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Preparing for dry season touring in Australia — part one
Words Amelia Mansell and Julija Zivanovic Pics Supplied
With the dry season just around the corner in our country’s northern regions, join us as we explore some of the best preparation practices for a successful ‘up north’ trip.
Canoeing in the breathtaking Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park in the Top End, NT (Credit: John Ford)
The northern regions of Australia, such as the breathtaking locations of Cape York Peninsula (and by extension the Great Barrier Reef) in Queensland, the Northern Territory’s Top End and Western Australia’s Kimberley, follow different seasonal patterns to the country’s southern states. They don’t experience four distinct seasons but rather two: the touring-friendly dry season (‘The Dry’) occurs from April to October, while the monsoonal wet season (‘The Wet’) covers the remaining months of the year.
We at Hema Maps love exploring these northern regions as they contain vastly untouched wilderness, plus incredible native wildlife not found anywhere else. Now, with April just around the corner, we think it’s the perfect time to share some of our top dry season preparation tips. Whether it’s getting the rig geared up, buying the right supplies or just general best practice prepping, we’ve got you covered.
Keep reading to discover how with the right preparation you can get the most out of any dry season adventure.
Start planning now
The Jardine River Ferry office in Queensland
Chances are if you’re heading off on a dry season road trip, it’s going to be a long-distance trip, which requires plenty of planning and preparation to ensure you and your four-wheel drive are up to the task.
And, as we’ll get to in a bit, you won’t be the only one on the road wanting to tick off bucket-list items. During peak season, certain locations can get packed and booked out well in advance, and you may need permits to access certain routes, regions, communities and national parks.
So, our advice is to not get caught out and start your dry season planning now.
Is your vehicle up to the task?
Before you get too far down the planning rabbit hole, it’s a good idea to make sure your vehicle will be suitable for the trip and the environments you’ll be travelling in.
Familiarise (or re-familiarise) yourself with the weight limit of your touring rig to ensure you can carry everything you’ll need for what could be a long trip.
A lot of the areas you’ll head to in the Dry will be pretty remote and there are plenty of unsealed roads. Certain areas will require a 4WD with good clearance and durable tyres (all terrains or better, ideally), so make sure you have a clear understanding of the route conditions and plan your trip accordingly.
It's also a fantastic idea to carry plenty of extra gear including fuel, water and food, but we’ll get into that later …
Pre-trip maintenance and upgrades
Make sure your tyres are in good condition before any dry season trip, especially if towing a camper trailer or caravan (Credit: John Hughes)
If your rig is up to the task, then it’s a good idea to book your vehicle in for a service and any required maintenance, such as wheel alignments. For specialty tyres, these may need to be booked weeks to a month in advance, so don’t leave it until it’s too late. For rough terrains, you want your touring vehicle to be in its best shape.
If there are DIY tasks you can do yourself (checking wheel bearings, tyres, seals, lights), or learn to do yourself, start ticking them off now so you’re not in a mad scramble in the lead up to setting off.
Check your vehicle’s suspension components for signs of wear and tear, and if you have noticed any issues with your ride quality or feel, book them in to get checked by a professional. Weight plays a key role when it comes to how suspension behaves, so if it looks like you’ll be overweight or putting too much strain on your suspension, consider getting an upgrade.
Are your tyres in good condition? Ensure you have at least one, if not two (or more), spares. Approach with caution in remote areas as overgrown scrub and other obstructions that come out of nowhere can wreak havoc on your vehicle.
Think about whether you need any extra equipment or accessories fitted to ensure a safe trip, such as bull bars, stone guards, storage racks, removable or permanent towing mirrors if towing a camper trailer (MSA 4x4 makes ones specific to your vehicle), Starlink or other remote travel communication devices and so on.
Organise your permits
Certain roads or regions in Australia will require access, travel or camping permits, which must be organised in advance of your trip. Some examples include Arnhem Land, Cape York Peninsula and the Great Central Road. Permits can take days or longer to be processed, and even longer to be approved, and if you’re requesting any special considerations then we advise getting the process underway as soon as you can.
The reasons for the permits can vary from the area being private or Aboriginal land to a way for the local government or land council to prevent damage to the environment caused by too many visitors travelling through it at the same time.
Many Aboriginal communities require a permit to visit them, even if you’re just planning on going fishing, bushwalking or camping, much like when you visit a national park. These permits are to manage and regulate access to these lands and to ensure that visitors are aware of and respect that community’s property, privacy, practices and cultural beliefs. For example, many Aboriginal communities do not allow photography and will have sacred sites that cannot be visited.
Some Aboriginal communities will need to be contacted directly for a permit to visit them. If so, you should contact them with plenty of time to spare, as some communities may only have monthly meetings to oversee any permit requests, plus other factors could affect their approval time.
The Lost Cities in Limmen National Park, NT
Some major roads will also require permits, even if you’re just going in for a day trip. Some popular examples are the Gary Junction Road, Great Central Road and entry into the Kiwirrkurra community in WA (abutting the NT and South Australia borders).
National parks and reserves will require a pass and/or access permits and camping permits, which can be organised online. While you may not need to organise these months in advance of your intended arrival, if you want to camp in a national park during the school holidays within peak then we recommend organising your permit and/or Parks Pass and secure your spot early.
Permits are one of the more finnicky aspects of preparing for your trip, as there is no one place to organise them, varying from land councils, specific communities and the government.
With saying that, below are some handy contacts to get you started.
Western Australia
The Western Australian Government website has information on permits required for travel through Aboriginal land which you can access here.
For access and camping in national parks, head here.
Northern Territory
The NT has four main land councils that manage permits:
For national park permits, head here.
Kakadu National Park operates separately and can be organised here.
Queensland
The main area of Queensland where you’ll require a permit is if you’re heading up to Cape York Peninsula and the Tip (the northernmost point of mainland Australia).
Chilli Beach is a famous location in the Cape York region, Queensland (Credit: Matt Williams)
The access permit is one of the easier permits to acquire and is provided when you get your ferry ticket to cross the Jardine River. You can book your spot online via the Northern Peninsula Area website.
But if you’re planning on camping in a national park or reserves, don’t forget to book your spot and organise a camping permit in advance. These camping spots fill up quickly, so the sooner you secure your spot the better.
Some other popular northern Australia roads that require permits are the Gary Junction Road and the Neale Junction to Warburton section of the Connie Sue Highway.
Look out for part two …
We have a lot more advice that we couldn’t possibly fit into one article. If you enjoyed reading this piece, look out for the second part to be published next week.
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Pre-trip planning tips for the Top End of Australia
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