Simpson Trip

[mns488]

Hi,

A mate of mine is off on a simpson trip next week and is getting a bit nervy about his choice of route. I am jealous, but couldn't get time off work.

I just thought I would check if there were any people out there that have done a simpson trip east to west? More specifically via Rig road (i think thats what its called)?

Any experiences would be appreciated as to how much harder it is.

cheers
ms

[Disco123]

Just returned from the Simpson a couple of days ago but we went west to east. We started on the Rig Road, turned north up the Knolls Track, then followed the French Line. The only time I headed west was to go back a few dunes to snatch someone over the top when stuck. From this brief experience I couldn't see much difference.
It's damned hot out there and we struck some ferocious wind storms from the South so tell your mate to take plenty of water and pick a protected camping spot.

[mns488]

Thanks for the quick reply,

What was the track conditions like. Especially rig road if you can remember.

How much snatching did you do?

My friend is travelling solo (he has done this before but via french line).

[weeds]

hey

i did the rig road east to west solo last year, although i have not travelled the complete french line the rig is easier going just a little further and a bit more remote, its mostly clay top with a bit a drift sand on the top of each sand dune. the main reason i did the rig road was less vehicals ( i only came across one other car) and i wanted to see lone gum tree, there were a couple of areas that were rutted nothing to waoory about.

from memory i used 78L of fuel and took three days, thats three 10hr driving days, never got into low range just cruise along in second/third gear, the only time i engaged low was when i was playing on big red

i went in september, i think it was the coldest september they ever had

[mns488]

Thanks weeds,

thats perfect.

sounds like you had a great trip as well.

thanks again.

[Bush65]

It's very late (read hot) to be crossing the Simpson.

IMHO going solo at this time is stupid, as it is likely that no one will come along until next year if he gets into trouble.

[Disco123]

The Rig Road was very corrugated in patches with more soft sand dunes than I was expecting (this was my first crossing).
We were in a convoy of 5 vehicles and only had 4 light snatches. Most could have probably dug themselves out in time, but it was hot and snatching was probably quicker.
As the others have said, there is very little traffic out there at this time of the year. We didn't see any vehicles on the Rig Road or Knolls Track and only 2 between Lindsay Junction and Birdsville. One of these was a lone Freelander heading East near Poeppel Corner. Strongly suggest your mate has HF or satphone as comms in case he has trouble.
The crossing was not as difficult as I had imagined but our club planned it carefully and I can see how you could get into serious trouble easily. The crossing should not be taken lightly.
The strong south winds with almost no traffic let the sand drifts cover the track and made it hard to find at times. Some in the back of our convoy noted that when we stopped for a recovery the tracks in front of them, made only 30 mins earlier, were pretty well covered over by the wind.

Another word of warning - if you are a water lice magnet DO NOT SWIM AT DALHOUSIE SPRINGS. I'm still covered in bites. Most of our group weren't touched but I must be attractive to them :eek:

[barney]

Just returned from the Simpson a couple of days ago but we went west to east. We started on the Rig Road, turned north up the Knolls Track, then followed the French Line. The only time I headed west was to go back a few dunes to snatch someone over the top when stuck. From this brief experience I couldn't see much difference.
It's damned hot out there and we struck some ferocious wind storms from the South so tell your mate to take plenty of water and pick a protected camping spot.

i did this trip in reverse (E-W) in 2002. apart from the 2 clowns towing trailers with us, not a problem. a lot of it will depend on recent weather happenings. take your time and enjoy it.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

apart from Disco 123,, maybe ask the Numptys,, they seem to have played on a couple of dunes,,

east to west is supposedly harder because of the prevaling winds,, but whos tested it by going "backwards and forwards"
?

[mns488]

thanks for the replies and advice.

he is now more at ease with the conditions.:cool:

For the concerned, he does have a sat phone, HF and UHF. I should know we used all three when we blew his gear box up on the tanami a couple of years ago.

+ he has xlnt mechanical knowledge, 4wd drive experience and enough spares, water and food to survive the unfortunate.

Still I wish I could go, but I think I am jinxed in his car (toyota). Something always goes wrong when we go in his car + i have to work.;)

[Michael2]

I crossed the Simpson in May East- West in a SIII Landy, with a '92 Defender "Support Vehicle."

We crossed into the Desert at Warburton Crossing, just north of Mungerannie and proceeded along the mainly interdunal corridor to Poeppels Corner, then followed the French Line across.

While at Mungerannie we came across a group of about 30 guys on Postal Bikes, who wanted to cross along the Rig Rd in order to raise money for the RFDS. The publican told them that the Rig Rd had up to 15' drops where the dunes had eroded under the clay top, and would be impassable.

Once in the Desert we came a cross a guy on a KTM who belongs to a club that rides the Simpson Desert. He was doing a recce for the Postal bike group, as some members from his club were providing support vehicles. He reckoned they wouldn't make it, that the Rig Rd was out of the question, and that the French Line, which normally has a smoother approach on the steep East sides, was now chopped up on both eastern and western approaches. He said it was the worst he'd seen it.

Once we were crossing the French Line we came across a group of 5 or so LC Troopies. These guys detoured down to the Rig Rd and when we caught up with them later on, they said that it had been very corrugated. They'd broken a roof rack and had to patch weld it.

A week later we met some of the Postal bike riders at Uluru. They never made it across the Desert. After the recce and the road reports, they planned to cross the French Line, but between Birdsville and the Simpson they had already suffered 5 broken clavicles, 1 broken humerous and 2 knocked out front teeth from falls. They boasted that they's raised $60K for the RFDS, but I suggested their combined healthcare costs would be well in excess of that. Perhaps they should petition the Fed Gov't to grant the RFDS an extra couple of million dollars a year on the proviso they desist from their costly fund raising escapades.

The manager at Mt Dare also drives the Desert almost every week and provides road reports on the Mt Dare web site. Have a look at the site and give him a call.

I know you didn't aks for it, but here are the fuel figures for the Simpson :

From Mungerannie to Alice Springs (about 1,000km).

Defender 200Tdi with >1,000kg payload used 130 litres diesel.
SIII 2.25 Petrol with c.800kg payload used 280 litres [210 ULP & 70 LPG].
That's why I now drive a Defender.

[mns488]

Thanks Michael.

your a star.

didn't even know that website existed. Great resouce.

I did hear through the grapevine about those postie bikes. I once saw them in the wonnangatta valley. They get around!

MS

[cewilson]

Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to get there this year. But I normally do cross it the East-West direction. I must admit that everytime I go there it does seem to be getting worse. The corrugations are downright bloody annoying and really give the suspension a work-out. Although compared to the Finke it is a highway :cool:

I like going at this time of year myself, as the majority of the traffic has gone. I did the Oodnadatta a couple of years ago in mid December. Had the time of my life and hardly seen anyone. Yeah the weather was high 40's and there's no air-con in my old girl, but you get used to it. That and drinking a bit helps too.