Hitting the sand for the first time!

millsy

4x4 Earth Contributer
Had a great time ploughing through a couple of the tracks in the Little Desert yesterday.
Left Adelaide midnight Friday and slept by the Murray at Mannum. Finally reached the top of the Big Desert National Park ( Murrayville - Nhill track ) just before sunset and found a nice little camp site next to the main track with a steel camp-fire surrond and heaps of wood piled up for me! 'Cooked' a simple dinner ( can of baked beans! ) and relaxed a while by the fire. Then it started to rain, and so decided to zip down the 60km of dirt road to the southern end just in case it rained all night and the road would become impassable.

Sunday morning, after a night with no rain afterall, I decided that I would be taking too much of a chance going back to try the Milmed Rock track. I had a quick look at it as I went passed it the night before. It looked very sandy, and being a beginner, by myself, decided that getting into trouble on a 40km long stretch of sand, allready 40 or 50 km from the nearest town, and especially since I had not seen any one else on the main track, was not a good idea.

But the Little desert sounded a bit safer. I decided to drive along the Dahlenburgs Mill Track, which runs for about 15 km East to West through the middle of the Little Desert.

This track runs off the fairly busy bitumen road that comes down from Nhill.

Well I set off in 4L, 2nd gear, and went well for the first km or so. Fun! Then the wheel ruts got deeper. The sand seemed softer and was all churned up from previous de-bogging attempts ( lots of branches and pieces of wood all over the ruts that people had used for traction. ) I was thinking of reversing out, but after a closer look picked the best path, and gave it a go! Success! Whoa!

Then I noticed that damn clicking noise starting up again. So I decided to go back to 2H.

The old girl didn't flinch. I had dropped the pressures down to about 18 psi to get through the first challenge, and even in 2 wheel drive we seemed to be getting through. Every now and then I chickened out on the really bad bits and went back to 4L just to make sure!

Was all a lot of fun! Finally reached the Dahlenburgs Mill site ( Mill long gone - now just a new tank next to a defunct windmill, and a new diesel pump on the bore. ) Then turned South down the Salt Lake Track. Great scenery! Some great regrowth on a flat plain between the low sandhills. I think they were Banksias. Are they the one with the large green flowers. There must have been 500 acres of them, all about 5 feet high crammed in next to each other. I suppose this forest will thin itself out in time as they compete for nutrients and sun light. About three lakes surrounded by larger gum trees on the Salt Lake Track - very nice.

To finish the day I discovered Mount Arapiles not far West of Natimuk. Drove to the top of this great rock-climbing venue and looked out across the Little Desert about 25 km to the North-West. Then the evening dash down the highway to Geelong last night.

Had the rest day today, looking after the grandkids and servicing the daughter's Commodore, and tomorrow heading North to have a look at the Wentworth to Menindie track, and then working out how to get back to Adelaide on some dirt from there.
 
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frosty

4x4 Earth Contributer
Good onya millsy, I worked all weekend! I'm really really really realllllyyy Glad ya had fun! #&%@*%&!@
 

millsy

4x4 Earth Contributer
Bad luck!! But i'm trying to make up for lost time!! Your turn next weekend!
 

4X4

Moderator
Millsy, I don't want to sound like a party pooper, but you might like to rethink going out by yourself! Just for safety sake.

Cheers
 

millsy

4x4 Earth Contributer
Thanks 4X4. Now your making feel bad! I probably have that 'want to break free' urge - especially at the start of every school holiday. Used to do it a lot in the gliding game too - head off across the Mallee - or up to the Flinders, 300 km - 500 km round trips never knowing where you could end up. Many times ( 45 over 20 years ) out-landing and walking out to a main road, to hitch a lift, or farm house to ring for help. Longest was a 20 km walk/jog through the Mallee.

But you are right. Snake bite, injury or any one of many problems could occur, and there you are, all alone. Shall I promise not to do it again? Mmmmm?

Just got back tonight. Tried another track this morning, the Mount Jess track heading across the Murray Sunset NP, North of Underbool. Was trying to get to Rocket Lake, and then on to the Sturt Highway from there.

My main plan if the vehicle bogs, breaks down, . . . and I cannot fix it, has been to sms my intended route to my son ( or wife, but that could be risky - life insurance issues (HA HA) ) and ask that he waits three days. If he does not hear from me let the police know ( Hope they don't get too many of these or they probably would not want to know about it! ) Jeff is probably a bit like Frosty, because these holiday itinerys reach him while he is at work! So far so good he seems to be happy enough to help out so far.

Anyway, back to the Mt Jees attempt. I had to turn back after crossing the first two sand hills. The track was 50 - 60 km long and there could have been a hundred of these to cross. Problem was that clicking came in, quite loud, as it struggled up the slope. Was the car telling me I CAN'T TAKE THIS MUCH LONGER!!! The car got to the top easily enough, both times, but if whatever it is blew up - there goes my 4 wheel drive, and I don't think just 2 wheels pushing from the back would have been good enough. Then I really would be stuck, and it would be a bugger of a tow job to get me out of there.

So I am going to get a mechanic to have a look at it, diagnose the most likely problem - maybe a CV joint, then de-register it for six months and try to fix it myself. Also save up some fuel dollars for next year, and try to get some house maintenance done, or the missus will be sending me off in the truck with orders to go bush and not to come home! Cheers, Millsy.
 

Grumpy

Moderator
Great story Millsy, sounds so much like a nephew of mine, was in the army for 20years, now just heads off to the call of the wild, he too on his own but as he said if something were to happen he knows it was meant to be. Good Luck to U. CHEERS
 

Grumpy

Moderator
Don't get me wrong 4x4 I don't condone going out alone but in some cases with some people it is just meant to be. CHEERS
 
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