Question: Canning Stock Route

IdahOz, Not really a good time to be out in the deserts. Weather will be very hot, sand dunes will be dry and loose and other travellers will be very uncommon out there then just in case you need some assistance.
Personally, I wouldn't go then and I'd leave it until the cooler months.
I guess if you were very experienced and and were extremely well prepared, you could do it but I'd not like to take the risk. Consequences could be fatal.

Gidday

I guess the traditional owners would be the only people with much experience of travelling in the desert at that time of year and they have a different skill set to the rest of us. And even they have been known to come to grief.

A couple of weeks of up and down dunes in 45C heat and the off chance of a cyclone crossing the coast and dumping a couple of inches of rain and stranding you ...not for me thanks

Cheers

Rocco

Totally understand your predicament with the kids but it could turn into a nightmare such are the dangers of the deserts in the summer.

Imagine ground temperatures of 50-60+deg, 45deg in the shade, try sleeping in that at night. Then the vehicle becomes critical to your survival, tyres and engine temps running to the max. Refrigeration almost impossible. And possibly no one around to save you for 500k IF you can maintain radio contact.

Then at the top end your running into monsoonal weather with humidity at 90%.

The kids wont thank you for any or all of that.

Take a trip to Tassie or along the Great Ocean Rd and do a bit of fishing and walking the beaches.

The deserts are only for the very most experienced in summer and that is usually not by choice.

Hi Idaho Oz,

These days the Simpson Desert is closed over the summer, because of the risk to both travellers and potential rescuers due to extreme heat. Considering that the Canning experiences similar temperatures but is a much longer trip than the Simpson, you can get some idea of what the risks are.

Have you and your children done the Simpson? I wonder how much your children would enjoy the Canning - it would be a long trip for them, especially when its hot.

Cheers,

Val.

IdaOz

You have obviously done ZERO research on this!
Are you from Australia??

Idahoz,

The CSR is a great experience and if your kids enjoy camping and lots of things in nature then why not try the Canning. BUT not at that time take the kids out of school for a week or so either side of the mid year term holidays. The experience they would have will easily compensate for school work missed. They could organize some school work from their teachers before they leave, even keeping a detailed diary each would be a good idea. Just a thought.

Regards.

Mike T.

If you are silly enough to ask a question like that then you shouldn't be allowed anywhere near any Australian desert !!!

Thank you for all the helpful answers!
To those of you who need to belittle others to make yourselves feel good, not much I can say to you. I am glad I can give you a little ego boost if you need it that badly.
I have actually done a lot of research, much on this very site. And one of the things I've discovered is that frequently people differ completely on what they say can and can't or should or shouldn't be done. For instance YOU try researching whether you can can/should/would take a trailer on the CSR. What you will find is many different opinions -- those dead set against and those who say it is a breeze.
So I wanted to see what people said about travel in the summer. If there had been a difference of opinion I would have weighed it out. As it is, I got EXACTLY WHAT I EXPECTED, which is that it is just too hot in summer. I don't think this makes me too stupid to be allowed to camp in Australia and I will continue to enjoy camping around this beautiful country, thank you.
I thought this forum was a place where friendly aussies (and others) helped others out with the benefit of their real life experience and I appreciate all those of you who continue to do that.

A snippet from a web page re the Page Family tragedy:

"If the Page family hadn't broken down in late December 1964 on the fiercest part of the track, if they had been carrying water or even water containers, if it hadn't been Christmas with most of the locals away, then they would probably have been in Birdsville for lunch.
Instead, they left their Austin A40 in search of water. They found some but all perished on the return walk.
The deaths of five people 30 years ago on a track barely comparable with today's road may seem irrelevant now. Yet history could easily have repeated itself in the late 1980s.
A family car broke down in the same area as the Pages' had, and at the same time of year. Few people are around over Christmas and it was an out-of-the-ordinary road patrol that found the family only hours later. They were already out of water and the driver, who had been working on the car in the sun, was showing obvious signs of dehydration".

The CSR over summer will be even more remote than the Birdsvile in '64.

Cheers.

On a Death wish, Mate ?

Bye

It is a shame that this site seems to be characterised by people making unpleasant personal attacks on others who ask questions or have different opinions.
Not that I am against healthy vigorous discussion but virtually every post has some nasty small minded attack on the person in it. A real shame that people are so lacking in personal confidence that they need to attack others rather than share info and benefit from the accumulated knowledge from members.

Half of you Landcruiser owners wouldn't even attempt it in winter time. The guy was just asking the question..

Hi IdahOz,

Like people have said, if you dont know, ask. All those rude people - pull your head in and get a life where your ego doesn't take up your entire car and actually lets other people to travel with you.


Personally, i would not even attempt it unless it is middle of winter. I live in Kalgoorlie which is only 4.5hrs south of the start/finish point of Wiluna. I often travel upto Wiluna all year round (and some of the other deserts around here), and i can confirm it can get bloody hot at the mines north of Wiluna during the day. As also stated by someone else, if you do happen to be unlucky enough to encounter a cyclone on its way down, sand and dirt out here doesn't take much rain to turn it into mushy mud - and it is sticky salty mud out here (trust me from experience).

Most roads are closed with less than 3mm of rain around here to give you an idea.

Personally if it suits you, wait til June school holidays and take the kids out of school a week before and after (those 2 weeks aren't ususally that important anyways school work wise), and they will most likely learn more than most other kids in their class.

In summer your water intake will be dramatically higher anyways, let alone 5 or 6 people in one car with limited water carrying capacity (In the middle of summer most people take upto 20L per person per day (for just in case) going anywhere, whereas in winter that can come down to 5 - 10L per person per day).

Happy travels :)