THE TRIP - Cape York 2015

[Aussie Iron]

My sister (Candy) arrived Friday night. We spent Saturday morning building a boat rack for her Canter so we could take a second tinny along. This would be picked up at my brothers place in Townsville. Leaving Gladstone Saturday afternoon we spent the night at Mackay , traveled on to Townsville in the morning (To pick up my brother in his Mitsubishi Triton and the tinny) and then on to Cairns the next day. Here we collected my nephew in his Mitsubishi Challenger for a few days up the track.

Leaving Cairns we traveled up the Bloomfield Track to the beginning of the Zig Zag Track.The climb up the range to the start of the Zig Zag Track was not really expected but certainly was good and we climbed for just over 5 minutes in 1st gear low range. The Zig Zag Track is narrow, winding with creek and river crossings and a few good climbs.In the wet it would also have a few swampy areas to be crossed. Camp site for the first night was along side the upper reaches of the Bloomfield River where it crossed the track.

Sorry for the Video quality, it turned out to be the wrong direction to the sun so there is quite a bit of Sun bloom on it.

This is the climb in its entirety.

Here is part 1 of the track.

Then part 2.

Dan.

 

[Aussie Iron]

Anyway Tyres,
For this trip I ran a set of Goodride tyres (Mud Legend SL386 in 315/75x16 and rated at 127Q). They are total different beast than the Kuhmo tyres that I usually run. As normal I started with a running pressure of 45psi front and rear but soon found out that it wallowed all over the place because the side walls are softer than the Kuhmos. This caused a rise in tyre temperature that I haven't seen to around 54*C. Raising the pressure to 50 front and 55 rear helped with the wallow but still the temp came up. Another rise in pressure to 55 front and 65 rear certainly helped with stability but the temp still rose more than I've seen with my tyres. This was on the highway, so not so good if you are traveling some mileage to get to your offroad destination.

Offroad I started with 45 all round, with the Kuhmos I would have gone to 35 but these are a lot softer in the side wall and folded around rocks and edges well. Later I lowered the front down to 40 to soften the ride over corrugations - at this pressure we keep the speed down to 80 kph and allways run in 4WD to keep the rotational load down on the tyres. On bitumen we still only run at 80 kph but in 2WD. There are no complaints about offroad performance as they handled all that was asked of them and didn't end up with any flats.I hate fixing tyres on the trail so all was good.

Tyre wear I won't know about for a while but it looks like I ran about 2mm of on the run (out of 18mm). So they are a lot softer compound. At this stage I'll continue to run them so as to get a better understanding of their characteristics.

Dan.

 

[Fugly]

Dan

Thanks for the vids and story so far...
You were right about the sun that happens....
Any vids and pic's I have taken never show the true angles of the country....
Keep them coming ....

Cheers Fugly

 

[yabanja]

I love the commentary from the passenger seat. Sounds exactly like my wife and I.

Over an especially big obstacle last trip she started singing to calm herself.... She got out to walk on the way back through but said watching was no better.

Four low first gear pretty much says it all as far as any steepness not conveyed by the camera.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Aussie Iron]

In the morning it was time to cross the river. not a real hard crossing as it has a solid but rocky bottom. As can be seen there are a few boulders on the bottom so trying to miss the bigger ones is the order.Candy takes the first run and waits at the other edge for the Challenger and then the Triton just in case they get hooked up on a boulder.



Dan.

 

[Aussie Iron]

This is the run from the river to the main track that runs from the Creb track to Wujal Wujal. A few nice climbs and a couple of boggy patches.


Dan.

 

[yabanja]

I em enjoying these! Thank you!

Allan

 

[Aussie Iron]

I'll post up more when my internet resets in a weeks time, look like I've used it all up.

Dan.

 

[Bris31]

Very good Dan, keep them coming :elkgrin:

 

[Aussie Iron]

The Zig Zag Track was fun but lets get into some real terrain.

Now it was time to air up and do a road run to our next adventure. So out to the main track turn left and head through Lakeland and Palmer River Roadhouse and onto the turn off to Maytown. This was the main town for the Palmer River Gold Fields. Long gone other than a heritage site. The road in has been upgraded to let the tourist access to the historic site but the road out well that is different. The Old Coach Road is a 4WD only road with good climbs, turns and twists and of coarse if you go up you must come down so there are a good number of them. The number of people that we saw in there (Maytown area) and said your not taking "that" out the Old Coach Road (being the "Canters"). Well let me tell you "them's fighting words" and of coarse we are. The road out comes out at Laura on the Developmental Road to Weipa and the Top.

You have all seen the video on the tracks thread. It was taken in the Palmer River at the bottom of the hill at Maytown.

This is one of the climbs. Fay must have run up with all that heavy breathing. Candy went up first but before you can see her you can already hear that she is under power for the first part of the climb. A couple of skeptics had made their way up part of the climb to see the failure up close but it never happened for them.



This is the in Car look at this climb.


Dan.

 

[yabanja]

Looks like fun to me!

Allan

 

[Aussie Iron]

Now we are coming down a nice and rocky track, walking it slowly down. You can see the articulation of the front axle and the noise that you hear then is the tyres rubbing on the rear plastic guards behind the front wheels so yes the angle is great.


Another smaller rocky climb.


More of the track.



Dan.

 

[Fugly]

Dan,
Bloody great vids ....
Very capable trucks ...
Thanks for posting

Cheers Fugly

 

[Aussie Iron]

Another climb on the Old Coach Road. This track is all man made with pick and shovel. On the first climb the ramp that we go up is all hand filled with rock batter on the sides to hold it together. The cuttings are carved out of solid rock and you can see where wagons and coaches have run their steel rims on the inside of the curve and worn it smooth.

Yes it is very steep but doesn't look like it. I'll have to put a language warning on this one as the wife gets a bit excited on one of the angle change overs.
You will also have to excuse the interference on the video (mainly at the start), not really sure why but we think it is from the electro-magnetic clutch on the air conditioner.


Dan.

 

[Bris31]

There was abrupt end to the above video. Did you pass ok through that narrow gap between those 2 trees :Wow1: