“COUNTLESS RIVER CROSSINGS, TRUCK-SWALLOWING BULLDUST HOLES, AND A PREHISTORIC WATER-FILLED GORGE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE \u2013 ADVENTURE DOESN\u2019T COME BIGGER THAN THIS!”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
MANANGOORA STATION<\/h3>\n
Situated nearly 100km northwest of Borroloola and 200km east of the Queensland border, Manangoora Station is as good as a Top End destination gets. The rough roads, lack of signage and absolute isolation keeps the grey nomads and the like away, and the fishing, crabbing and camping is second to none. Manangoora Station sits right on the picturesque Wearyan River, which runs out directly in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Haven\u2019t heard of the Wearyan? That\u2019s what we were like before the first trip \u2013 now it\u2019s part of almost every camping and fishing anecdote I throw around with my mates in front of the fire!<\/p>\n
As small as Borroloola is, it has all supplies available, including a wreckers and mechanic. The caravan park lets you fill up on potable water, do your washing and have a shower before you do the last 100km to the mighty Wearyan River. No need to rush this part of the trip \u2013 the last thing you want is to push your vehicle too hard and have dramas with your final destination in sight! Besides, when it\u2019s over 40\u00b0C, you\u2019re going to want to pull up and cool down at the water crossings. You can also grab a roof rack\u2019s worth of wood while you\u2019re there<\/p>\n The Manangoora homestead is 25km from the turnoff, however it still takes a good 40 minutes to get through the heavy bull-dust ruts and through a few gates. The track can get pretty rough, so it\u2019s a good idea to use the Kwiky Deflator<\/a> again on the tyres, just to make travel that touch more enjoyable.<\/p>\n The scene from camp is as good as any you will see \u2013 better than anything . Beautiful, glassed-out water and amazing sunsets in front of the crackling fire; there\u2019s no better way to unwind. You can also catch your feed straight from the bank if you can\u2019t be bothered to put the boat in.<\/p>\n From Manangoora, it\u2019s time to head west across the border into QLD. Be prepared for more of that bulldust, and a few more river crossings \u2013 they\u2019re too good not to pull up at for a look about. Yep \u2013 diff-deep bulldust holes and crystal clear river crossings \u2013 you won\u2019t get enough of either!<\/p>\n There\u2019s one bulldust hole in particular that had us grabbing at gears to find momentum, almost like a soft dune run on a hot day! You need to keep an eye out for these, because they come out of nowhere. I\u2019d love to see one of those big road trains hit one at full noise!<\/p>\n You\u2019ve gotta love this kind of touring. You\u2019re in the middle of nowhere, but there\u2019s so much to see you won\u2019t be bored. However, just past Doomadgee in QLD, things take an even better turn, as you head to a true oasis \u2013 Lawn Hill Gorge.<\/p>\n \u201cAFTER 2,000KM OF RED DIRT ADVENTURE, THIS CAMPSITE WILL BE HEAVEN”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Never before have I seen such a dramatic landscape than the one laid before me at Boodjamulla (Lawn Hill) National Park. Australia\u2019s most arid country gives way to a water-filled gorge that will take your breath away. What an absolute corker! Now to the good stuff, the amazing adventure on offer at Lawn Hill. This prehistoric and ever-changing sandstone and limestone gorge is one of QLD\u2019s most unique geological locations. These huge red cliff faces plummet down into a paradise of crystal blue water, waterfalls, palm trees, fish and freshwater crocs. There aren\u2019t many places in Australia you could call a literal oasis, but this is certainly one.<\/p>\n There are a number of ways to enjoy Lawn Hill Gorge. The most popular is by kayak or canoe. You can bring your own and paddle your way along, or you can hire one from the tour company that sets up here. You\u2019re paddling through deep blue water, looking up at these amazing cliffs, with nothing but a faint rumble of a waterfall and birdsong interrupting the serenity. Make sure you pack plenty of water and sunscreen for the canoe trip, as the sun reflects off the water dramatically.<\/p>\n A keen group of mates, a capable 4WD, a bit of quality planning and three weeks of annual leave \u2013 that\u2019s all it takes to make a trip like this an annual event. You go once and you\u2019ll be hooked for life \u2013 there really is nothing like a Top End trip with your mates. So stop with the excuses, get the team keen and get your 4WD ready \u2013 turn your recurring dream into a regular that you\u2019ll always be just around the corner!<\/p>\n \u201cDIFF DEEP BULLDUST HOLES AND CRYSTAL CLEAR RIVER CROSSINGS – YOU WON’T GET ENOUGH OF EITHER!”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n It may feel like paradise on the river bank, but you have to remember this is a harsh, hot climate that needs to be shown a certain amount of respect. Late in the dry season, temperatures can be 45\u00b0C during the day and 30\u00b0C and humid at night, so shade and water will be a whole lot more important than just your normal weekend trip to your local river. With shade, the key is to have as much as you can, without blocking the breeze. An Adventure Kings Awning Wall<\/a> is perfect if you have an awning<\/a>, or you can throw it on the side of your Adventure Kings 3m Gazebo<\/a>.<\/p>\n A common mistake we see travellers make on a trip like this is not bringing enough water. Beers might be refreshing, but trust me, you will drink 3L of water every day, and you should really plan to carry 5L per person, per day.<\/p>\n Be prepared to get carried away by mozzies and midges at dawn and dusk. Insect repellent is essential, but think about bringing citronella candles and mozzie coils, because after two weeks on the river and irregular showers you\u2019ll be sick of putting that chemical on every uncovered bit of skin.<\/p>\n We know how essential it is to bring spares for the 4WD and a quality Adventure Kings Bush Mechanic Tool Kit<\/a>, but think about what can go wrong at camp and prepare for these breakdowns. Electrical spares and a decent multimeter are absolutely necessary \u2013 having a stuffed fridge<\/a> and warm beer will no doubt bring an early end to your holidays!<\/p>\n This trip starts at Borroloola, and heads east along the Savannah Way to Lawn Hill National Park, which is about 150km south of Burketown. It\u2019s all red dirt the whole way \u2013 you gotta love that!<\/p>\n The best campsites are at Manangoora Station, and Lawn Hill National Park. Facilities aren\u2019t available at Manangoora, but all others are.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t get much more remote than this, so you need to understand your 4WD, and pack the necessary spares. Pack spare hoses, and extra air filter, a couple of fuel filters (dodgy fuel can be a problem), and ensure you have heaps of cable ties etc. to strap back on anything that rattles loose on the corrugations. For camping, don\u2019t just rely on your awning<\/a>, pack extra shade. Ensure you\u2019re set up to carry at least 80L of water, have a fuel range of at least 600km, and have the necessary emergency essential such as a sat phone etc.<\/p>\n If you love fishing, head in April. If you want to escape the crowds, head late September. Anywhere in between is still brilliant, and the weather is more forgiving.<\/p>\n The best places to fuel up are Borroloola and Burketown.<\/p>\n Trips are rated A though E, with A meaning only suitable to vehicles with an extreme level of off-road modifications and meaning perfectly suited to all types of 4WD vehicles. While this is a super remote adventure, you\u2019d still rate this trip as a C, or B straight after the wet.<\/p>\n There we were, packing up at the mighty King Ash Bay after what was an epic run through some of the Gulf\u2019s most iconic 4WD hotspots. While it was sad leaving such an epic campsite, we had nothing but big fat grins on our faces. Why? We had 1,000km of red dirt adventure still ahead…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123456,"featured_media":235,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/123456"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":272,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232\/revisions\/272"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/235"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.emgcloud.net\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nThe road out to Manangoora is the first stretch of what is an iconic and treacherous section of the Savannah Way. The rich, red and often corrugated soil is sporadically broken up with a picture perfect water crossing. Make sure you use your Kwiky Tyre Deflator<\/a> to drop your tyres down to the right pressure. We had the big 80 at about 24Psi.<\/p>\nBORDER HOPPING IN BULLDUST<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\nLAWN HILL NATIONAL PARK<\/h3>\n
\nYou have two options for enjoying Lawn Hill and its gorges. Option one is to stay at Adels Grove, just a few kays down the road, and drive in, which is a popular choice. Your other option is to book one of the 20 sites available at the campsite in the National Park itself. They\u2019re not the largest sites, and there\u2019s not much shade \u2013 So make sure you have your Adventure Kings Awning<\/a> bolted to your 4WD- but it\u2019s cheaper than Adels Grove and closer to the gorge. If you want to take option two, make sure you book ahead online \u2013 it gets busy, and the only way to pay is online.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.4wdsupacentre.com.au\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/MG_2179.jpg\")
<\/p>\nJUST MAKE IT HAPPEN<\/h3>\n
TOP END ESSENTIALS<\/h3>\n
FACT FILE<\/h3>\n
WHERE:<\/h4>\n
CAMPING:<\/h4>\n
WHAT TO TAKE:<\/h4>\n
BEST TIME TO TRAVEL:<\/h4>\n
FUEL AND SUPPLIES:<\/h4>\n
TRIP STANDARD:<\/h4>\n
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