Cape York with a Caravan

Member - Robbo (QLD) replied:

Have look at the Gall Boys DVD series ( they build Kedron Caravans)- they have hauled big vans up there.. with great difficulty. I personally would not consider it when you see the trouble they had on the OTT
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Rangiephil replied:

Well I personally wouldn't try to tow one on the OTT and the Gall boys only did it as a stunt.

It would be very possible to tow a very sturdy van to the cape on the main roads, but the road can be very bad in parts .


When I spoke to the RACQ agent in Coen in September , he had rescued 23 camper trailers that had broken in the preceding fortnight, and Coen is only the start of the cape.

So , if you have high confidence in your van's construction and it is a full Offroad spec then there should be no problem.
Regards Philip A Thumbs UpThanks 0

Andrew M7 replied:

Cheers....thanks heaps Thumbs UpThanks 0

Member - DW Lennox Head(NSW) replied:

Andrew

I went up last year, using the by pass. I was towing a Kimberley Karavan with a Mazda Bravo. I had absolutely no problems at all. There were some other vans at the top and Weipa that were not off road types.

By lowering tyre pressure and driving to conditions you should have no worries. I saw numerous Commodores and Falcons on the road. Ensure that you have very good tyres all round,

I did 2 easy days from Cooktown to Bamaga.

The biggest problem you will have are the cowboys driving excessively fast at you. They are usually towing a trailer of some sort and shower you with gravel and dust. They are often on a 3 week trip from somewhere in the far south to the Cape and back.

Cheers
DW Thumbs UpThanks 0

deserter replied:

Bypass roas is fine - just heaps of corrugation. Thumbs UpThanks 0

Motherhen replied:

We ran short of time on our last trip to Qld, but probably next big trip we'll fit it in and take our rig all the way. But not via to OTT :O A number of Bushtrackers have been taken to the top. I expect like any road of its type, the conditions would vary day by day and week by week.

As said, the Gall's DVD was done as pure showmanship, and they were prepared to muck up the track in the interests of getting a 'good shot', choosing the hardest places for most 'show'.

Motherhen Thumbs UpThanks 0

Members - Bow & Nan replied:

We have taken our van to the Cape without any trouble. Keep the tyre pressure and speed low.

The rig photo was taken on the Telegraph track on the way into the falls. Thumbs UpThanks 0

Member - Old Girl replied:

Inspirational photo, love it. Thumbs UpThanks 0

aboutfivebucks (Pilbara) replied:

Just wait until the PDR and OTT are bitumised - then youll be right.
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Ian & Sue replied:

Took our Coromal Pioneer Corvair (18ft) up to Sisesa Beach (sorry about the spelling) July last year - towed by our Jeep Wrangler. We took it steady and had no problems at all with the van or Jeep just a few loose fillings for ourselves!

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Member - Bucky replied:

Andrew
A couple of things to consider

Is your van an off road, soft roader, or what ?
What springs do you have under it ?
Should be a quality setup, so get them checked out, and upgraded if necessary
It will also depend on weather the graders have been thru or not, but that is never a guarantee, so you should factor that bit out.

I would not hesitste in taking a suitable big van up the "tip".
Do not take a van on the OTT, end of story.
Use the bypass roads.

We took our Trak Shak Camper Trailer, up the Cape in August this year.
We went up on the OTT, and came back on the Bypass Roads.


There is only a couple of spots where you will get a shaken up, and they are on the Southern Bypass.
In qualifying that we Passed a couple of low loaders dragging new houses up to Bamaga. One was in Injinoo, and the other one was yet to hit the rough section, just nth of the bitumen, after the Communication Tower, where the Sthern Bypass Road meets the OTT.
( hope I got that bit right )..
It's a bit narrow there as well, so be carefull.

Found it a bit easy to say the least, especially after some of the Victorian High Country drives.

Remember
Drop van tyre pressures down to under 20psi, and check it's clearance.
Drive slowly, down to 10 km/hr in spots, if you have to
60 -70 km/hr only if conditions are good, ( and there are plenty )

I would hate to see you brake down because you haven't done your homework.

Cheers
Bucky Thumbs UpThanks 0

Andrew M7 replied:

Thanks heaps everyone for the advice......much appreciated and very helpful.

Cheers
Andrew Thumbs UpThanks 0