Thread: Planning a wee trip to the east coast...

Shane,
just be aware of the time/distances involved. If you drive non-stop from Toowoomba to Cairns you're looking at over 1600 kms and about 23 -24 hours if you just have a couple of cat naps and the briefest of toilet and refuelling stops. If you've already been on the road for a few days and you've had a bout of heavy drinking you probably won't be able to sustain this pace. Cairns to Cape Trib(ulation) is a few hours.
I've done a fair few long trips over the last year, about 20,000kms over 4 trips travelling between 200 and 1500kms a day. I found that when I was fresh I could manage 1500+kms on the first day but after multiple days of driving this slipped to about 700kms a day. Don't push yourself too hard, you don't want to end up as a statistic.

Mick

Originally Posted by Wild Dingo

Cheers Cliff and Wendy (along with everyone else!!) ...

16th Jan... Arrive Cliffs or Wendys

I reckon thats a good trip eh?

Coming back it will be something like this

Leave Cairns... Toobloodywoombly??? ....

Cliff is near Cairns, Wendy is near Toowoomba.

Cairns to Toowoomba is roughly 1,660 km (about 21 hours if you don't stop.)

Mick beat me.

or 16 hours if you are crazy never again

Besides, how could you drive all that way and not stop and see some of the wonderful places in between Toowoomba and Cairns

Cheers
Wendy

Dingo's a pussy afraid of NSWellies

Dingo's gonna be doing a lot of &

16 hours?? phhhhhit! mere moments in time when in the zone behind the wheel easy as!

Nope Wheelin no Drunkin an drivin for this wee black duck crack me first when I camp crack me second when Im munchin down on whatever tucker comes to hand first then a nice hot cuppa and off to snoozeland and back up and into it again after a few hours (usually about 3 or 4 most the zone it do call even when snorin )

Only when keys are firmly OUT of the ignition and away somewhere safe does the cap come of the first

Scared of New South welshnuts?? not likely!! Just too bloody many of them and NONE of them have a clue how to bloody drive!! MANIACS the bloody lot of them!! I reckon that state is the only state that gives drivers licenses out on the back of a wheeties packet cause Im yet to find a single Newsouthwelshnut who can ACTUALLY DRIVE!!!

So given I enjoy breathing and I love me car I think discression being the better part of valor it behoves me to bypass that madhouse of a state... well I will drive THROUGH the back blocks cause theyre not so bad but not the city mob

So which is first Toowobbly or Canines?

mmm gotta get me a map book eh?

Cheers
Shane

Originally Posted by Wild Dingo

...So which is first Toowobbly or Canines?

mmm gotta get me a map book eh?

Cheers
Shane

Strewth Ruth.

Have a play with these couple of pages.

http://maps.google.com.au/maps?hl=en&tab=wl

http://www.travelmate.com.au/MapMake..._Page=mapmaker

Had a spell behind the wheel recently, 4 months road trip to Gympie and back doin' some goodly miles some days towing a caravan the longest day from Ceduna to Esperance headin' home.

Like Mick said If'n ya fresh no worries but if'n ya doin' it day after day you can't maintain the pace...dunno how them truckies do it ...we only travel @ 90ks hr to conserve fuel.

Found that by breaking the trip up and having a 2 night stop over you could freshen up some to do some longer days.

Enjoy the trip Shane with ya youngins' travel safe and enjoy the miles with plenty of good music!!

Cheers

A bloke once asked me how to get across to Port Hedland from Alice Springs, as he was taking his brand new 4x4 and brand new caravan. I told him to go all the way up to see Darwin, then across to the left side and down. He said that was too long a way round as he was going to do Adelaide - Port Hedland - Perth - Adelaide and only had three weeks. I told him his rig would fall apart but he seemed determined.

Eventually, I had him ring me, as his 4x4 had blown a trannie, and after fitting a new one, the engine died. He and wifey come home on a bus, the 4x4 on a semi, the caravan was rented out at a cara park, to a bunch of galoots who wrecked it. I tried various mates to back load it from Perth, but they all told me trucks will no longer freight a caravan as the windows blow out of them along the highway. This bloke had to hock himself to get another 4x4 and then drive to collect what was left of his van.

The lesson here is, most private passenger vehicles are just not up to what heavy trucks can achieve in mileage and distances. Take your time and smell the flowers, and remember, the new road laws for truckies concerning driving time have come into play. These people now have an eye in the sky watching them and schedules to meet. If not, they have to stop for ten hours. This is called Fatigue Management, and many now have to have accreditation to say they done that course. It is a good idea for all along the road to observe that ruling, have plenty of rest.

Looks like a GTG at Wendy´s is on the cards. Wink, Wink.