4-5 Month Australia....

Diese deutschen Wüstenfahrer... :-)
Seriously, it's going to be hot anywhere north of Perth and Sydney from October onwards, particularly inland. And quite wet and humid up north in November/December - the more you get into the tropical raining season, the more you're likely to be stuck somewhere because of impassable/closed roads. Perth to Darwin should be alright September-October, but as you get into November from Darwin you should play it by ear - local weather forecasts I mean - but it is quite possible to travel to the East Coast from the top end on bitumen. Down the Queensland coast to Sydney shouldn't give any problems any time of the year, but Sydney to Alice and back to Perth in December will be VERY hot though doable if you choose the right route.
Normal health warnings apply, especially with kids and a Landrover (only - half - joking about the Landy): don't go anywhere without checking out local advice first, take plenty of water/food/communication equipment etc.

Günter

Just wondering if that trip may not be better done "in reverse" ... i.e. Perth to East Coast, up zand across to Alice, Darwin and then back down the west coast to Perth.

That puts the wet season a little further away, which may make for easier travelling. either way it is going to get hot once you are away from the coast. And this may be a good time to suggest that no matter what happens, stay with your vehicle, don't try walking for help.

Enjoy the trip though - outback travelling still continues to amaze me.

Jack

Hi,

thanks for the quick answers.
Our rough route including the estimate dates should (could, would) be:
September: Perth and up to the north (if possible: Gibb River Road)
October: Darwin and eastwards to Cairns (maybe via Alice, if not, Gulf-Savannah-Track is NOT a must)
November: East Coast
December: Sydney-Melbourne-Adelaide
January: back to Perth

Hot and possible ´not easy-tracks´ in the summer like Gunbarrel from Alice to the west or other risk ideas with a family and a Land Rover ;o) are not really in our routing.
Due to the wet season the area from Broome to Darwin, the Kakadu an further route to the east is NOT a good idea? (I remember my trip to Cairns in February 1999, when it was really wet and most roads were closed for days).

regards
Thomas

Going on your timings you will have no problems. The'wet' will noty normally settle in until end of December - this doesn't take into account the odd cyclone which may form any time of the year but generally not before November. The east coast is not a problem but don't forget they don't really have summer - just warmer rain. The wind is predominantly E/SE in the north of aust from early Sept through to the arrival of the wet - makes it interesting once you start going through the Nw of WA and across the top. The temps to the North of the 26 deg Lat. generally go the other side of 35 early Sept and don't come down until mid March - but it's summer so anywhere will be hot. As you will have kids I would expect you to take some sort of care - PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CAR IF IT BREAKS DOWN OR GETS BOGGED/STUCK - too many tourists die - this is not Europe. Do yourself and everyone else a favour and hire (if you don't already own) a satphone. Contact the various State 4WD associations as they can also provide plenty of assistance and contact with clubs (even Landy clubs ha ha ha) - wa4wda.com.au to get you started. Other than that have a good time and enjoy all this place has to offer. rgds