Old Ghan Railway
Submitted: Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 18:14
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Member - Boobook
I'm going from Mt Dare to Alice as part of a trip next June and want to take in part of the Old Ghan
Heritage line.
I have have done some homework on this site and take away the following.
-The road will be rougher after the Finke races
-There are lots of spikes but manageable at speed and with correct tyre pressure.
-The section from Maryvale to Finke is quite rough but it is better from Maryvale to Alice.
-
Chambers Pillar is a rough ride but worth it.
Can someone tell me the following
1)Is the above basically right and anything else to watch?
2)Can I
camp basically anywhere along the way and what are some nice spots to
camp?
3)What is the approx driving time from Mt Dare to Finke then Finke to Maryvale then Maryvale to Alice?
Will 1 1/2 days be too quick?
Any other advice?
Thanks in advance
Reply By: Ozrover - Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 18:28
Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 18:28
Didn't I just talk to you on the phone... lol.
First section is correct!
Driving times vary but count on at least 3 1/2 hrs. from Mt Dare to Maryvale, then another hour or so to
Chambers Pillar.
From
chambers Pillar to Alice around 2 to 2 1/2 hrs.
Camping at the Pillar itself is reasonable, between Finke & Maryvale, Rumbalara claypan is good, but anywhere without dunny paper & rubbish is okay.
AnswerID:
523276
Follow Up By: Member - Boobook - Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 18:38
Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 18:38
Ahh you got me Jeff, After our discussion I thought about more options and focused on the rail line a bit more. I'll circle around then come back to you on another stinking hot day to confirm the trip so you don't have to dig those holes.
:-)
FollowupID:
804660
Reply By: splits - Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 20:53
Thursday, Dec 19, 2013 at 20:53
I drove over the railway line a couple of weeks after this year's race. The race track beside the line was in far better condition than the rail section and we spent about two thirds of the distance between Finke and Maryvale on it. The railway was flat, mostly straight and very heavily corugrated. The race track was curved, sandy, it had lots of huge woopdedoos and was a lot of fun but if it was corrugated then they must have been minor and few and far between because I can't remember them.
Rail spikes are everywhere but I only saw one sticking up vertically. I think speed could be the big problem with getting punctures with these things. You are unlikely to get a front wheel
puncture by running over one laying flat but if too much speed causes the wheel to throw it back like a stone, it could go under the rear wheel at just the right angle causing a
puncture that would be far too big for a plug kit.
The road into
Chambers Pillar is easy. It has plenty of corrugations but not as bad as the railway. The
sign at Maryvale says 4wd only but, if you were determined to get a 2wd in, about the only thing that might stop you is one
rock covered
hill and maybe a few sandy patches.
Maryvale to Alice is no trouble at all.
The roughest roads that we found in the area were from the
Oodnadatta Track to
Dalhousie Springs then on to MT Dare and part of the way to Finke. They were not only heavily corrugated but covered with countless rocks.
I think you could
camp just about anywhere through there. We camped about fifty metres off the road at the
Oodnadatta Track to
Dalhousie Springs turnoff then a night at Mt Dare and spent two nights at the
ruins of the Bundooma
railway siding. It is just
bush camping through there with no facilities.
Travelling times are entirely up to you. It depends on how fast you want to push your car over corrugations. It is easy to break cars out there. We saw about a dozen cars go through Bundooma with everyone going slowly except Aborigines in old Falcons and a police Landcruiser travelling at warp speed.
AnswerID:
523286
Reply By: Davo53 - Friday, Dec 20, 2013 at 17:37
Friday, Dec 20, 2013 at 17:37
Hi All .
We did this trip at the beginning of September this year . This is after the Finke race , so we were expecting the road to be
well chewed up , but as luck would have it the
grader had just been through , and we cruised in comfort all the way .
We had an easy day from Finke to CP , and another easy 1/2 day from CP to Alice . This included a side trip to Lamberts Centre , if you visit Finke , , you may as
well go there !
It was also time enough after the race for all the legendary garbage to have been removed .
The sections of road following the Ghan line are very interesting , especially going along raised sections with a fall off on both sides ! We saw heaps of dog spikes , probably at least a dozen standing on end . Worth watching out for .
The road to CP was rough in spots , some corrugated sections but
well worth the trouble . There is one steep
hill , we used low range getting our camper over it . There is also a section through dunes where the road is narrow enough to be wary of a head on .
To our surprise we were the only people at CP , had the place totally to ourselves . Great for me , made Fiona feel a bit Wolf Creekish , if you know what I mean .
So it all depends ! Timing , as always , is everything.
Cheers
Dave
AnswerID:
523321
Follow Up By: BUSH CAMPER - Saturday, Dec 21, 2013 at 08:46
Saturday, Dec 21, 2013 at 08:46
Well worth the trip, we did the Oodnatta track through
Dalhousie springs, Mt dare,
Chambers Pillars Maryvale thru to Alice, last year with a 17' off road Elite caravan and did it with no trouble.
It was early June, just drive to conditions and adjust tyre pressure to suit conditions.
regards Hugh
FollowupID:
804724
Reply By: Norm C (WA) - Friday, Dec 20, 2013 at 21:44
Friday, Dec 20, 2013 at 21:44
I was out there late September this year
Kulgera to Lamberts Centre Finke
Chambers Pillar onto Alice.
The race is along side the road there fore is not really affected by it.
The road from
Kulgera to Finke is Very good Out to Lamberts center
is a bit rough but easy as is the road to
Chambers Pillar although a
bit corrugated in a couple of spots.Bear in mind these roads except the
one to Lamberts are Major access roads so generally good.My Ford
Ranger
towing the TVan had no trouble at all. Engaged 4WD once on the way
out to the Centre. You should allow enough time at Chambers to be there
at sun up or sun down.
Great trip Don't over think it and have a Great time
Norm
AnswerID:
523328