Nullabor

midlife-crisis-gapyear · Member

Nullabor

Santa · Guru

Type Nullabor into the search box, a number of relavant threads come up.

beachball57 · Senior Member

i travel across there a lot, plenty of places to stay free, almost any parking area of which there are many,,, this time of year it's not to hot,, lot of wild life so i wouldn't be tempted to travel after dark,,, servos about every couple of hundred k"s or so but fuel is very expensive out there i carry as much fuel as i can to get across,, food at servos is also expensive, i fend for myself,, last time i check was about 4 dollars at a couple of places for a shower unless, like me yoiu're working then it's mostly free,,,nullabor isn't as scary as people would think if you are prepaired and use common sence....make sure your vechile is in good condition as trying to get repairs done out there can be an issue and almost cost you your house LOL
hope this helps

johns · Veteran Member

G'day Graham & Liz, I travelled only part of the Nullarbor in September 2011, so can only talk about my travel.
We only went as far as the Nullarbor road house, from Adelaide. Nullarbor road house sells petrol but you have to give him your vehicle licence before he starts the pump (too many drive offs.) We went back to The Head of the Bight to see Whales. (Worth a visit) After that went back another park (cannot think of name, just before Yalata, a bit ordinary.)
Next morning drove to Fowlers Bay. Good bush park and friendly management. The road into Fowlers Bay is dirt all the way, and the first half is a bit rough, after that good dirt road (no problems if you go slow over the rough part) My van is not the off road type, and the car was a Falcon Station Wagon. There is good fishing at Fowlers and they also have a boat to take you out to see the Whales.
After a few days in Fowlers we headed for Smoky Bay, Bitumen all the way and a good park.
Just before Ceduna there is a fruit fly inspection point. You cannot take fruit or vegies into SA from WA.

GaryKelly · Guru

Now I've heard everything. Too many drive-offs at the Nullarbor road house? I've always thought of country people, especially in the outback, as being as honest as the day is long. Maybe those who drive off are blow-ins. Anyway, it's disappointing.

Gerty Dancer · Guru

Don't forget the quarantine check-points at the WA and SA borders.

http://www.quarantinedomestic.gov.au/

aussietraveller · Guru

its always worth checking at the tourist information centre as to which way the wind is blowing and when its expected to turn as it can save a small fortune in fuel also pick up the strip map which is very useful on the trip across, at the Norseman end dont buy fuel at the BP at main intersection as the servo on the right going into town is always cheaper I think its Caltex and the guy who owns the BP at Norseman also owns several as you cross the Nullabor if you ask around people will tell you which ones so you can avoid his rip off prices.

Hope you have a fantastic trip and take it slow and look around you will be amazed at what you will see.

-- Edited by aussietraveller on Thursday 11th of April 2013 12:22:53 AM

herbie · Guru

Back in November when we travelled accross ,there was a huge mouse plague right from start to finish ,they were trying to crawl over every thing.I think a lot of the problem regarding the mice is the rubbish left at the free camping spots,some of the places were ,for a better word discusting..such a shame , They put garbage bins in some of these places ,but forget people use them and don't empty them until weeks/ months after.Maybe this is the problem once they put bins in it encourages people to dump there rubbish behind even if the bin is over flowing.If they can't fit it in the bin they just leave it beside the bin and then all the birds/ animials rip the bags open and we all know what happens next.When we pulled into one of the c/ van parks ( just cannot think of name ) The mice were so bad we had to stuff Alfoil into where the water hose conected to van ,so to stop them getting in. Some of the back packers who were in tent's had to turn tent inside out to get them out ,due to them leaving flap open for a very few mins. We always carry a plastic garden rake ,so we can at least rack the rubbish away from where we intend to stop.We find it one of the best ideas....But besides all this it is one trip everyone should do.Fuel is dear but, then that is what one expects in the out back. One guy now ownes five of the roadhouses accrss the Nullabor he comes from Perth ,was talking to him on the last trip as he was out checking some thing out that had broken down at the c/van park we were staying at ..i mentioned about how some roadhouse fuel prices were cheaper than other roadhouse's he laughed and said .... IF I DON'T GET YOU AT THIS ONE I WILL SURE AS HELL GET YOU AT THE NEXT ONE. I will remember those words every time i dive the Nullabor .

sufil · Guru

Its a great drive in either direction. We travel it quite regularly, at least twice a year. Allow yourself $2.00 per litre for fuel from once you have filled up at Nundroo, the next cheapest fuel isn't until you reach Norseman. Every roadhouse has a caravan park and prices are around $25 per night. There are a million areas to free camp (well maybe a slight exaggeration!!). Do you have a Camps book (7 is the latest)? You will find that caravanners will start to camp up anytime from about 2pm..(they get the good spots at the back of the site away from traffic noise!!), so drive in have a look around and move onto the next one if that one doesn't suit you. Usually find a bit of a happy hour will happen each night and you never know who you will meet. (On one of our recent trips we met a cousin of mine that I hadn't seen since we were in high school in the early 60"s!! We have camped in gazetted sites and wandered off the road and found our space as well. Plenty to see out there if you travel slowly and look around.
Things to do out there include Whale watching, bird watching,star gazing, blowholes, cliff views across the Bight, if you are lucky(?) you may even see the Flying Doctor plane land on the highway, tourist flights at Nullabor Roadhouse, station tour at Frasers Range, not to mention wedgetail eagles, roos, wombats and camels and you can play 18 holes of golf, starting or finishing at Ceduna and Kal.
Coming into WA they will take all fruit and veges, and honey at Eucla but at Ceduna heading into SA they only take F and V. We only carry enough F and V to get us thru for 3 or 4 days,depending on which way we are travelling, what we have left on the day we are passing thru a check point we cook before getting there and eat them over the next day or so. Norseman to Ceduna is good cos you don't stop at the Eucla Check point and by the time you get to Ceduna you can restock. There is an IGA at both Ceduna and Norseman. (remember if you buy F and V in Ceduna or anywhere else in SA, KEEP THE SUPERMARKET DOCKET so you can keep your F and V when you pass thru the fruit fly zones check points. If it was bought in SA from a supermarket it is deemed to be fruit fly safe. We usually only carry enough F and V for 2 days. Both states will also take fruit boxes and possibly ask you to clean something if it is muddy (possible weeds and seeds). We had to clean a shovel on our last trip across as it had Victorian mud on it!!
We always top up our van tanks before leaving either Norseman or Ceduna and purchase a 10 litre bottle water for drinking. Lets just say that whilst either town water is safe to drink sometimes it is an acquired taste!!The tea and coffee HAS to be drinkable!!. We usually shower each day in our van but road house showers are usually pretty good and we will happily pay $3 or $4 for a long really hot shower with plenty of pressure at least once on our travels across!!
The road is bitumen all the way, roadhouses every 200kms or so,if you need assistance some one will always stop and help.

midlife-crisis-gapyear · Member

Thankyou all for your great advice, it's much appreciated.
We're in Port Augusta and trying to decide west or north.

Cheers