Simpson Trip - July 5th to 15th

Some information on a trip for the July school holidays run by my old ... and Alek’s current school ... Blackfriars Priory School in Prospect. This school has a long history of going on "Expedition".

Last week was the first meeting of trip participants and organisers.
I expected there would be more faces from my old school days ...
In fact I only recognised one person!

The organisers are limiting the trip to 50 participants and about 15 vehicles.
Interestingly (perhaps not surprisingly as it is part of the school’s jubilee celebrations) most participants are adults ... only some 8 boys are coming along! Clearly many present at the meeting have traveled on school expeditions before and so there were not many questions. 50 people - we get good attendances at Wanderers trips ... but 50 people!?! Spot on 50 kind of makes sense for a Jubilee celebration I guess. By necessity this trip will have to be managed quite differently from what a Wanderers trip leader might ever have to deal with!

The itinerary:-

Day 1 Saturday Pooncarie via Renmark, Mildura & Wentworth
Day 2 Sunday Silverton via Lake Tandau, Menindee & Broken Hill
Day 3 Monday Milparinka via Pineridge & Pincally
Day 4 Tuesday Sturt National Park via The Gorge Loop Road & The Jump-up Loop
Day 5 Wednesday Cameron’s Corner
Day 6 Thursday Innamincka
Day 7 Friday Birdsville via Walkers Crossing & Birdsville Track
Day 8 Saturday Enjoy Birdsville (rest day)

Day 9 Sunday Simpson Desert via Big Red & Poeppels Corner
Day 10 Monday Simpson Desert
Day 11 Tuesday Dalhousie Springs
Day 12 Wednesday Enjoy Dalhousie Springs (rest day)
Day 13 Thursday Peake via Oodnadatta
Day 14 Friday Parachilna
Day 15 Saturday Home

The desert crossing route is not yet finalised and to some extent may be dictated by the weather at the time. Also the school wishes to partake in some "leaving a mark" activity to commemorate this jubilee year expedition. Depending on what this may be (erect a cairn at some special place, refurbish signwork at a historic well site ...) could have some bearing on the final route through the desert.

As you can see the trip can easily be left or joined in the middle and some participants are doing just that.

To accommodate the 3 plus people per vehicle everyone will need to travel very light. And as there are so many vehicles ...many "can’t do without" items can be shared. Each person will be responsible for their own personal plates, cups & cutlery. A communal kitchen will cater all of the meals. Each vehicle will carry shared food and an extra 40 litres of water for "the community" ... for dishwashing mainly. Fortunately one of the vehicles going is a Defender 130 dual cab ... plenty of room for bulky communal items in the tray. It is hoped only one trailer will be required.
To keep everything flowing smoothly the many tasks will be assigned to individuals & teams.

Choose from the following ...

Camp set up
Stores
Cooking (breakfast & dinner)
Lunch preparation
Clean up kitchen
Garbage (unless it is easily burnt it comes back out with us)
BBQ
Firewood
Water supply
Fire
Hot water
5 o’clockers
Lighting
Cellar master
Mechanic
Doctor
Hygiene
Video
Journal
Plus a whole lot more I am sure.

One of my friends wants to volunteer for camp set up or cooking duties so he can drive at the front of the group ... his rational is to attempt the dunes before the rest of us mess them up!

Without strict delegation and teamwork keeping the juggernaut moving ... things could get frustrating. I am pleased the organisers have many years’ experience with large groups ... this certainly will not be a relaxed JC type of excursion!

Medical forms will be completed and kept confidential by the expedition’s doctor should some emergency occur.

Recommended maps for this expedition are the Hema "Great Desert Tracks" series.

The trip is catered to the extent that food is provided. Most if not all the camping will be "bush camping" ... we will snatch showers where we can.

Fuel will be my biggest concern ... old Cruiser is anything but economical. Some 650km will be covered between fuel stops in the desert.

At the meeting there were still some vacancies for passengers ... however the organisers felt they were approaching maximum vehicle numbers.

Costs:-

Child passenger $450
Adult passenger $600
Vehicle provider No cost. Desert Parks Pass provided and depending on the budget a fuel allowance is intended.

So ... something different from the odd weekend sojourn to
Frankton or Puppy Springs ... let me know ASAP if you are interested.
Girls ... don’t be shy ... but be prepared for a pile of testosterone!!!

Fred

Disclaimer : please note