Been Away Travelling
It has been sometime since I have been able to post to this blog. I arrived hame a week ago after a long trip around the country. First destination was the Gold Coast for my sons wedding and then I travelled to Karratha in W.A. to visit where my oldest son is living. The total trip put 13,400km on the odometer of the Navara. It never missed a beat and I have finally got the LPG system tuned to give good performance and decent economy.
The V6 D22 Navara’s do not have an oxygen sensor so the electronic mixture controls do not work so a vacuum controled inline mixture control is used. Now it is setup I am very happy with the system but it has taken a lot of trial, error and patience to get it working correctly.
Eagle in Flight Kimberley Ranges W.A.
A highlight of the trip was photographing the southern section of the Kimberly Ranges and a magnificant sequence of 2 eagles circling over my head. Initially I thought there was a single bird until it was joined by its mate. Travelling down the west coast I was lucky enough to capture shots of 2 Wedge Tail Eagles at different locations 40km apart on the main highway.
Wedge Tail Eagle
It was worth travelling the distance covered on the trip to experience some of nature marvels first hand. The Victoria River is spectacular and surprising to see the volume of water flowing along through such an arid region. The washaways that disperse flood waters during the wet season are so immense in size and number it is difficult to imagine the volume of water that travels along their path.
I recommend a visit to the Kimberley’s for anyone who wants a unique experience but be warned it is a long way from anywhere and nothing is cheap. Fuel is expensive with LPG up to $1.26 per litre and unleaded can be over $1.70 per litre. Make sure you fill some jerry cans with cheap fuel and keep them topped up, it will save you up to $0.30 a litre. With dual fuel I ran on LPG until it ran out only filling up when I could fill up for less than $1- per litre and topped up the petrol I consumed wherever it was under $1.40.
My fuel bill at $1400 (average cost of $13.83 per 100km) is significantly dearer than the $7.00 it costs to run my car where LPG is $0.50 a litre but poor economy until the LPG was tuned properly also contributed to higher running costs. When it comes to accommodation I suggest you take your own because there are very few options available, they are a long way apart and they are incredibly expensive. At Halls Creek we got discount but still parted with $170- for a room for the night.