Road Conditions - Outback Qld/SA/Birdsville/Innamincka area

Mungerannie to Birdsville is reported closed at the South Australian Northern Roads site Michelle, as is the Innamincka to Birdsville one. Seems like the access to Birdsville is out for a few days and Walkers Crossing too for the Birdsville Track to Innamincka access we were to use for ponding of the water over the track. I imagine it will be fun crossing the Simpson for a week or two.

I guess the National gathering place may have to change if it goes on for long.

Will the new name change the character of the Blue Poles Gallery?

I posted a reply on here this afternoon advising that all roads into and out of Birdsville CLOSED (except for the Desert) and have been since Saturday. I also said that with good blowing winds and sunny days it is hoped some will be open shortly. I do not appreciate my Post being deleted.

What's the opinion of the locals (Ruth/Karsten) for the National Gathering? For how much longer is rain forecast and how long is it likely to take to dry out?

Keep in mind that it's two and a half weeks away but I guess we do need to plan ahead.

We're off on Saturday and been doing some research.

A weather forecaster friend has told us that it will be dry in the centre for the next 8 days. Dunno after that.

Cheers
Phil

I would have thought that posting up to date road conditions would have been one of the benefits for members. Exploroz was always the place that most people went to for current conditions, especially at this time of year when most people hit the red stuff. The SA roads site and RACQ site can keep it all up to date.

Cheers

Glenn

After reading the above, have just checked BOM Satmap, and Weatherzone to make sure I didn't post any shonky info.

There has been no rain in middle Diamantina area(near Diamantina Lakes N/P) since 9am today. Falls over the past 2 days seem to be in 50-75mm range, with one report of 100mm near Middleton.
Falls have been steady, and soaking, and after such a long dry spell, I doubt if there would be as much run-off, as in normal seasons.

However, with such a large area receiving good falls, there is sure to be low to moderate flooding, in the main river systems. Unlikely to effect Birdsville for another month or two. A lot of roads are closed at present, but are likely to open within a week.

Will it rain again soon? Don't forget this is winter, and average falls for June and July are around 7.3mm & 10.3mm, respectively. The last winter rain like this lot, was about 1991!!

Don't stop your trip, just do some research, or take a different route, to avoid any likely hold-ups.

Think of the wild flowers you'll miss if you don't come.

Hooroo...

Hi Guys

The weather has been pretty good the last couple of days, so the roads should be almost dry. Unless there is more big rain everything will be fine for the meet.

There are still people coming in & out of Birdsville, so with the weather, and roads closed, it still hasn't stopped traffic....

Looking forward to seeing you all in July.

Oh, and John, the name change of the Cafe from Caravanserai to Big Red is so people might find it easier to pronounce and ensure there's no mix up between the Caravan Park and our cafe (you'd be surprised how much mail etc. went the wrong way).

Wolfgang is still painting madly, and dare I say it, with the flowers sure to be blooming in a few weeks, we'll see lots of wild flower paintings !

We leave on Saturday 25th of June, for a W-E Simpson crossing via Oonadatta.

Am looking forward to seeing the desert for the first time. Hope the rain doesn't close all the tracks, but if we get to Birdsville and can't go any further, then so be it.

I have 3 weeks of holidays, and will worry about road closures once that time is up.

Andrew

Road conditions have been updated this morning with all the current reports that I have received.
Click here to read the current reports.

Regards,
Juliana.