Bad experiences or warnings....North of Perth

Joondalupgerry
You will have a ball I'm sure, you will many stories about Hall Creek , Tennant Creek, Camooweal etc about the Locals, if you stay in a Caravan Pk you won't even know about them .BUT if you park in the towns to do shopping make sure it's locked and leave things like lap tops in the caravan if it's in a good popular Park .
As for seeing things , there will be tons to see all the way, check on the Tourist Info's, but don't miss the Riversleigh Fossil Centre in Mt Isa and the Mt Isa Caravan Park and the Sunset Caravan Park are the best ones, both will allow dogs on leash

Doug

I think your post is much too general to get a proper response.When are you going?Are There kids travelling with you? Is your car diesel or petrol? Do you want to bush camp or caravan parks?What are your interests--fishing sightseeing etc.Ithink if you fill in the details you will get a good response.As far as how far to travel each day, everyone is different but if you are not in a hurry I would say 400-500km a day should be enough when towing.Remember you are travelling a long way so enjoy the journey.Cheers and have a good trip.

Gday Joonda Mate first up you will be suprised how an easy cruise of 400 to 500 km is once ya get north of perth only advice on the coast rd nth is pick and choose whatt ya want to see its often a few ks to off the main drag to see a little coast
and any of the more remote roadhouses cost more for everything but nanutarra r/h just springs to mind to be aware of
as for the likes of fitzroy / halls creek ect as long as your security aware and no worse than perth city i might add your garenteed an experience or two
Enjoy

Regarding distances travelled:
fatigue is a problem and the best way to avoid it is to change drivers every couple of hours. If you do this you can travel a long distance without too many hastles.
Take your food with you and that way you don't start wasting money buying rubbish from roadhouses. We normally pack some sandwiches and also a container of chicken and salad. You also save time as your not waiting to get food at the roadhouse.
If you drink soft drink purchase it at the supermarket before you leave rather than at a roadhouse enroute.

Security:
Keep vehicles locked.
Don't leave anything visible in the vehicle which might tempt thieves.
When in caravan parks - don't leave alcohol or shoes/thongs outside.

I have stayed at Halls Creek and Tennant Creek without a problem. Only place I have had a problem was Alice Springs.

G'day - as others say here - you will have a ball and a lot of experiences - we travelled the west coast in 2005 - found some great places and some interesting weather - Carnarvon is a nice place - good caravan parks - Geraldton is good as well - the museum there is terrific - and they have a film showing of the shipwreck survivors - fascinating - we went twice just to take it all in - good parks there as well - Port Headland - we stayed at Cooke Point (big 4 i think) - might need to prebook though - we weren't impressed with the other parks in the area - and good shopping is available at South Headland - Tom Price is a good little town - close to Karijini National Park - well worth staying there beatiful gorges etc - take your own water - none available at CALM camping areas - make road all the way into Dales Gorge Camping (CALM) - unmade road to the other camp.
Kalbarri is a good town - Murchison Gorge good walks in there.
Denham of course for Monkey Mia and the dolphins.
80 Mile Beach - terrific
Fitzroy Crossing - either Fitzroy Lodge camping or the one in town is ok as well - never had any trouble there - dpeending on your vehicle - Tunnel Creek and Wundjina gorge are well worth the trip.
Again depending on vehicle - The Bungle Bungles are magnificent - you can get a flight over from Turkey Creek -
Didn't stay at Halls Creek - didn't like the atmosphere of the place
and on and on it can go - there are of course a lot of side of the road free camp spots depending on the time of day you get there if they are convenient or not - we stayed at quite a few
Enjoy - hope to be doing it again soon ourselves -
jules

Hi. I would say 4-500km would be easy driving in some parts. And depending on
the Roo population I would be getting off the road about 4.0pm if towing a van.
Hope this helps a little

Hi Joondalupgerry,

Sounds like you are planning a great trip.

Many years ago I camped next to an old guy travelling solo and, as is the way, we got to talking about our travels.

He said something that took me a while to take in.

"The holiday starts as you leave home, not when you reach your destination."

If you keep that in mind, I'm sure that you will discover many interesting places and people on your way.

Good Luck

Disco

Hi Gerry,
Don't forget the Pilbara on the way thru. Karajini NP is a natural wonder, not to be missed. And Millstream is bliss, camped under the cadjeputs there by the water. A detour from Roebourne out to Pt Samson and historic Cossack is well worth it.
Just on from Hedland, the bridge over the De Grey river has good camping (near the bridge, not on it) and further on, the 80-mile beach is a good spot.
South of Broome is Port Smith, which has a great caravan park, and worth a few nights.
Don't forget, with Broome, you will need to book well in advance at the caravan parks if you want a place, otherwise join the rest of the throng out in the middle of the footy ground. The Roebuck is nice and well-established with shade and views and is right in town.
As you get towards Wyndham/Kununurra, you should try a few days at Parry Lagoons, a magnificent wetland teeming with birdlife. Good camping there, and they throw on a buffet on some nights.
At Kununurra, I loved the Cona caravan park, on the water. Don't miss out on Hidden Valley, almost in town. The CP by the same name, right next door, is also quite good.
And just over the border, the Keep River NP is a must, with rock formations similar to the Bungles.
Could go on for hours, but there's a start.

Gerry (no relation)

GiddayJ.G., saw your post some time back about the GRR. It's a tough decision to make with all the spectacular gorges and scenery. Once you go via the tar to Kununurra its only 50 km of the "best" gravel to head into El Questro, just take it slowly. We have stayed at Fitzroy Crossing in a van park with no problems. Plan to do something in the am because its a bit warm for bushwalks in the pm so we tried to do the driving then for 3-4 hours, swapping drivers and pulling into a campsite say an hour before sunset. There's no problem sitting on 100 clicks.
You must visit Coral Bay and its environs and try to get to Cape Peron but a 4WD is needed to do the 80km return sand track. We picked up a couple of French travellers doing Oz in a 20 year old Toyota something at the artesian bore pool at the start of the track. Not only did we learn to pronounce all the French names correctly but it was a fun afternoon and we had a soothing soak in the pool at the end of the day.Sipping on a beer and watching the stars come out - magic! So try your hand at hitch - hiking. By the way you can check out all these places and others in the Places section. Good luck, Warrie

Thanks..I am just discovering the places section now.,.,this is an awesome site.
My secretary just about can't keep up with all the info I am calling out...lol.

Cheers
Anne and Gerry

Anne and Gerry

You are getting good advice and have a ball in the planning stage. Our experience is that the fun and the trip start 6 months before you hit the road as you anticipate and decide and make the hard decisions on what not to do.

Two extra thoughts:

1. Be open to doing something not on your plan - caravan park conversations can add the side trip that really gives special memories.

2. For trips that need a four wheel drive, don't hesitate to go on a local one (or more) day 4WD tour. You can even rent a four-by once you get a bit of confidence. Much as I love 4WDing, I know that a good on road car and van saves so much from the cost of the equivalent off road ones that you have money for a few trips, and still leave you better off.

And the third of my two thoughts - you would not regret having a 40 litre fridge with you because it can be days between decent supermarkets and if you run it as a freezer you can keep a lot more food and drink.

Good luck

Max