Best stop over

Hey guys

Im heading to Ningaloo with a large family party in March   Seven cars with boats and trailers ect

I'm looking for advice on what's a good stop over point for the first night as we are going to Make the trip up in two days days leaving from Perth

It needs to be women and kid friendly

 

cheers


Posts: 577

Date Joined: 23/04/14

Hamelin Station

Sun, 2020-02-02 07:07

Not too far off the highway, nice accommodation, plenty of space for parking. 

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Posts: 1111

Date Joined: 19/06/14

Try Billabong Roadhouse

Sun, 2020-02-02 07:31

Nothing super fancy . Yet a well located place to drop in and have a snooze, wake up and hit the road bright eyed and bushy tailed. If you're looking for a feed hit up the northern of the two road houses . Every trip down to the big smoke it's an obligation to drop in and grab a Caesar salad wrap ! 

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 My wife understands why I clean my rods n reels in the shower....

 

Posts: 4577

Date Joined: 01/02/10

 Our family usually stay the

Sun, 2020-02-02 07:32

 Our family usually stay the night at billabong when they come to visit us in karratha. The ones that don't want to do a massive days drive anyway. 

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ranmar850's picture

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Date Joined: 12/08/12

Billabong is your best bet, unless you want to camp

Sun, 2020-02-02 08:04

 Roughly 650km from Perth, depending on where you are leaving from. If you don't have  easily set up accommodation, like a van, just get a cabin. If you have easily setup accommodation, the Nerrin Nerrin 24hr stopover is 50km south of the Billabong. Toilets, and you can get well off the road. Of course March can still be pretty warm up this way, so you might want airconditioned accommodation for the overnighter anyway? Or maybe just get used to it, likely to be pretty  warm at your destination . 

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Date Joined: 30/12/09

Me I would carnarvon or

Sun, 2020-02-02 08:44

Me I would carnarvon or billabong on the way up and billabong or dongara on the way back. Depends on how much driving a day you want to do. Remember the ningaloo road can be quite corrugated so allow a bit of time for that. 

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 Get busy living, or get busy dying!

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Date Joined: 21/09/11

Bush bay

Sun, 2020-02-02 09:10

Has anyone stayed at bush bay or new bay. I see there's a camping area there 

Swompa's picture

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Date Joined: 14/10/12

 We did Coral Bay to Dongara

Sun, 2020-02-02 09:27

 We did Coral Bay to Dongara and with two kids in the car, were smashed by the time we got to Dongara. Having to set up a wind up caravan was a pain. 

Young bloke only slept an hour that night so we gave up at 0200 and were on the road by 0230. That drive was dangerous. 

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Date Joined: 09/03/13

 When we do the trip with

Sun, 2020-02-02 09:37

 When we do the trip with family we prefer to break the back on the first day.  we always stop in Carnarvon.  sleep in relax and get to coral bay before lunch.  we find this is the best way and you dont waste a day and the kids will be swimming and enjoying that day.  (beers with lunch that day has its appeal as well) 

Carnarvon is also the best place by far for accomodation.  

kirky79's picture

Posts: 1351

Date Joined: 13/01/12

This year

Sun, 2020-02-02 10:00

We went Mandurah to Carnarvon, stayed at Wintersun caravan park. Up and on the road by 6am. Plenty of time to take it real steady over the 32 k's of corrugations. 

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 www.wooramel.com.au/

Sun, 2020-02-02 10:02

 www.wooramel.com.au/

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carnarvonite's picture

Posts: 8667

Date Joined: 24/07/07

Wooramel

Sun, 2020-02-02 14:28

 Wooramel roadhouse has 5 single rooms with either a set of bunks and a single bed or if I remember, 3 ensuite rooms with a double bed.  Give Neil or Margaret a call for prices

Francis's picture

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Date Joined: 17/06/08

It might be a bit close for

Sun, 2020-02-02 14:04

It might be a bit close for ya but there are some big free(?) camp spots on the Murchison just after Kalbarri, just off the highway - Galena Bridge rest area. I've never stopped but always looked like a pretty good rest stop...

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Date Joined: 12/05/17

 Check out Gladstone just

Sun, 2020-02-02 14:43

 Check out Gladstone just south of canarvon

 

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Date Joined: 19/06/14

Bush Bay

Sun, 2020-02-02 16:40

If you're up for a divorce in the near future this place would be a great catalyst. Adding Gladstone into the equation would be even funnier.
They're both awesome spots in their own special way 

Gladstone if you've got a boat . Pretty barren and unforgiving. No shade and a shit ton of flies this time of the year . No water but there's drop toilets .

Bush bay , the same ( yet you've got to walk your boat a ways before you can motor )  but no toilets ... :D

Go the civilized option and stay at Billabong , that's going to put you roughly half way . Leave Perth mid to late morning.Pull up have a feed, shower n snooze . Get on the road round nine in the am have a quick look at Carnarvon and get last minute supplies at Woolies .Next thing you're doing is smashing a frothy one at your camp . 

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ranmar850's picture

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Date Joined: 12/08/12

^^^^What he said

Sun, 2020-02-02 18:53

 if you want to camp on the way, there are a number of 24 hr stops with toilet, tables, etc. Going out of your way to Bush bay, AKA Sandlfly Hell, or Gladstone is just not smart, unless you really want to make it part of the trip experience. Just stay at the Billabong if you are coming up from Perth. And, as someone above said, you need to get to the Ningaloo Station turnoff by lunchtime. Unless you want to be setting up in the dark. It can easily take 3 hrs to get from the bitumen to, say, Winderabandi point, and thats not allowing for the ill-prepared , breaking something. The road in hasn't been graded for years--the track north from the station never is.  it really sorts out the "she'll be right " mob. Littered with broken trailers and dreams 

Oh, and the turn-off to the station was missing its sign when I came back from Exmouth around 20 th January. Usually easily spotted by the skip bins--but if you somehow miss that, and see an EX 100 marker, you've gone a little too far. If you come to the big Burkett Rd intersection, you've gone a lot too far.

kirky79's picture

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Date Joined: 13/01/12

Yeah noticed that too Ranmar

Sun, 2020-02-02 21:02

When we came up on the 27th of December. 

Also the little sand track off to the left on the way in was quite a nice break from the corrugations too. Although that part of the track is better than a lot of it.

ranmar850's picture

Posts: 2702

Date Joined: 12/08/12

yeah, we've been using the bypass.

Sun, 2020-02-02 21:23

 it was put there when the track blew out really badly after the big fire--road was just a huge set of sand drifts. It was definitey the better bet for years, starting to corrugate a bit now. But i would still use it.

I wonder if DPAW will put anything into grading the road in, now they have control of the camping. it used to get done maybe once a year by hte shire, but would only last for a couple of weeks. If you got it immediately after it was graded, bliss. But most of it is beyond grading now, washouts everywhere. need a complete re-capping, and I bet that won't happen.  

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Date Joined: 28/01/14

 Wooramel River

Mon, 2020-02-03 09:08

 Wooramel River retreat....cheap, clean, safe as houses, options to either camp or dongers...can't bea tit

carnarvonite's picture

Posts: 8667

Date Joined: 24/07/07

Dust

Mon, 2020-02-03 15:41

 Ok if you like living in a dust storm.

Been up and down twice a week from Carnarvon to Shark Bay and its been a continual dust storm through there. There is even a signal trailer telling motorists to turn their lights on because of the dust.

 

Also for those travelling up this way please watch out for roos if driving at night, they are thick from Edagee stop over until abuot 20km south of Carnarvon

Adam Gallash's picture

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Date Joined: 29/11/05

Billabong

Mon, 2020-02-03 20:16

 Billabong has always been good, both owned by different ppl - found the one on the south has better grub and the one to the north has cheaper rooms - well was a while back.

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