BootsnAll Travel Community

I am planning on taking a year to cycle around Australia. I plan on going the direction from Sydney to Perth as I want to spend more time in Kakadu National Park and FNQ (FarNorth Queensland)......timing my arrival in Kakadu in the dry season.

I am would love to speak to someone who has completed a trip like this or at least parts of it. Looking for some suggestions of how to deal with insects and snakes in the desert.

Cheers!

I'd be more concerned about road trains blasting past you in the Northern Territory than bugs or snakes. Especially since you'll be on the road.
Where do you plan to stay? camping and hotels?
When camping, zip up your tent if you have one. Carry a phone which has the signal to reach civilization and recharge it in each stop.

You might also want to think about starting in Melbourne/Victoria instead of Sydney and then going to Sydney - or possibly heading to Melbourne from Perth by plane at the end of the trip when you fly out. There's some beautiful coastal roads in Victoria and scenic landmarks.

...I'd say a problem may be the ability to carry enough drinking water for the long dry stretches where there would be no water sources...?

(of course...I was tempted to replace the word water with beer...)

Yeah someone here posted in a thread about this extension you can get on your bike which basiclaly lengthens the body and allows you to carry more stuff without affecting performance. I think it might be useful for packing more H2O or whatever in this case.
You can also take the old cling wrap and try that evaporation trick with the hole in the ground.

Thanks for the insight! I got my inspiration for this trip from a book by Roff Smith, "Cold Beer and Crocodiles". He cycled around Australia in 1997. One problem I hadn't considered, is that unless you are an Australian citizen, it will be a problem staying in the country more than 3 months. I have re-evaluated my options and decided to make the trip on a moto-cross motorcyle. I intend to circumnavigate the continent and want to spend the majority of my time in Queensland so I thought Sydney to Melbourne to Perth, etc. would be my best route. I will stay in the odd hotel, but will be prepared for and looking forward to camping on the roadside in the outback. I have heard about the road trains. Apparently Roff Smith feels the danger is over-rated. However, seems like a good piece of advice to me. I am still hoping to hear from someone who has camping experience in the outback and any advice they may offer. Cheers!

As far as camping in the outback, its basically the same as camping in any generally arid location. I've camped in various places around Queensland all my life and I never took any particular precautions.
I didn't have a handbook which said 'Look for the funnel-shaped nests of the dreadful spindly killer ants' or anything And I've never been bothered by snakes either, although I've seen plenty during daylight hiking.
Just set yourself up somewhere your common sense tells you looks good, dry and relatively safe - like not in a dry riverbed... Use a mosquito net. Make sure you have emergency plans if something goes wrong. If you want, have someone who knows your basic itinerary is.
Another thing I hesitate to bring up in such a safe country as Australia, is the risk of other people. There have been a couple of stories in the last few years about tourists being attacked in isolated spots like the Northern Territory or outback roads. The chances are scant, but personally I'd just be aware of myself if I bumped into anyone with nobody else around for hundres of miles.

In Bill Bryson's Ttravel book about Australia, he said the train drivers on the route which goes through the heart of Australia see Japanese tourists riding bicycles across the country, or people on dirt bikes, so its being done out there. Go for it

Thanks! Use your common sense is the best advice when camping or travelling alone. Glad to hear the positive comments about your travel in Queensland.