Australian Bicycle
Camping Fact Sheets
WATER POINTS
2002/ July 3
Cyclists regularly travel
independently between
In some places, ( not many) the cyclist may need to pay for drinking
water (maybe $3.00/litre). The people who sell this water are not a charity, so
don’t complain.
The following information has
been gathered from several sources and cannot be guaranteed. The list is
continually up-dated by bicycle travellers who use it themselves &
corrections & other suggestions are very welcome !
Key :
R/h = roadhouse ; H/s = homestead ; R/S = railway station ; b/s = bike supplies
; P.O = post office ; t/o = turn off., p/b = parking bay .Note that this
site recommends that you not camp in rest areas & parking bays
(which tend to be very dirty - bush camps are much cleaner!)
Towns along the highway generally
have all required services (except bike parts) and are thus not described in
detail.
Section 1 :
1. Pt Augusta + 50 km N - * Hesso R/S disused - small area with tap & some shade.
2. Pt Augusta + 70 Km : Campsite at Bookaloo Railway
Siding
3. Pt Augusta + aprox
105 Km N - 3rd parking bay ( ? tank)
4. Pimba
camping by donation, showers
( * Woomera : supermarket, liquor store &
email at library. Neat "company town")
5.
6. Pimba
+ 40 km (? Tank)
7. Wirramina
Homestead (H/s) camping area
8. Glendambo - *small general
store, expensive. Wash clothes at bore tap outside Mobil .
Rain water in tanks, ask nicely, use sparingly. Camping
$14.00 minimum.
9. Glendambo + 84 Km N - Rain Tank,
shade, p/b, emergency telephone,
10. Glendambo + 124 Km - * tank,
shade [ no tank or shade 2001/apr]
11. Glendambo + 160 km - * tank,
shade, emergency phone
12. Coober Pedy -
c/p at Opal Inn (Grass + dog shit, $9.00) or dirt elsewhere $6.00. Grocery etc at good prices! Foodtown has great "out of code" section, 7D till
1900hrs. Free www at school library till 1700 . Internet café ($8.00/hr). Charity shop Thurs & Fri
12-1500. NB last real grocery till
13. Coober Pedy + 75 km -Portnoura p/b. rain tank, emergency phone, very dirty area.
Camp elsewhere!
14.
15. Marla - c/p $6.00. Tap OK. Expensive grocery, poor selection. Pub
(beer $3.75).
16. Marla + 118 km - The Marryat
P/b - well off the road, emergency phone, tank. Bleak &
dusty. [ April 2001 : new amenities, grass ]
17. Marla + 157 km (SA/NT border) -
large area well off road, tank
Section 2 :
18. Kulgera
- friendly pub, v.limited groceries, but ask for more
(eg flour for damper.) C/p about $5.00, grassy but
dog shit, nice showers.
19. Erldunda
- R/h ,c/p about $6.00. Two shops,
but few groceries. Not friendly. Water tap at petrol
station driveway. : Internet, shower ( $4.00).
Nice bush camp sites about 10 km to W.
20. Erldunda
+ 32 km - p/b on W, tank & shade
21. Erldunda
+ 73 Km - p/b at the
22. Camel Farm on W. - supplies
available. Friendly.
22a : $2.50/shower, c/p, groceries.
23. Stuart's Well - Jim's Place c/p
$7.00 pp. Shady, limited supplies.
24. Stuart's Well + 32 KM - Rest
area.
25.
26.
27.
28. Aileron - P.O., food, friendly_
2001. $3/shower / 28 A : Aileron + 13 Km " Tank
at rest area"
29. Ti Tree - C/p grassy
$6.00/single, orange trees, shady, swimming pool, store, police, liquor shop?, clinic, no "take out" from the pub.
30. Barrow Creek
: free c/p $2/shower , Very friendly. Cheap meals ,"very
salty bore water " Bottled Water Only - for tank water, try race track 1
km to N , or Telegraph Station
31. Wycliffe Well - store, " expensive food & camping". Internet, shower
$3.00. Self styled “UFO capital of Australia”.
32. Wauchope - tap, limited
supplies, pub, $4/shower, camping $5
33. Karlu Karlu , or
"Devil's Marbles" - camp site , NO WATER.
34. Bonney
Well - windmill on W. - tank gone !
34 A :
30km South of Tennant Creek. Tank in rest area ??
35. Tennant Creek
- cycle path into town.
Nice YHA with Garden camping at "Tourist Rest House" $8.00.
36.
36a : ? 75 km N of
37. Renner Springs - "Historic
Renner Springs Desert Pub" - Camping, fuel, restaurant informal
38. Elliot -2 Roadhouses & a
very small town - supermarket, caravan park
39. Elliott + 25 km, rest area, tank .
40. Dunmara
- r/h Bar, caravan and Camping $5.50/ single, noisy and shady, few grocery
41. Dunmara
+ 27 km - p/b - on E.
42. Hi-Way Inn
43. Daly Waters Junction
, or 7km on right & left at pub ( "...owned by women & famous
for its meals.." but also "..no groceries
available..". Note : heading E. there are no
groceries between here & Booroloola )
44. Larrimah bore water OK ( no groceries )
45. Larrimah + 40 km - p/b, tank
46. Mataranka Hot Springs - t/o 8
km, Internet at Library. Manor c/p recommended. Bitter Springs is free.
47. Mataranka + 58 km - large area
near road, tank
48.
49. Katherine - bike shop. free camping including (cold) showers and electricity at the
Horse and Pony Club on
Katherine to
Note : "Dry season" May to September,
with winds from SE.
50. (Katherine + 42 km) - 19 km E
to
51. Pine Creek - 2000: new YHA with
camping at $5.00 / tent ! pinecreekyha@topend.com.au
beware park water ! Small grocery & liquor store -
last real shop for Kakadu road.
52. Emerald
Springs - c/p $4.40/pp. Grass & shade. Pub
53. Hayes Creek -
c/p $8.00 / pp, clean & grassy.
Friendly. Some grocery & pub.
54.
55. Coomalie
Creek - c/van park. Also nearby RA
with no tank, lots of campers. Swimming if you like
56. Accacia Store c/p $5.00/ pp. Two hot food shops, some
groceries. Friendly. Plenty
of tap water. EFTPOS.
57. Noonamah R/h & liquor
store. Small noisy park. No campsite.
58. Coolalinga : shops, fruit
etc. Alt bookshop w. free www (!), short home stay contact
:Michelle <michdarr@mpx.com.au> tel 8983 1999. Market Sat AM.
59.
· pleasant
separated bike way runs parallel to
· NB :commercial
camping grounds near the city are v. noisy. Private (small )
garden campsite in Ludmila . Contact
:Martin <aussiebloke@hotmail.com >.tel
8981 2473
· Bicycle map "Darwin &
Palmerston Recreation & Cycle Guide" free from Darwin Council offices
on
· www browsing ( eg to get a copy of this document !), email ( $8.00/ hr ) ,
word processor ($2.00 / hr) at Public Library on Harry Chan Ave 0900 - 1730 Mon
- Fri & Sat AM. Discs available at $1.00 each. Tel 8982 2563 to book time.
· email "check
" (ie first two mins free) at <Byte
Me>
· veg & produce at "Truly
Organic"
· second
hand clothes (good quality !) at Anglicare 5 Nemarluk Drive LUDMILA.Last Fri
is "dollar day" - all stock $1.00.
References
Notes provided to Bicycle SA by
Colin Rogers in 1989 and David Fuller
in 1999.
Cycling
"Crossing Australia's
North [by bicycle] " (1990, Julia
Thorn 141 pp) pocket size format. Detailed route guide for Townsville-to-Broome
and Darwin / Kakadu region. Useful history and other observations.
(Kangaroo Press ISBN 0 86417 305 9 )
Map of the
"Bush Camps &
Rest Areas Around
see also
The Stuart Highway : Coober Pedy to Port Augusta Fact Sheet ( Grace
Newhaven 1999 )
Watertanks in the Australian Outback [ W Qld & Stuart Hwy ] ( Urs
Arnold ) http://home.datacomm.ch/ursarnold/9697/waterout.htm
Australian
Bicycle Camping Fact Sheets : Central
Australia
Western
Australian Coast: Water for Cyclists