the road to Birdsville is on
experience over and over
The most obvious path t
517km unsealed Birdsville
Birdsville to Marree in Sou
crosses the Strzelecki Des
Desert and Tirari Desert. L
you the track is doable in- you’ll hear stories of men conquering the
rutted-out track in a micro-car – and while we
were able to traverse the 500-odd kilometres
without so much as a flat in the Discovery
Sport, we highly recommend preparing
an equipped four-wheel drive. After all, if
you’re going all the way, you may as well be
prepared to tackle the sand dunes of the
Simpson Desert.
However, if you want more serious off-
roading, choose the paths less-travelled from
Innaminka via Cordillo Downs Road, or the
French Line which crosses the Simpson Desert.
Alternatively, you could brave the Inside
Birdsville Track originally used by the drovers.
Make sure you carry a couple of spares and
only attempt it during dry weather, because
it runs through the Diamantina River’s flood
FOLLOW OUR PATH
DAY ONE: Head west from Brisbane toward
the garden city of Toowoomba, passing through
Millmerran and stopping at Goondiwindi
for lunch and fuel. From there, continue to
the township of St George, which sits on the
Balonne River, and stay the night at Begonia
Farm Stay, a beautiful 14,000-acre beef cattle
grazing property.DAY TWO: Continue on to Cunnamulla, via
Bollon. Cunnamulla is the largest of four
towns in the Paroo Shire and is situated on the
Warrego River. It’s the starting point of the
Matilda Highway, a road that connects NSW
to Far North Queensland. Stay the night at the
Club Boutique Hotel.neyou’ll want to
again.
to take is the iconic
eTrack,which links
uth Australia and
ert, Sturt Stony
Localswillconvince
atwo-wheel drive
i hplains and closes during the wet.
We’d take the safest route to the Birdsville
Races, and then take a couple of daysto
recover before braving the harder tracks. The
last thing you want is to waste time stuck in
the desert waiting for a rescue party!
Whicheverpathyou brave, there’splentyto
see and do along the way.HI HO SILVER!
M
OST people would call us
crazy for attempting the
trip to Birdsville in a Land
Rover Discovery Sport, but
even though its stylish exterior is
better suited to ferrying kids to
weekend sport, it’s a lot tougher
than you’d expect.
The Discovery Sport has the
style of a Range Rover Evoque
with the a Discovery badge. It’s
packed with Land Rover’s Selec-
Terrain system, wade sensors and
a 360-degree-visibility surround
camera system.
When I picked up my trusty
silver steed for an all-girls trip
to the races – led by our friend
Dave Darmody from Australian
Offroad Academy – I did wonder
if the Disco would make it. The
Birdsville Track has a reputation
of shredding tyres, particularly
after rains and around race
week, so we were in trouble if
we arrived just before it was due
for grading. Luckily that wasn’t
the case, and the Discovery kept
up with the convoy with an ease
and grace we didn’t expect.
As the landscape changed
to gibber and sunburnt plains,
though, so did the Discovery
Sport’s comfort levels. We found
leaving the Selec-Terrain system
in Normal mode provided the
nicest ride.
Fortunately, we made it to
Birdsville without any trouble,
and it was looking like I was
going to return to the4X4office
with bragging rights intact.
That was until we blew a tyre
not far from Big Red. I still made
it to the top of Big Red, but I can’t
say the same for ‘Hi Ho Silver’.All dressed up for
a day at the races.114 http://www.4X4australia.com.auEXPLORE BIRDSVILLE RACES