AROUND THESE PARTS, GENUINE ACCESSORIES CAN BE NECESSITIES.
119th EDITION Spring 2021
11 days bogged
WE TEST THE
MITSUBISHI PAJERO
toyota.com.au *Toyota Genuine Parts/Accessories purchased at and fitted by a Toyota Dealer to a Toyota vehicle which was purchased on or after 01/01/2019, are warranted for the remainder of that vehicle’s Toyota Warranty Advantage period, or 2yrs from installation (whichever is greater). Genuine Accessories purchased at and fitted by a Toyota Dealer to a Toyota ute or van are warranted for 3 yrs/160,000 kms or for 2 yrs from installation, whichever is greater. Genuine Parts/Accessories purchased from, but not fitted by, a Toyota Dealer are warranted for 2yrs from date of purchase. See toyota.com.au for T&Cs. These warranties do not limit & may not necessarily exceed your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. Vehicle shown fitted with optional Toyota Genuine Accessories, sold separately. See your Toyota Dealer. Towing capacity subject to regulatory requirements, towbar and vehicle design and towing equipment limitations. Ask your dealer for Toyota Genuine Towbar capacity and availability details. Alloy Roof Tray and Roof Racks sold separately. Tow bar, tow ball and wiring harness sold separately. T2020-014300 TOY1393
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WESTERN 4W DRIVER 119th EDITION Spring 2021
in the gascoyne
FLYING HIGH OVER THE KIMBERLEY
Put it on your bucket list!
CONTENTS
EDITION 119 SPRING 2021
ADVENTURES 11 Days Bogged in the Gascoyne
The story of Terry and Barb's ordeal that could happen to anyone ........................................... 6
Exploring Paynes Find
Jon's latest adventure to the WA outback ................................................................................................................................ 12
A Beating Heart
Grant and Linda take us along the Red Centre Way .......................................................................................... 30
Stumpy - Beaten by the CSR
Phil talks to Geoff Lewis about his trip along the CSR in his Series 3 1975 Land Rover ................................................................................................................................... 40
Flying High Over the Kimberley
Grant and Linda share their tips on seeing the Kimberley from the sky......................... 50
A Trail of Gold
Geoff's adventure along the Holland Track ......................................................................................................................... 66
Peedamulla Campground
Chris discovers a WA gem ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 74
Gathering of the Clans
Easter at Narloo........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 78
South West Wanderings
Karl heads south to Augusta ............................................................................................................................................................................ 88
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FEATURES Mitsubishi Pajero
Built for adventure ........................................................................ 20
Vehicle Recovery
How to get out of a bog ..................................................... 60
Lenny the LandCruiser
The obsession continues ................................................. 84
My 4WD My Story
REGULARS 4Thought
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5
Bush Mechanics NEW! ............................................ 119 Over the Bonnet ..................................................................... 121 What's in a Name
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The Things You See Bindon's Lore
123
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126
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129
Let's Go Geo-Touring Outback Survival
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133
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144
Giordan's Nissan Patrol ...................................................... 94
Fishy Business .......................................................................... 147 Women in 4W Driving ................................................ 151
Superior Night Vision
Gear to Go Camping
Bushranger 4X4 Night Hawk review ....... 101
Living with Crocodiles
One of the world's greatest survivors .. 104
Enhanced Vision
Product review ................................................................................... 111
Book review
Fire to Fork ................................................................................................ 113
A Great Night's Sleep
OzTent product review ........................................................ 114
Transchill Transmission Oil Cooler Kits Advertorial ................................... 116 Crystal Clear Sound
Product review ................................................................................. 169
...................................................
153
Clewed Up .......................................................................................... 156 Fire Cooking ..................................................................................... 161 Track Care WA News 4WD Club Focus
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164
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165
The People We Meet Goings On
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170
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172
Capture the Moment
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175
The Travelling Photographer
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177
Photography Tips and Tricks
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178
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179
Art of 4WDs
Now We're TAWKing!
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180
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185
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188
Are We There Yet? Subscriptions
Keep me handy! Silly Snaps
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189
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190
Supplier Directory
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191
Western 4W Driver #119
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MAGAZINE Premium Publishers ABN 70 616 133 870 26 John Street, Northbridge WA 6003 PO Box 50, Northbridge WA 6865 Phone: (08) 9291 8303 admin@western4wdriver.com.au www.western4wdriver.com.au
COVER PHOTO COMPETITION
lations! CongratuJordan Broun
Editors Chris and Karen Morton Advertising Chris Morton Natalie Du Preez Graphic Design Karen Morton Administration Chris Morton Steve Larcombe Christine Arnasiewicz Printing Vanguard Press
Chris presenting Jordan with his prize of a Hema HX-1 Navigator.
Thank you to everyone who sent in photo entries.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Premium Publishers or the editors but those of the authors who accept sole responsibility and liability for them. While every care is taken with images and photographs, and all other material submitted, Premium Publishers accepts no liability for loss or damage. Premium Publishers reserves the right to amend publication schedules and frequencies. Edition 119 Spring 2021
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Western 4W Driver #119
For your chance to win a Hema Maps prize pack, check out page 112 for competition details.
4 THOUGHT
TAKE A MOMENT
Q
uicker than a LandCruiser heading up the North West Coastal Highway, the last three months have flown by. We have existed in a world dominated by COVID lockdowns, the Olympics and a deluge of holiday pics from up north. We were lucky enough to be commissioned by a client to spend two weeks travelling through the Pilbara along the Warlu Way before turning around only a month later and exploring the Pilbara again, collecting more content for future publications. During both trips, we got to see some country that we had not been into before as well as revisit some old favourites. However, regardless of where we were, we managed to always run into subscribers, casual readers of the magazine, friends, friends of the family and friends who know us through their second cousin on their mother’s side. It is these interactions that really make our trips memorable. Having a yarn with someone, standing in the shade, alongside a remote gorge or waterway really does make our day. It was during one of these encounters, standing on the edge of the creek at Skull Springs, that I was chatting to a bloke from Broome by the name of John. After some initial awkwardness whereby John thought I was trying to give him some religious literature, he gratefully accepted a couple of copies of Western 4W Driver to share with his mate, who had flown up from Perth. Introducing people to the world of the fourby is one of the things I do enjoy about this job. After a bit more of a chat, we left John and his mate at their very scenic campsite on the edge of the water and headed back out the track for Nullagine. Fast forward almost a month and in the
with CHRIS MORTON mail, we received a subscription from John and a handwritten note. This is why I love my job.
As I write this, nearly the entire country is back in lockdown, with this latest round of measures potentially pushing many businesses over the edge. A social media campaign that recently popped up encouraged people to pre-buy a meal from their local pub or restaurant that they could cash in later when restrictions eased. Here in WA, we are fortunate, however tourism businesses are suffering due to the dramatic drop in interstate and overseas tourists. When planning your next trip away, think about maybe jumping on a tour or going out for dinner instead of cooking something at your campsite. You could do some of your food shopping closer to your destination instead of stocking up before you leave. As avid 4W drivers and tourers, we can make a small difference to businesses that we come across during our travels. Every extra dollar these businesses can earn will make a difference. We hope you enjoy this latest edition of Western 4W Driver. Take care out there and look after each other. Western 4W Driver #119
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11 DAYS
BOGGED
in the Gascoyne By Terry and Barb Stone Gelorup, WA. Selcall 0168
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Even with modern vehicles and equipment and with information from orbiting satellites, mother nature still has a way of throwing a spanner in the works when you least expect it. The story of Terry and Barbara’s ordeal is one that could happen to anyone. Their story had a happy ending as they were well provisioned and equipped for remote travel. They did not panic and they took their predicament in their stride. It reinforces the need to ensure that you have adequate means of communication and know how to use it.
Thursday, May 27, 2021 Packed up and heading north. Plan to arrive in Broome around the 7th of June. There are a couple of historic sites that we want to explore on the way, so the plan is to travel along the Carnarvon-Mullewa Road from Murchison Roadhouse. We have contacted the Shire of Murchison to check on road conditions in the area. Stopped for the night at the Wilroy Nature Reserve on the Wubin-Mullewa Road. Great spot and a very pleasant evening.
Friday, May 28, 2021 Passed through Mullewa and stopped at the Murchison Oasis Roadhouse. Had a good look through the museum (which is run by volunteers) and asked the staff about road conditions further up the CarnarvonMullewa Road. They showed us the BOM website. Entire north west looks clear. We are going to look for a suitable site further up the road to spend the night. Found a spot mid-afternoon, after following someone else’s tyre tracks into the bush a short distance. Great little spot where we set up camp. Very balmy night.
Saturday, May 29, 2021 (Day 1) All hell has broken loose. At about 5.15am the heavens opened, unleashing thunder, lightning and torrential rain. By midmorning there was no sign of letting up and we decided we needed to get moving and out of this weather. We had no idea of the predicament we were about to get into. As soon as we started to move the vehicle, we knew we were in trouble. The ground was incredibly boggy from the continuous rain. Multiple attempts to winch, dropping tyre pressures and digging was getting us nowhere. By 4.00pm we made the decision to winch the vehicle back onto some high ground and re-assess in the morning. We knew we were only about 200m from the main road and despite six hours of effort, we could still clearly see where we had camped last night. Western 4W Driver #119
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Barb went for a walk towards the main road and found the track we originally came in on (with water everywhere we had lost visual sight of our tracks) and the car was now immobile, pointing the wrong way.
Sunday, May 30, 2021 (Day 2) Last night was miserable. Cold and wet, we were forced to sleep sitting up in the front of the ute. Torrential rain continued to fall throughout the night and attempts to get out of the car ended up with us sliding in the mud. Terry was making a list of things that he wished he had brought. Maxtrax was the only item. We vowed that when we got out of this situation, the first thing we were going to buy was a set of them (we didn’t have any sort of recovery board with us).
With the break of dawn, we realised that we were surrounded by water as far as the eye could see. Our original camp was still visible in the distance and as it was on higher ground, we made the decision to carry our camping gear back to it and set up. This would give us somewhere dry to sleep. This is going to be a wait it out situation until the ground dries out enough to allow us to drive out. With nothing else to do, we explored around us, re-visiting the original track that we had driven in on. We realised that if we had taken this track out on Saturday, before we became bogged, we would have most likely made it out. Now it was unrecognisable. Wading through the water was like something out of a movie, with trees sticking out of the water and a mist rising through the canopies. Very eerie. Terry placed a stick next to the car to measure the highwater mark, allowing us to observe any changes in the water level over the coming days. By staying put we knew that we couldn’t make it any worse and that we would get out, eventually. We just didn’t know how long that was going to take.
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Monday, May 31, 2021 (Day 3) We spent the day getting gear out of the car, readjusting the solar panels and walking out to the main road. Most of the time we were bare-footed as shoes and thongs acted like suction cups in the sticky mud. Despite our situation we were very lucky. There was plenty of cleared ground around us and more importantly, plenty of firewood. Wildlife was everywhere with birds and small lizards everywhere we looked and insects which mimicked the colours around us. The car is equipped with a large water tank, and we had plenty of supplemental water. We were carrying plenty of food and we had even stocked up on citrus fruit at a roadside stall when we had passed through Bindoon a couple of days earlier. We were within earshot of the main road, but it was not visible. The last car that we had heard was on Saturday morning, leading us to believe that the road had been closed. Without any mobile coverage we couldn’t be sure. With plenty of water around us we did our washing in it, by just throwing it in and dragging it around a bit and tossing them on a tree to dry. Likewise for cleaning ourselves.
Tuesday, June 1, 2021 (Day 4) Much to our excitement and surprise, the lake where the car was had diminished, but the ground was still saturated and muddy, so we started pacing ourselves for when we thought we may be able to drive the car out and back to the original camp. We came up with the idea over the next few days of how we could plot the car out. Toilet paper! Marking a path on tree branches that looked like it had the best potential.
Thursday, June 3, 2021 (Day 6) Today was the day! This afternoon Terry managed to ease the car out and back to camp, so that felt like that was a bit of a victory.
At some stage we had decided we had better let our son know what was happening, as we thought we may have to cancel some of our accommodation in Broome in case we are late. No phone reception, fortunately though we have a HF radio in the car, and we are members of the VKS 737 network. Made contact with VKS to let them know our situation and have messages relayed to others. We passed our GPS location onto them and a message relayed through to our son in Broome and our friend Frank. Frank is also a member of the VKS network from down south, selcall 2622. Thursday afternoon, as we were walking through the bush to a waterhole to wash our feet, we heard someone call out. Much Western 4W Driver #119
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to our surprise there were two men walking towards us. They introduced themselves as station owner Andrew and one of his offsiders Wayne. They had been advised of our location by our son in Broome. He had contacted the station owner and asked if he could go and find us. He was that concerned that he said he was willing to pay for a chopper to find us. From that point on, Andrew and his team made it a priority to try and get us out. Andrew offered food, water and beer if we needed it. We were fine though, we weren’t lost, we were comfortable, had plenty of food and water, we were just stuck.
Friday, June 4, 2021 (Day 7) Andrew, Wayne and Peter came out and brought heavy duty bog mats and winch extension straps to use. After about three hours of continual winching we decided to give it a rest for the day and try again the following morning. We kept regular contact with VKS throughout this time, keeping them informed of our current situation. They
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were so worried about us that they made it a priority to relay our messages across the network. They included us in the daily scheduled calls, just in case we needed extra assistance.
Saturday, June 5, 2021 (Day 8) More digging and winching, with pretty much the same result. After three hours with numerous breaks in the winch cable, our one and only shovel breaking and being repaired, it was decided to give it a break and wait a few more days. No further rain was forecast until next Thursday. We knew we had to be out by then. Andrew offered to put us up at his station, but we decided we wanted to stay in the tent with the car.
Sunday, June 6, 2021 (Day 9) We spent today trying to free up all the ground under the car. There was a huge amount of mud that had wedged itself everywhere underneath the car putting more stress on the diff and shockies etc. almost acting like a grader blade in the mud.
We had a message from our friend Frank on the HF radio to let us know rain was now forecast for Tuesday.
Monday, June 7, 2021 (Day 10) VKS 737 confirmed the updated forecast. We are still their number one priority, with regular contact and support and asking if there was anything further they could do. Station hand Peter came out to help us try winching out again. Still stuck.
Tuesday, June 8, 2021 (Day 11) We must get out today. The weather is starting to close in on us again. The wind had been howling all night. We got up at 5.00am in the dark, lit a fire, packed fiddly things in the car, leaving the tent up etc., If we don’t get out before the rain comes today then the car will be staying here indefinitely and that would be the end of our trip. After an hour of winching Terry managed to pull the car onto slightly firmer ground. Barb was walking alongside as the spotter and dragging the bog mats forward. As he eased it onto firmer ground, he kept in first gear low range and kept up the momentum. In minutes he managed to drive the car out, following the path we had meticulously plotted out over days and days. As he reached the road he sounded the horn. We were out. With the car now parked on the side of the road, we raced back to our camp. We still needed to pack it up and get the gear back to the car. It was hard work carrying it across hundreds of metres of waterlogged ground.
of our car. Many people had never heard of HF radio or the range that they had. We took these opportunities to educate them about the VKLS network. We must give a huge thanks to Tony from VKS Alice Springs (Base) and all the other operators across Australia. As volunteers, they do an amazing job, linking remote travellers across Australia and providing vital communications and assistance where there would otherwise be none.
INFORMATION BAY VKS 737 https://vks737.radio/ VMD 750 https://www.austravelsafetynet.org.au/ VKE 237 https://www.hfradioclub.com.au/ https://aussiehf.club/
The ultimate offroad family camper Designed and built in Western Australia
2/43 Buckingham Drive Wangara WA 6065 T: 08 94093905 • E: camprite@iinet.net.au
www.campritecampers.com.au
As soon as we had finished packing the car and climbed back in, the rain started to fall. We had made it, just in the nick of time. After a quick detour to Byro Station homestead to say thanks to Andrew and his team, we turned back north to continue our trip. Quite often, at each stop, we would be asked about the large aerial on the back Western 4W Driver #119
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g n i r o l p Ex
Paynes Find By Jon Love
Beginning our ascent to the top of Mount Singleton.
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Western 4W Driver #119
Twenty minutes into our latest adventure to the WA outback, we were cruising along the Tonkin Highway not far from home when disaster struck. It didn’t take long for a mechanical issue to rear its ugly head, forcing us to pull over and start diagnosing the issue.
Excerpt from Hema’s WA State map.
T
urns out the differential on the Defender was on its last legs and caved on the journey outward. As unfortunate as it was to start the journey this way, it was a blessing in disguise. Being so close to home we were able to tow it back to the garage, saving us a headache had it happened when we were more remote. Fortunately for our driving companions, they came from a Defender family and another one was waiting ready to go. We ended up rolling into camp around 1.00am not far from Wubin, and with the remnants of coffee still in our system a small fire was lit to lounge around before we called it a night. With our tanks filled and some brekky on the go from the Wubin servo, the convoy pressed on for its first destination, an area just south of Paynes Find called Ninghan Station. Pulling off the blacktop and onto the fine red dirt was a welcome sensation, with the sight of tall standing ranges sitting high off in the distance acting as a waypoint for the journey to come. As we pulled into the homestead area we had a chat with the station owners, who gave us an insight into the terrain and track conditions that lay ahead. Prior to our arrival a storm had rolled its way through the area, depositing a generous amount of water with it. This left track conditions in somewhat of a state, with flood plains completely covering generous portions of the track. With this information in hand and an uncontainable eagerness to explore the area, we set off from the homestead and made tracks for our first point of interest, Mount Singleton. Prior to this trip it had been eight long months since we last packed into the Troopy for an adventure, so the feeling of being back in the open country plains behind the wheel of the old girl was a much-needed sensation. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of being in the outback in remote parts of Western Australia to escape the concrete jungle that is Perth; but I digress, Mount Singleton! Western 4W Driver #119
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