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The Outback Way


Tolley

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Thanks Russ,

It was a typo. I have deleted that post including the attachment. So, here we go again.

The attachment shows the mainland school term dates. I find it useful during the winter caravan season up north.

Regards

Colin

PS. Russ there was not an issue with my batteries. Somehow the setting on F1 of the battery monitor in the van had been changed from 360 where it should be to 45!! That is why it was flashing all sorts of dire warnings at me. All good now.

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Yes, I know, I should take up a constructive hobby. But anyway, here is the first five verses. We must, as a group, finish it before Leonora. Get to work!!

THE VAN FROM PINE RIVER with apologies to A.B. "Banjo" Paterson

There was movement amongst the Kedrons, for the word had passed around

That the trip across the continent was underway,

And had joined together in Winton - it was worth the thousand miles,

So all the cracks had gathered to the fray.

All the tried and noted vanners from places near and far

Had mustered at the caravan park overnight,

For the Kedrons love the outback where the wild bush horses are,

And the owners snuff the challenge with delight.

There was Flynnie, who made his pile when Kingston Town won the cup,

The old man with his hair as white as snow;

But few could follow behind him when his blood was fairly up --

He would go wherever the Kedron and 'Cruiser could go.

And Tolley from the North came down to lend a hand,

No better organiser ever held the reins;

For never could a corrugated road throw him while the sockies would stand,

He learnt to drive while serving on the plains.

And one was there, a Top Ender a large and rugged beast,

It was something like a camper oversized,

With a touch of pure luxury - three parts thoroughbred at least -

And such as are by outback caravaner’s prized.

It looked hard and tough and wiry - just the sort that won't say die -

There was beauty in its quick impatient tread;

And it bore the badge of greatness in our bright and fiery eye,

And the proud and lofty carriage of our head.

But there was one so slight and weedy, one would doubt its power to stay,

And the old man said, "That van will never make it

For a long and tiring trip – it had better stop away,

Those deserts are far too tough for such as it."

So the ATV driver stood sad and wistful - only Mayzee stood his friend -

"I think we ought to let it come," he said;

"I warrant it'll be with us when it’s wanted at the end,

For both his van and he are Aussie bred.

"It hails from Pine River, up by Brendale side,

Where the hills are twice as steep and twice as rough,

Where a Kedron wheels strike firelight from the flint stones every mile,

The van that holds its own is good enough.

And the Kedron’s in the outback make their name,

Where the river runs those giant hills between;

I have seen so many caravans since I first commenced to roam,

But nowhere yet such caravans have I seen."

:(

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Hi Everyone

You will probably be thinking this is late notice asking this question, but has any one had any trouble with the foam seal in their vacuum sealer machine? I have had mine for less than 6 months and has done little work but was wanting to get the last of my goodies ready for the biggie. How do i explain my problem - well it is not sucking the air out of the bag so not sealing properly. I am not placing over the hole etc. The foam seal seems to have a low part in one side and the air is escaping. I have contacted primus and they were very good about sending me a new one but by the time it comes from Melbourne (only rang them yesterday) we will be well and truly on our way. We leave here Tuesday morning.

Just wondering if anyone had this same experience and if you had found a quick fix for the short term?

Only 3 sleeps to go now for us!!

Cathy & Greg

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Hello,

This attachment has been sent by email direct to participants. However, some find it easier to access it on this site.

Regards

Colin

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Hello,

Further to the sunrise and sunset PDF I attached previously, you will note that there is two entries for Warakuna (Giles). Yesterday I spoke to the lady at the RH and confirmed that Central time is used there. On leaving Giles headed west it reverts to WA time. So, the entry in red is the go. This matter is important if one is looking to refuel etc.

On the rain, they had little with about 40 mm at Warburton. On road conditions she said from Ayres Rock to them, rough, then to the west, OK.

Regards

Colin

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Thanks for sharing that Colin,

The weather outlook for the next 10 days that I saw looked pretty good for travel from our side of the country. A bit of drizzle to keep the dust down is always welcome, not keen to get my feet too wet though, our travel party quickly become deserters when the call for elbow grease goes out.

I think when it comes to NT roads, perhaps tracks is a better term, I've always found it a bit of a lottery. One persons rough road is another's expressway, all ratuve relative to our personal driving style and expectations, can't change it so we'll just go with the flow.

Regards

John

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The last couple of days around Alice Springs have been gloomy to say the least. Today it is absolutely bucketing down.

Definitely won't be any dust on the surrounding tracks, that's for sure !

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The last couple of days around Alice Springs have been gloomy to say the least. Today it is absolutely bucketing down.

Maybe the Todd will flow, that would be a bonus smile.gif, I'm sure it's still the spectacle it was when we lived there, although there are now bridges so you can still get about, weren't back then, used to cut town into 3, couldn't even pass through the gap on a big flow, wow those were the days, a long, long time ago....... 1975-78

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<br />Hello,<br /><br />Further to the sunrise and sunset PDF I attached previously, you will note that there is two entries for Warakuna (Giles).  Yesterday I spoke to the lady at the RH and confirmed that Central time is used there.  On leaving Giles headed west it reverts to WA time.  So, the entry in red is the go.  This matter is important if one is looking to refuel etc.<br /><br />On the rain, they had little with about 40 mm at Warburton.  On road conditions she said from Ayres Rock to them, rough, then to the west, OK.<br /><br />Regards<br />Colin<br />
<br /><br /><br />

Hi Colin

HOPE & PRAY

We are in Alice having just completed the GCR and regret doing so as the degeneration of this road since we did it in 2010 was a shock.

You will enjoy about 800km of corrugations that are generally quite bad and I rate the road condition now worse than the Savannah Way and GRR in 2010 and the Oodnadatta Track and Tanami in 2011.

If there is much rain prior to your leaving Yulara the road to Docker river will be a badly corrugated mud bath.

The camp site at Docker is a mess no water or toilets but free.

Docker to Warburton is an average road with lots of corrugations and what I think is all weather crushed rock toppings sections that have formed narrow tracks leaving ridges of soft crushed rock for the van wheeels to drag through. My fuel consumption in the sections rose about 25%. The toppings were not only rough but also corrugated giving a very rough ride and there were many of these sections throughout the GCR.

Shortly after Warburton you will hir road works with rough side tracks and just hope thes has not been any serious rain.

You will the wonder what is in front of you, it is not a mirage but about 25km of bitumen, enjoy it whilst it lasts for then then road is generally currugated to alsorts of degrees until Cammp Paradise which is a gem of a place to stop, sunsets and sunrises are great in good weather.

Heading West from here you are immediately hit with the worst road conditions on the GCR 5-10km/hr crawl for several km. even the lead foot locals were slow over this section waving us down with prior warnings when we were heading East.

From Tjukayirla road house you will have almost continuos quite bad corrugation to the Laverton end.

You may find conditions have significantly changed as the reports I got and another camper and Camp Paradise were the 3-4 weeks ago the road was generally quite reasonable to drive.

Your group will also have a distinct advantage from me in the you intend to tkae it very easy so can run very low tyre pressures in youe 4WDs whereas I ran lower but safe handling tyre pressures that enabled me to cover the run from Menzies to Kings Creek in 3 days.

I ran the van at mid 30's tyre pressures and had no significant problems except for a door hinge braking and 2 external hatch doors deciding to let dust in one of which was the Thetford, everything in the fridge and kitchen was ok including the the crockery we carry without ant special packing precautions.

If you want an appetiser of what is coming then I suggest you do the Mereenie Loop.

Have fun

John

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Hi John,

Thanks for sharing that. We head off tomorrow Thursday and it does not sound like much fun, we're planning the Mereenie Loop Road as well to add some extra punishment.

Just had a browse around and looks like we need to be making some hard decisions in the next couple of days as the run from the WA border to Kata Tjuta is presently closed due to flooding ohmy.gif, we'll have to decide during the morning Friday.

For NT Road Closures look at http://www.ntlis.nt....tions-today.jsp

Regards

John

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Good luck to all those doing the GCR trip. Think of it as a challenge, it will be a trip that you will talk about for years to come. We did it last year and still think about it constantly, the good and the bad. Our only damage was a broken spring (just as we approached Yulara) on a 10 year old kedron van which has travelled on a lot of tracks. Look forward to hearing all the reports and blogs etc.

Clive and Sandra

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Hi Cathy, I had a similar problem with my vacum sealer although mine is a fresh Shield brand. It has a foam filter at the back, you need to make sure the lid of the filter housing is sealed correctly I fixed mine by pushing the lid down tight then using sticky tape to seal around the lid. Mine now workes like a charm. Hope this helps.......cheers Lynn

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Good Morning Everyone,

Well, it has arrived. The last day before departure on our Outback Way journey. We head south towards Charters Towers tomorrow morning.

Many will be pleased that my being on the road will greatly reduce my capacity to produce emails and attachments :D

Recent rains south and west of the Alice and the subsequent road closures has thrown some uncertainty into the mix. But that is caravanning and outback travel. It all adds to the attractiveness of what we do.

In a week from now the Phase 1 participants will be gathered in Winton. I am really looking forward to meeting everyone.

I wish everyone, and especially our Outback Way group, happy and safe travels.

Regards

Colin

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If the weather up there is anything like we are copping at the moment, you will all need flippers and snorkels. :lol: And small lids for the wine glasses so that it does not get watered down. :blink: But above all SAFE TRAVELS and enjoy.

Cheers

Rick & Lea

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Up 'ere is Elands,NSW about 60Ks.West of Taree,up in the mountains. It is beautiful country but at the moment it is very cold and wet :rolleyes: .(100mls in 24 hrs.)and still raining and blowing a gale. We are doing a property sit and have just under 3 weeks to go. The weather here has been very good up till Wed. But, it is nearly winter and we have a lovely fire and plenty of wood. :D

Cheers

Rick & Lea

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Hi Colin & other Kedron adventurers on the OutBack Way Tour

We wish you all a fantastic & safe journey.

We would have joined you but for 1 thing.....on 1st June (your start date) we're leaving on a jet plane for Canada - the western side that is for 8 weeks :lol:

Hopefully we will meet up with some of you later in the year @ the next KOG gathering to hear all about your tour.

Until then, have a safe & fun holiday

Cheers

Sue

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Wishing everyone a safe & happy trip.... either the west coast of Canada or the GCR....... Looking forward to the trip reports

CU down the road.........

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What a couple of days. I turned the van fridge on Wesnesday night and the compreSsor fan didn't start. After a call to Camec phoned their recommended repairer who couldn't even look at the problem till end next week. Sh..t fthat's the end of our Outback Way trip I thought. Luckily they recommended a great young Mobile repair guy who went out of his way to fix our problem. Even put off his MRI on his Footy knee (AFL of course). Problem now fixed and we are off tomorrow to meet everyone at Winton.

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Good news Mayzee,

It is strange how these things crop up at the last minute despite your best efforts to prepare, check, prepare and check again. Mine this time was the rear view camera, now replaced, and the very morning of our departure for the big lap in 2011, all power was lost to accessories in the Landcruizer.

Looking forward to our meeting in Winton.

Regards

Colin

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[quote name='Tolley'   We head south towards Charters Towers tomorrow morning.

Hi Colin

Our paths may cross as we expect to be in Richmond Sunday Night & Charters Towers on Monday.

Have fun on the GCR and Plenty which we decided to avoid after reports received in Alice as we expect a bit of a pounding on Cape York.

Cheers

John

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[quote name='Tolley'   We head south towards Charters Towers tomorrow morning.

Hi Colin

Our paths may cross as we expect to be in Richmond Sunday Night & Charters Towers on Monday.

Have fun on the GCR and Plenty which we decided to avoid after reports received in Alice as we expect a bit of a pounding on Cape York.

Cheers

John

Hi John,

We will be in CT tonight, Sunday, and head west on Monday after calling in on a client in Ct on Monday morning.

I monitor Channel 40 so if you see a Top Ender and white 100 series.......

Haven't decided on Monday's destination .

Regard

Colin

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Zolle

We are now at Bivouac junction holiday park, which I highly recommend, just west of Charters Towers. Camps 7 #272 Qld. Monday night we will be in Richmond.

Colin

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