Madigan Line

[FNQGU]

Has anyone got a .gpx file or other format that they would be willing to share?

I am after any sort of advice or trip reports and fuel usage reports etc. that I can get my grubby hands on before committing to a trip in July 2015.

Cheers & thanks in advance

[megatexture]

Have a chat with daz you lucky bastard, this is high up my list to do
http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forums/showthread.php?12104-MudRunnerTD-doing-the-Madigan-Line-2012

[TPC]

I have a gpx file from when I did the Madigan in 2010 and a track log of our trip.
The track log misses the Madigan Camps from 19 on as we got trapped by flooding and had to work out a way past Eyre Creek.
PM me your email and I will send it to you as I don't think we can load them on here.

[MudRunnerTD]

Sorry mate, I did get your message the other day, I have been under the weather and not on a computer to respond to you.

You indicate that you are interested in the first half of the Madigan to the Hey River track, this is a great section and I would encourage you to do it. The track gets very difficult beyond the Hey River intersection and I would say its by far the most difficult. We spent 3 days in Low 1st driving continuous Wombat holes at full flex side to side. Full on.

The half your keen on is good fun and you should not have a great deal of trouble. I think I have the way points too. LiftLid also did this and did most of the prep for our crossing and would be a great source of info on permits and what have you for camp 5 etc.

We did the full length and found from camp 1 through to 24 I think. I used 210 lts of fuel in my GUIvTD42. I used the most in my group. Fuel ranged from I think about 180lt to 210 lts.

Camp 1 was difficult to find as there was legitimately No Track to this location. The track was intermittent for the first couple of days. You really are driving from way point to way point on your GPS and using track where it exists and driving rough when it doesn't.

Hope that helps some.

Yell out if you need anything more or post here and I will happily input whatever I can. Gary may chime in also.

Regards Darren

[TPC]

This is a snapshot of what we did.
We had a Hilux D4, a Prado petrol, a Cruiser diesel and a Patrol 4.8l petrol.
Our fuel economy varied greatly, the best being the Hilux that used about 180 L and the worst was the Patrol that used 340 L and ran out at Big Red.
This was my favorite desert trip and was made more fun by the flooding but it was tough going and long days and lots of punctures that we repaired ourselves.

[TPC]

Sorry mate, I did get your message the other day, I have been under the weather and not on a computer to respond to you.

You indicate that you are interested in the first half of the Madigan to the Hey River track, this is a great section and I would encourage you to do it. The track gets very difficult beyond the Hey River intersection and I would say its by far the most difficult. We spent 3 days in Low 1st driving continuous Wombat holes at full flex side to side. Full on.

The half your keen on is good fun and you should not have a great deal of trouble. I think I have the way points too. LiftLid also did this and did most of the prep for our crossing and would be a great source of info on permits and what have you for camp 5 etc.

We did the full length and found from camp 1 through to 24 I think. I used 210 lts of fuel in my GUIvTD42. I used the most in my group. Fuel ranged from I think about 180lt to 210 lts.

Camp 1 was difficult to find as there was legitimately No Track to this location. The track was intermittent for the first couple of days. You really are driving from way point to way point on your GPS and using track where it exists and driving rough when it doesn't.

Hope that helps some.

Yell out if you need anything more or post here and I will happily input whatever I can. Gary may chime in also.

Regards Darren

I think you said it was 2010 that you did this before, what month were you there?

[MudRunnerTD]

I think you said it was 2010 that you did this before, what month were you there?

No it was 2012 and we were there in June July. Here is a thread I did back then.

MudRunnerTD-doing-the-Madigan-Line-2012 (http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forums/showthread.php?12104-MudRunnerTD-doing-the-Madigan-Line-2012)

[TPC]

No it was 2012 and we were there in June July. Here is a thread I did back then.

MudRunnerTD-doing-the-Madigan-Line-2012 (http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forums/showthread.php?12104-MudRunnerTD-doing-the-Madigan-Line-2012)

We must have almost crossed paths, I did the first part of the Madigan early July 2012 before heading off to the geographical center and geo-survey hill.
That was another great trip and very challenging.

Looking at this I think we were in the Birdsville pub the same night.

[MudRunnerTD]

Lol, must have been close then. 11th July 2012 I was at the pub. We lost a day at Camp 20 when we got lost at the lake and could not find our way around the bloody thing.

Camp 20 was washed out but we found the stake and did a repair and re-engraved it and put it back in the ground.

I have read about the Geocentre and would love to do that. Might head back and do an East West Madigan line and Geo Centre trip one day.

Small group, 3 or 4 vehicles max.

[MudRunnerTD]

Yeah wow! Just looked at your Log!! Wow we were bloody close then. Dd not hear a whisper on a radio or see a soul for 8 days except at the hey river crossing where we met a few running the hey river track.

[TPC]

I just checked and we were a day behind you.
You are right about keeping the group small for that trip, we had 5 vehicles and that was pushing it.

[FNQGU]

Awesome info, thanks guys and I will lean on your experiences some more as we get closer.

I've got 245 litres of fuel capacity in the Patrol, but I'm not yet sure how thirsty the Chev will be with all the low-range work.

If we only do the section from the Hay River Rd West, then I am hoping fuel won't be such an issue.

How bad are the dunes in that section if traveling from East to West?

[TPC]

Awesome info, thanks guys and I will lean on your experiences some more as we get closer.

I've got 245 litres of fuel capacity in the Patrol, but I'm not yet sure how thirsty the Chev will be with all the low-range work.

If we only do the section from the Hay River Rd West, then I am hoping fuel won't be such an issue.

How bad are the dunes in that section if traveling from East to West?

The dunes are mostly steeper on the eastern side so going east to west will be harder and will use more fuel, you will encounter 30m sandhills that are very sharp and no defined track for parts.
Have you done any Simpson trips before?

[liftlid]

Ok I'm back, using the ipad, as the phone app buggered up
If you need any more info pm me your email and I will send you what I have.
Another mate of Darren and mine is starting his second attempt at the Madigan next year.
I've heard from somebody that did it recently that the track is more defined they took 3days hay river way
Navigation should be easier going east-west between colson Track and the twins as there are many vague tracks in that area
I would suggest spring tower reinforcement with the weight you will Cary
I used 190lt diesel and had to replace all the suspension bushes when we got home
It has less firewood than the French line so prepare for that, lots of people have done it since us.

[MudRunnerTD]

Yes it got Cold at night. Woke up to -1 to -5 most mornings. Spring tower bracing for the win for sure. Fire wood will be a big deal I think too. We made a point of gathering wood from lunchtime or whenever we saw it to ensure we had a fire each night. There were 4 cars in our group and we put wood on the roof of every car. Not really much Big wood so you could use a bit. If you can take a couple of bags of Redgum though then the small stuff should be easy enough to find to get you going then small fires with your Redgum will be a real bonus.

When we did the Simpson Meetup I expected to buy wood from a servo on the way as it is commonly available at most servos in Vic. Forget it! Once we left home we did not see firewood in bags at servos again and had to find it in the desert. We were lucky.

[FNQGU]

Cheers - no, haven't done the desert before, but our group are fairly experienced Cape Yorkers and remote trips are favourites. That said we are however accutely aware that we could be biting off more than we can chew and are closely analysing whether we should just do the French Line/Rig Rd, etc. etc. and leave this alone until we have a better feel for the desert. There would be a Cruiser Ute, a Defender and two Patrols in the group, all well equipped. Yes, spring towers have been reinforced. We'll research and plan first, then make a decision on a Go/No Go. Plan B is to just cross the french Line, and then maybe plan further for a second run the year after, if the Kimberly's don't get in the way...

Thanks for the tips on firewood and temperatures too, and the best direction to attack it from.

[MudRunnerTD]

The desert is easier from west to East everywhere you go,the dunes are steeper from the East. Given your lack of desert travel you may consider doing the east west crossing of the French line and consider your options at Mt Dare. Assuming everyone has travelled well then head north to Old Andando and do a West to East crossing of the first half of the Madigan to the Hey river track and head south from there. Your would have to sort out your permits in advance regardless but Thai would be doable and a great way to have a go.

As stated the second half is tough going. But as Gary said, plenty of traffic since 2012 when we crossed so it may well be a fare bit easier than it was then.