Pilbara Explorer

The Isuzu 4x4 Club of WA Inc. is heading North to for a long trip into the Pilbara Region of Western Australia

Trip Details 

This trip is planned to go into the East Pilbara, Pilbara, East Gascoyne, and East Murchison areas of WA.

The plan is to commence Wednesday 13thJul and be back home Thursday 4th August. These dates and the route are subject to change for any reason which may include weather, Covid rules and anything else you can think/dream of.  You are also free to depart at any time you wish/need.

The trip involves an easy run along sealed and maintained Highways and dirt roads with some excursions onto unmaintained X Pastoral Station tracks and along the top of the Kennedy Ranges…last time I visited this area the Western track out of the Ranges was very rutted and cut up by rain. The weather will play a major part in the road/track conditions.

There will be limited opportunity to shop for food etc after Newman (Woolworths) so you need to be as fully self-sufficient as possible for the duration of the trip. You will be able to “eat out” in Marble Bar (and the Ironclad is a great place). Make sure you have plenty of water as potable water sources may be limited. If you intend to purchase alcohol, be aware that there are some strange rules re what you can purchase and weird opening hours.

You will need a fuel range of at least 1000kms. Fuel available at Wubin, Mt Magnet, Meekatharra, Kumarina, Newman, Marble Bar, Auski, Paraburdoo, Mt Augustus, Gascoyne Junction, Murchison Settlement then lots of places between Melangata Station and Perth (or wherever you are heading). Please be aware that some places require a credit card to operate the pump.

Recovery equipment suitable for sandy/mud track travel to be carried. Puncture repair kit to be carried. There should be 1 x UHF handset available for each person in the vehicle as there will be a lot of opportunity to go walking during this trip and in this type of country it is easy to get misplaced.

HINT…it is a good idea to wear some type of Hi-Viz clothing especially when out walking away from the 4WDs and campsites.

Food…I will have a BBQ plate for…BBQs.  We will have a couple of nights in the same place during this trip so if you wish to do the camp oven thing you are welcome to do so. If possible, please bring a bag of wood to share out for the first couple of nights.

Clothing…whatever you want but try and be fashionable. There will also be the opportunity for walking and exploring so please make sure you have decent shoes (boots are better) and appropriate clothing.   It would be wise to have at least one piece of Hi Viz clothing to put over whatever you will be wearing…makes it easier for the helicopter to spot you.

Weather…There has been a fair bit of rain through the Northern bits of WA over the past couple of months with more forecast. 

For this trip expect warm, cool, cold, freezing (really freezing), cloudy, sunny, windy, calm, dry and wet…if it continues to rain and floods then all bets are off and we will likely be exiting by the quickest route.

There’s a better than even chance that the nights will be freezing so make sure you have warm and cosy sleeping stuff…and that’s really freezing so do not skimp on the warm sleeping stuff.

Your 4wd will require a sand flag and a cover over the front…to stop the spinifex wrecking your cooling system (see photo). You will also need a 500mm length of thick wire to remove the spinifex from underneath your vehicle…this to minimise the risk of fire. Of course, you all carry a fire extinguisher.

Timings…the aim will be to have camp set up and enjoying a beer (or whatever) at least 90mins before sunset. That’s the aim. There will be a couple of days where some reasonable distances will need to be travelled and a couple of nights in the same place. Solar, nuclear fusion, angels’ tears, unicorn farts or whatever you need to keep your batteries topped up when not moving will be required.

One thing that may be a factor in packing up our camp each morning is how wet everything will get from the dew and condensation (and ice) …it may take a while to dry.

 

Further information below - 

Trip Leader - Mark Skeel 0429 108 389

2022 PILBARA GASCOYNE & MURCHISON

Day #1 Wednesday 13th July  KARARA R/LANDS  # @

Day #2 Thursday 14th July BILYUIN POOL  # @

Day #3 Friday 15th July BUSH ROY HILL  # @

Day #4 Saturday 16th July SKULL SPRINGS

Day #5 Sunday 17th July CARAWINE GORGE

Day #6 Monday 18th July “

Day #7 Tuesday 19th July MEENTHEENA STN $

Day #8 Wednesday 20th July“ $

Day #9 Thursday 21st July “ $

Day #10 Friday 22nd July MARBLE BAR $ # @

Day #11 Saturday 23rd July MARBLE BAR $ # @

Day #12  Sunday 24th July BUSH

Day #13 Monday 25th July BUSH

Day #14 Tuesday 26th July DOOLEY DOWNS

Day #15 Wednesday 27th July MT AUGUSTUS $ # @

Day #16 Thusday 28th July “

Day #17 Friday 29th July KENNEDY RANGE

Day #18 Saturday 30th July “

Day #19 Sunday 31st July “

Day #20 Monday 1st August BUSH # @

Day #21 Tuesday 2nd August MELANGATA $ #

Day #22 Wednesday 3rd August “ $

Day #23 Thursday 4th August HOME  # @

NOTE $ = payment to camp # = fuel available @ = some food may be available

Kilometers Between :-

PERTH – WUBIN 270

WUBIN – MEEKATHARRA 500

MEEKATHARRA – NEWMAN 425

NEWMAN – NULLAGINE 200

NULLAGINE – SKULL SPRINGS 110

SKULL SPRINGS – CARAWINE GORGE 120

CARAWINE GORGE – MEENTHEENA 100

MEENTHEENA STN EXPLORE 100

MEENTHEENA STN – MARBLE BAR 80

MARBLE BAR – AUSKI R/HOUSE 255

AUSKI R/HOUSE – MT AUGUSTUS 500 VIA PARABURDOO

MT AUGUSTUS – KENNEDY RANGE 260 VIA MT SANDIMAN

KENNEDY RANGE - MOOKA 150

MOOKA - GASCOYNE JCTN 70

GASCOYNE JCTN – MELANGATA STN 500

MELANGATA STN – PERTH 550

LONGEST DIST BETWEEN REFUEL NEWMAN TO MARBLE BAR 750KMS

TOTAL KMS FOR THE TRIP APPROX 4500KMS