Perth to Melbourne

[beachbum62]

Hello all I am in training for a trip of a lifetime,Perth to Melbourne following the coast as much as possible,i unfortuantly lost my Daughter at 10 days old and this has inspired me to do this trip as i have always wanted to have a go at it,i will finish it,i have no time frame at all.
Im going to take advise as the best time to leave,i am thinking late febuary or early march,i have missed the boat{bike} leaving now and i have just started training.
My partner will drive our 4x4 with a camper trailer so we can be fully self sufficent while out there.

Any advise would be greatly appreachiated at all.

Cheers Wayne

[GregLR]

I’ve been collecting info on this myself, with a view to a possible Perth to Sydney ride in a couple of years’ time. Two of my friends did the ride in 2008 in the August to October period, because the winds were said to be mostly westerly on the Nullarbor at that time of year.

One of these friends (who rode from Perth to Canberra from 26 August to 1 October) commented on his blog that “...We have been fortunate with the weather on this ride as we have not had a wet day since early in the ride at Walpole....All in all the winds have also lived up to their prediction of being predominately from the west at this time of the year.”
(see this blog entry: http://phillstravels.blogspot.com.au/20 ... ks-29.html )

The other friend, who left Perth a few weeks later than the other one and rode to Sydney, told me that he thought that the proposition that winds on the Nullarbor are mainly from the west in September wasn’t borne out in practice for his ride. I recall him saying that he had several days or more riding into strong headwinds, as well as other days with a tailwind.

Your choice of March is within the periods recommended in the book “Bike Australia: Cycling Across Australia from Perth to Sydney” by Paul Salter (Epic Guides, NZ, first edition, 2001). But the book does note that “...March can get pretty hot”. Here’s what is said under the heading “When to Cycle Tour”:

“Summer is not the time to undertake this journey. Inland temperatures during the summer months (December through February) can be fearsome, often exceeding 40 degrees C, and on the Nullarbor, winds from the east are common. Spring (September through November) and autumn (March through May) are good times to cycle from Perth to Sydney, although March can still get very hot. Spring in particular is a good time to bike in Western Australia, the state’s wildflowers are at their best and afternoon winds from the west predominate. Winter (June to August) can be okay for bicycle touring too, although be prepared for bitterly cold nights and frequent rain.

Travelling between Perth and Sydney in spring and autumn you can expect mostly sunny days with warm to hot temperatures. Nights are cool to cold. Expect some showers, although it can rain for days on end anywhere along the route so be prepared...[the book includes monthly average temperature and rainfall data for selected towns between Perth & Sydney, which could be obtained from the BOM site]...There are about 12 hours of daylight between sunrise and sunset in springtime.”

I thought I’d also mention that two commercial touring companies have chosen the July-August period to cross the Nullarbor on the Perth to Melbourne tours they are offering next year. The information provided on their websites might also be helpful in planning your daily stages:

Cycle Across Oz: Perth to Melbourne - 28 July to 2 September 2013:
http://www.cycleacrossaustralia.com/fil ... 202013.pdf

All Trails:: Kalgoorlie to Adelaide sector: 18 July to 4 August 2013
http://www.alltrails.com.au/alltrails-r ... ge-10.html
(click on the “Day to Day” tab to see the daily stages & distances, etc)

In case you haven't seen it, this brochure might be helpful:
http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/mediaFil ... ochure.pdf

Also, I have a brochure put out by the WA and SA tourism offices called "Australia's Great Road Journey: The Nullarbor: Adelaide - Perth Adventure 2008/09" that has lots of useful information. But I couldn't find reference to a later version on either http://www.westernaustralia.com or http://www.southaustralia.com

Anyway, hope this information is of some help.

Greg

[gabrielle260]

Great thread guys!
I have a long term goal to ride Perth - Melb or Perth - Sydney doing about 200km a day. I have that Epic guide but it is now quite dated so your input is great.

[il padrone]

+1 to GregLR's comments. As for the Epic Guide, 10 years out of date does not do too much to change the temperatures and wind directions

[ozipom]

Hi Wayne

I recently completed a trip from Perth to Adelaide which followed the coast around SW WA. After crossing the Nullarbor I headed around the Eyre Peninsula and got the ferry across from Lucky Bay. Link to blog:Perth to Adelaide blog

Also last year I did a tour from Adelaide to Melbourne, this again followed the coastline through the Coorong and on to the Great Ocean Road. Link to blog:Adelaide to Melbourne blog

Both blogs have maps showing elevations and distances travelled each day.

Brian

[alanm]

Wayne,

What sort of bike are you using?

How much 4WD experience does your partner / you have?

Depending on the answers, I can give you an alternative route to get to Caiguna but you need to know what you're doing.

Al

[barefoot]

I took the "shortcut" from Perth - Hyden - Norseman when I drove across.

Don't go that way

Unless you like riding 300km in wheel ruts in deep sand. It was pretty hard going in a 20 year old Corona

Would be an awesome ride. I loved the Nullabor.

tim

[Baalzamon]

I took the "shortcut" from Perth - Hyden - Norseman when I drove across.

Don't go that way

Unless you like riding 300km in wheel ruts in deep sand. It was pretty hard going in a 20 year old Corona

Would be an awesome ride. I loved the Nullabor.

tim

I've ridden that way and 270km was lovely and the last 30km UGH

[Aushiker]

I took the "shortcut" from Perth - Hyden - Norseman when I drove across.

Don't go that way

Unless you like riding 300km in wheel ruts in deep sand. It was pretty hard going in a 20 year old Corona

Would be an awesome ride. I loved the Nullabor.

tim

I've ridden that way and 270km was lovely and the last 30km UGH

+ 1

Andrew