Sydney to Cairns best road to drive....

[TRBN8R]

Hi Guys,

I will be leaving with some workmates for The Cape in about 10 days. Because of work commitments we are planning to drive through the night on the 2nd of August. I have 2 options to drive to Cairns.

First: Sydney - Newcastle - Coffs Harbour -Grafton - Byron Bay - Brisbane - Maroochydore - Rockhampton - Townsville - Cairns

Second: Sydney - Newcastle - Moree - Goondiwindi - Roma - Emrald - Townsville - Cairns

Different people have suggested different routes. But none of them are reliable enough as all of them are quoting their uncle's brother's nephew's experiences..... Can some one pls chime in with recent experiences etc as to which route will be safer to drive at night time.

According to Whereis the inland route is 29 Hrs and the coastal route is 32 Hrs to drive.......

Thanks for all your help.

Cheers

Mani

[Steve F]

I've done both, inland is more interesting, less in the way of speed traps etc and the road is pretty good now, when I first did it there was still quite a bit of dirt. My preference is the inland route for an easier trip just watch out for the big trucks. You also have Charters Towers in there between Emerald and Townsville. I did Home to Cairns in 2 1/2 days this route.

The coastal route is better if you want to stop a lot as there are towns all the way, might be easier with kids as well because of this. Worse traffic, more speed cameras than you can count but nice if the weather is good and you want to stop for a freshen up swim.

As for driving at night, neither will be good, the coast road has a lot of cane fields etc and wallabies with them on the side of the road. Inland is possibly a bit better but there's plenty of cattle, worse than a roo of you hit that, I'd still try and avoid the night driving, I guess coastal MAY be a little better overall because of the more populated areas.

Cheers
Steve

[dobbo56]

I'd Fly.....Doggy..

[TRBN8R]

Jeeps dont fly :( :( :( ...... I Have 3 Jeeps and a Navara with me.....

[Paul-JK]

Can't offer any help on the northern part but I've been up to the Armidale area a few times. I found going up Thunderbolts Way (Gloucester to Walcha) by far the quickest route. It was an hour or more quicker than the New England Highway. The New England Highway goes through way too many towns which drops the speed limits right down, and for quite long stretches. Thunderbolts Way is twistier but it's easier to keep a good average speed as it doesn't go through many towns. The New England Highway might be a safer road to drive on if you're doing it at night though.

[TRBN8R]

Thanks Guys.....

We will be 2 JKUs (Petrol), 1 JK (Petrol), 1 Diesel Navara.... Will be 2 drivers in each car, and carrying 2 Jerrycans of fuel each. Plan is driving 6pm 2nd August to 6am 3rd August with breaks and swapping drivers in between hoping to do 900 - 1000Ks .... 4 Hrs nap Start again 11am and drive upto 7pm doing another 600Ks...... Have some sleep and leave 4am 4th August morning and reach Cairns by 5pm same day.......

All 8 of us are used to doing a week of night shifts every month so we are used to staying up all night.

Taking your and Clark's (AJOR) advise will be going along the coast due to better availability of fuel and service 24 Hrs, Also less chances of a cattle strike. We are not planning on breaking the speed limits as we will be aiming to conserve fuel.....

Cheers
Mani

[glend]

Mani time your crossing of Brisbane and Townsville carefully, as both are bad in morning or evening rush hours. The highway from the border to Brisbane is terrible in the mornng. Townsville has grown heaps and roadworks north of town are ongoing. Be aware that much of the Bruce Highway is limited to 90kmph north of Gladstone as its a high accident zone.
I have used both routes many times and favour the inland but understand the attractions of the coast especially if you haven't been along the coast before.

[Dave]

I'd go the inland route for speed, and try not to drive at night. That said, you'll probably be camping either way once in Qld unless you booked motels six months ago (all pre booked by mining companies). When we went up in 2011 there were no vacancies anywhere.
The coast is more scenic, but slower. When I went that way I did buckets way to Gloucester, thunderbolts to armidale, stayed in Glen Innes, then hit the coast at bundaberg via toowoomba. But it took 4 days. Inland is 3 days or less if you are Steve F! We came back the inland route in 3 days.
If you must drive at night, slow down and take it easy, traffic on the coast and animals inland. Don't push too hard, and have a GREAT trip!!
Dave


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AV8]

And don't forget to connect and time lapse the Go Pros.:single_eye:

Hope you have a RTT for camping up there. The salties are smart buggers!

Safe trip and have fun , Mani & Co.

[glend]

You don't need a roof top tent, Hunno slept in a hamock. Check with Miraz, he did the run in something like two days, via the inland route in his wife's Pajero - at warp speed.

[Cpage66]

My drivers take the inland route for speed and way fewer hassles...

[redrubi]

G-Day Mani,

Firstly, here are my credentials:

14 years posted in Townsville, while Charl's family live in Sydney. So I've driven this route more times than I wish to remember! (Is that good enough???)

"COAST ROAD" every time!!

110KM most of the way now, Good tar (regular repairs) Bypass's of all the small towns now, ready supply of the fuel of your choice and lastly speed traps only catch speeding cars!!!

Hope this helps Mate!

Wish there was more time to get ready after the Central Aust Trip! I'd be joining you!!!! (Charl may have other ideas LOL)

Cheers

Andy:pirate:

[Hunno]

Sunshine Coast to Cairns approx 18.5hrs for a one man show with a hammock.


Lord Help Me I'm in to JEEP!

[TRBN8R]

Thanks guys for the gr8 bits of advice..... Keeping everything in mind and the opinions of rest of the group The Coastal Route is the go for us... Thanks to Dave Grime for his trip notes etc this trip will be gr8 fun..... Will post pics and video on return.....

Cheers

Mani

[richhenning]

Looking forward to hearing all about it Mani. What an adventure!


rich

[Steve F]

Just make sure you veer left ;)

http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc200/steveff/Cape%20York/IMG_1392.jpg

http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc200/steveff/Cape%20York/DSCF0247.jpg

Cheers
Steve

[AV8]

Don't miss the Undarra Tubes

http://i1118.photobucket.com/albums/k610/joyschtik/bf0ae01d547e3a194eeff1389c7c875d.jpg