Oonadatta track

Gus1949 · Senior Member

Oonadatta track

Dunmowin · Guru

Hi Gus, We travelled the Oodnadatta track a few years back, and wrote an article for a magazine at the time. If you would like a copy of this article, please send me your email address by PM, so I can send it to you in PDF. It is written from a caravanners perspective, during winter. It may help, however, you must realise that the track varies from year to year, season to season, and how much traffic there has been at any given time.

aussietraveller · Guru

I also have driven the Oodnadatta track and thoroughly enjoyed it but there is no way that I would take a standard van across there because even if the grader is working on the road there are going to be sections that are still pretty rough, there are some great locals you will meet especially the couple renting the pink road house who chatted to us as we set up camp out the back, hope you enjoy the trip it's certainly worth doing.

wendyv · Guru

Would not suggest doing the Oodnadatta Track outside of the cooler times you mention. There can sometimes be a rain event - not all that common up there though - that can close the track for a little while.

It is wide, usually firm, solid, gravel surface. The biggest issue is corrugations - and how bad these might be depends on when last graded, etc.

We have travelled the track a few times - but with an offroad van, which was better able to survive corrugations.

I presume you would intend to head across to Marla from Oodnadatta? I think the track north from Oodnadatta would be more of a problem to a non-offroad van. Or you could head down to Coober Pedy.

wendyv · Guru

Resize of 05-19-2007 01 On the Oodnadatta Track.JPG

Resize of 05-20-2007 09 Warriners Ck crossing Oodnadatta Tk.JPG

A couple of photos of the track.

mongrel · Guru

Went through there about 10 years ago.Very wet and boggy.
Looks much better then when we went through.
Good pics,

pricey43 · Guru

We took an Avan pop-top along the track in July 2010. There had been a lot of rain and had to be careful of closures. The worst section for us was from Oodnadatta across to Marla which was very rocky. Damage to the van was varied. Stones flicking up put holes in the plastic beading on the front and a number of dents. The continual bouncing up and down caused the back cushions on our couches to carve a long hole in the backing where they were attached, and because our shockers had been fitted incorrectly and caused cracks in the chassis which had to be welded in Alice. Think Carefully!!!!!!!!! disbelief

dazren · Guru

hmm Geez, !! Ted and Robyn, great photo's, _ All wheel drive territory I presume, ! and the A-Van, Your a braver man than me, wink biggrin biggrin

pricey43 · Guru

Less experienced maybe (or just plain stupid) smile . That Territory was actually only 2 wheel drive. We had sold the 4 wheel drive one earlier.

JackoFJR · Senior Member

I have driven the Oodnadatta Tk several times also done it on a motorbike , first time was 1986 in a Sigma sedan towing a Jayco Swift
I have always thought it was ok .

baute · Senior Member

Oops no one told me either Oodnadatta was rough. I did it in a Ford Escort Panel van back in 1986.
Maybe we are getting soft in our old age.
Also did it in 1973 in a holden kingswood towing an old Millard.

wendyv · Guru

Robyn and Ted,
Luckily, we have never seen the track like that! I am surprised it hadn't been closed.

On our 2007 trip up there, had been some rain in the northern section a week or so before we were there. We wanted to go to Arkaringa and the Painted Desert. In Oodnadatta, the sign said that road was closed. But we made a comment at the Pink Roadhouse about wondering how long before it would open because maybe we could camp there for a while. The lady said that the road had been opened that day, but the policeman who had the key to change the sign had gone down to William Creek for the start of the Great Cattle Drive, so they couldn;t change the sign!

Mind you, the channels of the Arkaringa Creek were still pretty mucky and we needed to churn through in low range.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

baute wrote:
Oops no one told me either Oodnadatta was rough. I did it in a Ford Escort Panel van back in 1986.
Maybe we are getting soft in our old age.
Also did it in 1973 in a holden kingswood towing an old Millard.

Margaret and I first drove some of the Oodnadatta Track in 1970 in a Mini.

It was OK then and has been mostly better ever since.

This is at Coward Springs with the Ghan going past.

Cheers,

Peter

Nelly · Guru

I have been out there and I would have thought it would be ok to take whatever vehicle as long as you drove to the condition of the road but definitely not in the wet.

pricey43 · Guru

wendyv wrote:
Robyn and Ted,
Luckily, we have never seen the track like that! I am surprised it hadn't been closed.

Wendyv , the track had been closed for about a week and had just reopened.

rayn_boh · Veteran Member

Hi, I did the track in august sept last year with friends, was awesome, weather was great no rain at all, I was with friends in their 4wd, mickey Thompson tyres, roof top tent plus swags, never had a problem, but saw a few along the way shredded tyres lots of flat tyres, broken windscreens, plus broken van windows from rocks thrown up by the tug, but most were ok was fabulous would do it again in a heartbeat. go enjoy :)

wendyv · Guru

pricey43 wrote:
wendyv wrote:
Robyn and Ted,
Luckily, we have never seen the track like that! I am surprised it hadn't been closed.

Wendyv , the track had been closed for about a week and had just reopened.

This is just idle curiosity.......how did you tackle that big puddle? Straight through? Wade first? Try to go round the edge?

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

wendyv wrote:
This is just idle curiosity.......how did you tackle that big puddle? Straight through? Wade first? Try to go round the edge?

My advise is to walk through first to check that there is no deep wash-away in there and then drive through slowly staying right in the MIDDLE of the road, because that is the hardest, most compacted dirt.

This is the Stuart Highway in 1974. There was about 1,000km like this. We walked many ks.

1974 Kombi trip 2&3 030E.jpg

1974 Kombi trip 2&3 054E.jpg

Cheers,

Peter

elliemike · Guru

Great Pictures.

pricey43 · Guru

wendyv wrote:

This is just idle curiosity.......how did you tackle that big puddle? Straight through? Wade first? Try to go round the edge?

Wendyv, we sent our GN friends through first. smile smile smile They just had their larger 4x4 on that trip . We knew they would be able to get out easier than us.

wendyv · Guru

Good one!