Pointers for driving across the Eyre Highway
and the
Nullarbor
- 'nullus arbor' meaning 'no
trees'
- The Nullarbor Wave-the
customary acknowledgment to all drivers.
- The Nullarbor Petrol
Voucher-
2 Cents off fuel purchase at Caiguna, Cocklebiddy, Madura,
Border
Village,
Nulllarbor and Ceduna. A number of travelers we spoke to were not
aware of
this small benefit-we soon enlightened them!
- The Nullarbor Travel
Quiz.
- Whale watching at Head of Bight-June to October-WhaleAir
Scenic
Flight from Nullarbor. A must, not only for whale spotting, but also
to view
the Bunda Cliffs, the Nullarbor Plain, the Head of the Bight dunes
and the
caves and blow-holes. Head of Bight is situated in the Yalata Land,
west of
Ceduna in South Australia. We took the flight and it was
sensational-spotting about 30 Whales-mothers, calves, the lone males
and
mating couples.
Here is a photo album from the
flight.
- Road Train days - Peak days across the
Nullarbor
are Wednesday and Saturday.
This also means you face road trains
should
you drive into Perth on Friday evening and into Adelaide on Tuesday
evening
as the road trains are beginning their trip out of town - a daunting
night
time experience.
- Campervans/cyclists/motor bikes- frequent the
Eyre
Highway and Nullarbor more during the winter months than in the
summer from
our experience because of weather conditions. On this trip the
Victorians
were predominant travelers - with South Australians and New South
Wales
following. A high percentage were "grey nomads" with some having
been on the
road for 5 or 6 months already.
- Wildlife on the Road: on this
trip we
saw many Emu, Wombat, about 5 Wedge-tail Eagles, 350+ dead Roos and,
of
course, the opportunistic Crows by the hundreds. The Roos don't
stand a
chance with road-trains. We saw many "live" ones by the roadside on
an
evening sector from Caiguna to Cocklebiddy. We reduced our speed to
80km per
hour-we had not planned to drive this far on the first day, but took
the
chance when we left Caiguna at 5.30 p.m. Not fun when the sun has set
and
you are glued to the wind-screen on Roo Watch!
- Interestingly,
about 10
burnt-out/dumped motor vehicles in the Yalata National Park!
- Petrol
Prices-$1.25 at Cocklebiddy. In 2000 the highest price was
$1.30.