CANNING STOCK ROUTE

By Unsealed 4X4 7 Min Read

Alfred Wernham Canning must have had the testicular fortitude of a thousand men to attempt to forge a stock route between Halls Creek in the Kimberley and the southern goldfields of WA. It’s a few thousand miles of the harshest desert landscapes known to mankind, and not only did he have to cross it, he had to feed and water cattle all the way. It was epic then, and it remains epic now, but for different reasons as a 4X4 track.

It’s not really that hard

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While there will be no shortage of people who will attempt to scare you with the enormity of the challenge, the Canning Stock Route (CSR) really isn’t that hard. In fact, a much shorter trek, like the Simpson Desert’s French Line is often more challenging. Sure, you’ll need to carry more fuel than you would if you were doing the Simpson, but other than that, it’s a pretty similar challenge. In fact, when it comes to sand dunes, those on the French Line are actually a little more challenging.

It’s like you’re on a different planet, 
or at least a different country

If you’ve travelled Australia extensively, you’ll have a good feel of what most of Australia looks like – until you venture onto the Canning Stock Route. The southern end of the track, from Well 5 to 10, is a visual orgasm of unique scenery. It looks in part like Africa, in part like Australia, and otherwise like nowhere you’ve ever seen.

You will scratch your truck

While this track has never seen a grader, it’s also never seen hedge trimmers. At times, you’ll wish extendable arms would pop up from your bullbar and trim the track. But instead, you simply sit back and drive, and listen to the spine-tingling screeches that tear into the top layers of your duco. If you were wondering whether you should get some sort of paint protection, then wonder no more. The spiky shrubs of the Canning Stock Route demand it.

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The water tastes like, well, like crap

The Canning Stock Route snakes its way from one water bore to the next. If you start your journey from the southern end, you will be pleasantly surprised at the fresh tasting water. You might even dispense with the recommended water purification tablets. Do that at your peril. Somewhere along the way, you’ll be guaranteed a bout of diarrhea. But it gets worse. Somewhere past the halfway mark of the track, the water quality goes from great to undrinkable. There is far more salt in the mix, and it really does taste like second-hand dishwater. Bring water filtration, bring cordial, or bring fresh water supplies for drinking.

You may get weirded out

There are some parts of the CSR that just feel plain old strange, like you shouldn’t be there. The now closed-off Calvert Range is one location, and various other spots along the track like gravesites are others. Perhaps it’s my imagination, or perhaps there are some places where us humans aren’t meant to roam. Be on the lookout for these places whilst on the track, and if you want my advice, move on, pronto.

Canning’s crew weren’t all nice guys

Throughout the Alfred Canning expeditions, there were significant confrontations with local Aborigines. And while the Aborigines certainly speared and killed a number of men, the way the they were treated is deplorable: “They been getting all the black people. You know how they done it along that Canning Stock Route? They get mob, they tie him up. One by one, they let him go. No water, just the salt water. They let him go and they follow him ’til they find that rockhole. They make a well there. That’s how they been find him all the way up there through Canning Stock Route. Sad story. They go and mess around with the Martu and keep going again. They don’t care a stuff.”
 Mr P (Billy Patch), 2007

Beware the hook turns

Camels don’t need to carry any inertia into a sand dune – but 4X4s do. The Canning has an interesting challenge for you here, by locating sharp hook turns at the base of sand dunes. The momentum-sappers ensure that only the vehicle with the right tyre pressures makes it to the top. Don’t be afraid to dump some air out on those sandy stretches.

Lake Disappointment may have been named after Alfred Canning’s wife

Sorry, it was too easy a gag Alfred. I’m sure your wife was just fantastic and a wonderful camp cook to-boot.  Camel Soup anyone?

The corrugations are worse than you think 
(and so is your fuel consumption)

Western Australians really do engineer an awesome corrugation. And some of their finest corrugations lie on the CSR. It’s not just their depth and bone-jarring severity, it’s the fact that they just go on, and on, and on, and ON AND ON! Long travel suspension and beam axles tend to soak it up better than independent setups, but regardless of what suspension you have, you’d be mad not to take some spare shock absorbers on this journey. And while you’re taking spares, bargain on using more fuel than you thought as well. The combination of a heavy load and low tyre pressures cranks up usage figures big-time.

Words: Pat Callinan

 

QUICK FACTS

Canning 
on a Platter

Approx 1900km

Starts Wiluna, WA, 
and finishes in Bililuna or Halls Creek, WA

Made up of sand 
dunes, dried up lakes and rocky tracks.


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