. I have a large drinking water container in the Patrol. ... probably too much. Spare space in the van fridge is taken up with a few frozen wine bladders of water. No shortage of them!
We always buy local as we go ... particularly food, but I keep a spare cask of white & red just in case I run out in one of those dry day or restricted sale indeginous towns. Bottles of wine too heavy. Cans of beer cool down more quickly than stubbies & are lighter too. I carry a large jar of SR flour & baking soda in case of a need for bread/damper. I have recently thrown out most of the other 'staples' that were never used. Noodles, pasta & packet soups are good light weight standbys that I carry along with a range of dried herbs & spices.
I find the UHF rather useless but maybe nice to have. Telstra Broadband dongles are essential for me.
Enjoy your adventure & most of all TAKE YOUR TIME. Drive slowly & enjoy the experience. No prize for first there on any stage.
Thanks for the info.
Looks like I declutter BIG time. I didn't know what fuel, water and food supplies would be along the way.
Regards, Andy
Yes good idea to have at least 10 litres on the back if you run a diesel. On a long trip like this across long distances between servos you never know when you might find one CLOSED. I carry 20 litres.
We have a set of Camping Clothes, shoes boots, we keep in the Van for each of us. Nothing gets hung up as we keep it folded in our individual lockers. We have a combination of Storm Jacket, (with removeable Liner, that is a warm fleecy jacket by itself as well), Sleveless Jacket, Jersey, etc All can be worn in various combination singly or all together depending on the weather. We are both very good about keeping the clothing to a minimum but still manage take stuff we never wear.
Regards
Mike
Elliemike,re trying to convince you wife about packing too much, just thought this little bit of info might give you some weight in convincing her to pack light,!!!It works out to be about 1.12 cents for every kilo carted for a distance of 100kms. I know that dosn't much but those cents quickly turn into $$ In fact by shaving 80/90kilos over a trip of 1000km you would save just $10 but that same weight reduction if you did the big lap say (30.000ks it would add up to $337 give or take a few $.
-- Edited by herbie on Friday 12th of April 2013 12:04:24 PM
I was just trying to show how extra weight can help increase the cost of travelling with just as little as 60/80Kils over recomended weight allowance .For some one doing travelling just relying on thier pension every cent counts. Sorry if i sounded like a tight a...
-- Edited by herbie on Saturday 13th of April 2013 09:10:11 PM
Herbie thanks for the info.
We dont have a problem with packing too much gear/weight as we are both very light travellers and always have been. We have both travelled the world with backpacks. Just off to Europe in two weeks again. The bags packed are 15 kg and 18kg all up this is two Kg heavier than last trip.
I would think the total of our cloting in the van would be simmilar minus the weight of the wheelie bags.
I can't immagine how we could travel o'seas with 15 & 18 Kg. That's probably the weight of our carry on luggage.
On one trip to the USA we were delighted to find that we were allowed two pieces of check in luggage each. SWMBO rushed out & purchased two cheap cases & filled them up with Leggo and stuff ... mostly presents for the grandchildren & any one else that she could think of.
Same baggage allowance on this year's Hawaii trip ... !!!!! Looks like I'll be able to take an extra pair of swimmers & a Hawaiian shirt or two. My carry on for that trip will be a backpack with Laptop, E-reader, toothbrush & spare undies.
Freebie, do check on the times of school hols in NT and WA. If you are there during school hols the camps and caravan parks will be packed, and you will need to do some research and book ahead... especially for Broome.
Also be aware of the quarantine Check-points at state borders, plus the fruit-fly quarantine place before you get to Broken hill.
http://www.quarantinedomestic.gov.au/
Cheers John
Have always tried to travel as light as possible on an overseas trip usually 12kg's each as I am the one that ends up having to hump the luggage, even then we end up with things that are never used. Did one trip to the UK on my own with just suit bag for 2 weeks, just washed and dried shirt, socks and undies each night, meant you were nearly always first thru customs.
Cheers
David
I was just trying to show how extra weight can help increase the cost of travelling with just as little as 60/80Kils over recomended weight allowance .For some one doing travelling just relying on thier pension every cent counts. Sorry if i sounded like a tight a...
I am one of the unlucky one's i am still working,but hey i enjoy my work and i am one of the lucky one's who has a job that i can work all over the country.So in a way i get payed to see this grate country.
-- Edited by herbie on Saturday 13th of April 2013 11:19:50 PM
Ok Herbie, share the secret. What job should my guidance counsellor really have suggested ???
I started out in the Army at the ripe old age of 17 and after doing my duty for queen and country i went back to uni and got a real job.So now i contract myself out to mining/ oil and gas/as a health and safety and enviro engineer. Was going to retier three years ago but tryed it for 12 months and got bored .Must be a little crazy.
I retired four years ago and I have found there are not enough hours in the day. Of cause we don't get up till 8am now. Being an elec engineer at work up to 14 hours a day it was a pleasure to close the door on all that.
As to you being a little crazy, you have worked for about 50 years, get out and smell the roses mate.
Alan
I'm intrigued Herbie...
I absolutely agree with the concept that weight carried impacts on the fuel efficiency but -
How did you come up with the very precise 1.12 cents per kilo for every 100kms figure?
I've racked my rather deficient brain (too many happy hours) & can't come up with a method.
Andy