Planned 2009 Kimberleys Trip via Alice

In 6 or 7 weeks?
You did mean 6 or 7 months didn't you?

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 Motorhome

HSEQ

Mate, The trip you mention will be a great adventure but making it a 6 week trip will not make your journey an enjoyable one. You'll laterally have to set-up and break camp on a daily basis. Your itinerary will be a shocker.

I guess it depends on what you like but I like to be able take things at a steady pace. You know, spend a lazy 3 days in one spot instead of 2 . Stuff like that. If you have six weeks, do either the NT or WA component. Not both.

Anyway, have a great trip what ever you do. I'm jealous!

Hi Peter, Margaret and Andrew,

Very much appreciate your thoughts and advice.

We realise it is a long way, however being business owners we are restricted to how much time we can take.

Our thinking is that we have to get up there anyway (from Perth) and so it will be long driving anyway. We were at Coral Bay and Exmouth in August so can afford to miss these stops.

Instead of driving up and back along a similar route, we thought we would make the trip up the centre as an alternative route. The distances aren't too widely different. Going the inland route is a means to an end, the Kimberley being the main objective. However whilst on the way we will spend a couple of days at Litchfield and Kakadu.

As I say the alternative is to drive up the west coast and back down again, or else inland via Meeka.

Thank goodness for the built in rear DVD players and the PS2 - the kids will be fine with Ben 10 and Dr Who.

Mike

HSEQ, we are leaving June 25 for 8 weeks from Melbourne to Alice, Tanami track, bungle bungles, Broome, CL, GRR for 4 weeks, Mitchell falls, EQ, Kununurra, home, its a bit earlier than you but might see you up there somewhere, and the opposite direction.

cheers,

Lance

Seriously Mike, cut the itinerary in half, or less.
Our first trip to the Kimberley (from Adelaide, via Alice and the Tanami) was 6 weeks. We intended to visit Darwin and come home via the Centre.
That 6 weeks was not long enough to to see Kalumburu or the Mitchell Falls. We came home via the Tanami, because that was the shortest route.
Second trip to the Kimberley was 12 weeks via the Gunbarrel and Pilbara. Still did not get to Darwin.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 Motorhome

ive done a simular trip in 6 weeks.
probabally was about a week short but still got to see pretty much everything and yes there was a bit of time to smell the roses.

skipped the keep river and gregory NP and would have liked to spend another day in the East macs and another 2 days in teh west macs but thats about it.

i would have had a couple more days but i got help up in kununarra with a lost eftpos card

----------- the big HOWEVER is that i was by myself in a campervan. so no setting up camp - no keeping evryone else happy

Mike, it is not the transit ks that are the issue, it is seeing stuff when you get there.
You could drive Perth, Alice, Halls Creek in a few days, but seeing the Kimberley, or Kakadu or any of the other feature areas, is not about driving the Ks, but about walking into the gorge and having a relaxing swim in a magic place with the kids for an hour.
That takes all day!

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 Motorhome

Hope you enjoy your trip, you are right about the difference in Ks its about 200 Kms further from Kununurra to Perth via the Tanami and Alice and GCR, than it is to Perth via Port Hedland etc, However to really do that part of the NT alone never mind Litchfield and Kakadu deserves perhaps a bit more time than your itinery will allow to make it worth going into the NT at all. We travelled through the Pilbara, Broome, Cape Leveque, GRR, Munja, Kununurra, during June and July 2008, 8 weeks and I would like to go back to the Kimberly again this year to see the bits that we missed! Anyhow, happy trails.

OK this is what we do at times like this. We have been to many places and going to them again or somewhere new often involves travelling over the same vast areas again to reach our destination and the unused route home. So I set off alone a few days early and do some serious K's and the family jump on a plane a week later and meet me and we cruise home. They love it as it is almost an instant holiday and they jump on the plane with hand luggage! I like it because I love the journey more than the destination if that makes sense. In your situation I would head off to Darwin from Perth alone, that'd take about 3 -4 days, and meet the family in Darwin and cruise home. Do the central road, Alice, Uluru another time like when heading to Qld and then they can fly home from Cairns or something.

Thanks for everyone's advice, and perhaps we do need to review the itinerary and methodology.
I can see everyone is keen to share their vast knowledge and experiences and what we can learn from this is that everyone is different with different ideas and needs.
I first started traveling at age 11 in the Middle East with my parents and since then have spent 18 months on a motorbike/ tent traveling Europe and Africa, around Australia and Tas twice, US, Canada, Hawaii, SE Asia, NZ by either shanks, bus, train, car, motorhome, tent, 4WD and so on.
In this time I've learned how to plan trips to meet my needs AND that you DO need time to smell the roses and get to that magic wine o'clock.
Our thinking for this trip is that we are using an Australian Offroad Camper with quick awnings that takes around 5 minutes to set up and 10 minutes to break camp (short term). We have identified about five key areas that we would like to spend extended time at i.e. Karajini, Mitchell, El Questro etc. We will drive directly to these spots (main objective) and if we can vary the route, either WA or NT, all the better, as has already been said - it is the journey not the destination.
Say 5 days up and 5 days back = 10 days - Leaves 32 days for our 5 spots + travel in between (most of these are located in the sameish geographical area). Planning flexibility will mean that if one spot wows us, we stay, if one is unpleasant we leave. When it is time to go home we go!
So thanks again, I'm impressed with everyones desire to tell us how it should be done, please remember the original post was to see if anyone else is traveling around that time.

Thanks, Mike.

Can I suggest you leave the Kakadu/Litchfield section off?
You could leave Perth and travel to Alice via GCR/Gunbarrel, Uluru,Kings canyon, West Macs, Alice,Tanami, Wolfe Creek, Bungles, Kununurra, GRR, Wanjina Gorge, Tunnel Creek, Fitzroy, Gieke Gorge, Derby, Broome Leveque, 80 Mile Bch, Boreline Rd, Marble Bar, Nullagine, Newman- Karajini, Mt Augustus, Murchison Beef Rd to Perth. The only double up on tarmac will be 40kms to Fitzroy and 32km Broome Rd.

Then when you get the opportunity, do the Litchfield/Kakadu thing via some favourite places you have seen on the previous trip.

Thanks again for everyone's advice.

Amanda has all the magazines, books and Hema Maps out busily plotting your suggestions.
We have listed the prime places we'd like to spend time at like Karajini, Mitchell, El Questro etc and will calculate how many evenings sitting in the camp chairs watching the sunset with an ale or two we want.
A few nights on the beach north of Broome at Coulomb Pt will be mandatory (too far north for the rangers to check?). Does anyone know if this area is safe to swim in June?
What about Cape Leveque - is it worth going up there? We are travellers that like peace and quiet - 'far from the madding crowds', and really enjoy a quiet beach.
Just waiting for some quotes to upgrade the suspension on the LC200, a new snorkel, diff breather extension and we'll just about be ready.....

Thanks again...

Mike