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Participant Name Member Number Vehicle Details

The Canning Stock Route is said to be the longest and possibly most challenging 4-wheel drive adventure in Australia . There are reputedly 997 sand dunes , and the track stretches nearly 2000 km from Wiluna to Wolfe Creek meteorite crater . To this , we added some deviations to make up a 3800 km section of tracks from Eucla on the south coast , to Wolfe Creek in the tropical north near the Kimberley region . The challenge of the Canning is not the extreme difficulty of 4WD driving but the extended nature of the trip , need for planning , stresses on the vehicles and people , and few options for changes-of-mind or assistance once the trip has begun .

Traversing the Canning Stock Route was conceived in early 2015 on the Len Beadell Discovery trip westward across South Australia into WA . Anzac Day 2017 seemed a good date to informally advertise for a Canning trip . Last year , it became clear that Graham Halliburton also had plans for a Canning trip in 2017 so we joined forces under the auspices of the Pajero Club . Graham unfortunately had to leave the eventual Canning trip mid-way , but we all benefitted from his many suggestions of the best places to visit .

The Canning 4wd track of today connects 50 of the original wells that Alfred Canning constructed around 1908 to bring cattle from the Kimberley to southern markets including the Kalgoorlie goldfields . The track today links most wells but weaves around to suit vehicle passage and now by-passes Well 4 and the iconic corduroy crossing over the Nabberu Lakes system . Each day for us on the Canning involved approximately 100 km of driving with a mix of dunes , mud , rocks , dirt and corrugations . Fuel consumption was just under 15L of diesel per 100km . Water was available every 1-2 days from a dozen of the 51 original wells , and fires were possible each night as long as we collected a little wood away from the wells themselves . We travelled early in the season and found the weather delightful and suitable for shorts and shirt most of the time . Navigation in the southern parts needed attention to avoid alternate tracks , but became straightforward farther north . The large number of burnt out and abandoned vehicles along the track testifies to the risks , but we came away with one puncture , twice bogged , damaged bash plate and many shaken nuts and bolts . As a group of seven with five vehicles we brought along a diversity of mechanical and camping skills and bush expertise . Having five vehicles gave us options when Graham needed to be escorted to Telfer gold mine . In general , we were not close friends before the trip , but what helped the trip work was a willingness to think of , and help , others during the day and around the camps . Some give-andtake was needed with respect to what we did , and what we needed to forego . The real Canning experience was about the campsites , the vegetation , the wonders of the night sky , the dunes , and even the problems when vehicles and drivers were less than perfect . Planning for the Canning was paramount , and the trip was quite unforgiving of sub-standard vehicles , poor packing and internal car arrangements , or sub-standard equipment .

The complete off-road trip from Eucla to Wolfe Creek crater provides a wonderful cross-section of the eastern part of Western Australia . The wetter Mediterranean climate of the south contrasted with the tropical conditions of the north with different wind directions , cloud patterns , dune arrangements , rainfall and vegetation

13 © Vol 34 No . 5 June-July 2017