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Route Planning Where to go, when, what are the interesting places to see
Photo by Ellen Delis, Lagunas Ojos del Campo, Antofalla, Catamarca

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Ellen Delis,
Lagunas Ojos del Campo,
Antofalla, Catamarca



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  #1  
Old 15 Dec 2003
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ride round Australia & New Zealand
Howdy, I'm planning on riding a Ducati 250cc single round Australia and New Zealand in 2004. I'm still trying to figure out when is a good time to go. I'm guessing starting in October, but would like to hear from people who have made the trip.

I want to circle round the border of Australia, starting in Sydney where I pick up my bike from Road & Race and then eventually find my way back so I can go to New Zealand.

If I have enough money (I hope working 2 jobs pays off) I'd like to hit Oz again and then go North to see Ayers Rock. Part of my plan on going round the world. But if I run out of money it might just be Australia and New Zealand for now.

I need info on what sort of clothes to bring, too. I'm unfamiliar with the outback, but I like camping in the Nevada desert.

Thanks, --Dave
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  #2  
Old 15 Dec 2003
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NZ North Island: November to March, maybe April. During January NZ closes down and the outdoors and holiday spots get crowded. Time to move to the

South Island: best in Summer, i.e. Jan/Feb., although a month either side could be good.

Bring clothes for warm and cold, but certainly waterproof. NZ is temperate rainforest country.

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  #3  
Old 16 Dec 2003
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wow , that sounds like an adventure, im assuming you know a fair bit about those old duke 250,s... absolute classics no doubt, however you will have travel as light as an indian sadu on a holy pilgrimage as these bikes have zero room for hauling luggage.

australia has plenty of opportunities for camping, so a tent and sleeping bag are a must...a petrol cooker will also be invaluable.
as far as a good time to travel.. well ,depends on what you want. i really enjoy travelling in winter as you can have a roaring fire at night to keep you warm, and in summer there is generally a total fire ban and it becomes very hot...but great time for doing all things outdoors.

anyway..if you need another great ducati mechanic in sydney go for gowanlochs on belmore road.legends.
enjoy...phil.
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Old 16 Dec 2003
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Nope, I don't actually know much about Ducs. I'm building one now though, so I'll have some idea how to work on one. I'm buying the one for the ride through Phil at Road & Race. Phil knows my plan for the bike so it's being built for that. Round the world, or at least run her until I'm out of money. I'll run out of money first, I'm sure. Hopefully flat tires will be my only problem.

I wrote "border" but I meant coast. Hopefully I'll get to Sydney in October, but that's still 10 months away and I'm not firm on that schedule. I figure if I'm close to the coast the heat won't be that bad. I live in California and over the summer it gets over 100 Fahrenheit/41 Celsius. It's dry heat here and it doesn't bother me. I haven't learned much about the weather down under, but I figure around the coast it'll be humid.

I reckon wearing my black leathers won't be the best. Better start looking for riding pants & a lighter color jacket.
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Old 16 Dec 2003
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Check out the clothing threads, there's lots there. Synthetics is the way to go.

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Old 16 Dec 2003
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Howdy Grant. The clothing part is open in another tab, actually. I've been flipping through it at work. Do you have a job? You seem to answer all the posts rapidly and with good info.
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Old 16 Dec 2003
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Thanks, good to hear I'm not just running off at the mouth with drivel ALL the time.

Re job - you're looking at it - it's my full time occupation, which is why we need all the support we can get.

See the Souk for details, and please don't forget to support our advertisers, and let them know where you heard about them!

We are fussy who advertises with us - if we know the product is no good, you won't find it here.

Thanks for your support!

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[This message has been edited by Grant Johnson (edited 16 December 2003).]
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  #8  
Old 16 Dec 2003
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chimpo... phil at road and race is your man... he is a great guy and mechanic so you should be sweet and im sure he will teach you how to keep that old duke puring.

and yes the east coast of australia is very similar to the weather of california.. so no big change there...
you will have a great time in oz...enjoy.
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  #9  
Old 17 Dec 2003
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Thanks. What's it like all the around though? I plan on circling your little island. It's only 3 inches on my map after all so it should take up the better part of an afternoon.

Looking at your profile, I don't know how to surf, but a friend of mine is thinking of selling his house to move there for the surfing.

And Grant, I kicked in some dough for you. I don't need another shirt though.

--Dave
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Old 17 Dec 2003
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Thanks for the support Dave!

Cash is actually preferred, we get more of it that way!

If everyone put in a few dollars, we'd have a much better site. (I could afford to spend some money on it, and maybe even get off the cat food...

See you at one of the HU Travellers Meetings next year!

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  #11  
Old 27 Dec 2003
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Something worth considering Iff riding an under powered bike around Australia, is that pretty much all of coastal Oz is prone to sea/coastal breezes. Although not set in stone, as a general rule these winds run in an anti-clockwise direction around the country. Worth taking into account, I would have thought.
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Old 27 Dec 2003
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I never thought of the wind. I'm picking the bike up in Sydney and I have a friend in Melbourne so I was thinking of circling in a clockwise direction. I'll have to look into that. Thanks.
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Old 7 Jan 2004
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If your planning to ride around OZ from October 2004 you have plenty of time to plan. This is our summer and it is hot, hot , hot in the centre of Australia. The Coastal areas south of Sydney down to melbourne and Adelaide ar relativly cooler but forget travel in the center or Queensland if you don't like the heat. Better to travel in our spring or Autumn.
The best riding roads will require a long email and are a fubction of what you want to see. Most of OZ is flat and straight between points of interest so how you get there is important if you dont do boring very well.
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Old 8 Jan 2004
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Hi,

Another factor to consider is that the Northern territory and northern Queensland are very hot and very wet in the summer. (December-March)These areas are best explored in the Autumn/Winter(April - August)

[This message has been edited by llanelli (edited 07 January 2004).]
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Old 8 Jan 2004
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This is fairly geeky, but when I leave for Australia depends on when Trekkies 2 comes out. It's a documentary based on Star Trek fans.

I thought October was your spring because it's our fall. Although in California my perception may be off. As the old joke goes, there are four seasons in California: Fire, Flood, Drought and Quake. I reckon I need to look more into Australia's weather.

I don't have anything I'd like to see except for Ayers Rock and the Great Barrier. And I'd like to go through Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Darwin. Please email me with suggestions of things to see: rtw AT nokilli DOT com

[This message has been edited by chimpo13 (edited 07 January 2004).]
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