How to communicate in Simpson Desert with oncoming cars

Gidday

Irrespective of your UHF decision, you’ll find twits tearing through the French Line. These fellas don’t seem to care about a man or his dog!

After a few trips through the Simpson, here is what I’d recommend. Go down the rig road then turn south after the bush run way through the swales.

How far you go after that will depend on you experience and common sense.

If your taking kid’s with you they’ll love it away from the main drag of the French Line. They’ll see Dingo’s, Camels and all sorts of other wild life.

The main stream drag for me is completely boring. But the attraction of the southern area is something to behold.

Regards

KIm

I reckon CB may have saved my life many years ago near the northern end of the Tanami Track - when there was very little traffic on it.

I heard a call - "that 4WD better get off the track - two road trains coming through".

I slammed on the brakes and pulled over on the steep edge of the track - a few seconds later a road train came around the bend, leaving us in a fog of red dust for a few minutes.

If I'd had to pull over with the trailer when I saw the Road Train, I may have become another rollover statistic.

A $400 UHF radio is the way to go.

Most use channel 10 but scanning helps.

Experience tells you when you here a transmission as to how close you are. You will not be able to convey your exact position. Drivers are too busy to register a gps position.

We usually pause on the top of sandhills and watch for oncoming traffic up ahead. However always go over each dune expecting to find another vehicle. Sandflags help but you are very close by the time you see them.

Should have other vehicle with you so just keep talking every few minutes so any other vehicle will hear you before they see you.

As with all this gear, don't rely totally on it the oncoming vehicle may not have a working radio or using a different channel. Radio helps but your vigilance is what keeps you safe. Lead vehicle must concentrate intensely on crossing duns.

There are only 1000+ dunes to cross in the simpson so you will soon get the practice required.

Alan

Most sensible folks have a UHF when crossing the Simpson. Every few dunes make an announcement on channel 10, 'Eastbound/Westbound comming over". The Simpson's official channel is 10, but you should also scan.
However, as the earlier old hands said, you'll meet some idiots, so keep your eyes pealed. Head on's happen on the Simpson. Best insurance is to make your flag as high as you can, a 3 or 4 metre pole is good. That still won't stop the sort of mugs we met, who stopped for a cuppa' in the middle of the track, just over the crest of a dune. They thought I was a bit rude when I asked them to move to the side so we could get past without having to blaze my own new track.

Pascal
Any person that travels in any remote location should not leave home without some form of UHF Radio. We spend thousands of dollars on our vehicles, yet for the sake of a few hundred dollars, only a fool would not spend this money on a simple, but very handy tool to be used for many reasons, including the safety of those inside of your vehicle. Below is how we have made contact with other vehicles in the Simpson and other deserts where there are large sand dunes to be crossed and make the journey far safer. People that do follow these few simple, yet basic common sense ways for any desert travel can expect trouble when they are at least expecting it.

1. All vehicles should have a sand flag, at least 3 metres from ground level. Even if you have made contact with other vehicles coming your way, with a sand flag they or you can see the top of the flag well before seeing the vehicle.

2. When on top of the larger dunes, stop your vehicle, and put out a general call on channel 10 UHF for any vehicles that may hear your transmission and that are travelling in the opposite direction that you are heading.

3. If their reply is faint, ask the other vehicle to please repeat their transmission when they are on top of a dune. If there signal is still low, it can mean either a couple of things, that they are still quite some distance off, or they have a transmission problem with their radio.

4. Once you have made contact, confirm that they are in fact heading your way, how many vehicles are in their group, and their approximate location. Those that know the Simpson, it is reasonably well sign posted, with some major land features, and you do not need to communicate vis GPS coordinates. Providing no one has taken the track detail signs, most people will take not of these and you can use these as a reference point.

5. Advises all members of your group there are vehicles heading your way and all members in your group have heard your message and have passed the details to the "Tail End Charlie".

6. It then just a matter of keeping an eye our for a sand flag heading your way, or keeping in regular radio contact. When their signal is very strong, you will know that they are very close, and then you make arrangements with the other group of which group will pass over the last few dunes and which group will stay a wait for the other group to pass safely.

7. When you do meet the other people, you usually stop and exchange track details and other information about each others travel plans.

8. Make sure that you use a good quality UHF Aerial. This is the secret to good communications in the desert. The small rubber ducky one are no good out there.

Have a great Simpson trip, make sure your group uses sand flags and keep in regular contact on channel 10 and you should have a safe and great experience.

Cheers

Stephen.
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Hi there. Your basic question suggests that you may not have 'done the Simpson' before. This prompts me to say that it can get a tad lonely out there unless you are travelling with others.
If you get stuck, and there's someone close by with a snatch strap, you can be on your way in minutes. If there's no one around, then it may be Maxtrax and shovel and a long spell of hard work.
I would strongly recommend teaming up if you can, even if only a temporary thing like talking to others at the start, and organising to travel together.
Then of course, the UHF comes into its own for communication with your fellow travellers, like "Coming back down for a second attempt" or "Clear away" after you successfully clear a dune (and the bloke behind can't see a thing), or "vehicle approaching" as a warning.
In my case, we've left the radio on Ch 10, which is the 'official' desert channel, unless we've wanted to leave that channel clear and have a social chat.
Finally, a good antenna is vital, as others have said, and ALSO a good installation: even a broken connection between the antenna and the radio can seriously damage the radio. DYI is OK as long as you do everything exactly 'by the book'
Have fun. And the Simpson is fantastic

Reminds me a little of the story bout Paddy the Irish taxi driver - who stopped at every green light and sped thru every red light...
Passenger was really miffed - but Paddy explained - "well - we wouldn't want to meet me brother Mick, commin the other way!".

So tis with the sand dunes and radios....

How do you know - brother mick aint already commin up the other side, with NO RADIO?

So - you've given the radio call and now your at full noise coming up the dune and - "oops" - you meet Mick at the top doing just the same thing from the other side at the same time - Mick with no radio, that is.

Secondly - you get on the radio, and tell all and everyone to look the heck out, coz your about to go orbital from the worlds biggest Simpson dune.

Mick 50 miles away (who now has hisself a radio), hears it - and he's about to do the same.

You both figure you both should wait till the other guy goes first!

500 miles away from each other - you both die of old age and thirst waiting for the other to go first when your no where near each other - but a radio doesn't know that!

Sorry - but to me the question and answers thus far are just plain stoopid.

Now - what would be wrong for example with:-

Getting hold of expired marine flares - and firing a rocket flare over the dune first - then giddyup horses here we come!

I mean - your no where near the sea - not like anyone's going to report a sinking boat

Anyone the other side will see a magnesium flare4 on a little parachute coming down, and think- better look out someones about to cross this duine from t'other side.

Also - you get to light up half the country with the magnesium flare, start umpteen spinifex grass wild fires etc etc - see a little excitement along the way.

A win win - no radio a little fun and no dune crashes.

Course - you COULD do like water crossings and just walk every dune first to make sure it;s safe - but then Mick would run over you.

A remote control helicopter with digital vid cam might be a go - hover the camera craft over the dune and when the movie broadcast to your laptop shows all clear - away you go.

You could always just sound the horn I guess - thats sure to influence the kiddies with the windows up, air con on, and Ipod in their ear holes.

Now - the REAL answer!

Radar!

Yep - boat radar....mounted on top of the 4by, on a switched 12V engined hydraulic pumped telescopic pole.

You up the periscope from the bottom of the dune, get it to tilt down a bit at the top to point at the ground the other side of the dune, and look for any radar reflection from glass or metal of the approaching vehicle form the other side.

Maybe get one ofthe latest greatest ones with collision avoidance programming that can predict your path and speed course and calculate the chances of collision on the approaching target.

The next must have 4x4 toy.

Must get me some shares in Raymarine and Furuno radars stocks! ;o)

Option 4...one of those tunneling boring machines that they use for boring under roads etc - drill a hole thru the dune to the other side, poke one a them medical cameras on a long pole thru the hole and have a look round to see who's comin' from the other side!

Me I prefer the radar idea!

Watch out for Mick - he's nuts! ;o)

Cheers

OK, so Flywest makes one good point (amidst all the twaddle!). There are times when it makes real sense to walk a dune before you drive it. Even though it seems like hard work, and it may be hot, and dunes are hard work to climb. But if you can't see the track, and haven't a clue which way to steer once you hit the top, then WALK IT.
Fact is, plenty DO carry a flag; and plenty DO have a radio, so you do have some options short of joining Flywest at the funny farm.

Hi everybody,

thanks a lot for the replies!

Yes, we are traveling with two cars and have a strap with us. We will also go for the sand flags.

Radio seems to be one of the preffered solutions. I am wondering what frequencies are allowed in OZ. I heard that the allowed frequencies have been changed lately, is that true? When I buy a radio abroad, what settings do I need to check?

Thanks a lot!!

Pascal

1 yes
2 cheap hand held get 1 dune away keep them in the middle of the pack, if they get stuck there out of range.
3 most use 10 but we scanned all channels most of the time
4 we just used the fire markers and the turnoff

We just said "any west bound traffic" if nothing came up all good

We drove with our lights on we sore the lights before the 4x4 along the flats