EMU Creek 2012

[Psimpson7]

Thanks to everyone who came along. There was a good turnout of 11 or 12 cars, covering a wide range of variants!

We arrived pretty late on Friday night, about 1030pm or so. Most people were already there and set up.

We decided to go with 1 group and it worked pretty well I think. The pace was ok, and everyone drove really well.

We covered a lot of ground on Saturday.

In the morning we headed out from camp and up track 32. This is a nice and failry interesting track with some rock sections and mud.

Tim in a hole! - A gentle pull from Darren had him out:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/222.jpg

John driving through the same hole:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/223.jpg

Nice wheel stand from Jason:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/224.jpg

Tim on one of the looser rock sections after driving up the rock face part:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/225.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/226.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/227.jpg

Bullets on the same section:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/228.jpg

Busman:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/229.jpg

Presto:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/230.jpg

After this we drove track one and ran though some of the track 50 sections, before heading back down track 5.

Convoy:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/231.jpg

Down track 5, which is a pretty steep and difficult track in sections:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/232.jpg

Convoy of series rovers!

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/233.jpg

Grimace:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/234.jpg

Sam and I:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/235.jpg

Kelvin:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/236.jpg

Greg:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/237.jpg

Tim:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/238.jpg

Bullets:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/239.jpg

Mel, Elliot and Oliver:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/240.jpg

After lunch we headed out again. This time following track 1 up to the top of the hills, and then trying to follow 55,54 and 51. We found some more tricky sections, but I dont have many pics from the afternoon.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/241.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/242.jpg

Tim managed to break a Propshaft UJ on this track, which resulted in a failry quick repair with a replacenent of Kelvins. Kelvin and Tim had that swapped in about 30 mins.

We then headed back to camp, arriving back at about 5pm.

Next day we did a bit of exploring of the rock and play areas, but they were a bit dissapointing. We didnt really fancy getting too far into the park on the Sunday morning just in case we had any issues.

There are a few areas i am still very keen to explore.

Here are a few pics from camp and dinner on the way home

Benny:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/243.jpg

Amusing use for fire rings!

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/244.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/245.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/246.jpg

Grant had an alternator problem on sunday but we made it back with a few battery swaps and a convoy.

Thanks to everyone for a good weekend.

[disco_thrasher]

Pete's hit the nail on the head it was a great weekend ,I think to try cover that place you need almost a week ,alot of fun could be had .
good trip we enjoyed it been over 2yrs since been on a trip with GCLRO
i will definately keen to do a summer trip out there with all those cool swimming holes

[Outlaw]

Cheers for the pics... how cold did it get??? :angel:

[Grimace]

Cheers for the pics... how cold did it get??? :angel:

Wasn't cold at all! :D

[Outlaw]

Aha so you managed to get in between Pete & Sam did ya ;)

[Timj]

Aha so you managed to get in between Pete & Sam did ya ;)

No, he got cosy with Bob and Katie again :eek:. Those poor dogs are back in therapy again!

Was a fun trip again of course, it always is with this bunch :). Thanks again to everybody for helping me out when things got broke. A couple of very nice dents in the crossmember underneath the front driveshaft that bent it up closer to the shaft and caused it to hit and break the universal. There were definitely some very interesting tracks in there and I was just looking at the satellite map on their web site and there is so much of that park that we didn't get even near to.

We stayed for an extra night and had a leisurely pack up and trip home, got in about 3 this afternoon. I have to get the camera batteries charged back up before I can load any photos, hopefully later tonight. There are some nice photos from Pete there, good to see the two shorties together. Hopefully some of mine have come out ok.

Cheers,

TimJ.

[Timj]

Ok, got a few photos up online. I didn't take as many as I thought, must have actually been concentrating on driving :).

Emu Creek 22-24/6/2012 album | TimJ | Fotki.com, photo and video sharing made easy. (http://public.fotki.com/TimJ4blue/emu-creek-22-2462012/)

Some good ones in there I think. I have a couple of very short videos that I will try to get up as well.

TimJ.

[Grimace]

'GET OUT' :D
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/06/179.jpg

[Grimace]

p.s. Surely someone got some of the major wheel stands coming down this section? Busman defied gravity for about two seconds :eek:

[Presto]

I think Mel (Darren's version) got some good wheel stand pics?

[Grimace]

We need more photos in this thread IMMEDIATELY!!!




As some of you may know I had been busy all week as well as the previous weekend in a desperate plea to get Fluffy ready for this trip to Emu Creek.

It came down to the wire, many mornings up early and working on the car at 5am before work, till late after work, still landed with me having to do the majority of the preparations on the Friday before my original intended departure time of 6pm.

On Friday I woke at 4am, and was at the mechanics by 5am, checking the tune, fault finding the running issue I had on the newly installed 4.6.
I serviced the Auto, the transfer and the differentials, as well as the engine oil.

By this time it was almost 8am, I took the car to the office and tried swapping bits over to see if the car would run correctly, but no luck.
It was at this time I contacted Rick and limped the car down to his workshop at around 10.30am.

3 hours later I was back home with the car running but a major leak from one of the rocker cover gaskets.
Now it was time to get stuck in.

I connected the trailer to Reggie and loaded it with firewood. Then parked both cars side by side. Emptied them out completely and started sorting out what needed to go in what car to get away for the weekend.

I rolled out the tyres and lifted the first one directly onto the draw bar of the trailer. I figured I could fit two there but as I lifted the second, something in my back gave way, and I was immobilised.
It was at this time that I had thought the worst. What have I done, will I be able to commence...
I still had a mountain of duties ahead of me... It was 3pm
I was yet to swap the front bar and rear tow ball over.
I also had to wire up accessories plugs for the fridge etc.
Replace a front globe.
Get one car packed ready to go.
The other car packed with everything that was to be left behind.
Remove and refit the rocker cover gasket.
actually get home to see Jess and Fry before I left
and of course pack some clothes and what not while I was there.

After about ten minutes of rest, I decided to press on. I completed all the items I could without assistance, then as my guest arrived (Alex), I got him to aid with lifting the tyres and packing the cars, then making sure everything was strapped down.

By this time I was well past schedule, it was about 7pm and I was just looking forward to getting out of there.
But once I got on the road and headed home to get my gear it was evident I still had a gasket problem... probably much worse then it was previously unfortunately.

To say I was gutted is an understatement... I wanted to give up, but couldn't. So we headed back to the office and commenced undoing everything I had done :(

Unpacked both cars again, removed and replaced front and rear bars, removed the tyres from the trailer, OMG I almost gave up numerous times. I was tired, sore and well and truly over it. Plus I had a three hour drive ahead of me.
Never have I been so over something before it even commenced, but the sheer length of my post already and having not even got to the highway yet is surely detail enough of why...

We contemplated leaving in the morning, but I was fed up, I didn't do all this for nothing. So at around 9pm Alex & I left the office for a second time and headed to my place again to get some bottles of wine, then to the bottlo for a carton of beer, then to the servo to fill up...

I don't know what time we hit the highway, nor do I know what time we got to the park, but I know that is was a relief rolling into the camp ground to see a fire and some friendly faces.

We made it, (albeit in Reggie not Fluffy) FINALLY ! ! !

Stay tuned for the next instalment!

[jaffa]

I think Mel (Darren's version) got some good wheel stand pics?

Sorry no wheel stand pics in the ones we have .Actually didnt take many pics at all this trip.
All round was a good weekend for us. Even the defender went well. Maybe even dare i say it better than a rangie..:p
Highlight of the weekend for me was following TimJ and Bullets round for most of the driving .Great to see a couple of series vehicles being given some stick offroad..

[Presto]

Sorry Darren, I thought Mel told me she had a few good pics!?

[CheekyD1]

{snip}
As some of you may know I had been busy all week as well as the previous weekend in a desperate plea to get Fluffy ready for this trip to Emu Creek.

It came down to the wire, {snip Bla Bla}

On Friday I woke at 4am, and was at the mechanics by 5am, {snip Bla Bla Bla}

I don't know what time we hit the highway, nor do I know what time we got to the park, but I know that is was a relief rolling into the camp ground to see a fire and some friendly faces.

We made it, (albeit in Reggie not Fluffy) FINALLY ! ! !

Stay tuned for the next instalment!

I am glad you made it
After I put in the minutes and every thing, that Jess cleared you to go. :)

I also wanted to go but Cheeky could not be coaxed into life, She just kept muttering about needing a new mill.
I tried to get her excited by telling her how good the new mill will be, shaved heads and decked block, not to mention the hot up camshaft.
But she just backfired and stopped... Again. :(

[Grimace]

Yeah, I had been looking forward to Emu Creek since forever!

To finally be at the park at about 1am on sat morning after the hectik Friday, having had no lunch nor dinner, was just relief.

By this time the fire was cosy, understandably most were in bed, so we only downed a couple of beers as the numbers dwindled, and went of to nap at around 3am.

Only to be awake again at 6am, I needed to pee :eek:, but my back was stiff, sore, pulsing and out of whack... it took me what felt like at least 4 minutes just to get out of my sleeping bag, then another 4 to get up and out of the tent.
But it was worth it. What a morning, we were so lucky throughout the entire weekend to have such fine weather. This Saturday morning was a pearler.

While I am on the topic of luck, luckily I had Alex as a guest on this trip as he likes food, so out came the bacon and eggs, and I believe some tomato. All cooked on the trusty steel plate over the camp fire. YUM YUM!

This was Alex first time in a real 4wd (Rangie), so you can imagine his excitement once Pete rounded us up and we headed out for our first adventure.

We went past the main house, Alex had noted how much smoother it is with the tyre pressure dropped, then through a small mud bog. Alex got further excited.

As the morning run continued the obstacles grew larger and each time Alex was dumbfounded at how easily the vehicles tackled the 'rugged' terrain :)

I too was surprised at the capabilities of all the vehicles, given the technical sections and variations in the terrain, and the large diversity between vehicles and drivers we all drove exceptionally well.

Upon returning to camp for lunch it was now I who was excited, as it was time to sample the qtr of a cow that Alex had somehow crammed into the Engel the previous day!
OMG... it is frozen... like a rock... damn fridge and its orsumness!

But just like the day before, nothing was stopping us from achieving our goals.
With the aid of the sun, some toxic home made Uruguayan marinade, a poo shovel, and of course the camp fire, we were well on our way to culinary delights.

Fed up to perfection, it was time for an after noon drive.
But first a quick pee.... hmm what is this by my side... a small doggie by the name of Sally.
Where did she come from you ask.... She is the owners dog and I think she has a crush on me.
She followed me to my car and sat just out from my door as I clambered up into the drivers seat.
I had barely uttered the words 'you wanna go too' by the time she had pounced up onto my lap.
So now our party of two became three :D

Heading into unknown territory we embarked on a journey to locate a dead end track...
We missed it, went straight past it actually, but we found a couple of small technical sections on our way which caused some grief for the series vehicles.
Bullets suffering some panel beating to the sill mounted tank and TimJ a rather unsightly cross member that caused further issue when the front shaft uni decided it had had enough.

As always its the afternoon drive where these things happen, usually just before sunset, so a quick fix and a turn around to head back to camp was in order. I had to located Sally who was roaming up and down our parked convoy then took the lead on our way back.

The first obstacle that proved a challenge was a climb out of the valley we had descended into. Kelvins winch was called into service on a number of occasions. But it was smooth sailing after this. Back down the main road which isn't exactly graded or easy took longer then tackling the tough tracks.

Just getting on sunset we arrived back at camp and got stuck into some good old fashioned binge drinking :D
It was long after we had eaten dinner (twice actually), that the fire grew larger, the crew stronger, and the banter louder.

MOOOOOOOOOOSE :D

We talked about knitting, creme caramels, french waffles, ponys and daffodils.

Sick of sitting or standing, I took retreat to the comfort of the ground amongst Bob and Kate, where I promptly fell asleep. Thus as far as I can remember.

I herd stories of Samantha trying to awake me by use of Shovel to the head... cold ice was another, and JohnR possibly assisted me to my final destination. Let's call it a night hey.... 'it's already called that' :D

Nek Minute... Sorry Next morning, another pearler. Back still throbbing (not that it's actually ever stopped, even now :mad:) head pondering how on earth I managed to get into my sleeping bag, and why on earth it was inside out :angel:
Time for breaky again, Yippeee :D

Today was a bit of a fizzler... we headed off in search for a so called 4x4 play area and the comp section. Lets just say we didn't find anything of the sort.
Upon leaving the park I questioned Blair in regards to the old comp area and he said it no longer exists. He then proceeded to tell me the new comp area also doesn't exist :eek: No wonder we were unable to locate it.

The trip home was also not your ordinary drive. Like previous years we had intended to stop in at Bangalow for pizza, but we had an issue to work around for our entire journey.

You see earlier in the day Grant was having problems with the alternator in the Disco. It was removed at camped and stripped and cleaned but to no avail. I guess Grant would like to thank JohnR for his assistance in the above procedure and maybe a small thanks to Pete for the use of his soldering iron.

So with the light dwindling we arrived at Bangalow and stopped for pizza. About 2 hours later we found ourselves leaving bangalow, but prior to our departure, we had to swap batteries from Reggie into the Disco.
We also disconnected one headlight (which I hope Grant remembers to reconnect) in an effort to save power should they be required.

So with Grant mid convoy we ran the whole way home, Grant solely on his parkers, in an effort to save the batteries, and keep the 14CUX firing the bores correctly.
We stopped at Nerang to swap the batteries back over as I was to depart the convoy at this stage and we believed the original battery out of the Disco should have got a sufficient amount of charge from Reggie by this stage.

I dropped Alex home and had one more hiccup when I discovered a large portion of smith street was closed, so had to double back through Ashmore and down Olsen Ave.

By the time I got home I was so over the pain from my back that I just flopped onto the couch and completely forgot to ask Jess to cook my dinner IMMEDIATELY!!