I am sure this topic has been discussed at length in the past, but using the search function bought up only a handful of now quite old posts.
Reports are that the Qld gov't seems to be spending quite a bit of $$$ improving and sealing roads for tourist areas and an old post suggests the road is now sealed to Laura, but was wondering if anyone has been up to the tip in the last 12 months and could report on the current state of the main roads as for suitability to tow a caravan.
Whilst we've towed our 20 year old Jayco poptop (with modified suspension) across the Gibb from end to end with no problems (one just lets the tyres down and reduce your speeds appropriately), there seems to be scant "up to date" reports on road conditions in FNQ or to the tip for towing.
Our friends have an awesome go anywhere Tvan camper and want us to join them for a run to the tip this July-August possibly via PA--> Birdsvile-->Isa, or up the middle, but certainly via the Savannah Way.
I guess everyone has a different view on what constitutes a bad road, but some sites say you can take any vehicle if you drive sensibly to the conditions, whilst the extreme scaredy-cats say just tent it.
Any thoughts or recent reports?
Peter_n_Margaret said
10:48 AM May 6, 2017
It is just another gravel road that will vary according to the traffic and the weather and the grader timing.
Its condition next week will be different from today.
The worst you will likely find will be lots of dust and corrugations. Nothing that would be a problem for a well prepared vehicle at appropriate speeds.
Cheers,
Peter
matildatraveller said
11:08 AM May 6, 2017
Hi guys,
I have just returned from a trip to the Cape, however I left my Motorhome in Cairns and joined in a small 4x4 tour group. On saying this, there were plenty of 4x4 campers, pop-ups and varied caravans travelling with 4WD vehicles on the road at the time. The road north is mostly sealed on & off until the WEIPA turn off, then the dirt & corrugations really begins,. But if you take it easy the road North should be OK.
On the way up everyone seemed to drive their rigs off onto the FAR left hand side on the embankment and the opposite coming back and not on the actual road its self. I am a female solo traveller and would have been confident to attempted the FNQ road to the Cape (on my own even) if I had a more suitable vehicle with good suspension and high clearance. There were many others on the way up North at any given time, and all are willing to lend a hand to a fellow traveller if necessary. Since you will be travelling with friends you should feel confident to do the trip.
Of course a safe journey will depend mostly on your patience, the road conditions at the time & the road worthiness of your rig, both vehicle & caravan. (common sense prevails)
But on a positive note, it is a 'Once in a Lifetime Trip' and all the sights & manner of people along the way makes the journey special and a very worth while trip. My favourite part (besides standing at the most Northern tip of Australia) was the swim at "Fruit Bat Falls' & the Jardine River Crossing by punt. Remember its not the destination that is the important part, but to spend time to enjoy all the sights along the way!
Good luck & take care from Gwynnie at matildatraveller .....................
darjak said
02:50 PM May 6, 2017
I agree with Peter, you're better off doing it now before they completely destroy the adventure by putting bloody bitumen on it like they are with a lot of roads.
It's like the Birdsville you can't call it a TRACK anymore it's a HIGHWAY. Only thankful I have done all these places before they're all destroyed, but are very sorrowful for my grandchildren to not be able to do the adventure and see these places in their pristine state as I have.
Darrell
Dunmowin said
05:50 PM May 6, 2017
Hylife, we are heading up the tip in July, departing from Cairns. What is your rig, we are a Nissan patrol towing a 21' off road Kedron. May see you up there.
Mr D has been doing a lot of research on the cape on the Cape York Adventures face book page. Get on to it (if you you are on facebook and have a look)
Hylife said
09:02 PM May 6, 2017
Peter & Margaret,
thanks for confirming what I suspected.
For me I think it is a case of too much watching YouTube idiots like the Gall Brothers attempting the old tracks and river crossings of The Cape.
A bit like a hypochondriac that googles health stuff, and convinces themselves they have some disease or sickness because the symptoms seem to say so.
I was beginning to believe the road to the Cape could end up like the Burke and Wills Gulf expedition.
Dunmowin,
Be great to meet a fellow GN on the road somewhere.
Our rig is in my avatar. We have a Fortuner Crusade (Hilux wagon) and a '96 Jayco 16' poptop.
2015 we did outback Qld, but that is mostly tar. Last year we did a half lap up the middle, across the top, down the west and across the bottom.
22,500km, including the entire Gibb, which was actually done twice because we went halfway in from the east and then back again to the Great Nthn Hwy to take the tar so as not to miss the Bungles, then up the dirt to visit Tunnel Crk and Windjana Gg, then back down to the Hwy seal again and around to Derby and then the other half of the Gibb from the west and back to Derby. We didn't do the Kalumburu Rd as there was no wet last year and we were told the Mitchell River was not flowing.
The van performed flawlessly on the dirt and corrugations just by letting the tyres down and finding that magic speed around 70-80kph where you float across the bumps rather than getting violently hammered by going too slowly.
The Gibb was not at all as bad as everyone makes it out to be. The dangerous crests and dips have been sealed to save lives and these days it is graded every 3-4 weeks with two teams working from opposite ends back and forth.
In reality, the worst road by a country mile, was the drive in to El Questro. 30km of absolute hell. When so many vans get damaged on that short drive to Sardineville, it is no wonder most wont tackle the Gibb.
As to our little van, back in the 90s everyone towed using the family sedan and we couldn't tow heavy vans. We all wanted low to the ground, strong yet lightweight, vans.
These days, we all (mostly) want every mod con conceivable and because of the crippling weights, need to have powerful high clearance 4x4's to tow them, and, the van chassis and suspension have to be re-designed heavy duty because 'off the tar' destinations becomes an issue for all that weight bouncing up and down.
Without the crippling weight found in new vans (though I would like an ensuite), our van fully loaded is approx. 1600 kg according to the 'free for self assessment' VicRoads modern weighbridge on the Hume Hwy, which is lighter than many modern camper trailers.
Lightweight, if done properly, does not have to mean weak or unsuited to off road. In fact lighter vans, just like camper trailers, don't get hammered as much by corrugations, they skip across the top.
Nevertheless I have modified the chassis and suspension on our van on the following way:
I have rotated latitudinally, the overlay axel 180 degrees for a 4 inch lift, providing 320mm clearance and a level stance behind the tug.
No more nose up - bum down, draggin' the @rse over every driveway, speed hump or spoon drain.
I confirmed with an axel manufacturer that the axel is no less strong mounted as an underlay rather than an overlay and that the forces applied to the van and its suspension are exactly the same and preferable to going over-slung (axel under the springs).
Complete replacement brake assemblies were recently fitted and the brake backing plates were unbolted and re-bolted during the rotation to maintain the integrity of the original design of magnets down the bottom.
I have fitted shocks, to both dampen the leaf spring bounce, and provide stability for the extra height, via hangers welded directly to the chassis and axel beam.
I have replaced the lightweight leaf spring center bolts, leaf spring front bushes, and leaf spring rear slipper hangers with heavy duty components.
I have had the drawbar given extra weld points to the chassis, and I have had the whole system checked and laser aligned by a company that specialises in (and is called) 'Heavy Vehicle Alignments' in Derrimut, Vic. hva.net.au/
These guys are just as happy doing caravans and 4x4s as they are doing Heavy trucks and trailers. Excellent value if you are at all concerned about chassis, suspension or tyre wear.
Desert Dweller said
05:54 AM May 7, 2017
Friends of ours did not too long ago, left their van in storage then tented it to the tip. They were glad that they did. Scaredy cats or just conservative sensible travellers, who knows?
Warren-Pat_01 said
10:48 PM May 7, 2017
Hylife,
A flag on the bull bar might save you from a head-on collision if you take some of the narrower tracks. We were up there a lot of years ago but I don't think the "I thought I was the only one on this track" idiots have died out - yet! I was lucky as I saw the flash of an aluminium boat on his roof rack through the bush.
macka17 said
01:55 AM May 8, 2017
Hylife.
Where they "welded" your chassis points.
Did they add a few gusset plates.
The vans I added them to and welded to hold together back in the '70's and '80's, ain't funny.
They'll still stress at those points. Specially that one where front of body goes over the two rails.
I always added Vertical and horizontal Plates at that point.3x2in or 4x2in cut to form
long triangles.
Coupla three battery's did a good job with lightish short leads.and 1.5 mm rods.
It gets side snatching as well as vertical there.
Plus put a coupla stitches round the bolted on tow hitch
Corrugations loosen everything.
Same as steering arm rods. Falcon\Fairlanes.
Always tacked them after wheel align . We lived on dirt roads.
Hylife said
11:01 PM May 13, 2017
Macka17, no gussets, original welds holding the drawbar to the chassis are quite small, approx. 1 inch each and only at 4 points on each side of the chassis. The extras welds probably are only for my peace of mind as most likely the chassis or drawbar would bend before the welds will break.
The old vans had chassis cross members made of RHS rather than the newer method of using punched steel. Much like a ladder frame on a fourby, they are much stronger and can cope with off-tar abuse better, but there is still limits to things before they break. I think that sometimes we can over-engineer things. Welding heat can often do structural damage rather than the reinforcing we are trying to acheive.
A lot of the newer bolt on hitch mechanisms have big cast wording saying 'Do Not Weld'. Gotta be a reason for that.
I am sure this topic has been discussed at length in the past, but using the search function bought up only a handful of now quite old posts.
Reports are that the Qld gov't seems to be spending quite a bit of $$$ improving and sealing roads for tourist areas and an old post suggests the road is now sealed to Laura, but was wondering if anyone has been up to the tip in the last 12 months and could report on the current state of the main roads as for suitability to tow a caravan.
Whilst we've towed our 20 year old Jayco poptop (with modified suspension) across the Gibb from end to end with no problems (one just lets the tyres down and reduce your speeds appropriately), there seems to be scant "up to date" reports on road conditions in FNQ or to the tip for towing.
Our friends have an awesome go anywhere Tvan camper and want us to join them for a run to the tip this July-August possibly via PA--> Birdsvile-->Isa, or up the middle, but certainly via the Savannah Way.
I guess everyone has a different view on what constitutes a bad road, but some sites say you can take any vehicle if you drive sensibly to the conditions, whilst the extreme scaredy-cats say just tent it.
Any thoughts or recent reports?
Its condition next week will be different from today.
The worst you will likely find will be lots of dust and corrugations. Nothing that would be a problem for a well prepared vehicle at appropriate speeds.
Cheers,
Peter
I have just returned from a trip to the Cape, however I left my Motorhome in Cairns and joined in a small 4x4 tour group. On saying this, there were plenty of 4x4 campers, pop-ups and varied caravans travelling with 4WD vehicles on the road at the time. The road north is mostly sealed on & off until the WEIPA turn off, then the dirt & corrugations really begins,. But if you take it easy the road North should be OK.
On the way up everyone seemed to drive their rigs off onto the FAR left hand side on the embankment and the opposite coming back and not on the actual road its self. I am a female solo traveller and would have been confident to attempted the FNQ road to the Cape (on my own even) if I had a more suitable vehicle with good suspension and high clearance. There were many others on the way up North at any given time, and all are willing to lend a hand to a fellow traveller if necessary. Since you will be travelling with friends you should feel confident to do the trip.
Of course a safe journey will depend mostly on your patience, the road conditions at the time & the road worthiness of your rig, both vehicle & caravan. (common sense prevails)
But on a positive note, it is a 'Once in a Lifetime Trip' and all the sights & manner of people along the way makes the journey special and a very worth while trip. My favourite part (besides standing at the most Northern tip of Australia) was the swim at "Fruit Bat Falls' & the Jardine River Crossing by punt. Remember its not the destination that is the important part, but to spend time to enjoy all the sights along the way!
Good luck & take care from Gwynnie at matildatraveller .....................
It's like the Birdsville you can't call it a TRACK anymore it's a HIGHWAY. Only thankful I have done all these places before they're all destroyed, but are very sorrowful for my grandchildren to not be able to do the adventure and see these places in their pristine state as I have.
Darrell
Hylife, we are heading up the tip in July, departing from Cairns. What is your rig, we are a Nissan patrol towing a 21' off road Kedron. May see you up there.
Mr D has been doing a lot of research on the cape on the Cape York Adventures face book page. Get on to it (if you you are on facebook and have a look)
thanks for confirming what I suspected.
For me I think it is a case of too much watching YouTube idiots like the Gall Brothers attempting the old tracks and river crossings of The Cape.
A bit like a hypochondriac that googles health stuff, and convinces themselves they have some disease or sickness because the symptoms seem to say so.
I was beginning to believe the road to the Cape could end up like the Burke and Wills Gulf expedition.
Dunmowin,
Be great to meet a fellow GN on the road somewhere.
Our rig is in my avatar. We have a Fortuner Crusade (Hilux wagon) and a '96 Jayco 16' poptop.
2015 we did outback Qld, but that is mostly tar. Last year we did a half lap up the middle, across the top, down the west and across the bottom.
22,500km, including the entire Gibb, which was actually done twice because we went halfway in from the east and then back again to the Great Nthn Hwy to take the tar so as not to miss the Bungles, then up the dirt to visit Tunnel Crk and Windjana Gg, then back down to the Hwy seal again and around to Derby and then the other half of the Gibb from the west and back to Derby. We didn't do the Kalumburu Rd as there was no wet last year and we were told the Mitchell River was not flowing.
The van performed flawlessly on the dirt and corrugations just by letting the tyres down and finding that magic speed around 70-80kph where you float across the bumps rather than getting violently hammered by going too slowly.
The Gibb was not at all as bad as everyone makes it out to be. The dangerous crests and dips have been sealed to save lives and these days it is graded every 3-4 weeks with two teams working from opposite ends back and forth.
In reality, the worst road by a country mile, was the drive in to El Questro. 30km of absolute hell. When so many vans get damaged on that short drive to Sardineville, it is no wonder most wont tackle the Gibb.
As to our little van, back in the 90s everyone towed using the family sedan and we couldn't tow heavy vans. We all wanted low to the ground, strong yet lightweight, vans.
These days, we all (mostly) want every mod con conceivable and because of the crippling weights, need to have powerful high clearance 4x4's to tow them, and, the van chassis and suspension have to be re-designed heavy duty because 'off the tar' destinations becomes an issue for all that weight bouncing up and down.
Without the crippling weight found in new vans (though I would like an ensuite), our van fully loaded is approx. 1600 kg according to the 'free for self assessment' VicRoads modern weighbridge on the Hume Hwy, which is lighter than many modern camper trailers.
Lightweight, if done properly, does not have to mean weak or unsuited to off road. In fact lighter vans, just like camper trailers, don't get hammered as much by corrugations, they skip across the top.
Nevertheless I have modified the chassis and suspension on our van on the following way:
I have rotated latitudinally, the overlay axel 180 degrees for a 4 inch lift, providing 320mm clearance and a level stance behind the tug.
No more nose up - bum down, draggin' the @rse over every driveway, speed hump or spoon drain.
I confirmed with an axel manufacturer that the axel is no less strong mounted as an underlay rather than an overlay and that the forces applied to the van and its suspension are exactly the same and preferable to going over-slung (axel under the springs).
Complete replacement brake assemblies were recently fitted and the brake backing plates were unbolted and re-bolted during the rotation to maintain the integrity of the original design of magnets down the bottom.
I have fitted shocks, to both dampen the leaf spring bounce, and provide stability for the extra height, via hangers welded directly to the chassis and axel beam.
I have replaced the lightweight leaf spring center bolts, leaf spring front bushes, and leaf spring rear slipper hangers with heavy duty components.
I have had the drawbar given extra weld points to the chassis, and I have had the whole system checked and laser aligned by a company that specialises in (and is called) 'Heavy Vehicle Alignments' in Derrimut, Vic.
hva.net.au/
These guys are just as happy doing caravans and 4x4s as they are doing Heavy trucks and trailers. Excellent value if you are at all concerned about chassis, suspension or tyre wear.
A flag on the bull bar might save you from a head-on collision if you take some of the narrower tracks. We were up there a lot of years ago but I don't think the "I thought I was the only one on this track" idiots have died out - yet! I was lucky as I saw the flash of an aluminium boat on his roof rack through the bush.
Where they "welded" your chassis points.
Did they add a few gusset plates.
The vans I added them to and welded to hold together back in the '70's and '80's, ain't funny.
They'll still stress at those points. Specially that one where front of body goes over the two rails.
I always added Vertical and horizontal Plates at that point.3x2in or 4x2in cut to form
long triangles.
Coupla three battery's did a good job with lightish short leads.and 1.5 mm rods.
It gets side snatching as well as vertical there.
Plus put a coupla stitches round the bolted on tow hitch
Corrugations loosen everything.
Same as steering arm rods. Falcon\Fairlanes.
Always tacked them after wheel align . We lived on dirt roads.
Macka17, no gussets, original welds holding the drawbar to the chassis are quite small, approx. 1 inch each and only at 4 points on each side of the chassis. The extras welds probably are only for my peace of mind as most likely the chassis or drawbar would bend before the welds will break.
The old vans had chassis cross members made of RHS rather than the newer method of using punched steel.
Much like a ladder frame on a fourby, they are much stronger and can cope with off-tar abuse better, but there is still limits to things before they break.
I think that sometimes we can over-engineer things. Welding heat can often do structural damage rather than the reinforcing we are trying to acheive.
A lot of the newer bolt on hitch mechanisms have big cast wording saying 'Do Not Weld'. Gotta be a reason for that.