road surface and conditions from Cairns to Cape York late March/April.

McSporran · Newbie

road surface and conditions from Cairns to Cape York late March/April.

Kebbin · Guru

Don't get me wrong but you are probably going to have to wait until March/April to know the road conditions and weather, but on a serious note far to early to be going, rains a bit up that way at that time of year.

Dunmowin · Guru

McSporran, best time to do the cape road is July/August. Rains are over, roads have been graded. Any earlier, the worse it is.

WE did the cape this year with a Nissan Patrol 4.02l towing a Kedron off road (ATV) caravan. We did not see too many other caravans on the PDR. The PDR is corrugated, other roads into national parks are rutted, river/'creek crossings. Even though when we did them they were dry, but still deep/steep. You need to be confident with your 4WD and your 4WD driving capabilities.

Main bitumen ends at Laura, after that it is sporadic, depending on the current road works. Major works north of Archer River towards Weipa. Not much tar after that.

Sorry I don't know the capabilities of your Scenic Vega tandem Cvan. As Kebbin says, if you wish to travel March/April, probably too early in the season for the National Parks to be open, or even the PDR for general traffic.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

I have a different view as to how to work out when to go.
Allow plenty of time and station yourself in an area that you can wait in. Maybe the Atherton Table Lands? Plan to be there a couple of weeks before your best guess on the road opening date after the wet season. Watch this site... www.tourismcapeyork.com/the-region/road-conditions/ and this one .... www.tourismcapeyork.com/the-region/road-conditions/ ... and there is another I can't find :(
When the roads north of Laura (the end of the bitumen) are open to all traffic is the time to go. The roads will all be dry and mostly freshly graded at that point and you will have a dream run north. In 2009 that was May 18th, but can vary by weeks earlier or later each year depending on the wet season.
Early is the best time to be up there. The waterfalls are all at their best and the country is lush. There will still be barra about if that attracts you and you go to the right places. There are no creeks or rivers that would stop a Mini.
Coming home after some traffic has been up and down will likely be slower due to the development of some corrugations, but one way is better than both :)
Don't rush. Allow several weeks. There is lots to see up there.

Cheers,
Peter

PeterD · Guru

I have a van from the same stable as yours. I would not take it to the cape. These are what I am looking at for next year.

https://www.cairnsvisitorcentre.com/cairns-tours/cape-york-safaris

http://www.billyteatravel.com/tours/cape-york

http://www.oztours.com.au/destinations/cape-york

https://www.****atours.com/tours-destinations/cape-york/

https://nwozsafaris.com.au/

http://www.heritagetours.com.au/

http://active.fnqtravel.com.au/tibs/cooktown-and-cape-york/cape-york-camping-tours.html

http://www.capeyorktours.com.au/all-cape-york-camping-tours

-- Edited by PeterD on Saturday 11th of November 2017 02:55:56 PM

Dunmowin · Guru

Dunmowin wrote:
McSporran, best time to do the cape road is July/August. Rains are over, roads have been graded. Any earlier, the worse it is.
WE did the cape this year with a Nissan Patrol 4.02l towing a Kedron off road (ATV) caravan. We did not see too many other caravans on the PDR. The PDR is corrugated, other roads into national parks are rutted, river/'creek crossings. Even though when we did them they were dry, but still deep/steep. You need to be confident with your 4WD and your 4WD driving capabilities.
Main bitumen ends at Laura, after that it is sporadic, depending on the current road works. Major works north of Archer River towards Weipa. Not much tar after that.
Sorry I don't know the capabilities of your Scenic Vega tandem Cvan. As Kebbin says, if you wish to travel March/April, probably too early in the season for the National Parks to be open, or even the PDR for general traffic.

Another thing to bear in mind - depending on what you want to do/see. The national parks do not necessarily open at the same time as the PDR. For example, Lakefield National Park southern section (from Cooktown north) opens earlier than Lakefield National Park northern section. See below, which is copied from Qld national parks site:

Park-specific conditions

Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park (CYPAL), including all camping areas, is closed throughout the wet season every year from 1 December to 31 May. All camping areas north of Lakefield ranger base (Swee****er Lake, Annie River, Five Mile Creek, Sal****er Crossing, Bizant River, Brown Creek, Basin Hole, Top Whiphandle Waterhole, Bottom Whiphandle Waterhole, Orange Plain Waterhole, Hann Crossing, Hanush's Waterhole, Melaleuca Waterhole and Midway Waterhole) remain closed up to and including 30 June. These dates may vary depending on weather and road conditions and camping areas and roads may also be closed after heavy rain.

Bas + Eve · Senior Member

Noticed from Mount Gambier to Warrnambool drivers driving on wrong side of road to avoid potholes and rough edges. Accidents inevitable!

Hylife · Guru

Time to go? Depends on the weather.

Road conditions? Depends on who is responsible for maintenance. Sealed to Laura. First 60km past Laura bad corrugations and dust holes, even the road trains drive in the spoon drains. Sporadic patches of seal for 10-30km for no reason all the way up the PDR. Road from Telegraph Rd turnoff to 50km from Weipa is mostly awesomely flat dirt that is graded, watered and rolled twice a day for all the mining vehicles. Telegraph Track north from PDR for first 40km average corrugations, Telegraph Road maintenance from approx. 60km south of Bramwell Junction until 16km from Jardine Rive is under contract to Bramwell Station (good place to camp for a nights entertainment and meal) and is almost as good as a tar sealed road but is still dirt (watch marbles on corners). 16km before Jardine river roads turns to absolute 'sh!t' under the responsibility of Bamaga Council all the way to Bamaga, average 15 to 20kph tow speed MAX. Seisia/Bamaga to the tip is pretty good dirt but quite narrow in places so watch your speeds. The biggest worry is the idiots with boats in tow who think they can fly at 100kph all the way, usually a car and boat rollover at least once a week.

Type of van? These days, any van can do the cape, off road types not required, just let your car AND van tyres down to half to soak up the corrugations and drive at slower speeds to suit the road conditions.
I've just come back from the old Savannah Way and the cape towing a 20 year old Jayco 16 foot poptop. No real problems except the fine talcum dust WILL get into every little nook and cranny and necessitate a major cleanup when you return home.

Recommend new tyres as best insurance against punctures when you have lots of tread. Take a plug type tyre repair kit. Take a decent volume air compressor.

Leaf spring suspension requirements for sustained corrugations. Have inexpensive shocks fitted to the axel if your van only has leaf springs. Upgrade to 6 leaves if you only have 5, 60mm wide not 45mm and a combo of 6 and 8mm leaves is better than all 6 or all 8. If your leaves are slipper type (longer lasting than shackle (eye to eye) springs) have the rear hangers replaced if there is any wear and replace the front eye bushes. Replace all U-bolts and leaf center pin/bolts as these can and do fatigue on all vans and campers. Carry some spare U-bolts and center pin bolts because at $10 each it can be a bl00dy long round trip to Rebel Auto in Weipa for replacements. Don't attempt driving on corrugations for over-slung axels because if they fail in any way your axel and van WILL part company, whereas a traditional underslung will remain captured within the leaf and chassis.

Keep all heavy items down low to reduce fatigue to your cabinetry.

Know that anything that can rub and wear or break, WILL rub and wear and break, so prepare and pack wisely.

Window Glass insurance is a must

And lastly, have a great time! :)

-- Edited by Hylife on Monday 13th of November 2017 04:06:02 PM