Hunt Oil Road

The Hunt Oil Road is a track that runs nearly 264kms from the Geraldton Historic Society bore (which is 32kms west of Everard Junction on the Gunbarrel Highway) to the Great Central Road, approximately 125kms south west of Warburton. On the southern half, the track is not regularly used for access to the two aboriginal communities to the east, although the southern half of the track is in much better condition than the northern half. It is suggested that you should allow at least two days to travel this track in its current condition as the track is generally overgrown with a number of washaways with some being quite deep. Possibly only a handful of 4WD vehicular parties travel the full length of this track each year.

The track could be used as an alternative to the Heather Highway between Warburton and Carnegie Station. Permits are not needed to travel on the Hunt Oil Road as the track traverses through Crown land. The centre of the track can be high in places and can feature many small shrubs such as Smokebush, Grevilleas and spinifex, so a high clearance 4WD is recommended. It’s important to note that spinifex can be a potential fire hazard when caught on hot areas under the vehicle, so a spinifex screen, fire equipment and exercising precaution is essential.

None for this track - See Gunbarrel Highway & Great Central Road treknotes.

Spinifex, wildflowers, Mt Worsnop, Bores, Drilling camp and caves.

Spinifex Warning

The country through which the track passes had received good rains over the last few years (2004) and there was a lot of new growth. The spinifex was green with long seed stalks. Most of the stalks had long heads and were well above the bonnet of our Land Rover and the seeds were very prolific. You need to provide some sort of protection across the full front of the vehicle to avoid, as far as possible, spinifex seeds clogging your radiator. It is highly advisable to continually check underneath your vehicle for spinifex caught around the exhaust pipe and any other hot areas of your vehicle, as a spinifex fire can be disastrous. Powder type fire extinguishers are of little use for spinifex fires as the resin retains sufficient heat to relight a fire that has been snuffed out by the powder. Carry a 5 litre pressurised garden spray filled with water and with a long wand for such events. There are the remains of a burnt-out Nissan on the track as evidence that spinifex fires can be disastrous. Beware of overheating.

Remote Desert Country

Temperatures can rise to 50°C in summer and it has been known to rise to 60°C. Travel during summer is not recommended. This is remote desert country, so be fully self-sufficient. Keep in mind that this is not a well travelled route and there are absolutely no facilities for travellers, not even stations or aboriginal communities.

Your vehicle will need to be extensively prepared for remote area travel, with all fuel, water, food and vehicle repair equipment and spare parts. All travellers must be totally self-sufficient and should read the 4WDriving Topic for related articles and checklists for vehicle setup and driver awareness. High clearance vehicles recommended, and depending on the season, a spinifex blind is highly recommended.

We advise that you refer to the latest information and advice about outback communications in the Communications Topic. For any dune driving you should fly a dune flag from the front of your vehicle to avoid head on collisions on dune tops. Additionally, the lead vehicle in any direction should periodically make calls on Channel 10 from the top of large dunes on the UHF radio to advise oncoming traffic of your position.

Fuel - note that unleaded fuels have long been unavailable in the region in an attempt to combat petrol sniffing issues in nearby Aboriginal communities. Recently, a new fuel from BP called Opal Unleaded, has been introduced to better serve travellers interests, whilst combating petrol sniffing problems. BP Opal Unleaded is available at Warburton, Warakurna Roadhouse, and Docker River.

Essentially, when travelling north, the track is poor for the first 150kms. Then just before the climb to the plateau when passing through little gullies near Mt Worsnop, the track deteriorates and for the next 112kms, the track is generally overgrown with a number of washaways with some being quite deep.