AnswerID: 515260 Submitted: Tuesday, Jul 23, 2013 at 18:53
Winner W replied:
SIMPSON JULY 2013
I repost my post from the
Ranger forum> Photos on link
Just returned from 6000km round trip with
Ranger in 9 days with my two uni sons.Was in
Sydney for a week then to
Adelaide,
Port Augusta,
Coober Pedy,
Oodnadatta,Mt Dare ,Dalhousie,French Line,
Birdsville,
Quilpie to
Brisbane .
Single vehicle trip so I trusted the little Ford. First desert trip for us.
Cooper Pedy to
OOdnadatta was 100kmh dirt road and pleasure to drive.
Oodnadatta to Mt Dare via Dalhousie
ruins was a nightmare. Corrugations that will shake any dead bones to life.
Bloods creek rd is apparently better to Mt Dare so take it!Got sat phone in Mt Dare and filled up as I used about 30 l from
Oodnadatta. Got a fourth jerry can at Mt Dare to total my fuel to 160l..Mt Dare a lovely place because of the people working there. Honest advice, good food and service. Please support their business as they help us all to do this trip.Started to drizzle on arrival at Dare.Got a cabin to keep swags dry and was glad we did as the next morning still raining.Fuelled up ,breakfast and left for
Dalhousie springs, 2 hours of mud,rocks and those bloody big corrugations and still raining.Dalhouse
camping area a mud bath. Stopped for a swim and as we got in car to leave for the Simpson the access was closed as some fella rolled his car on the clay in the first marsh onto
Purni Bore.Stuck in Dalhousie as raining in
Birdsville too .2 Days of sitting and waiting for news and having a hot swim in
the springs and watching the dingos a few metres from your food..The
ranger at springs made a bypass(thank your very much Sir) around the swamp for 5 kms and we got the green light.Two angelic volunteer rangers kept the
camp toilets clean and informed us of progress As they predicted more heavy rain for
Birdsville in 4 days we changed our planned route which was to follow exploroz Simpson trek that combines 4 routes. We were advised to avoid
Rig road as it was very much under water.........and clay.So the French line was our only option and we were 3 days late.
Took it slow and saw a few groups overtaking us at flying speed into the desert. About 25km later we saw one group of them next to road and their chatter mentioned failed
suspension and back to MT Dare for a $2000 fix. The failed vehicle was clearly overloaded.A single cab with a closed box and half a forest of fire wood right at the back and in Dalhousie this fella left his rubbish bag right at his
campsite which was immaculate and set up in military precision style but not so his other skills.We never heard of this group again on the track.
The dunes were rutted to the max on both sides and seeing that we had to cross more than a 1000 of them we had some shaking to do..The track was rutted deeply by trailers and high tyre pressures. Where there were no ruts the sand was corrugated !! The ruts must be 30cm deep in most spots so we did 15-17kmh.Saw
dingo track almost continuously as if they patrol the track .No camels seen but lots of fresh tracks and dung. Very few birds but lots of beautiful stars.Saw only 8 vehicles over 3 days.Drove 18 hours one day at walking speed and swapped drivers every 2 hours.Boys loved to drive the
Ranger so no begging there...Photo shots at Poeppel in dark and did another 40km closer to
Birdsville until midnight.
Had a good sleep next to fire and felt safer with the rain prediction.Early rise and skipped the Apro Knolls .Eyre creek dry but this is a beautiful part of the track.Got to Big Red at lunch. Son was driving so he had first go with all of us and gear and made it.
We could see the storm and rain front far southwest of desert. Wind was sandblasting us but what a beautiful sight from there and a sense of relief. Spent 30 mins there.Curry camel pie in
Birdsville, fuel up ,drop the sat phone off, beer in Pub and hit the road before the rain.2 days to
Brisbane.
Now the reflections
RANGER WAS AWESOME and gave not a single problem.The power in the dunes is just awesome with low down torque. We stayed in high range with traction control off.
Standard
suspension was more than enough just lower your tyre pressures. On road I run 46psi,gravel 24,and sand 18.
No rattles in car
Dust proof cabin
Battery didn't die but I had a second and the battery jumperpack.Seats were comfy with all the rocking and bucking but we rotated.
The Simpson red sand is the same colour as the Wildtrak chilli
orange seat inserts.
Tow bar spare carrier did a top job. TheTow bar bolt tightening the tongue broke free .
Roof racks did
well but seeing the road In Dare we moved the 4 diesel jerry cans to on top of maxtrax and next to swags on tub racks.
The Summit Mudhogs were impressive. No flats,no cuts or chips. We used them on wet bitumen.sand.rocks and mud and they still look new apart from the mud stains now.I run 46 psi on bitumen,24 on
rock and gravel, and 18 on sand.
I used the TYREDOG tyre pressure monitors for the first time and they were very assuring and accurate. They clearly show the difference in temps and pressures when some tyres were getting sun or the rear right closer to exhaust.
The tub racks were more than up to the task.We used 140 litres of diesel for the 450km. Heavy going .
Our radio was a GME TK3100 5 watt plug and play with the antenna under dash mat. We transmitted on a 0.5 watt handheld on dune crossings otherwise the surrounding 100 dunes know you are coming if you use the 5 watt one.
We got stuck once at the top of a dune on a sand ridge just as we pulled off to
camp . We got the chairs out , lit the fire, put the foiled potatoes in the fire ,had a drink watching the sun set . After dark we took 30 minutes to dig but eventually the exhaust jack did the trick and the maxtrax. Had a simple dinner .
Winching was not an option.
LEAVE THE TRAILER OR CAMPER AT
HOME FOR THIS TRIP.
IPF spotlights were good and didn't break.
Take a sat phone.Take Telstra phone cards. We could phone from
Dalhousie Springs to inform people of our delays using the public phone booth there that surely is a sat link.Our long neck shovel broke . Get a solid one.
No am/fm radio reception in desert so no weather reports and news can be good or bad.
Some people I know also did the trip in a 4 strong Toyota mob and were flabbergasted that we did it alone in a FORD !!!!!!!!!!
Second vehicle is better for peace of mind .Don't take a car with any mechanical defects .Skip the middle 2 thirds of the French Line as it looks the same as the end sections. Do the first trip the combined Exploroz Simpson track. . Because the roller shutter is NOT dust or water tight I suggest if you have a Wildtrak ,to have all the sensitive stuff like food ,cameras,cooking gear, clothes and sleeping bags in sealed containers .
The tub stuff was covered with fine dust.Keep a little dust broom in each door
well for the feet and swags. We took no canned drinks and wrapped the gas cannisters . The mozzies at Dalhousie are agro and lethal. As were the flies closer to
Birdsville even in winter.The plastic coke and water bottles rubbed through from the corrugations.The empty jerrys ended up on roof rack .Our swags stayed dry in our system of tough bags and wheelie bin bags but putting them in tarps may work better. Take long life milk in smaller sizes . They are stronger . Don't loose your coffee powder........... Take some sort of tarp and poles and sunscreen. Get a shade screen type cover for the roof rack that is easier to keep things inside and remove than a net type cover.We took 60liters of water and used only 20 but will take that amount again. Big Red is such a highlight at the end I can spend a day there watching the action and
views.A trip like this is not cheap with fuel and extras but it is a bucket list trip .If the thought of the desert expedition is too much just do a trip to
Birdsville, do the Big Red thingy, drive the desert track up to
the entrance of the Simpson national park past Eyre creek and still experience the dunes and part of the French line .Take some shade screen for a ground sheet.
Tyredog is the Tpms that I use. They survived the rocks, mud knee deep and sand traps . I didnt use them on the bitumen. They are made in Taiwan. Its more to warn of flats before a tyre is destroyed. They are accurate and simple and work.The sensors are actually on the tyre in mud shot.The monitor has a soft light for the night driving,alatms, temp display and small enough. It stayed on the windscreen through all the corrugations and has batteries or a sig plug. The radio is light and simple and antenna is magnetic but it stayed on the dash under the matt. It is powered by sig plug so no wiring needed. The radio rested on the dashmatt but its suction cup is strong. I used a hair elastic to keep microphone on base set. End of trip its all out and stowed under seats.I see there is a certain town between
Oodnadatta and
Sydney that is infamous for flat tyres and mysterious screws show up in tyres. My friends had 3 on their trip in that area last month. As for the desert tracks I dont want to destroy my daily drive so the
Ranger is a very nice way of seeing remote
places that may be difficult to access. If I want to play rough I use my old 1991 Pajero that even my boys cant break.
I dont have a trailer myself but I can understand the place for them and those caravans would look so nice behind the Wildtrak..... But I think any one contemplating towing a trailer on any part of the French line likes punishment. Getting bogged is always fun on a trip but with a trailer even that fun looses its appeal after a few bogs on a dune and hungry flies in your mouth whilst digging sand . Its not impossible but listen to the guys from Mt Dare . They see it every day. If the macho guys love proving they could do it with a trailer or did the French line in under 2 days good on them. We need idiots to keep the economy going.My biggest battle is time to get the boys together and to fit in as much as we can ,so a plane is a better option... But ooohhhh the
Ranger is sooo nice and far cheaper. And whilst you save heaps by buying at
home please do support the local shops , buy burgers and fuel and help them survive! The country folk have it really tough and in stead of a 1min cheeseburger drive 1 hour on to the small town and wait for their 30 min one which may be good or not so good.
THIS
RANGER ROCKS !!!
simpson trip
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FollowupID: 794492 Submitted: Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 at 07:18
Member - Neil B (VIC.) posted:
What an incredibly detailed and helpful trip report. It was a pleasure to read this. Do you have any more? Thank you!
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FollowupID: 794494 Submitted: Wednesday, Jul 24, 2013 at 08:05
Winner W posted:
Pleasure, also remember the clay pans are salty so wash the car
well at
home.And sand grabba mats help a lot.
If someone wants to add the above as a separate trip report on a new thread please do as I dont know how to do that and there is some good info from our trip for members here and other forums
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