Rude shock for rookie Outback travellers

COVID-19 restrictions have turned our gaze inwards to explore our own country rather than to venture overseas with the prospect of facing local restrictions and further pandemic outbreaks that threaten to turn a holiday into a horror story.

However, it appears some first-time Outback travellers are struggling with heat, dust, mud and the lack of internet and appropriate places to dispose of their rubbish and caravan toilet waste.

We’ve seen some horrors on our travels, with some campers simply emptying their toilets by the roadside without even bothering to dig a hole, while an idyllic riverside campsite can be ruined if littered by toilet paper, nappies, condoms or tampons.

Think of the outdoors as your own backyard, so if you’re visiting a campsite, always use the toilets provided. In areas without toilets or when free-camping, toilet waste should be buried at least 100 metres away from campsites and watercourses.

However toilet cassettes should never be emptied into caravan park toilets due to the harmful chemicals. These cassettes should be emptied at one of the many ‘dump points’ that you will find near many showground campgrounds, or on the outskirts of most tourist-frequented towns, so that the waste is properly treated.

Plan ahead and empty your waste cassette before you go camping are identify dump points you are likely to encounter every three or four days.

Other rubbish should travel with you until you can find a proper receptacle.

City slickers not doing their homework...

As demand for go-anywhere four-wheel drives, not to mention off-grid caravans, helps push prices sky high, many travel-starved people are heading Outback completely unprepared...

Locals say it's crucial to prepare for a safe adventure by learning about the dangers before hitting the road.

For a start, maps can be deceiving, with even major sealed rods becoming impassable after major weather events.

GPS and phone reception are not always reliable and what looks like a reasonably short drive can be much longer than first thought.

Broken Hill Police Inspector Matthew McCarthy has warned travellers that the ‘rite of passage’ of driving around Australia should not be underestimated.

Remote tourism operators report that record numbers of travellers are attempting northern 4WD tracks during the pandemic, frequently struggling with heat, dust and the lack of internet.

"There are definitely a lot of people coming up the road this year that haven't had a lot off-road experience," Jodie Newman from the Mt Barnett Roadhouse on West Australia's Gibb River Road, told the ABC last year.

"A lot of people don't realise how remote it is and haven't done their research in regards to internet coverage and things like that," she said.

Corner shop only a few hours' away...

Police Inspector Matthew McCarthy from the New South Wales outback town of Broken Hill said travellers often underestimated the vastness of the Australian Outback.

"I don't think travellers quite understand the remoteness of the area, which is its main attraction,” he said.”

Motorists becoming bogged after rain events is another big issue.

"We've had a few horror stories of people wanting to drive through creeks that are flowing at some speed and depth, yet people still persist on driving through them," he said.

"We've even had people who will drive a front-wheeled drive vehicle from Brisbane to Melbourne or Adelaide and they'll decide they're going to drive down a road that's under water for 400 metres.

"If the road conditions are bad where you are, generally they're going to get worse, so if there's a sign that says 'road closed', besides the fact that it's an offence, don't drive on it."

Another danger is towing a heavy off-road caravan on crowned unsealed that are extra slippery after a downpour. If you move off the crown to make way for an oncoming vehicle, you may never get back onto it and there may be no other passing traffic for days.

Tips for safe Outback travel

Here are a few tips from experienced Outback travellers:

• Travel in company with someone else so that they can assist, or go for help, if required.

• Carry a shovel, a long snatch strap and something like MaxTrax to put under your tyres to help you get out of a rut.

• A sled-like device, a Max Trax, or even a spare wheel to put under your drawbar, is very handy to stop it digging in if you need to de-hitch in order to drag your camper or caravan out of a bog.  You can drag from some off-road jockey wheels like the Ark or the Max Trax Trailer Skid.

 • Make sure your spare wheel(s) and jack are accessible and that they will do the job. Don’t forget wheel chocks to stop your vehicle rolling off the jack, a pump to reinflate your tyres if you have had to deflate them, a basic puncture repair kit or a can of puncture sealant and some warning triangles.

• Watch your speed on rougher Outback roads. Regard 60-70km/h as your maximum and you’ll avoid a lot of stone damage. It’s also easier to slow to avoid large rocks or holes at lower speeds.

• If you're free-camping off the road, scout the area on foot first to ensure you can get out again, particularly if it rains overnight. And make sure you are clear of the road to ensure that you don’t get run into by other travellers.

• Consider fitting exterior security spotlights on the front, rear and sides of our van that can all be turned on with a single internal switch.

• If you are free-camping, you might want to light a fire, but beware. Firstly, you must pre-gather your firewood if you are in a National Park,  but be careful not to destroy any habitat or to take firewood out. Big fines apply for habitat destruction or if you're caught illegally removing timber from wildlife reserves.

• When you’re packing up your campsite make sure you take the time to completely extinguish your campfire with water and check the area for rubbish. Campfires that aren’t fully extinguished can continue smouldering and it can take just one ember to cause a destructive bushfire.

• ‘Leave no trace’ should be your travelling motto.

Related: Ultimate offroad touring guide