33 out to Boulia

[Lawrie]

Brrr, a cold morning this morning,frost on the roof of the33. Oil temp at startup 4C
The sunset was really good, and later the moon was as bright as.
At sunrise I could hear the wild dogs howling, I would be a bit concerned if I was in a tent.
I let the 33 run on the hand throttle as I packed up , oil got up to 20c. So headed off.
A few miles down the road I came upon this new foreign pickup that had an altication with on of our national animals.it sure made a mess of the pickup. There was a trail of debri back 50 yrds or so. A good reason not to drive at dusk ,during the night and early morning .
I stopped at a rest area to use the toilet,( nice and clean), and the truck driver was also using them,his truck ,road train was impressive,even though empty.these hoot along at 100 kph or so and are very well mannered and no trouble for us in the 33.
First fuel stop at Tambo, I was a bit concerned as I could smell the engine fumes in the cab driving along, made not much of a difference with the cowl vent open or shut,
So I bought some oil and planned on doing a change along the way somewhere.
But the servo owner came out and wanted to see the engine, so on opening the bonnet(hood) and me looking around, checked the oil and dipstic(not me) was only down about 1/16 th from full.done about 750 miles from home and last service.
Then I spot the hole where I removed the old cappilery tube for the old temp gauge was not plugged, so the owner burned back inside the servo and bought back a bar of blue tack,after I plugged the hole with it the fumes in the cabin are no more.��
There are sure a lot of caravans around ,but none get the attention my does.
I’m currently stopped for the night in Isisford, behind the pub,$25 night, after a shower I will treat myself to a meal at the pub and a beer.
As usual today the 33 impressed me , humming along at 50-55 on the back roads with my mind in neutral.
The roo hopped across as I was parked at the second in town
Lawrie

[Mart]

Thanks Lawrie. Fascinating.

[mercman from oz]

Always enjoy reading your adventures and photos.
It is a real eye opener to our American friends seeing how dry and baron a country Australia is after you venture around a hundred miles in from the coast.

[fredM]

Me too!

[38 coupe]

I too have fun following along on your travels west into the dry interior of Australia. I open Google Maps and follow the route, it makes it a bit of a fun travelog.


I suspect mobile mechanics do a good business replacing tires on the road trains, that is a lot of wheels!

[glennpm]

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Originally Posted by 38 coupe

I too have fun following along on your travels west into the dry interior of Australia. I open Google Maps and follow the route, it makes it a bit of a fun travelog.

As am I. This is a great adventure for all of us.

Travel safely!

[T Scott]

Great photos Lawrie. I will say, I am most impressed with these "road trains". In my earlier years I drove coast to coast for Carl Subler trucking and had more than one white knuckle experience on slippery roads so I have great respect for these drivers. I would think road service as mentioned in one of the other posts is slim to none in the interior. I remember seeing a photo of a woman driver of one of these trains changing a tire somewhere out in the middle of the outback. She was one tough looking babe and I'm sure she had to be for the job she was doing. I'm sure she could hold her own in a bar fight!
I gotta ask Lawrie. Are those mirror brackets on your 33 bolted right though the side of the door? Probably so, and I'm sure you cringed when you drilled the hole but no doubt you need them. Keep those great travelogs coming. Thank you!

[Model51]

Lawrie - Thanks for sharing another one of your adventure trips. Your pictures and descriptions bring back many good memories of my month-long trip in Australia in 2016. Road trains were impressive and I even managed to clip a kangaroo at 100 kph on the highway between Perth and Exmouth (at night).

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by Model51

Lawrie - Thanks for sharing another one of your adventure trips. Your pictures and descriptions bring back many good memories of my month-long trip in Australia in 2016. Road trains were impressive and I even managed to clip a kangaroo at 100 kph on the highway between Perth and Exmouth (at night).

[mfirth]

Me three or 4 or....on enjoying the trip.. Thanks Lawrie !!!

[Lawrie]

Well, dinner last night at the pub was great,3 corse meal with lamb shank soup,roast beef and veggies followed by ice cream ans apple crumble,$25.the place was packed.
They tell me the population of town is 96, but a lot of travellers in the bar
I stopped out the back of the pub,still need the electric blanket though.
TScot,the mirrors are just clipped on, with a couple of small right angle bends at the top that go down between the window glass and the door body,on the bottom a U shape bracket clips under the bottom edge of the door, and they are held tight with the strap via a little wind up thingy.
A couple of vehicles in the area behind the pub.
The Toyota is the vehicle of choice for workers out here,I don’t know about the old Jeep though.
And a pic of my breakfast area in the caravan.
Easy day today, a walk around town and may head off around lunch time.
Lawrie

[petehoovie]

Originally Posted by Lawrie

Well, dinner last night at the pub was great,3 corse meal with lamb shank soup,roast beef and veggies followed by ice cream ans apple crumble,$25.the place was packed.
They tell me the population of town is 96, but a lot of travellers in the bar
I stopped out the back of the pub,still need the electric blanket though.
TScot,the mirrors are just clipped on, with a couple of small right angle bends at the top that go down between the window glass and the door body,on the bottom a U shape bracket clips under the bottom edge of the door, and they are held tight with the strap via a little wind up thingy.
A couple of vehicles in the area behind the pub.
The Toyota is the vehicle of choice for workers out here,I don’t know about the old Jeep though.
And a pic of my breakfast area in the caravan.
Easy day today, a walk around town and may head off around lunch time.
Lawrie

[flatford8]

I’m also enjoying your posts….beautiful country there….I like the unique town names…I really like the “road trains”. I drove a trailer truck here in the states for 40 yrs. I would love to get behind the wheel in one of those….just once….but not sure how well I would do shifting left handed!…thanks for posting your trip!……….Mark

[glennpm]

Curious about maximums for "road trains" and found this info.

"Australian road trains, also known as long combination vehicles (LCVs), have specific maximum length and weight regulations depending on the type of road they are traveling on. A proper "Road Train" consists of two or three normal trailers connected by converter dollies, with a total length between 36.5 and 50 metres.
With a special permit, an A-B quad can be up to 53.5 metres long, which is the maximum allowable on normal roads.
However, on private roads and mining roads in Outback Australia, even longer rigs can be found.

In terms of weight, Australian road trains can weigh up to 200 tonnes (197 long tons; 220 short tons).
Additionally, Higher Mass Limits (HML) schemes in Australia allow trucks to carry additional weight beyond general mass limits, with some roads permitting up to 136 tonnes (134 long tons; 150 short tons).
On private property, such as mines, there may be no restrictions on trailer length, weight, or count."

[my4dv8]

Wow had to check google maps first , Boulia is really getting out into the red centre of Aussie.Lawrie as you know from years of experience nz low budget roads are not good for long distance travel . @Lawrie I really enjoy your epic adventure, following keenly. Thanks
keep them coming. Nice talking with you on the phone last week, looking forward to meeting later in the year.

[mercman from oz]

Map - Gladstone to Boulia, Queensland, Australia

[Lawrie]

Yes will be good
Todays drive fromIsisford to Winton,
Had best drive to Illfracome, about 100ks of a really nice one lane road,
Lots of interesting sights along the way.road signs and these pesky Roos that gave me a wake up and tested the brakes out,lucky I was only tooling along. The signs are quite good too.
I also got a fright going over the wild dog grid thing,it has a motion sensor that turns on a siren that is VERY load,specially so with the window open.
Later on the way close to winto there is the remains of a35 or36 ford, I got the front shocks from it in 2002,they are doing good service on the 33.
Rest and sight seeing day in Winton tomorrow.
Lawrie

[35ragtop]

Hi Lawrie, Im following along like all your avid fans around the world.
I have a question. You mentioned that you had to use your electric blanket at night as its cold out there. How are you powering that? I know you have house batteries on your caraven, charged from the van wheels rotating, but the current draw from a blanket would be quite high wouldnt it? Are you using an external generator?
Just wondering is all
See you soon
Dave h

[mercman from oz]

Remains of a 1935 Ford Sedan spotted by Lawrie.
Notice no X in the side of the cowl.

[mercman from oz]