Range Rover Club - Victoria

Australia's most famous and lavishly appointed expedition left Melbourne on 20 August 1860 to cross the continent, open up pastoral land and conduct scientific research.

We have completed this journey a couple of times and we will be following the known route of the expedition as far as is practicable. Expedition camps, monuments and other points of interest will be included in the trip to the Burke & Wills’ Camp 119 and Karumba on the Gulf. Other areas of interest along the way will also be visited.

Meeting Place and Departure Time: Meet at the Burke and Wills monument in Royal Park (original departure point) on Saturday 21 August at 9.00am for briefing and photo.

Approx. Distance of Event: 5,000 Kms Melbourne to the Gulf at Karumba.

Vehicle Convoy Numbers: Approx 10

Event Standard: Easy

Accommodation: Tents, Camper suitable for outback travel

Vehicle and Recovery Equipment required:

Snatch Strap, Shovel, UHF Radio with aerial suitable for long distance reception in the outback, front and rear recovery points, All Terrain Tyres, 2 spare wheels or a spare wheel and a tyre (+tube) case, Air compressor to adjust tyre pressures to suit the roads travelled, additional fuel capacity may be required, satellite phone or HF Radio (optional).

A pre trip vehicle inspection will be required to ensure your vehicle is suitable for outback travel and to minimise the expense and inconvenience of a breakdown.

Current First Aid training is recommended (see www.fwdvictoria.org.au).

Membership of RACV Totalcare or equivalent roadside assistance plus membership of your local Ambulance Service is highly recommended.

We will be bush camping, camping in remote National Parks and having an occasional stop over in a town. If you want to bring a camper trailer it must be an off road style of camper with suspension and build suitable for rough corrugated tracks and roads. You will need to bring your food, water and cooking facilities suitable for a remote area trip. We will advise on various quarantine restrictions.

This trip is also being offered to members of any club affiliated with FWDV plus members of the Burke and Wills Historical Society (www.burkeandwills.org).
You will need a high clearance, dual range 4WD set up for long distance and remote travel.
You will need to have a strong interest in the Burke and Wills Expedition and have read some of the books available.

Useful Information

• www.burkeandwills.net.au Dave Phoenix’s excellent web site (Dave is the only person to have walked the entire known route from Melbourne to the Gulf)
• www.slv.vic.gov.au/burkeandwills/index State Library website for access to Expedition documents and artifacts
• www.burkeandwills.org Web site of the Burke and Wills Historical Society
• www.westprint.com.au for maps, CDs and the required Desert Parks Pass
• www.hemamaps.com.au for maps and CDs
• Melbourne to the Gulf: A Brief History of the Burke & Wills Expedition by Dave Phoenix (available by download www.burkeandwills.net.au)
• The Dig Tree: The Story of Burke and Wills by Sarah Murgatroyd, 2002
• A Successful Exploration Through the Interior of Australia by William Wills
• A Journey to Cooper Creek by Hermann Beckler, edited by Stephen Jeffries, 1993
• Cooper’s Creek by Alan Moorehead, 1963
• Ludwig Becker edited by Dr Majorie Tipping, 1979

We will also be holding a pre trip meeting and a visit to some of the Burke and Wills sites in Melbourne.

The trip will formally end in Karumba on approximately 9/9/10 but participants are welcome to join us for the yet to be determined trip home. Could include Carnarvon Gorge and a trip on the historic Gulflander Rail Motor.

On the trip to the Gulf we will be travelling via Swan Hill, Balranald, Lake Mungo, Menindee, Broken Hill, Mootwingee National Park, Tibooburra, Innamincka, Coongie Lakes, Birdsville, Boulia, Mt Isa, Cloncurry, Normanton and Karumba.

Trip Leaders:  John and Prue Hasler

More information and expressions of interest:  Please email John and Prue at j.hasler@bigpond.net.au