We get asked all the time, should people tow anything into the
Mitchell Falls or not.
I never normally make a flat recommendation, there are simply to many variables .
Hundreds of people now take trailers, camper vans and even caravans up there.
While most get in and out ok, many also suffer damage ranging from minor to real bad.
The thing is all these dirt roads up here are never the same, they change from month to month. That is why there are so many varied opinions on if the North
Kimberley roads are better than expected or a horror story. People do it once and think that that is what for example the
Gibb River Road is always like.
Well it's not and neither is the
Mitchell Plateau track.
The three roads I am talking about GR road,
Kalumburu & MP track are cared for by different funding and different bodies.
This means that there is no hope of them all being graded at the same times or even the same number of times per year. Add this to the different base quality of each road in different areas of land types etc and even if it was all just worked on, it will still be different in
places.
Don't forget we are talking about over 1000 km of roads for the three roads.
Successfully towing anything to
Mitchell Falls depends totally on,
state of the road at the time ( no way anyone can tell you in advance)
Strength / build of what you are towing.
How much weight you have in it.
How hard your tryes are.
The speed you do.
How you drive ie: crawl over any bad bits.
We have towed many things , many times in and out of plateau without damage.
On the other hand every year we repair damage done by the same track.
Just because a trailer has 4X4 off road stickers all over it and some salesman told you it would go anywhere doesn't mean it is
well built or strong.
If the corrugations are bad and you go fast with hard tryes you will very likely do damage.
If the road has been graded and or you take it easy you may
well have no trouble towing in to there.
Having said all that there are still sharp creeks to cross and at present water still on the road so again it comes back to each persons set up.
If for example you have a low hung rig and you don't angle over one
creek crossing you will drag on the creek bed.
There is simply no way anyone can advise you on the correct decision.
The track is now done by 4WD tour buses, fuel trucks and many vehicles towing many things.
If you meet any vehicle especially a large one or one towing on one of those bends and either of you is going to fast or on the wrong side of the road you could
well have a problem.
The track is narrow in
places, tree lined and often has a decent height windrow, so there is often little choice of taking to the scrub to avoid each other.
Again having said that the track is now much wider than it used to be, many of the sharpest bends have been improved. It is also now graded at least once , sometimes twice per season.
In years gone by it could
well not be graded at all for one or two years.
The other thing to remember is that the
grader can only do so much, in
places there is almost no gravel to grade it's just
rock with a thin layer of gravel spread over by the
grader. It takes no time at all for the traffic to return it to bare surface.
The corrugations do come back fast as
well in peak season when the use is heavy.
What I normally say to folks is consider not making the final decision till you get up here. Hope to take tow in but either have swag so you can overnight without the trailer / van ( leave it here for free) or as a last resort do a day trip from the King Edward
camp ground.
This second option does make for a pretty rushed trip though, especially if the road is bad.
Thing is once you are in the area you will daily get to talk to other people that have just done the road and you will get a real idea of just what it is like at the time of your trip.
Sorry can't help more than that, we get the question constantly and there simply is no constant answer.
I hate being asked if people should or shouldn't do this or other stuff regarding the roads as Murphy's law says my recommendation will prove to be wrong !
cheers, Anne