Meeting up at our ren·dez·vous point at 8am, we did our pre trip meeting and risk assessment, before hitting the road for the 180km journey ahead from Townsville to Dalrymple National Park.
Along the way the convoy of 6 vehicles stopped off at the Hervey Range Road information area for a 15 coffee minute break, before finally hitting the Fletchers Creek turn off and the last 6km to our campsite on the Burdekin River.
Giving everyone a few hours to set up their camp and have a bite to eat, it was time to do some training with our trip leader and other qualified members teaching the newbies how to correctly do a winch recovery. Just as we were finishing up, the team from RUFFIN-IT 6X4 showed up and were proud to show off their vehicle with every accessory you could want when camping in the harsh Australian outback.
As the day was getting on, we headed back to camp with a slight detour through an imaginary track down onto the riverbed that our trip leader wanted to follow, much to the amusement of our not so experienced new members. Keeping with tradition, we all bought out our contribution to afternoon tea as we sat around the campfire chatting about the day and sharing our 4×4 experiences.
As we awoke on Sunday morning to a chilli start of 11deg at 6am, most of us were up and about to witness the steam hovering above the river when the sun rose at 6:30am. Now it was time to see if we could get the Nissan bogged in the sand for Trax recovery training. Even digging 2 deep holes we had no chance but it was a great session by our trip leader to again help the newbies with the best procedures and tips in case they were ever in that situation.
This is what being part of a 4X4 club is all about, and everyone had a fantastic time away.
Report by: Rick Monk
