Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

[idlegossip Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close idlegossip]

Hi everyone, I am after your opinions and advise.

When we do our trip to Cape York in a couple of months we have a total of 6 weeks on the road. Now the original plan is to travel Melbourne to Cairns in the first week allow 1 - 2 days in Cairns to get the finalized before going to the Cape for a total of 2 weeks, and then we have 3 weeks before we get back to Melbourne.

Now here is my dilemma. On the return trip we were planning to travel down the coast and visit various places along the way. It was bought up in conversation over the weekend that maybe as an alternative to the original plan we actually travel inland towards the Northern Territory (maybe Tennants Creek), down to Alice Springs, Uluru and tour surrounding areas and down to Coober Pedy, possibly Lake Eyre and onto Melbourne.

Now I know this is about an extra 2000 KLM which don't really bother me, but is 3 weeks long enough to have a half decent look or is it to rushed for this sort of trip straight of the back of the Cape.

If it is do-able, I ask the question of what are the must see's along the way give the amount of time we have to do it in?

Please help me decide......

[baby_troupe Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close baby_troupe]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

Certainly doable but you will be rushed and will miss a heap if you try to coner inland from cape to vic in 3 weeks.
I would save that trip for another time and allow 6 weeks plus

[William Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close William]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

I have friends who would rather rush and see more just so they could say "I've been there". To me, that means nothing. I'd rather stay in fewer places and soak up the serenity.

Cheers

[AJ120 Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close AJ120]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

Just in the Alice Springs area you have the east and west Macdonnels, Ayers Rock, Olgas, Mount Connor, Kings Canyon, Palm Valley, Gosse Bluff, Rainbow valley, Chambers Pillar.............. I could go on. 3 weeks would barely be enough time to see all of this let alone drive from the cape and then back to Melbourne.

Leave it for another trip would be my advise, you could still come inland though if you didn't want to do the east coast. we came back from the cape via Normanton, Lawn hill, Mt Isa, Boulia, Birdsville and then would have come down the Birdsville track had it been dry enough. You could have a brief look at the Flinders on the way through if time permitted.

Probably lots of other ways you could go as well.

Cheers Andrew

[idlegossip Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close idlegossip]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

Thanks for the honesty guys. I thought it was a little rushed to do in 3 weeks or miss out on seeing a fair bit which would be a shame.
William, I agree it ain't worth doing if you can't slow down and enjoy it. Probably why I hadn't initially thought about it as an option.

Look like I will be organizing another trip in a few years when we can get a decent amount of time off work again.

[leachy_9 Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close leachy_9]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

I'd suggest 2 weeks on the Cape will be rushed. We spent 4 weeks on the Cape and still felt like we needed more time. My advise would be to spend as much time as possible on the Cape and leave the other stuff for other trips.
Leachy

[kav Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close kav]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

hey idle , a mate and i are doing the cape from sydney some time this year not sure when yet as long as it aint school hols everyone ive spoken to or every thing ive read has said you should allow 3 weeks just for the cape . were planing on 4-5 weeks for the whole lot . were going to get to cairns quick then relax . can,t wait

[idlegossip Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close idlegossip]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

Kav, we are traveling with a group from another forum during the Qld school holidays thus the 2 weeks. We may break away from the group on the return to Cairns and spend another week there but at the moment we are undecided, and it will be a joint decision between all in travelers in our vehicle. We are also limited in the time we travel as we are taking our kids out of school for 6 weeks (which 2 weeks are their school holiday also).

I was speaking to the Cape York person at the Melbourne caravan and camping show a couple of weeks ago and he was saying that there are a S**T load of people that are planning the trip in the June/July period, so this will make for a very busy time up there.

We like yourself are planning a quick drive up to Cairns and then a couple of relax days before we head up north, and if we stick with the original plan of 3 weeks to return down along the coast then it will be a very slow and relaxing return. Not really interested in spending to much time south of Coffs Harbour as we have traveled that area a few times over the years, and we can always come back to this area from a 2 - 3 week break most years so we plan to spend as much time as possible north of Coffs.

Leachy, I hear what your saying mate. Now if I can leave the women somewhere up there for an extra week, my son and I would be laughing.

Thanks for the advise guys.

[wanderingoz Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wanderingoz]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

Sounds like it's going to be busy this year. We have 2 vehicles going in late June/July as well. Hopefully 3 weeks in the Cape and 3 weeks returning to Brisbane.

I agree about the Centre being too rushed on a trip like that. I've been contemplating whether a trip out to Lawn Hill via Georgetown and back to Townsville via Mt Isa and Charters Towers.

We hope to be up there before the school hols start in earnest but then we're a little worried about how much water will be around.

I guess it really will be a case of Spot the PP sticker.

Cheers
Steve O

[K & M McF Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close K & M McF]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

From experience, a minimum of three weeks from Cairns to Cape to Cairns.

[kav Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close kav]

Re: Desicions, decisions which way to go...please help me decide

sorry idle haven't read this post for a while. we were due to go on the 19th july but having read somewhere that they are expecting up to 100 cars a day in july and it being the busiest month of the year :shock: :cry: we are looking at ,in julia's words , "moving forward " (hand gesture, hand gesture ) but we may have to contend with the massive wet and possibly late season which may wipe some of the tracks were planning to do ie. black mountain rd , creb track , frenchmans track , starke track .hope the rain stops on time .