radio/phone communication

Tas, I agree with Motherhen.

For emergency or urgent communication hire a satphone. But watch the call charges!

For non-urgent social calls, use Telstra NextG as and when within range.

A "CB radio" (more correctly called a "UHF Radio") is only of value when the receiving radio is within close distance and in that case will probably drive past you anyway. They are useful when driving in convoy but unreliable in an emergency.

Oh!....and a PS:

You won't want your 8yo daughter hearing some of the language coming over the UHF radio!!!!!

Apart from near cities and large towns, what you hear on the air waves is all good - certainly not a problem on the outback highways. These days school kids have probably heard it all before and would be less shocked that us anyway. There's always the volume switch if the language gets unpleasant.

Mh

Mh, we have had this discussion, or rather dissension, before.

Perhaps you listen on different channels or have a hearing loss, but I consistently hear foul language when the UHF is on scan. In populated areas there is the occasional expletive but where I encounter it at its worst is in "4WD areas of challenge" where blokes with probably undersized digits are boosting their egos by loudly expressing themselves to their travelling mates by punctuating every second word with profanity.

Now if you fail to hear it then that is your good fortune but please stop telling me that it does not happen regularly as both my wife and I hear it very clearly unfortunately. And I do not believe that an 8yo girl would have "heard it all before". Even if she had heard some in the schoolyard, it is a very different situation hearing it from adults on Dad's UHF as it implies that this "must be OK".

Hi Allan

Fortunately we have not heard the types you so eloquently describe, but I can envisage them. That is the time to reach for the volume dial. We don't scan, but stay on 40 or whatever is the specified channel for that area.Places we have travelled would be similar to where tastpa plans to go, eg across the top, through WA and the Nullarbor, and we have heard all pleasant communications between the truckies without every second word being an "Australian adjective" (as we have heard near large towns). When transporting wide loads through rural areas, we also communicate between vehicles and warn oncoming trucks of our load size and number of vehicles. Travelling through the WA wheat belt, i have never heard a bad word on the air waves. I don't dispute your experiences - i am only relating mine.

Tastpa, it is worthwhile to be forewarned of over width loads, traffic hazards, accidents and traffic hold ups, and to be able to communicate with trucks wanting to pass you, or if you want to pass them. On narrow roads it is necessary to announce when approaching blind narrow bridges and on crests. I think the safety issues surpass the need to screen your eight year old from the chance of bad language if you aren't quick enough on the dial, so still strongly recommend use of UHF.

Mh

PS Hiring a Satfone for a trip of that length will be expensive as some cost in excess of $17 A DAY.

We bought one off Ebay for $950.

New ones are about $1500 and you can only get the Govt Subsidy if you are outside OF ALL PHONE COMMUNICATION for MORE THAN 120 DAYS A YEAR.

Pretty hard to do unless you are spending a long holiday at Drysdale Station or Talbot Bay or similar as lots of the "Communities" have a tower.

Marvelous how you can get reception in the middle of nowhere and then you see a little sign ********community 2km.

I have to go outside to get reception in the valleys in Coffs Harbour.
LOL