S 16°11'51.2"
E 145°17'35.6"
Slicing through the World Heritage listed Daintree Rainforest, the CREB Track is the stuff legends are made of - with a long and deep river crossing, slippery climbs and descents and dense ancient jungle all around. To tackle this track we team up with a cohort of Land Cruiser drivers, all eager to see what the Jeep can do when put to the test.
To start we must cross the wide and deep upper reaches of the Daintree River, and to add some spice to the mix we must be very careful of the Saltwater crocodiles that call this river home. Make no mistake, these crocs commonly grow over 16 feet in length and kill a couple of people a year in Australia. They are not to be messed with, so while walking a river crossing first is always a good idea, this time it is most certainly not. Driving into the unknown works out just fine, and taking a wide U-Shaped path means the water doesn’t climb over the hood of the vehicles and we all make it safety across without getting stuck in the croc infested waters.
The track quickly plunges into dense and ancient rainforest, the likes of which are found nowhere else on earth. For an unknown reason the jungle in only this region of North Eastern Australia has remained unchanged for 30-50 million years old, and many of the plants and trees are the ancient ancestors of trees we commonly see elsewhere on earth today. When scientists want to study ancient conditions, they can just visit this rainforest to see living examples. On the nearby mountain tops the clock winds back up to 100 million years, which is hard to comprehend as we tackle slick muddy inclines, more river crossings and washouts.
One mud pit proves the major obstacle of the day, with a few of the bigger vehicles barely making it through while the rest of us winch out way out of the sticky black mud. A large convoy of vehicles provides the perfect opportunity to practice winching and pushing the vehicle as hard as it will go.
Given what lies ahead, I’ll need all the practice I can get.
Frenchman’s Track
S 12°41’58.0"
E 143°01'32.2"
After a few days of much needed rest at stunning Chilli Beach three vehicles re-convene at the start of another infamous track in Northern Australia - The Frenchman’s. After airing the GEOLANDAR X-AT tires down all around we crawl forward, not quite sure what to expect.
Quickly we’re in the thick of big washouts, sandy climbs and tricky off-camber sections of the track that really push the suspension to it’s maximum limits of flex. Here the Jeep shines, easily walking through every obstacle with plenty of grip from the large contact patch provided by the GEOLANDAR tires. After an hour of slow and steady progress, we crawl down a very steep and rocky approach to the infamous Pascoe River, which we have to cross.
There are not supposed to be any crocodiles here, and the water is clear and fast flowing, so we wade in, searching for a safe line to navigate our way across. There are three major factors that make us seriously re-consider this river crossing;
1. The water easily reaches my waist in many places, and will likely just lap over the hood of the Jeep.
2. The water is flowing very fast, and may actually push our vehicles downstream onto the rocks there.
3. The bottom of the river is littered with large boulders, which could quite easily get hung up under differentials and suspension components.
After a lot of careful planning and head scratching, we rig up a winch on the front of the lead vehicle to help pull it across, and also I’m at the ready on the rear with another to pull it back if needed. Thankfully neither are really needed, and the first vehicle is across before we repeat the process for the second.
I’m up last, and with nobody behind me going back is not an option, so I rely on my careful scouting and wheel placement as I crawl slowly forward in low range first, climbing up and over boulders that I place under each tire. Hearing the rushing water on the side and under the Jeep is unnerving, and I’m relieved 30 seconds later as the nose climbs up onto gravel and I know I’m safely across. A celebration is in order, and we immediately stop for lunch to let our nerves cool.
The rest of the day sees mud pits, rocky climbs, another smaller crossing of the Wenlock River and plenty of off-camber holes and lumpy sections to traverse. As the sun sets we clear the trail, elated that our teamwork, planning and level headedness has seen us through unscathed.
As we turn north, we set our sights on the most famous Overland Track in all of Australia, maybe even the world.
Next up we will tackle The Old Tele Track to the northern tip of Australia.
-Dan Grec
CategoriesConsumer NewsTeam Yokohama
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