Is a Jayco Dove okay on the Strezlecki Track ?

Any " current " news about the Strez is not going to help you for a trip 6mths away , road conditions vary far to much for anybody to give the advise your seeking , that said , hireing the jayco , make sure the tires are suitable and the spare is the same , you fail to say which Strezlecki track your planning on , Old or New ?

We had a Jayco Dove Outback. It really wasn't built for anything rough. The inside was pretty lightly held together. We enjoyed our Dove and it was fine to take on a dirt track into a campground or on a well graded road but the Jayco warranty, as I remember, did not cover "off road" use. The tyres were nothing flash and it wasn't dust proof. You should check with your hire company - they will probably have limitations set on the type of road conditions you can travel. The Strezlecki Track may be okay after grading and in good weather but such roads vary over a short period of time so you would have problems with any advance planning, even if your hirer was happy. You would need to travel pretty slowly anyway. Perhaps you should consider hiring an off road camper trailer instead if that is the sort of trip you want. Don't forget to check the towing etc specs for your Hilux too. Enjoy. Lynne

If you're hiring i doubt you'd be permitted to take it on dirt roads - it works that way with hire vehicles. It just means that you have to pay for it if it falls apart. Check with hire company which one you can take on the Strez.

First of all it doesn’t happen like that. The country can change very quickly depending on the weather conditions. After a localized storm, dirt roads are usually closed by the shires after 10mm of rain.

This is a very common practise up North, not only to protect the roads, but also avoid issues with tourist becoming stranded.

You will need to post this same question about two weeks before you leave. If conditions are good, and the graders have been through you’ll have no problems at all.

The Strezlecki has some great camping sites in many areas about 500 metres off the road, particularly along some of the dry water courses but I wouldn’t recommend it with your proposed camper van.

PS It's a wide road, and not a track anymore.

Hope you have a great trip.

Cheers

Agree with the above posts. Just looked at hiring a Jayco hawk for xmas but hiring conditions did not allow any off bitumen :((
The condition of the Strez can vary with prevailing weather and maintenance. Last 2 times it was as smooth as the local highway for most sections but recent rains and travellers have probably adversely affected it....what it will be like next April is anyone's guess.

Hi purpleturtle, the Strez is a doddle if you take it easy. Just remember the 28 80 rule. Tyres at 28 psi and don't go over 80kmh. We have done the whole length from Lyndhurst to Innamincka towing our outback Dove and before that a Swan without a problem.The conditions were dry and dusty. It can be be quite empty of traffic and then you'll pass some big trucks out of the blue. Stay at Montecollina Bore and soak in the hot "tub".
There are no surprises in terms of nasty dips or bends. Frankly its not a track but a genuine dirt ROAD and you could easily tow an on-road Jayco wind up type along it as we did with the Swan. Ground clearance is not an issue, just speed....W

Just last month we pulled an 'onroad' Jayco Eagle with our Prado up the Strzelecki from Lyndhurst to Innaminka. The important things to remember are: get your tyre pressures down to 25PSI on the car and van and drive to the conditions. In the Gibber Desert area down near Lyndhurst we could only do between 10 and 40 kph. Any faster than 10 over the worst parts would have shaken the van to pieces. Those areas only lasted for 10 minutes or so. The Sandy Desert further on wasn't so bad and we could do up to 80 kph over the best bits. I suppose we averaged about 60 kph for the whole trip. Sometimes we were driving between the sand dunes and sometimes we were driving over them; up and over, one after another.
There are several places to stop over night: we stopped at Blanchewater Ruins for a night as we didn't start the track until 2pm and only got that far before stopping for the night. Montecolina Bore and Strzelecki Creek would be good places to stop but there were several other places where you could see that people have stopped.
Semi trailers drive the track all the time so give them the whole road and slow down to let them pass or overtake. They are taking equipment up to the Moomba Oil and Gas Field.
Hope that helps: you can do it.
Regards, Sunshine 642