Travelling to SA from Perth

Submitted: Monday, Sep 26, 2022 at 21:39
ThreadID: 144882 Views:4822 Replies:7 FollowUps:11
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Thinking of heading to SA from Perth in Jan 2023 anybody done this at this time and have any advice, we have about three weeks.
Just bought a van, we would have done a few local runs to get familiar with the van etc.
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Reply By: Zippo - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 11:18

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 11:18
Is that 3 weeks to get to SA, or there-and-back? Makes a big difference.
AnswerID: 641736

Follow Up By: Member - Gary P15 - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 12:45

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 12:45
Ha ha three weeks there and back, it does make a big difference.
Thanks
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FollowupID: 921056

Follow Up By: Kazza055 - Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 16:45

Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 16:45
Yer, well when I was young and stupid I drove from Perth to Port Augusta non stop.

Now I reckon 700k towing a 2500kg van is more than enough for one day.
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FollowupID: 921069

Reply By: Kazza055 - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 13:26

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 13:26
At a push it will take you about 4 days of hard driving to get to Perth from say Adelaide. This will be the hottest time of the year but you can spend the night between Ceduna and Norseman camped at the service station which has power so you can run your air conditioner.

I would also be planning the return with time to do some of the south west region but really, you could do it in 3 months and still not see everything.
AnswerID: 641737

Follow Up By: dusta - Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 12:33

Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 12:33
4 days hard driving ?

3.5 days hard driving to get to melbourne from perth more like it


perth to adelaide is only 2800km assuming the OP is leaving from perth cbd .

obviously your view of what hard driving and mine is different :P

a hard days drive is really 1000km + .

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FollowupID: 921066

Follow Up By: Kazza055 - Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 16:47

Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 16:47
Yer, well when I was young and stupid I drove from Perth to Port Augusta non stop.

Now I reckon 700k towing a 2500kg van is more than enough for one day.

I am sure that the OP is out for a holiday, not to kill himself and his family.
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FollowupID: 921070

Reply By: Peter_n_Margaret - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 16:41

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 16:41
We drove it once in November when it was 50C with strong winds.
It pushed the limits of the vehicle cooling system to the point that the running the aircon was not possible. It would have been possible to only travel at night, but we did not need to resort to that.
Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 motorhome
AnswerID: 641738

Follow Up By: Member - Cuppa - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 17:32

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 17:32
Peter's 50 deg C beats ours, but we crossed in January a number of years back , & got a top of 48 deg C. I recall driving in 4th rather than 5th to keep the radiator fan spinning faster. Hard on the vehicle & on us.
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Reply By: Member - Gary P15 - Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 19:08

Tuesday, Sep 27, 2022 at 19:08
Thanks people, I will give it some thought, hot, windy, and rushed is what I'm thinking? Might just have a poke around the South West of WA?
AnswerID: 641740

Follow Up By: Phil B (WA) - Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 06:54

Wednesday, Sep 28, 2022 at 06:54
Beware that the SW of WA in January is bumper-to-bumper holidayers everywhere from Esperance westward.

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Follow Up By: Rod W6 - Thursday, Sep 29, 2022 at 20:44

Thursday, Sep 29, 2022 at 20:44
"Beware that the SW of WA in January is bumper-to-bumper holidayers everywhere from Esperance westward."

There's 000's of road kilometers from Esperance and all places west and northwest to Perth. So to say bumper to bumper...... bit of an exaggeration one would think.
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FollowupID: 921083

Follow Up By: Bob Y. - Qld - Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 05:44

Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 05:44
It’s called Hyperbole, Rod!

We know what Phil meant.

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Reply By: Member - pete g1 - Thursday, Sep 29, 2022 at 19:00

Thursday, Sep 29, 2022 at 19:00
Gidday Gary P15,
merely an observation having traversed the "Nulla" numerous times since 1975. (cars & motorhomes)

By applying today's weather app technology, it's possible to pick your departure day to coincide with wind conditions ; a tail wind or a following slight side wind is a godsend.
Info can be applied travelling either way; noting you may not have that liberty if confined to a 3 week window.

Wind is a killer ; affords a diabolical driving experience - constant buffering.
Sept 2016 We'd departed Maralinga early, hit the hwy & gave up; by 11am we'd settled into the Eucla C/park for the day ! just too windy.
Again, early next day , no wind but by 10am it had started; we experienced headwinds that took fuel consumption from 12lts/100km to 18kms/100. Unsurpassed conditions in 45yrs of driving

It's a day drive ; Norseman - Eucla , then Eucla - Penong / Ceduna .
Hit the day early, both are a full day's drive.
From our experience, Eucla Village offers cheapest fuel, Mundrabilla roadhouse is usually a compatible price. (80kms away)

Good free camps @Southern Hills rest area (80kms- with toilets etc) & Newman Rocks ( 170kms) both east of Norseman

safe travels






AnswerID: 641750

Follow Up By: Zippo - Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 09:36

Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 09:36
Re weather, I'd suspect with 3 weeks for the round trip the OP won't have enough slack to play with departure day.
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FollowupID: 921088

Follow Up By: Member - pete g1 - Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 18:40

Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 18:40
""""noting you may not have that liberty if confined to a 3 week window.""""

hmmmmmmm.

I may have covered that in my post
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FollowupID: 921099

Follow Up By: Zippo - Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 19:07

Friday, Sep 30, 2022 at 19:07
Indeed you did, but it was a fairly irrelevant refence as you yourself admitted, so I wondered why you bothered on that (weather/timing) score. The OP will get the weather (s)he gets ...
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FollowupID: 921100

Reply By: Member - David W87 - Thursday, Nov 03, 2022 at 10:32

Thursday, Nov 03, 2022 at 10:32
Lots of advice here, so take mine with a grain of salt as well

The number of km’s per day, is something that will be different for each individual (and vehicle & load type). I’ve often done 1000+kms in a day, but I also lived in the Pilbara, and just about lived behind the wheel. I know folk who consider 350kms, something of a stretch for a full day of driving. Keep in mind, fatigue is one of the biggest killers for country drivers. When you’re tired, YOU WON’T (CAN’T) STOP YOURSELF FROM FALLING ASLEEP. Most people generally wake up with an start after briefly nodding-off, however some unfortunates also wake up dead.

Does your car have lots and lots of excess engine-cooling capacity? It’ll potentially be 50 degrees, you may well have a head wind, you’re likely loaded-up, and you’re towing something.
- Get your cooling system serviced & pressure tested
- replace all the belts on the engine, keeping the removed belts as spares (even if you can’t change them, someone else might be able to)
- carry spare water (and coolant concentrate). The water can be used as coolant, and it’ll also keep you alive…

Try and avoid travelling during darkness or low light (dawn & dusk being the worst). Even if you have a full-size 4wd equipped with a heavy duty bull-bar, a big roo, camels, cattle and wombats can all destroy your front end. Worse, they put you off the road at speed, risking you, your passenger & your vehicle(s). High quality lights are great (and are almost a must), but even at 80kmh, you’ll still be hitting things that come out of nowhere. In the early mornings around dawn, if you’re travelling, stop for a coffee & breakfast while watching the sun come up (and the flies coming out). Ditto in the evenings - if you must travel, stop until it’s dark, then travel at a vastly reduced speed.

Do some good length practice runs with your car & van first DON’T LET THE PERTH-SA RUN BE YOUR FIRST TRIP (do some overnighters to Kalbarri or even further). Learn how to load your vehicle and van properly and evenly. Too much weight on the tow ball will affect handling significantly. Too much weight in the rear of the van, and you’ll end up swaying all over the road and risk jackknifing if something goes awry or you need the brakes in a hurry.

Take your time and enjoy the trip. Play the worlds longest golf course. See the bight. Look for UFO’s and bits of wayward US spacecraft. See the Milky Way in the way it should be seen. Let the trip itself be part of the exciting journey, don’t look at it as just something to be endured.
AnswerID: 641998

Reply By: nickb - Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 01:50

Friday, Nov 04, 2022 at 01:50
As others have said expect weather to be anything from 25C to 45C+ with strong winds, head or tail. As mentioned coastal spots in WA will be busy, popular tourist spots will be full to the brim (eg Lucky Bay, Bremer Bay). Generally gets much better after the hoards have gone back to work (usually 9/10/11 January).

We have done the Nullabor a few times but the only time we did it in summer was Christmas 2018, returning mid January. Went for a month Perth-Melb-Perth, took 9 days to get there and 8 days return, did a bit of sight seeing on the way. We basically high tailed it to Eucla in the first 1.5 days then took our time from there. The 5 of us (2 adults 3 kids) were packed into the 4x4 and had 2 double swags on the roof. Free camped most of the way, plenty of spots to stop.

On a couple days it was 43C so we kept driving until the sun went down as it was too hot to cook etc. If your van has no aircon this might be a factor in your travel. The heat obviously brings out all the bugs, if you're planning on spending the evenings outside the van you may want to bring any insect deterrent you can fit in the van haha!!!

One other thing that you may not be thinking of, the last night of the trip we were camped at the first camping area west of Norseman (Hyden-Norseman Rd). There was a faint smell of bushfire around 8pm so we went for a walk up the nearest hill but couldn't see any fires or glowing skies. We decided to stay, with no issues, but the thought of a fire coming our way made for a restless sleep! No SMS warnings, no radio, no way of knowing what is out there apart from our ears, eyes and guts.

Sounds like all doom and gloom but I would do it again in a heartbeat. Your vehicle will be working hard so make sure it's in tip top shape.

Brings back memories! First night at Newman Rocks, east of Norseman.



Port Gibbon, favourite camp of the trip.

AnswerID: 642004

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