new to exploroz ,question about fraser island

hi all
i am new to this site, we own a triton 4x4 and a jayco hawk outback, we love camping and touring australia.
later this year we are going to fraser island, i have some concerns about towing the jayco, we will be catching the ferry at inskip and driving to dilli village, is this do able with the jayco, will i need a trig hitch rather than tow ball ,looking forword to your replys
regards
dean
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Reply By: Barbera72 - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 10:20

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 10:20
Hi Dean, the answer from me is yes you can. Choose barge time at low tide to make things easy, but from hook point to dilli there are not difficult obstacles that I can remember and you should be concerned about. Getting from inskip rd to the ferry on soft sand will be the hardest bit.
AnswerID: 514945

Reply By: mountainman - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 11:25

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 11:25
make sure when your on the island you've got plenty of fuel before getting on the barge.
sand will chew through your tank, and towing would be worse.

fuel is pretty dear on the island, soo fuel up some jerries, if you havnt got a long range tank..

prices would have to be 2.30 on the island at a guess..

nice place but..
AnswerID: 514947

Reply By: deanstriton - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 11:32

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 11:32
thanks guys for your input, i'm no stranger to driving on sand just never towed on sand, i belive camper trailers do it easily because of the same foot print, but the van has a larger foot print than the triton
AnswerID: 514948

Reply By: Rangiephil - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 15:58

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 15:58
IMHO you will need an offroad hitch as the angles off and on the barge could be too much for a tow ball.

Some of the creek washouts along the ocean beach can be short and steep also.
Regards Philip A
AnswerID: 514957

Follow Up By: mountainman - Friday, Jul 19, 2013 at 22:13

Friday, Jul 19, 2013 at 22:13
cough cough..............

I see they have a fishing tournament on the island every year.... and all the guys towing boats have the normal style hitch setup...

bit extreme to have to get the treg hitch for a camper trailer, just to get on fraser island.... ha ha

you'll be fine..
make sure she's properly clipped onto the ball, and safety chains and no worries...

treg hitch is more mountain 4wding... or simpson desert stuff than a simple get on and off the barge ramp.................

if your driving into steep creek washouts, and losing a trailer then your doing it wrong !
sand has a way of levelling itself out.....
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FollowupID: 794200

Reply By: rumpig - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 16:31

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 16:31
you'll be fine, lower your tyre pressures accordingly depending on how dry the sand is, and you won't have a problem. there's no need for an offroad tow hitch, i've towed a 13ft 1970's onroad model poptop caravan up Fraser Island many times without an issue. the best plan IMHO is arrive on Fraser Island about 2 hours before lowtide, you'll then be able to drive up the island on the hard compact sand. the going is usually so easy when you time it like this, i used to knock my 4wd into 2wd and easily cruise up the beach. if i ever saw a soft patch coming up, i'd shift back to 4wd on the fly and keep cruising along without an issue.
now in saying this, i've never towed into Dilli Village itself and i've never been in there at all, so can't comment on what the track is like that runs into there from the beach, i'd still doubt you'd need an offroad hitch though to do it.

If i can get this up the island easily, i'm pretty sure you can get your hawk outback to dilli Village

AnswerID: 514958

Follow Up By: rumpig - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 16:33

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 16:33
forgot to mention above...we always went via Inskip Point, and the caravan only had a normal ball type hitch on it.
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FollowupID: 794141

Reply By: Smiley Bill - Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 22:17

Thursday, Jul 18, 2013 at 22:17
Hi deanstriton,

Lower tyre pressures on the 4wd and trailer will see you right for driving on the sand. A Trig, or similar, off-road hitch will be a lot better than a tow-ball type hitch.

There are quite a few creeks running across the beach as well as getting on and off the barge that would seriously test a towball and coupling, IMHO it's not worth the risk.

SB
AnswerID: 514984

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