Melbourne to Perth

[Voora1ZN]

I decided to rellocate to Perth from Melbourne and being on a tight budget I decided to drive in the trusty Mk5 Golf 2.0 TDI. My wife, 2 kids and I left Melbourne on Wednesday 15th December 2010 around lunch time(VIC time). We headed along the Western Highway heading towards Adelaide where we were swarmed by plagues of locusts from Stawell as far as Nhill. Not being prepared for locusts with the net covering the front of the car, we had to frequently stop to clean the buggers of the front of the radiator. Once we got to Nhill I drove straight to the nearest car wash(if not the only) to wash off all the locusts I collected.

After having something to eat, we headed off to Adelaide. The Adelaide Hills were awesome for the oiler, giving the puff of smoke as we cruised up and down the hills into the city where we stopped to eat and freshen up. My pitstop for the first leg of the drive was to reach Port Augusta(Australia's crossroad), but being a little knackered from an early start to the day, doing the last bit of packing, we made it as far as Port Wakefield. I filled up at the roadside servo and decided to take a nap. Once the powernap was over I headed to Port Augusta, at which, it was dark. I was a little nervous driving at night after hearing all the stories, but it wasn't too bad except for the drivers of the roadtrains occassionally nodding off and wandering across lanes. I managed to reach Port Augusta that night which was quite late and having all possible accommodation closed, we had to do the hard yards and sleep in the car at the local Maccas.

16 December 2010 we headed off from Maccas, Port Augusta after freshening up and of course, a coffee, to Ceduna,SA. Now you in the middle of nowhere and all you thinking is, " just don't choose from here on, to let me down "

We made it safely to Ceduna where we topped up as I was not gonna chance running out of fuel crossing the Nullarbor. Surprisingly fuel stops are at most 200km apart so unless you have a thirsty vehicle, you'll be right. My biggest fear driving now was wildlife, but at this point, I only came across dead roos along the side of the road.

Next stop was Nullarbor Roadhouse. I pulled up at the servo where fuel is as dear as poison, $1.86/lt diesel, but now really, you don't quite have a choice. I insert the nozzle into the tank and squeeze and the pump doesn't start up. Put the nozzle back in the holder, looked up, and there are signs stating that you have to give the guys in the servo your licence first before they switch the pump on. So I gave my licence, pumped my diesel, paid and headed off to Border Village( SA & WA ). When you arrive here you have to stop and have border patrol check that you not taking fruit, etc into WA. 12km down the road is Eucla, where we wanted to stop the night. We pulled up in Eucla and like my previous luck, there was no accommodation left and to top it off the male pay showers were not working. Lucky for my wife and 2 daughters, the ladies pay showers were working, so no guessing who was the BO King at this point.

I then had this bright idea, probably encouraged by ego and the fact that I was the only one smelly in the car, I decided, we going to Mundrabilla. We arrived at Mundrabilla and not only was there no mobile phone reception, this "town" had nothing except for roadhouse truck fuel stop. It looked like one of those Clint Eastwood westerns where the tumble weed rolled throught the town. So, while waiting for the tumble weed to roll through, I decided to freshen up and get myself smelling human again. Once again, the lodging was the Golf Comfortline. At the crack of dawn i headed west, where from now on the roo activity at dawn was quite a bit and I had to drive cautiously.

Next stop was Caiguna, where we figured we'd get some brekkie. Pulled up the roadhouse, where we all decided on the bacon & egg rolls with chips which seriously tasted like wood apart from the wood cutting sound it made and the hint of bbq sauce it supposed to have had, nonetheless, the chips were good. Once you drive out the roadhouse, you begin the 90 mile straight, which to me was the hardest part of the journey. You see the end but seem to never reach it.

I then stopped in Balladonia for fuel which was no cheaper than the Nullarbor Roadhouse. From there, it was Norseman then Merredin, at which point, I could taste Perth, so i pushed on. Reached Perth Friday 17th December 2010 at !8:30( WA time).

15/12/2010 Melbourne to Port Augusta 1020km
16/12/2010 Port Augusta to Mundrabilla 1025km
17/12/2010 Mundrabilla to Perth 1400km

Despite what, I recommend that the journey across the Nullarbor be taken by all at some point in your life. It's a great drive and a great experience. The total fuel cost was approx $270 for diesel from start to finish.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought I'd share my experience and pride in my VW Mk5 Golf 2.0 TDI and encourage others to give it a go and to all the Dubbers, rest assured that VW is " THE RIGHT STUFF " Cheers All. Merry Xmas & Happy Prosperous New Year to All. SAFE TRAVELS.

[FJ Steve]

well done.

Welcome to WA

[Water Boy]

Hahhahah good times mate!

When ya old and getting on a bit think back to your Melbourne - Perth trip.

[Mystic storm]

I would love to do that drive!!

Excellent any piccys of the adventure??

[Voora1ZN]

well done.

Welcome to WA

Cheers mate, looking forward to meeting some of the Dubbers this end.

[gareth_oau]

great story, an interesting read and welcome to Perth (the world's biggest mining town!!).

If you were worried about kangaroos you werent setting your aspirations high enough! - My brother has driven trucks across the Nullabor and has flattened a few camels

[valgamesh]

I managed to reach Port Augusta that night which was quite late and having all possible accommodation closed, we had to do the hard yards and sleep in the car at the local Maccas

HaHa... when we drove from Perth to Canberra, we spent 45min on the side of the road 'trying' to sleep just down from the Maccas


If you feel like a lengthy read my trip post is here: CBR VW OC - Nick's 85' Mk2 GTI Build

[gerhard]

I did that trip in 1971......

Lowered EK Holden with 149 red motor.

320 miles of gravel road with all the bulldust holes, etc you could ever wish for......

We did the return trip, too, 3 months later.

[shakespeare]

Great story and Welcome to WA

Some pics would be awesome, I haven't done that drive in 17 years and was contemplating last year going over with the wife and kids, but decided against it. Thanks for the write up

[Coaster]

Thanks for the story, I love road trip stories.

I did the drive from Perth to Melb nearly 7 years ago in a 91 Laser, she didn't miss a beat! Although beforehand I did get new suspension and hoses. Camping out there is fantastic, great experience.

Enjoy Perth!