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Trip 2023

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This was our trip for 2023 as we advertised it.

 

Click here to see a basic map of the 2023 trip described below

Desert Updates

 

WHAT ARE TOURS?

Oxford Dictionary : Tour - a journey through a country, town or building etc visiting various places or things of interest

 

    Tours for example would include travel along the Beadell roads and include most of the sites and features along the route as well as the history of the area. Sensible preparation is required and basic facilities such as fuel, water, showers and food items will be available from the various Roadhouses several times during the tour. We normally average about 150 kms per day with a day-off from travelling mostly included.

    One of Beadell Tours main aims is to make sure you return home after the trip knowing far more about the Australian western deserts than when you left. To do that we offer smaller groups more points of interest and historical information at a slower pace.

      Tag-a-long vehicles & camper trailers are welcome to join our tours.

    Vehicle & Tyre choice is an important consideration for all tours and expeditions. Please click the links to Mick's articles explaining what to look for, as well as what to expect in regard to road conditions -:

    Vehicle Suitability for Long Range Desert Work

    Tyre Choices for Normal and Heavy Work

    Road Conditions in the Western Deserts

 

Camel with youngBlue Banded BeeCamp

 

** Please note -: Final itineraries for all trips are partly dependent on permit approvals **

 

"CONNIE SUE & GUNBARREL HIGHWAYS"

OFF-ROAD TOUR

 

    It is 100 years since Len was born. We believe he’d be happy that his tracks are still being used & enjoyed by so many dedicated Australians.

    Leaving the bitumen behind we‘ll head north along the complete length of the Connie Sue Highway. We’ll be able to see the huge changes in landform & flora as we cross the Nullarbor Plain. Then traverse two of the major western deserts as the trip progresses.

    Reaching Rawlinna and crossing the steel ribbons that connect the east & west of our country we start on Len’s road proper, cut in 1962. Entering the Myall belt we are still on the Nullarbor as can be seen (& felt) by the limestone bedrock that makes this landscape unique. Our first desert seeps in a bit further north with the Eucalypts starting to dominate the country. In 1875 explorer Giles crossed this very country with camels only by chance finding the water his party desperately needed after more than a 20 day dry spell. Apart from a few tracks, not much has changed.

    The Great Victoria Desert looms large. A mammoth area of sandhills, breakaways, Marble Gum woodlands & various scrub types. As we reach the northern end of the Connie Sue we slide almost unnoticed into Gibson’s Desert, made famous by the lost explorer of 1874. As the trip unfolds you’ll see how both deserts are in fact different. Plenty of stories about all this area, we’ll go through them during the days & nights in the bush.

    Refuelling at Warburton Roadhouse we’ll head west onto the Gunbarrel Highway, Len’s most famous road. Undulating spinifex & Mulga country dotted by isolated hills and ranges become our friends for some days. Explorers passed through this country while the nomads continued as they always had. Carnegie Station at the end of the Gunbarrel brings our trip to a close, one of the more remote cattle enterprises in W.A.

 

Connie Sue Highway
Connie Sue Highway 2017

 

 

 

** Please read our post-trip summary ( for summary click here ) **

 

 

 

"THE GUNBARREL HIGHWAY"

OFF-ROAD TOUR

CANCELLED

 

    From the remote cattle station of Carnegie to the sprawling ridgeline of the Rawlinson Range & beyond, Len’s Gunbarrel Highway cuts through the heart of Gibson’s Desert and the hidden Central Ranges, but apart from Len & his party there have been many other explorers passing through that country. Forrest, Carnegie, Giles & Hann are best known but we’ll throw in a few others while sitting around the fire at night.

    Eastward along the red brown ribbon of road put in during the 1950s we’ll pass by plaques & landmarks all spaced along the dead straight sections of roadway that make the Gunbarrel label obvious. The trip will go into Warburton Roadhouse to refuel and use a few amenities. From there back into the bush as we begin the loop north & east that’s referred to as the "Old Gunbarrel". This section encompasses the area explorer Gibson vanished without trace in 1874. Wandering out of the red sandhills & Desert Oaks the country changes, sand gives way to gravel & the Rawlinson Range becomes our travel companion for some distance. At the end of our little adventure we come into the area of Giles Weather Station & Warakurna Roadhouse where there are a few things to see plus the comforts of modern day outback Roadhouses.

    The Gunbarrel has a reputation for being a rough road and there is cause for this. However we have noticed over the decades that the Gunbarrel has settled down as the Great Central Road has taken the burden of the Ayers Rock traffic with the popularity of the 4WD. We have found it much like all the other desert tracks that don’t get any maintenance. If you are not used to these conditions we’ll help you settle in.

 

Mt Beadell
Mt Beadell, Gunbarrel Highway

 

 

 

 

 

TOUR ORDER FORM

(Require a pdf reader)

Travel Information - general guide to touring with us
Vehicle Preparation - important basics
Road Conditions - what to expect
Tyre Information - detailed help regarding tyres, tubes and repairs
Vehicle, Koni & Communications - choices and help with common problems
Interest Pages - includes Len, Anne, Desert Articles & Updates plus Handy Links

 

BEADELL TOURS

** Please note change of address **
 
"Lynwood"
35 Watsons Creek-Tilmunda Road
Watsons Creek, NSW, 2355
Home : 02 6764 0199
Mobile : 0408 841 447
Email : Beadell Tours
 
ABN : 40 947 959 130

 

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