Canning Stock Route.

We had a couple away with us last year in the cape that have towed a caviler camper towed by a mitsubishi 4x4 tray top.
He said he had to be towed over most of the larger dunes.
After the trip he had to weld a few things .
Peter has a DVD on the canning that has 2 trailers on it for sale call him on 07 4094 1745.

All the best
Eric

13 days is a bit quick.

When I have to do it in June we plan to take 26 days from Ayers Rock to Halls Creek.
Have you another vehicle going with you and how much fuel are you going to be carring?

I have not done the Canning but crossing the Simpson with a trailer towed by a 2.8 turbo is going to be hard work. If we have to take a trailer it has to be towed by at least a big 6. I am not saying it can't be done and that the two trips are the same, but the poor Hilux. All the fuel and the trailer and all the sand dunes, the clutch would be stuffed.

Wayne

s-niper73,
Read my post #7590, October 03.
Dickybeach.

I'd agree with the previous posts in that if you must tow a trailer it should be with a larger more powerful vehicle.
More time should be allowed too, we took 3 weeks/21 days with 4 vehicles, we had no major vehicle probs so just enjoyed the trip, in the 3 weeks we only had 3 days that we didn't travel.
I would also advise against traveling by yourself and you would be silly to travel by yourself and tow a trailer.
What happens if you get stuck/jacknifed on a dune, can you and your partner unhitch the trailer on a soft sand slope and push it out of the way by yourself?
While the CSR isn't that much more difficult or harder than other desert trips it is the fact that it goes on for so long that takes its toll on vehicle and passengers. You will be in remote/rough country for 3 weeks crossing thousands of sand dunes and corrugations, the best trip in Oz but make it as easy as you can for yourself.

Did the Canning in 2003, south to north. Would advise against any sort of Camper trailer. Sand is too boggy and a large run up the dunes is not normally possible due to gullied tracks. Diff locks would definately help but still wouldn't risk it.

YOU ARE CRAZY
seriously though, i have done the canning (without trailer) and do own a cavalier.
i have taken my CT through some pretty hard stuff but i would not dream of taking it on that trip. i'm not saying it cannot be done and if someone bet me $10000 i would do it, but it would be very hard. my advice is not to take the CT and enjoy this great trip. take swags or an easily erected tent instead.
also, if you can take more than 13 days.
cheers

Travelled the Canning 3 yrs ago.
We just got through after the track was open after rain.
We did meet a guy towing an ultimate camper with a 4.2 turbo landcruiser and he got through.
The problem is mentioned by others you need a good run(not always possible) up to cross some of the dunes and plenty of torque.
With the fuel load you have to carry and the capacity of your engine you will find it extremely difficult getting a trailer over these obstacles.
If you persist get a larger more powerful vehicle to travel with you ,and be prepared for long snatches for your trailer.
For this reason you would need to carry at least 4 tow straps along with other equipment and have additional time at your disposal.
We had a Landie blow its gearbox on our trip with only second gear available,we had to tow him over several dunes by joining two other vehicles together by solid tow,this will give you some idea of the difficulty.
Great trip though,but reconsider the trailer.
Regards

For Sale --- One Cavalier Camper Trailer , Only A little Used . (Get my Drift ). You have roughly 1100 sand dunes to cross , and as stated earler , you won,t get over first go , so you will have to back up for a second go . Imagine backing up , down hill , 40 to 50m plus , in soft sand . I did it with the ses a few year,s ago now and the only vehile that got over consistantley first go was a (choke) Ford F250 V8 with front and rear diff locks . So , my advice , take a swag , you,ll enjoy the trip a lot more than if you are trying to push a camper around in soft sand for a week or more . Cheers

Like everyone else I would suggest not taking the campertrailer. We are planning to do the CSR, but will leave our trailer behind. Quite apart from the difficulties involved, I have become quite concerned about the stories of environmental damage that is being done to the CSR. If eveyone did as Willem suggests then the CSR would be better preserved for us all.

Have a great time
Anni

WOW, What a response. I have read all messages and had allready read your story Willem. Cheers, I thank you all for your grouped information. I will rethink the Trailer. (not counting it out) I will at this stage have another vehicle with us.(100 SeriesL/C) I must state, that my Lux is very well equiped with diff locks, turbo, pyro, uprated suspension,long range tank, radio (UHF) and Sat Phone, Cooper ST's the list goes on. I am well versed with beach driving and tyre pressure application. However I will admit, I have not taken the camper over very much sand. Mud yes and had little problem there. Your advice is what I feared most. that I would not be able to take the trailer on this trip (DAMN IT).
I am a mechanic in the Army with over 19 years experience, therefore know only too well the problems involved with breakdowns on route.
13 days too short eh, OK will have another look at that. I was planning on travelling on average 150-180 kms per day, with an average speed of 40km/p/h. Remember thats an average. I only have 25 days off work and have to get to and from Darwin in the process. I also have to clean my gear before returning to work.
I am happy to continue this thread as I am keen to receive other peoples views and comments on this subject. (seems to be very near and dear to a lot of people)

Cheers
S_niper73

Hi S-niper

I recently bought the video referred to earlier on in this post and found it to be most informative. If you can grab a copy of it I believe it will assist you to finalise your plans. It also covers a bit of the Gunbarrel as well. Have a good trip!! Cheers

Just something else to think about.

Saw a Dual Cab Hilux come off the Simpson last year towing a camper trailer. The force of all those bumps and whoopsy-doos bent the hilux chassis so badly, it looked like the vehicle was a write-off. They are not made to take all that weight behind the rear axle.

Cheers
Phil

I towed a trailer over CSR in 2004. Gross weight was a bit over one tonne. The 4.2TD6 patrol struggled and ran out of power on some of the dunes and we had to winch over one occasion. Most of the damage to the vehicles in our group was from was from the corrugations.

So we found the CSR to be HARD on vehicles and HARD on trailers. Mechanical problems are common. We came across one guy who had independent suspension and he had snapped off both his wheels over the trek. Also saw a written off camper on the trip out to Rudell and it had a snapped off stub. Also heard of two other trailers having probs including one guy on the Macca show who pulled out near the start.

I would not hesitate to take a trailer again but only if I had to. But that goes for any trip. We have 3 kids and for the 30 day trip a trailer was necessary for us.

Sean

Did the Canning last year without a trailer, north to south. I have towed them in some rough places and it is possible to take them but with difficulty and the risk of damage. It is very costly to recover them.
The Canning is slower than the Simpson but not rougher or tougher. The dunes often have a right angle bend at the bottom meaning a run is impossible. You will need at least 20 days to enjoy it and will probably average under 30kph where as on the Simpson slightly over 30kph is possible (I don't know why). An obstacle on the CSR rarely mentioned is that you will get your vehicle severley scratched by vegetation that cannot be avoided. I estimate as much as 200kms of scratchy scrub. Also watch out for spinefex fires in petrol vehicles. We had a small one that burnt out the gearbox wiring loom resulting in a major stop whilst the main engine computer fuse and loom were rebuilt.
Leave your trailer home and enjoy the trip.

OK OK, I get the picture....no trailer....hey thanks guys ....looks to me like you have saved my ass on this one and I appreciated all your efforts. Got some bad news yeaterday that I will probably be working over the June July period this year so will have to postpone the trip yet again......Thanks again for all your advice.....
Cheers
s_niper73