Jan 27 2008
Birdsville Track
Birdsville, between the sands of the Simpson Desert and the gibber plains of Sturt’s Stony Desert is the starting point of the famous Birdsville Track, which stretches to the south , running along the flank of the Simpson Desert. It’s not simple to get there, even from within Australia. The Track runs from the edge of nowhere, to the middle of nowhere, and reaching it is an adventure in itself.
Birdsville began life as ‘Diamantina Crossing’ in 1881. Established during the 1880s, the Birdsville Track was the main stock route between Marree in South Australia and Birdsville in Queensland.
Usually taking about a month to complete, the route was long and extremely harsh and cattle often didn’t survive the trip. Camel trains fared better. Until the 1930s these animals were used as the major transporters into a largely inaccessible region, but were released into the wild when road transport took over.
Nowadays, the Track is passable to conventional vehicles for most of the year. It’s reasonably well maintained and generally fairly smooth. However like any outback track, its condition can change, especially after rain. Rain may be rare, but it can make the Track impassable and you could be stranded for days waiting for sticky mud to dry out. The biggest threat is from the floodwaters of Goyder Lagoon and Cooper Creek — if northern monsoonal rain is excessive, flooding from Queensland’s rivers will close the Birdsville Track well into winter.
However this doesn’t happen very often
If you take a caravan, it should be a purpose built off road type, with heavy duty chassis/suspension and tyres that are designed for dirt roads. A 4WD is the most suitable towing vehicle.
The Outback is a remote wilderness, where you can feel adventurous but there are certain hazards you need to be aware of when travelling through the Outback and various precautions should be taken before setting out.
Weather is an important factor when planning outback travel. From Central Australia, north to Katherine, there is no ‘wet’ season. But in summer, daytime temperatures can rise to more than 40°C. During winter, days are warm and there are sharp drops in temperature at night. Light rainfall can occur any time.
Further north you’ll find distinct wet and dry seasons. The dry season usually lasts from April to November, with very little rain. During the wet season - December to March - many of the roads become channels of mud and the days are unbearably hot and humid, with thunderstorms and downpours. You need to be well-prepared to tackle the remote far north of Australia in the wet season.
The Outside Track is the one most commonly used — the Inside Track, which crosses the treacherous soils of Goyder Lagoon to join the main run just past Clifton Hills, is 4WD only at all times. Severe dust storms are common in the sandhill regions south of Birdsville.
Australia: An Ecotraveler’s Guide
