Outback travellers, pilbara and nullarbor travel

WA4WD

OUTBACK TRAVELLER'S PAGE

HOME Frank Hann Mudmaps 4WD Page Travellers Page Images Shitting In The Bush Lonely Graves My Nissan Contact Us

This page has been added to help travellers make careful choices. Enjoy a magnificent experience, for this is really one of the world's great road journeys, but temper enthusiasm with great care. I have tried not to preach, but please take this advice as it may well help you enjoy your trip more, maybe even save your life.

The Nullarbor

The Nullarbor is still a long, long, long drive with limited facilities. No banking exists between Ceduna and Norseman, ensure you have sufficient cash, as EFTPOS facilities may not be available at all times. Norseman and Ceduna are the two towns at either end and are about 1300km apart. Post Offices do not exist between these towns. There are no Social Securities offices on the Nullarbor. The only Police Station is at Eucla, there are no supermarkets, there are no hospitals or doctors or chemists, there are no suburbs and there are no traffic lights. Actually, there is not much at all! You are on your own. If you travel with the young or old, make sure you have everything they need.
There is a quarantine checkpoint at the sa/wa border for traffic coming into wa. If you have a prohibited item you will get caught. if you have an illegal item you will be detained. if you have fruit, you'd better be able to eat there. If you have dirt or animal manure, be prepared to clean it off there (and you may have to unload your gear!)
There are limited repair facilities, towing is very expensive.
The animal life can vary from apparently non-existent to almost plague proportions. Driving at night is not recommended except for experienced country drivers (and even then it's best avoided). I don't recommend night driving unless absolutely necessary, and certainly not without a bullbar and long distance driving lights are essential. Kangaroos are really, really big on the Nullarbor. Ignore this advice at your own peril. I used to travel from Norseman to Border Village every week, so far I have seen camels, kangaroos, emus, dingoes, wombats, cats, foxes, rabbits, Wedgetail eagles, snakes, bob tailed lizards, crows and idiots! Every week at least one extra vehicle is added to the long list of destruction!
If you must travel at night SLOW down. You may not even see the suicidal kangaroo that will destroy your vehicle and strand you in the middle of nowhere. Slow down when approaching another vehicle at night. If either one of you hits an animal both vehicles may be involved. When you first see another vehicle's lights directly in front, turn OFF your spotlights. Dip your high beam when you can perceive two distinct headlights (a good rule of thumb).
In WA the 110km speed limit is the maximum you are allowed to travel, not your minimum target speed. Remember it is difficult to see at dusk, which is when many animals start to move around.
And yes the police DO patrol the highway, so speeders will usually get caught. People doing illegal things will end up with a free ride somewhere and maybe free accommodation for a while. With only one road, there is nowhere to hide or run.
Whilst there are emergency facilities along the highway, if you are in an accident it may be some time before help arrives. Ambulance travel can be very expensive. The RFDS is usually required for casualty evacuation. There are emergency telephones located on the road. When you pass one note its location and how far from it you are and which direction it is from you...you never know when you may need to use it.
Mobile phones do NOT work on the Nullarbor. There may be some coverage in South Australia and at Eucla, but between roadhouses and in nearly 700km of WA there is NO coverage. Satellite phones may work. Please understand you ARE travelling a remote area.
Ensure you have sufficient water for your own use. Do not expect the roadhouses to provide water for cleaning your car, they have to provide their own water and it is expensive and in very short supply. Do not drink water from taps unless you check first, some of it is salty bore water.

Click this link to see more about the WHOLE Nullarbor experience: Nullarbor Net

Be careful and have a good time.

Now having said all that there are some exciting things to see on the Nullarbor

Spectacular cliffs (Check with the roadhouse about what coastline is near them)
Eucla Telegraph Station ruins (you can win a bet here, because the exposed ruin is not actually the Telegraph Station, but the Telegraph Master's Residence)
Beaut beaches (sometimes a long drive from the main road, but it'll be pretty quiet down there. Check at the roadhouses what's available. Swim with care because there are big fish that eat humans in the water)
Caves (There are a number of caves, particularly around Cocklebiddy and Eucla. Some on these caves are very big. Check with the roadhouse for information. Take their advice about entry, some caving in meant for experts)
Blowholes (Caiguna has a blowhole on the south side of the Eyre Highway about 5km west of the roadhouse)
Rock outcrops and lonely graves (History records the death of an Afghan, killed by whites when he was discovered washing his feet in a waterhole. As with all culture clashes intolerance and thoughtlessness by both parties had a tragic result. One man saw his religious beliefs above what another man considered ordinary hygiene. They each paid a penalty. Afghan Rocks is just east of Balladonia and the grave is on the edge of the rocky outcrop, or so I believe).
Fantastic and unusual wildlife (Keep you eyes open and look carefully. Sometimes stopping for a for minutes and letting yourself become used to the bush so you can see the animals standing hidden amongst the scrub, probably keeping a wary eye on you.)

The Pilbara

This is a vast area of Western Australia. It is very beautiful in a rugged sort of way. The most comfortable time to see the Pilbara is in winter when day time temperatures are pleasant. However, the summer time or wet season is when most rain falls, and when waterfalls and creeks start to flow.

During the wet never ever camp in a creek or river bed, rain falling a 100km away may well drown your experience.
It is very harsh in summer and you must always carry plenty of water. We have to carry 10l per man per day for work!
The spinifex is a pretty nasty grass. It was not called deadly triodia for nothing, but other than being prickly, it often hides large venomous snakes, including the king brown. Not all snakes are poisonous and one nice looking snake is a python but is often thought to be a tiger snake because of its stripes.
Once again many little towns have no mobile phone coverage, and few services.

If you look you will see kangaroos, emus, snakes, wild donkeys (we don't have tame ones!), camels, idiots who survived the Nullarbor, eagles and other birds of prey, gorges, old air force bases, beautiful oases (plural of oasis), fantastic rock outcrops, vast plains of spinifex, petroglyphs, bloody big trains and even bigger mines.

Camping is not as easy as around Norseman. You have to plan ahead and many times there will be no firewood (fires are generally prohibited anyway, so use caution). Because the good spots are so good, sometimes you will have to share, especially the "icon" camp spots. If a local tells you of a place, it is either well used or you have been given a rare gift of some beauty. There are some abandonned homesteads, and if you visit one remember the struggle of those who built them, and also please do not vandalise them, as most people couldn't give a shit what date you were there, but will remember you as a wanker if you scrawl your name!

Exploring the Pilbara does require a bit of planning, because the distances are much bigger and you could easily miss something and find it too far to go back.

Mush of the advice for the Nullarbor applies equally well to the Pilbara.

Enjoy the bush!