Round Oz in Three Weeks
 

G'day Aussies (and Kiwis and Pacificers),

I'm planning a solo trip round Oz in Dec (before I take the plunge and sit the CPL test) with the intention of writing a book about the experience.

Before I get into the heavy planning, I thought I'd ask you, dear PPRuNers, for advice, tips and suggestions. As a native of Wales, I've not explored much of Oz and would appreciate any recommendations on places that mustn't be missed.

I have three weeks off, and a Piper Warrior or Archer available.

Any advice welcome!

Thanks in advance,

GWAS

Be very respectful of the wet season that time of year up North. Good planning is the key. Also take a good note of aircraft performance in the hot and humid areas.

Don't assume every destination has fuel, and if they do, don't assume that they'll take the kind of payment you've got, and if they will, don't assume you can afford it :E Make sure you check first :ok:

Be prepared to either deviate mid plan or take more time off as 3 weeks may not be enough. Especially if its a bad wet.

Hmmm, wet season, north of the tropic of Capricorn, vfr single, monster cyclone season predicted... pass. However, if you are dead keen:

(Second the fuel thing)

-If the trip takes 3 week allow 5.

-Do all your flying in the morning, aiming to be done by midday. If it aint the monsoon, the afternoon CB's will getcha.

j3

Are you planning to go 'clockwise' or the other way, and visit Queensland first.

The reason I ask is because of the weather patterns you will / may encounter.
Anti-clockwise, may give you tailwinds across The Top, and get you out of the 'Wet' quicker - i.e. before the larger CB's become an 'everyday occurrence'.

They 'usually' get bigger in Jan. - Well around the Kimberley anyway....

Take plenty of water, probably 3G net for your mobile, and heed what has already been said re fuel etc.

The rest of the flight south from Port Hedland, then, should be reasonably pleasant, the only real problem here is maybe encountering a 'West Coast Trough' which will involve some CB activity at around that time of the year.

But then you have the choice of going 'coastal' via Carnarvon, or 'inland' via Newman.

The inland route can be very 'bumpy' due heat turb - but you will have that worked out by then.....

Should you decide to go the 'clockwise', then most of the above will still apply, but you may be 'deeper' into the 'wet'....

Listen to the local operators, and don't be afraid to ASK them if there's anything you need to know. You will find everybody very friendly and a wealth of 'local knowledge' - so ask as you go, is my tip.....

For fuel across the Nullabor, PHONE first to check where its available, and how much etc - be prepared and plan accordingly. Although Kalgoorlie - Forrest might be 'the usual' route, I can say that Caiguna Road House make the best bacon sandwiches and you can taxy right up to the bowser - but phone first.

Take the faster aircraft if you have a choice - you'll still enjoy the trip and won't appear to be 'standing still' over the more flat 'uninteresting' areas (?)

Cheers and ENJOY. Don't forget the camera....:ok:

p.s. Stand by for pages and pages........:D:D

If you're staying at a motel in the less populated regions, call them prior and see if they can collect you. Usually not a problem, but a 'heads-up' is just basic courtesy.
(Some strips can be several km's out of town and taxi-cabs might be scarce or non-existant.
It's no fun treking in 40'C heat.)
Alternatively, take a light swag and/or tent.

As what most have said above, Call ahead about fuel to make sure it will be available and confirm their methods of payment, some will tell you they have Carnet but you may find its Inop so carrying a bit of cash with you at all times is something I highly recommend and make sure you have a Credit Card with plenty of Credit available just incase!! And never rely on a single fuelling point, try and work out 2 you can get to incase the other one fails, never happened to me but i'd hate to be stuck somewhere waiting for the next load of fuel to come in cause someone buggered up!!

Shell Carnet cards are next to useless, a lot of their Bowsers have either been removed or now no longer use Carnet and use Credit Card instead. Be VERY CAREFUL with using your CC, they require you to do whats called an "Auth". Basically, it will ask you to input a max amount (In Dollars) first, it will then check that amount is available on your Credit Card and then freeze that amount for several days, when its unfrozen the amount unused will be made available to you again. Basically if you decide to put way more on the Auth than your going to use and do it a few times then you'll find your Credit Card unusable for sometime, also i'm not sure how well they work with Debit Mastercards, i've done Auths on those cards myself before and they seem to work but just be sure first :)

Carry plenty of Water just incase, make sure you have an ELT and if possible get your hands on an EPIRB as well with GPS tracking, a lot of schools will have them and should most happily let you use one for your trip or someone in the area may well have one they'd be happy to lend you, lifesaver if the ELT should stop working.

Keep one bag with most essentials and an overnight bag as well, this way if you are in the unfortunate position of having to walk some distance into town you won't have to lug the entire thing with you, its caught me out a couple of times! As someone else said, call the hotel/motel/accommodation ahead of time and they'll usually be more than happy to help you out and come get you and do be sure to check they are able to pick you up as well.

Quick tip if you find yourself unable to get reception to pull weather and are fortunate enough to be in a place with a BOM Office (Eg, Tennant Creek, Giles etc...) the people staffing them are usually more than happy to let you use their computers and do a quick print out of the weather you need, once again, its helped me twice in the past so always good to know, just knock, explain your situation and ask politely!

Oh, and this may seem silly but... carry snacks, you just never know where your gonna get stuck overnight and be without something for dinner!! Keep muesli bars or some trail mix type stuff somewhere out of direct sunlight!!

Griffo has nailed a lot of the important stuff. However, in mentioning Caiguna... a compulsory viewing is the Great Australian Bight cliffs, at lower levels, from Caiguna Eastwards.
Also... be aware of hot, strong, Easterly/N-Easterly winds at ground level, all the way across the Nullarbor, at the time of year you've indicated. Once a strong mid-Summer, high pressure system sets up in the Bight, look out.
He's also right about the Caiguna Roadhouse food. Best steakburgers and chips you'll find anywhere across the Long Paddock.

Flying the Outback Blog Archive Pilbara Air Safari May 2009

Watch Caiguna if there's rain... waterlogged my last attempt there (but not likely at that time of year). High pressure in the bight means horrid head winds going west-to-east.

Night flying into Forrest is an experience too. You can see the light beacon from maybe 100NM out and not much else.

Many moons ago took a C172 to burn off some com hrs from coloundra qld to ayers rock and back. Although the rock was good, i remember fondly the overnighters in th outback towns, like windorah, and oodnadatta. Quite an experience, with plenty of colourfull characters. Plan around your points of interest and as mentioned be prepared, 2 weeks ago forrest on the nullabor was out of avgas due to heavy rains the trucks couldn,t get in. Caiguna or border village is an option. Take nothing for granted and make lots of phone calls. Sar times etc are a must. Northern aus is probably not an option as the wets building. Most dangerous time of year in a light aircraft although spectacular if you can do it. Aus is a huge place, Some of my favourites, Arnhiemland NT, Katherine and surrounds, Kunnunurra, Alice, Coral bay wa, and for something different cober pedy, and of course Lake Eyre. You,ll have the time of your life but be prepared. Things are warming up.

Hmmmm pictorial records indictae 107 knots GS, it may have dipped lower :eek:

http://i849.photobucket.com/albums/a...g?t=1288052199

She's got a 495 Won't that mean she goes faster ?????????????!!!

Speaking of pictorial records Jaba, please go to the Odometer page of your GNS530W and take a pic of it and post it in photos. That page will tell a lot about your claims!

Everyone talks up the tropics, but how many of you have actually flown there?

Most of the build ups (as J3 said) are in the afternoon. They are generally coastal and scattered. If you have a GPS and divert around them you will not have a problem whatever time of day you fly. If a storm happens to be over the airstrip you are landing at, hold. It will be gone fairly quickly.

The main problem you will experience is flooding of unsealed airstrips and the risk of a prop strike in mud or getting bogged.

If you plan to land at sealed strips only, you will not have a problem. If you get stuck in the weather there are plenty of airstrips around to put her down and wait it out.

I would suggest doing a flight through the topend in the wet. It will give you 'wet season experience' and it is the most beautiful time to fly. The air is crystal clear (no smoke,haze, dust) everything is bright green, there is water everywhere, and the waterfalls are in full swing in all the national parks.

Take a camera, you will get some photos of some amazing weather, most of which you can appreciate from a distance and make sure you post it on here!

GG

Agree with the thunderstorms bit GG, however given that we are gearing up for one of the most active cyclone seasons in many years, also suggests we are gearing up for one of the most active monsoon seasons in a long time as well.

Monsoon rains certainly aren't the type of weather for a VFR lighty to be out and about in. I say this with several years of wet season experience.

morno

Well obviously you would avoid flying in the area as a low time VFR Pilot if there was a friggen cyclone in the area wouldn't you! (I enjoy flying though cyclone cloud formations particularly when they become tropical depressions, always smooth thick stratus full of moisture, with beautiful flying conditions)

It's not a reason to not go just in case! It would be like saying you should never fly an aeroplane because it could have an engine failure.

GWAS - Go for it!

If Clyde Fenton could fly a Moth from Darwin to China in the 1930s during the wet season with no navaids, open cockpit, no documentation, and a gerry rigged fuel system, I'm sure you could fly a modern (to some extent :eek:) aeroplane around Australia via the topend with GPS and other mod cons.

GG

17 replies and so far not one gentlemanly offer to go with......... just for backup and a scenic trip.

What is wrong with the world?

J:E

There isn't always a cyclone associated with a monsoon though GG.....