Cape York preperation

Hi Vern,

We did the Cape York trip back in 2004. Your profile indicates you already have a suspension lift and a snorkel. Some decent AT's and you should be set, assuming you're driving in the dry season. In case you do not have a long range fuel tank, fuel and supplies are readily available, provided you don't mind paying a bit extra. As we tend to travel relatively conservatively, we did not attempt the Pascoe River crossing on the Frenchman's Track after talking to the managers at one of the homesteads (it was do-able, but lumpy). We did do the crossing at Shotgun Creek, mind you it almost cost me a divorce. Next time we'll poke our noses up for a bit of a look, but be more prepared to backtrack and take the bypass. All other crossings were pretty straight forward, with good recce and tyre placement. We found that a handheld UHF was great for talking the drivers through the trickier crossings, eg. the log bridge. The Jardine River is pretty deep, so take the ferry.
Have a ball, we did :)

No aditional mods required for a trip during the normal touring season. Ensure the car is well maintained, keep the loaded weight down & fit decent tyres.
Cheers Craig.........

A few more years and you'll probably be able to take the family Commodore, stay in motels all the way up, and go on a conducted tour when you get there !!!Not for quite a few years though. I hope. Cheers.

Slide show from '09.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA196 Motorhome

Vern, your vehicle will be fine, just have 70% tread or more on your tyres, and if possible, travel with another vehicle.UHF radio is also wonderful - it allows you to chat with other travellers and trucks about the conditions/overtaking opportunities etc.

We did it last August (2010) . You can reach the tip travelling all the way on fairly good graded roads (albeit very corrugated). You can alternatively, take the "interesting" route Old Telegraph Track which takes in a number of creek crossings. Gunshot - the most notorious - also has a "chicken route" and a "bypass". Unless you have winch and 2nd vehicle and good marriage and total insistance on sense of adventure over preservation of vehicle, choose the bypass.

Jardine Creek crossing has been closed (bulldozed I think), so all traffic must now cross on ferry ($80 by memory).

We did the trip with a "tag-along tour"....highly recommended it. We had awesome companions, yummy meals, informative commentary, shown hidden treasures & met characters we would never have discovered on our own and had a blast!!

Hi Vern & Leanne, I did the Cape York trip including the Old Telegraph Track (and Gunshot) in a stock standard Nissan Patrol with a snorkel. I never got bogged once and never had to be towed out of anywhere. I had never done any 4WDing previously either. I did the trip last year in June/July.