<span class="highlight">Simpson</span> Desert Lone Crossing Sept 2022

I did it solo two weeks ago west to east no problems. You still need to feel confident within yourself that you are capable otherwise you won’t enjoy it
It is pretty chopped up in sections but still very doable
Be sympathetic towards your vehicle :)

We have done it many times solo and to be honest, the desert does not change a lot, just the face of the dunes just get cut up more every year from one thing only…….wrong bloody tyre pressures.

If you have not had much sand driving experience, drop to 14 psi, engage 4X4 high range and it should be a walk in the park.

Go higher in tyre pressure and you will get caught out on some dunes.

Your best friend for solo work is a set of Maxtrax.

Enjoy

I've done the Simpson twice and the last time with fuel pump problems so I had serious power problems. In my 1HZ 75s Troopy I dropped my tyres down to 14psi and then used low 4 on the dunes. Momentum works to a point and good on flat stuff but these dunes will be cut up to buggery with deep hollows all the way up. I found by just using a steady speed and let the car do all the work and keeping the bounce down to a minimum worked well. If at the crest of the dune I started to bog down swinging your steering wheel left to right rapidly considerably helped as the side walls dug in and dragged me over. Mate I traveled with used momentum over tyre pressures and he bounced all over the shop and and caused damage.
With 1100 dunes you'll soon learn what works for you.

Enjoy it's a beautiful spot.

I will give you a tip if an auto. There is a metal plate under the bell housing that is not well sealed, seal it with silicone. My son has a late model ranger still under warranty , he went up the big desert for 2 days, recently (still under warranty) he had it serviced at he local dealer. They found an oil leak, they washed it and told him to drive for a time and bring it back to them. Well he took it back and the leak was still there. They pulled the transmission out and found the inside of the bell housing had a large amount of sand and it had destroyed front oil seal of the auto box.
Ford would not fix it under warranty and quoted in excess of six grand to repair it. They accused him of driving through water above the wading limit. He took it somewhere else and had a new seal fitted and checked the box for other issues for two grand.
The story is, before you go seal the plate to stop sand getting in.

Given the recent rain event, I would be careful when traversing the clay pans. You may find you will need to drive around them and not across them.

Macca.

Hi, I am also new to this app having previously used Hemma.
We crossed the Madigan Line last week and never saw another vehicle for 5 days. The track was mint except where we joined the QAA line at Eyre Creek. The QAA was heavily scalloped and corrugated but no problems. You won’t be alone as the French line is getting a lot of traffic.
I have had some issues with Exploreoz. It did not show sections of the Madigan Line but did show tracks that do not exist. Also it keeps going to a blue screen which needs a reset to defaults to fix. Then you loose all your custom settings. I have also had to re download the maps twice in the last week.
I think Hemma is better.

I’ve done 2 solo trips, Tim, one in June & the other in late Sept/early Oct.

The former was across the FL, Birdsville-Mt Dare, and took 3 days. Think I only spoke to 3 people in the 3 days, it was very quiet. The 2nd journey was from Mac Clark Reserve, where my friends headed to the Alice, & I travelled on the Madigan, then down Colson Track to Rig Road, along RR & up K1 & Hay River Track and along Madigan from Camp 16. After leaving 8 friends at MC Reserve, it was a warm-hot & lonely trip till I got to Adria Downs.

I’d do your trip as early in Sept as possible, to avoid the heat, and keep a close eye on potential weather fronts coming from the West. Safe trip,

Bob

Hi TWP. We did the Rig Rd E to W towing trailers in Sept 2015 arriving at Mt Dare about the 12th. No heat until the day we got to Dare and spent the afternoon realigning trailer springs in the 32 degree temps. So not too bad. As Steven said above, the scenery can be similar so it may not matter which track you take. As for rain, Birdsville had 9 mm on the 6th and dry since, the Alice dry since 4th June. Map below in link shows desert rainfall is negligible. But record rain in central Qld yesterday so keep an eye on charts
http://www.bom.gov.au/jsp/awap/rain/index.jsp?colour=colour&time=latest&step=0&map=totals&period=cmonth&area=nat

As well as the previously mentioned tyre pressure, remember to turn off the traction control in the Ranger. It works by applying the brakes, not ideal in sand. And you need to remember to turn it off every time you start the vehicle.

You will also need more than a pair of Maxtrax. You really need one per wheel.
David

And have a TALL sand flag on your bull-bar for maximum visibility.