Another leisurely start this morning with about 240 km to drive today.
Yet another surprise for us, with the remainder of the road to Marree now been upgraded to bitumen. So you can now travel the 77 km from Lyndhurst to Marree no matter the weather conditions. We did travel over it many years ago after a light shower, and that was especially interesting trying to keep ourselves and our van on the road surface.
We have camped in Marree before and passed through on many occasions so its just a brief stop today for a photo. Then spending time reducing our tyre pressures on our 4wd and van for the 517 km trip towards Birdsville.
The track passes through one of the driest parts of Australia and cuts across parts of the Strzelecki, Sturt Stony and the Tirari Deserts. Much of the road surface is made up of gibber stones and although the trip is not terribly demanding it still requires care to be taken.
A 4wd and good quality all-terrain tyres with reduced pressures and a lowering of speed will help reduce the chances of tyre punctures and a possible breakdown.
We have travelled extensively throughout Australia and over just about every dirt road on offer. Having always reduced our tyre pressures, to date we have not received any tyre damage over the past thirty-odd years.
On our previous trip, we camped at Mungerannie before reaching Birdsville. Last time we towed a camper trailer but thankfully we now have more creature comforts to look forward to at the end of the day.
A stop and wander around the Lake Harry Ruins 31 km from Marree, where in the early years it was hoped date palms could be grown. Water from a bore was sufficient enough for the palms to grow but problems with pollination ended this project.
We came across the 'Dog Fence', just 12 km later. We have seen parts of it on many of our travels around Australia. Its a 5600 km fence that was built in the 1800s to keep dingoes to the north and help to protect the flocks of sheep in the south.
A further 90 km along the track had us arriving at the Cooper Creek crossing. Luckily for us, the rain in late April that forced the closure of the track due to major flooding has now dissipated, we are just confronted with a dry plain otherwise we could be stranded here indefinitely.
Just 15 km later had us arriving at the Mulka Ruins, where we stopped briefly to take some photos and wander around what is left of the ruins. Most of the building has crumbled to the ground with just part of the fireplace still intact.
A store was built here in the early 1900s to service the drovers who were moving stock to Marree.
Originally we'd planned to spend the night camped near the ruins but it was still relatively early in the day and blowing a gale from the east, so we continued onto Mungerannie where we knew we could shield ourselves against the bushes and away from the constant wind.
Originally we'd planned to spend the night camped near the ruins but it was still relatively early in the day and blowing a gale from the east, so we continued onto Mungerannie where we knew we could shield ourselves against the bushes and away from the constant wind.
Mungerannie Roadhouse is almost halfway along the track and is the only permanent establishment.
Facilities include cabin accommodation, a campground with facilities, tyres, basic repairs and fuel along with meals and a cold beer.
Current diesel fuel price is $1.95 a litre but having our long-range tank allows us to make Birdsville without worrying about a top-up.
Campground charges are $10 per person with all facilities on offer, but we weren't interested in staying in the campground. We just frequented the pub while enjoying a few beers and dinner before retiring.
Amazing how a little bit of rain brings the desert back to life....
We did pass the Birdsville inside track 140 km after leaving Mungerannie. Even though its a shorter distance by about 40 km, its normally closed as part of the track crosses Warburton Creek.
Arriving in Birdsville we set up on the town common south of town.
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