Great Sandy Desert Desert - Striking north to Lake McKay

Wednesday 3rd June, 2009
Kiwirrkurra-Balgo Road (sort of)
22 46.659 S, 128 12.491 E
Od 206448 22.5 km north of the Gary Junction Road.




It was a cold night with the wind picking up sometime in the early hours of the morning. Surprising just how quickly the temperature dropped away considering the warm wind that had existed earlier in the evening. I was awake at 3.00 a.m. and up with the sun at 7.15 a.m. The fire was going a breakfast of braised steak & Onion (BS&O) jaffles proved a hearty breakfast all washed down with a strong cup of tea. On packing the tent I found the first of a problem that will no doubt plague me for the rest of the trip. The racsac does not provide enough room to slide your hand across when zipping the top cover. I solved the press to some degree by removing several hard cased items into the vehicle. Alas, much to my dismay, another problem manifested itself. The main strap the holds the fuel cans had slipped and released on the inside hook. This meant another climb onto the roof and removal of both the water container and a fuel can to get to the bar work to reattach the hook. Another 10 minutes of toil and everything was squared away again. The issue with such tight tolerances in the packing stakes I suppose.

We were on the road at 0900 hours and just as we hit the road, over the radio, George uttered the phrase that should never be mentioned. I cannot even bring myself to mention it here but it involved the round rubber pneumatic conveyance facilitation devices becoming square on the bottom. Within five minutes, Peter was also over at the roadside in the Hummer with BOTH rear tyres deflating. It turned out to be a compressor issue which forced him to isolate both wheels from the main pump and storage cylinder. No sooner were we going than George was over on the side of the road. As if the gods were exacting revenge for his cheek, his front passenger’s side tyre spat a valve forcing a hasty replacement. I think they are finally starting to believe me.

The road west remained in good condition allowing a fair clip of 70-80 kph and wed soon reached the Sandy Blight Junction. Again more photos were taken before heading in to Kintore for Fuel. Nestled under the spectacular ramparts of Mt Leisler, Kintore would be expected to be in tune with it’s surroundings. Again it’s a listless, depressing place where the locals lack motivation to do anything and white mans rubbish litters the ground. We couldn’t wait to fuel up and be out of there. Such a shame. Diesel was a paltry $1.65 per litre, a far cry for the $2.00 plus of last year. I took on 70 litres and Willie visited the clinic which was in session thank goodness. The diagnosis was an infected gum rather than the tooth which is good news indeed (well better at least. Still painful for W though).



It was only 40 km to the border which saw us arrive at the Beadell marked line just before midday. There is an abandoned house and bore a few hundred metres north and this provided our luncheon spot, sitting in the shade of the verandah. While not as impressive as the Puntawarri residences, it is again a waste of resources, just let go to ruin.

Once over the border the road deteriorated immediately. It is a long time since a grader has graced this surface and it was back to one exceptionally corrugated and rocky lane. Atrocious driving conditions that saw the speed drop away markedly Somewhere along the way, the conditions took their toll on one of Willies trailer tyres and it let go. It must have been down for a while as the tyre sustained a bit of damage although there is still a fair weight in the trailer itself which also adds the stress. Despite the road conditions the scenery remained ever changing and captivating. Marked the Grove of Desert Oak in the Dovers Hills as a potential campsite to remember. The expansive forest would be a magnificent spot to spend an evening surrounded by the rocky hills. At 2.20 p.m. the first glimpses of Mount Webb were gained on the western horizon. I stopped for a few photos before catching the main group as they turned off just west of the Mount and headed inland on an ill defined track. It was good to be back on the narrow winding tracks of the desert although I was wishing I’d gotten the scratch pro on prior to this point of the trip. The heavy scrub left a few marks on the duco in no time, in particular the hardy Holley Leafed Hakea bushes.

The track wound its way across dunes and rocky outcrops and rises of the Elizabeth Hills. The MRF’s of the lead vehicles were having some difficulty in crossing the sand at times prompting several stops to deflate tyres. Being tail end Charlie I had the Hummer in front of me. It was certainly wider than the other vehicles and ploughed through most brush. Didn’t seem to stop the Nissan from taking a pounding though.

This track was in fact a short cut across to the Kiwirrkurra-Balgo Road which is little more than a track in its own right. On reaching this track, we turned right for several kilometres pulling up in a large bowl shaped area that was surrounded by dunes. It’s fairly sheltered and there is plenty of wood about. The group had camped here previously. On arrival, and after wood collection, I sacrificed some water to sponge the worst of the dust off the car and then rolled the remaining scratch pro on. I got enough for one good coat with the main areas such as guards getting the left overs as extra. Then it was out with the shade cloth to fit a spinifex screen across the bullbar. Peter gave me a quick lesson in the HF but we could not get it a clear signal due to constant interference and electrical "noise".



I had a quick scrub and then steak and veg for dinner with a refreshing beverage. The desert remains one of the most awesome places to be in the evening. The sky is so clear, the colours so amazingly vivid. A fireside gathering and then adjourn to the Taj for journal. Tomorrow it’s on to Dwarf well and then Balgo perhaps the following day.

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