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Longest, Hardest Route Ever – Canning Stock Route 17 Days 26/06/14 – 08/07/14
Mick (BF) and I arrived with all out toys (bikes, kayak’s, etc) for a camping weekend at Riverwood Downs and accidently stumbled on the Horizon’s Unlimited Travel Event (Worldwide Motorbike Adventure Riding Community) and had the pleasure of meeting/listening to Christophe Barriere-Varju talk about his Dakar Rally experiences. It wasn’t till I realised his moto on Dreamracer “it’s at the edge of who you are, that you learn who you can be” that it gave meaning as to why I love pushing boundaries. Trust me on the Canning Stock Route I saw sides of me I loved and hated but either way it enriched me….. In this ride report I share my experiences and hope it inspires others to give your dreams a go regardless of the pain, sweat and tears. Just remember each day you step closer to the end and each day is for living those dreams.
The Route:
Fremantle to Broome 2560km via the Canning Stock Route running from Wiluna (mid-west region) to Halls Creek in the Kimberly region. This is the longest historic stock route in the world and in 1906, the Government of Western Australia appointed Alfred Canning to survey the route of which he bored 48 wells along the route. Commercial droving began in 1910, but the stock route did not prove popular and was rarely used for the next twenty years. The Canning Stock Route is now a popular but challenging four-wheel drive and dirt bike riding adventure. By the way you have to cross 4 deserts, Little Sandy Desert, Gibson Desert, Great Sandy Desert and the Tanami Desert and for 1800 km you experience everything from sand dunes, soft sandy switchbacks that make you dizzy, rocks, corrugations that make grown men & girls cry and the number of dead 4WD’s and bikes along the route that demonstrates the harshness of the environment.
The Beginning – Which Bike
Like many girls I have a wardrobe but it’s not full of dresses, handbags and high heels. I have a bike for each occasion. So which bike do I take – Honda CRF230L (that was successful in crossing the Simpson Desert in 2010) or Honda XR400 Motard converted to adventure bike. Thanks to Mick Strong both bikes were prepared and after spending time training on Stockton Beach we decided the XR400 was the right bike. In a ride like this it’s important to have a bike that has power but also not excessively heavy to pick up. I knew the XR400 would be a challenge to pick up for me but with support around I knew it would be the right bike. The CRF230 wouldn’t have coped with the distance to travel in the sand.
The Approach
I was fortunate that in 2009 I started riding motorbikes/dirtbikes and trained up for my first big adventure ride from Perth to Airlie Beach via the Simpson Desert in 2010 with Magnus – Outback Adventure Treks as a supported ride. This enabled me to concentrate on riding the bike (try keeping upright) and the rest is catered for. So when Magnus had the Canning Stock Route advertised for 2014 I knew this was the only way I was ever going to achieve my dream by doing this as a supported ride with my bike. Magnus and Outback Adventure Treks from the start were incredibly helpful from the time my bike arrived in Perth through to the time it arrived home in Sydney. More to come in my report on the amazing support from Magnus and his trusty American side kick Dillan. BTW I would NOT recommend anyone attempting this route without support (lack of fuel, water, remoteness are all reasons for an unpleasant experience).6 New Zealanders & 1 Aussie – Outnumbered…
Mick flew over to Perth with me to see me off and do last minute tweaks on my bike.
The night before our departure we meet the other 6 riders. OMG I was outnumber 6 to 1… all NZ’ers. I knew I was going to be saying sex rather than six by the end of the ride but for those that know me really well that wasn’t going to be a problem.
So the motley riders included:
Frank – hard core south western NZ farmer that looks quiet unassuming until he has a dirtbike underneath him and tries to keep up with 19yrs old son!! (bottom middle in photo)
Alex – son of hard core south western NZ farmer that isn’t quiet and rides like any 19 year old on heat. (bottom left)
Alan – Policeman friend of hard core south western NZ farmers that is quiet and unassuming and didn’t once see his handcuffs come out…. Bummer. (top second from right)
Steve – Orthopaedic NZ Doctor that had all sorts of drugs, bandages and caring nature when picking bikes off girls. (top left)
Denise – Midwife/Nurse and wife of NZ Steve that had a considerate and caring nature that brought tears of joy and pain. (top second from right)
Merv – the NZ hugger. When the going got tough you could look to Merv for a couple of motivational words and big hugs. (bottom left)
All the NZ’ers hired the DRZ400’s from Magnus and they were super reliable and efficient in the conditions
Dillan – Unassuming American Support Vehicle drivers, bike picker-up-a, cook, cleaner, mechanic, etc from Outback Adventure Treks (not in photo)
Magnus – Owner of Outback Adventure Treks – patient, considerate, caring, awesome cook, knowledgeable on route & bikes and overall top Aussie bloke. (not in photo)
Rob – Friend of Magnus who joined us from Fremantle to Paynes Find. (top far right)
The rest is coming!!
Fremantle to Willuna (Start of Canning Stock Route) Approx 810km
We started with a rider’s brief that was interrupted by some gnarly weather but didn’t stop Magnus from pushing on.
It took two and half days of open country dirt roads to get from Fremantle to Wiluna which is the start of the Canning Stock Route. The first day was 360km via Calingiri to Lake Moore in the rain and red dirt but out spirits weren’t dampened as we were all excited to start the adventure.
Only had one bike misadventure where Merv ‘s front sprocket came loose but that was quickly and expertly rectified by Magnus.
One thing you learn quickly it to be efficient in setting up your swag and getting in/out of cloths and not consuming to much energy as you find out soon you don’t have much left in the tanks after riding all day.
Dinner was awesome
Day two we woke to -2 degrees and ice covering everything.
From Lake Moore we headed to Montague Gold Mine 450km away via Paynes Fine and Sandstone.
Stopped in at London Bridge
And enjoyed my last Rum and Coke for couple of weeks
This is where I found out the NZ’ers are really hard core going for a swim in 10 degree water to have their wash….
Campfire working and sun going down
After last night my ‘blue bit’ or otherwise known as “hottie tottie” came out. The hot water bottle was the best thing I packed.
Dinner was steak and vegetables that was enough to feed me for 3 nights. Alex was tucking into his steak.
]If you stayed awake long enough you could star gaze with Magnus. My star gazing was done with my eyes closed inside my swag.
The next morning was -4 degrees and by 7.30am we were thawed enough to ride into Willuna and arrived at 11am. In our riding brief that morning we were warned about “Danger Corner” well there has to be one in every crowd and a bike went down. It was renamed “Alan’s Corner” but we were all relieved to know Alan didn’t hurt himself.
Made for some good pictures tho. We had lunch and commenced our ride at 1pm and the start of the great adventure.
The Canning Stock Route – 1800km to Halls Creek
It feels surreal when you are presented with a daunting task ahead of you but something guttural pushes you forward. You find ways to set little goals (ie count each well, focus on getting to next meal break, celebrate after each tough section) that all comes together in an experience that will enrich your life. So the next section is snippets of my experiences on the Canning:
Wow Kat,,,yu got some ticker all rite,great to hear from you again
Cheers Teza.
Before setting off Magnus provided us with a riding brief on what to expect. There is a great track guide produced by “The Outback Travellers” – Series 4 (www.outbacktravellers.com.au) that Magnus was using. I would strongly recommend that you get a copy and take it with you as it’s your new best friend on this type of trip…. That’s if you want to know what to expect before experiencing it. Sometimes I wonder I’m better off NOT knowing!!!
The well counting begins.
At Well 2 and 49 of them to go…..
Time to remove some layers and take some shots
Next section had lots of rocky and gibber stones, steep rough and rocky descents that would catch you out. It was always in the back of my mind that you don’t want to stuff up the bike or yourself early in the trip otherwise it was going to be a difficult or sad ride.
Denise having a break from the rocky section:
Well 3 and by this stage I was taken down by a branch that decided to grab my barkbuster and throw
me in the bush. Thanks to a shove from Alan I was back out on the track. There was one enormous washaway (chest height for me) with awesome skid marks from the young gun Alex that cause Alan and I to admire and accidently follow. After much grunting both Alan and I got out of it. I was too focused on getting out that a photo opportunity was missed.At Well 3 and our campsite for the night
Unpacking the truck
Dillan and Merv removing my 40 tooth rear sprocket (which was ideal for the 2 days of open dirt roads) and replaced it with my 44. All the DR’s were running with 44 as well.
So all up from Montague Gold Mine to Well 3 we covered 220km and ‘enjoyed’ mug of cask red wine (I’ve been spoilt on good bottles of Red) and beef stroganoff. All our adventure riding gear was packed away and out came our light weight riding cloths.
Day 4 – Well 3 to 20km north of Well 8 (185km)
After bacon and eggs we set off at 7.30am and road with Denise and Steve for most of the day. It started with nice flowing sandy corrugated tracks… that changes quickly
Steve showing the way
Steve and Denise loving the rocky sections:
Steve and Merv consulting the map
Funny shot at Well 4
Boy’s checking out the well.
The next section to Windich Springs had lots of dry river bed crossing full of rocks and was unrelenting. Perfect spot to stop and enjoy morning tea and would make an ideal place to overnight. The bird life was amazing and great to hear them chirping.
Alex and Frank (father and son) chilling out as we wait for the truck to arrive.
Attempted a selfie group shot using the timer
We pushed onto Well 5 and the track guide had lots of warning about rocky and rough corrugations…. the warnings never seem to prepare you.
The boys showing how it’s done at Well 5.
Lunch was at Well 6 and Magnus used this opportunity to top up the water tanks.
Photo opportunity with Magnus
Stop to enjoy the scenery
Frank cruising on by
The photos don’t ever give it justice on the rocky experience
Just before reaching Well 8 we experienced the first small sandy crest and it known at the first sand dune in the Canning. I was over it before I knew it so no photos.
Frank had the job to find a camp site outside of Well 8 and found a perfect spot so it was officially named “Frank’s Knob”. The setting up of the swag and getting in/out of cloths became efficient. With hot water bottle and in the swag at 7.30pm (always first to bed) I survived another day.
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