The Wild GeeseAcross The Middle And Back Around The Top
This will be the actuality, rather than the original plan of Around The Top And Back Across The Middle. As a result departure is about a week later than originally planned, towards the end of July.
The reason? Fellow traveller John English had a whoopsy in Ipswich, getting highsided when his KTM hit oil on a bend and fracturing a couple of ribs. The doctor suggested that John will need 4-6 weeks to mend. The trip is still on, but reversing the journey allows us to leave later and still make it to the Off Centre Rally in WA.
Here's the current plan (slightly changed from the original, we will do a bit more off-road this way):
 |
| Leave the Sunshine Coast early on Monday 31st July | |
| Stop off at Dalby Moto in the morning for a new front rim and new tyres | 280km |
| Continue to St. George | 300km, 1 day |
| St. George - Bourke | 420km, 1 day |
| Bourke - Tibooburra | 440km, 1 day |
| Tibooburra - Marree | 520km, 1 day |
| Marree - Oodnadatta - Mintabie | 620km, 1-2 days |
| Mintabie - Curtin Springs for a visit to Ayers Rock (Uluru and the Olgas (Kata Tjuta)) | 430km, 1-2 days |
| Curtin Springs - Warburton Mission | 650km, 1 day |
| Warburton Mission - Wiluna | 800km, 1-2 days |
| Wiluna - Meekatharra - Gascoyne Junction | 650km, 1 day |
| Rally at Gascoyne Junction, 12-13 August. | 1-2 days |
Subtotal Sunshine Coast to Gascoyne Junction 5,200km
| Gascoyne Junction - Carnarvon - Port Headland | 1050 km, 2 days |
| Port Headland - Broome, stay depending on what Broome has to offer | 610 km, 1-2 days |
| Broome - Derby | 180 km, 1 day |
| Derby on Gibb River Road - Kununurra | 712 km, 2-3 days |
| Usually rough and corrugated with some river crossings, sand and bull dust. |
| Kununurra - Darwin | 836 km, 2 days |
Subtotal Gascoyne Junction to Darwin 3,400km
| Oil change in Darwin at KTM dealer, wash undies again, have a look around town. | 2 days |
| Kakadu if anyone is interested? | 2 days |
| Darwin - Mataranka - Roper Bar - Borroloola - Burketown - Mt Isa | 2000 km, 4-6 days |
| (maybe detour to Lawn Hill between Burketown and Mt. Isa) | |
| Some river crossings, corrugated, average rainfall Borroloola in July=1mm, average max temp 30C |
Roper Bar... separates fresh water from tidal salt water.
| In Mt Isa wash the undies. | 1 day |
| Mt Isa - Hughenden - Muttaburra - Barcaldine - Emerald. | 1940 km, 3-4 days |
| (Possibly detour to Carnarvon Gorge) | |
| Arrive back on the Sunshine Coast! |
Subtotal Darwin to home 4,000km
Total trip distance about 12,600km
Pics from http://www.exploroz.com
Download the GPS routes for this trip here.
