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Melbourne to Coffs Harbour - which roads


DJM

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Ok so my brother flies in from Coffs 3 Jan and rather than flying back home, I suggested we drive the GT4 Melb to Coffs. He's a car lover and hasn't seen or driven the GT4. We don't catch up very often these days so we'll share the driving and make an epic adventure of it. So we're looking for a route that takes in some great roads.

About 30 years ago, we drove his Weber fed Datsun up through the Snowy Montains and had a ball. So this is a bit of a recreation. I was 16 and got to drive bits of it which helped cement my passion for fast (well it felt fast!), modified cars.

Any tips of places to drive, roads to avoid? A bit of twisty hill driving and some coastal stuff would be good. Tarmac only, we'll need premium ULP every 400km or so. GT4 has no spare tyre so nothing too knarly. Should be an epic trip - I'm not one for garage queens, the GT4 will collect some patina no doubt but what the hell, it's built to #getoutanddrive

I Imagine we'll need 2 to 3 days to get there then I'll probably bomb home down the Hume after a couple of days in Coffs.

Any tips appreciated.


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Holbrook - see the submarine (or at least the covers of the pressure hull)
Boorowa - good place to stay overnight if you need to, good Chinese food and the drive from the highway is fun (and windy)
Bathurst - Mt Panorama of course
Coolah - umm see 'the black stump'
Uralla - Thunderbolts rock, good coffee in town (and in Walcha - there's one coffee shop and the guy is a car nut)
Walcha to Wauchope road is the best part of the entire trip, long fast bits early on then sweepers closer to Wauchope
(don't even think about going over to Ebor, unless you like long boring roads and expensive fuel at the Ebor roadhouse)
then the boring bit up to Coffs Harbour

https://goo.gl/maps/GUCWFPcFDBo

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You have to do the Mitta Mitta rd , Towonga Gap , even falls creek.. and then cross over to Jindy and Cooma..  I am gonna go back through my old route and give you some tips..

I have a thread somewhere 

From Cooma to Canberra .. I have to remember but ask @michel and you can drive canberrra to southern highlands , no highway , I had a blast out the back of and around Lake George, he gave me a great route

Putty road , Wisemans ferry to the back of the Hunter and then ask @TINGY944

Will get my thinking cap on .. then keep driving from coffs to Byron , leave it up here for a weeks break fly home, I will drop you to the airport , I will lock ya car up and you can come up and do the return leg.. fresh a week later  ,I may follow ya down ..bombing home down the freeway a waste of GT miles :)

 

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^^ was thinking of heading toward Bairnsdale then via Omeo etc then over to Jindabyne, Cooma and into Canberra so that sounds like a plan. I've heard Putty Rd but no clue even where that is so I need to hit Google Maps.

would be good to trek up to Byron for a meet and greet and chase you round some local roads.  But we'll drive up 5/6 Jan and I have to head back 9/10 Jan so I'll only have a couple of days in Coffs.  might be a tad right for time.  If you're around and I can squeeze it in I will.

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See draft route below.  First bit is symsy style but need a few pointers post canberra

Point G is putty Rd but presumably I head NW from there through Putty itself and around into Newcastle rather heading to H Wisemans Ferry?  

https://goo.gl/maps/tTbbg444hG52

Only a lazy 24h drive over 2 days.......mind you the average speed might be a tad higher than google assumes?  Plenty of ULP98 out in those parts?  Or carry a Jerry in the front boot?  Maybe a bit of @TrevMcRev inspired wheels strapped to the rear hatch, rally style?

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Wisemans Ferry road back to the Central coast is overrated, you are better off sticking out west, Bathurst, Lithgow have some great roads, then come in to the bottom of the Putty Rd to Broke, on to the vineyards in the Hunter Valley across to Branxton, east Gresford, Dungog to Gloucester then onto Thunderbolts Way to Walcha then do the Oxley Hwy to Port Macquarie then up to Coffs any way you want, happy to join you for part of this.

There are plenty of garages you will be fine for fuel.

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Oh to be foot loose and fancy free and punting a gt4 or anything Webered  @DJM 

got some notes some where I'll have a scrounge 

but exit out of Healesville - black spur run through kellly country maybe stay over Mallacoota on the coast fish n chippies at Eden - up  the coast up brown mountain across Cooma through Canberra - tarago, 'loaded dog ' for a beer do the nerriga run through to Nowra, up the coast veggie burger good coffee Milton - Macquarie pass .m- run through southern highlands - head west dear boy across the Divide and do crookwell ( stop at Sydney vintage car restorations A MUST ) grabbed gullen - Bathurst etc etc 

 

theres a few other alternates south  of tumult and the road through the hydro scheme that goes past oump station  4 is sublime 

Chop up an old HQ pack rack and carry Jerry cans and full size spare 

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6 hours ago, Russ said:

unenjoyable is one word i'd use to describe the pacific highway in school holidays, even with all the road improvements in the past 15 years

I clearly have NFI about such things - assume it's like Pt Nepean Rd to Portsea in summer = carpark, avoid like the plague.  So I'll rework the northern end of the route ??

4 hours ago, TINGY944 said:

Wisemans Ferry road back to the Central coast is overrated, you are better off sticking out west, Bathurst, Lithgow have some great roads, then come in to the bottom of the Putty Rd to Broke, on to the vineyards in the Hunter Valley across to Branxton, east Gresford, Dungog to Gloucester then onto Thunderbolts Way to Walcha then do the Oxley Hwy to Port Macquarie then up to Coffs any way you want, happy to join you for part of this.

There are plenty of garages you will be fine for fuel.

 

2 hours ago, michel said:

Oh to be foot loose and fancy free and punting a gt4 or anything Webered  @DJM 

got some notes some where I'll have a scrounge 

but exit out of Healesville - black spur run through kellly country maybe stay over Mallacoota on the coast fish n chippies at Eden - up  the coast up brown mountain across Cooma through Canberra - tarago, 'loaded dog ' for a beer do the nerriga run through to Nowra, up the coast veggie burger good coffee Milton - Macquarie pass .m- run through southern highlands - head west dear boy across the Divide and do crookwell ( stop at Sydney vintage car restorations A MUST ) grabbed gullen - Bathurst etc etc 

 

theres a few other alternates south  of tumult and the road through the hydro scheme that goes past oump station  4 is sublime 

Chop up an old HQ pack rack and carry Jerry cans and full size spare 

A bit of Google mapery this weekend.  Thanks chaps, there's the value of PFAright there, some great tips. ???

Ireckon I'll have to wing it with no spare (goo and compressor only) but I might carry 20L fuel just in case right foot leads to excessive consumption.....?

Shame it's not Germany, I could bomb home in a day at 250 down the Hume.......mind you eating a vanilla slice from Holbrook one handed at 250 is probably not a great idea!

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10 hours ago, Lucky Phil said:

Maybe I should catch a plane/bus to Coffs Harbour so as you have company on your return trip (I presume you are leave your brother there in the banana republic of NSW) and we can take in Bathurst etc on the return trip to Mt Eliza

Yep we head to his place in Coffs,  stay a night or two then head home.  Thinking I'll take the Hume home because I have to be home by 10th.  but if these blokes keep refining the route to be the best driving roads in the country, you never know I might retrace my steps.  The car only has 10,000 on the clock, probably 15,000 by the time I get back ?  Passenger welcome!

Speaking of Bathurst, I just got wind of a private Bathurst track day, early Feb.  apparently heaps of track time and $1,250 better and cheaper than challenge Bathurst or so the rumour goes.  Mazda still has issues which will prevent me from entering and I'm trying my hardest to resist tracking the GT4.  If anyone wants details I can find out more.

 

6 hours ago, michel said:

Sir @DJM 

Canberra - bungendore - tarago -  nerriga down to Nowra .... head nth 

when in the area give heads up ... might be. A Cpl cars happy to carry extra fuel for ya and nip your heels .. 

sent you  me number 

At what point do I text you........?

Maybe I should post it up as a WLT - "week long targa" for PFA members....??

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12 hours ago, DJM said:

Yep we head to his place in Coffs,  stay a night or two then head home.  Thinking I'll take the Hume home because I have to be home by 10th.  but if these blokes keep refining the route to be the best driving roads in the country, you never know I might retrace my steps.  The car only has 10,000 on the clock, probably 15,000 by the time I get back ?  Passenger welcome!

Speaking of Bathurst, I just got wind of a private Bathurst track day, early Feb.  apparently heaps of track time and $1,250 better and cheaper than challenge Bathurst or so the rumour goes.  Mazda still has issues which will prevent me from entering and I'm trying my hardest to resist tracking the GT4.  If anyone wants details I can find out more.

 

At what point do I text you........?

Maybe I should post it up as a WLT - "week long targa" for PFA members....??

I do my best work after midnight  .

give us a few days notice once you got route planned.

 

but south of Cooma coming up through snowies great or head to coast come up cobargo way and  or via brown mtn off the coast (hoot) 

you can then go back down Clyde mtn and back up nerriga Road to head nth and over the great divide Bathurst way . But check to see if Gil is at crookwell and Sydney Vintage Car Restorations open. Seriously amazing craft occurring there 

enough vicarious dribble 

 

 

 

 

 

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On 19/12/2017 at 8:23 PM, DJM said:

Ok so my brother flies in from Coffs 3 Jan and rather than flying back home, I suggested we drive the GT4 Melb to Coffs. He's a car lover and hasn't seen or driven the GT4. We don't catch up very often these days so we'll share the driving and make an epic adventure of it. So we're looking for a route that takes in some great roads.

About 30 years ago, we drove his Weber fed Datsun up through the Snowy Montains and had a ball. So this is a bit of a recreation. I was 16 and got to drive bits of it which helped cement my passion for fast (well it felt fast!), modified cars.

Any tips of places to drive, roads to avoid? A bit of twisty hill driving and some coastal stuff would be good. Tarmac only, we'll need premium ULP every 400km or so. GT4 has no spare tyre so nothing too knarly. Should be an epic trip - I'm not one for garage queens, the GT4 will collect some patina no doubt but what the hell, it's built to #getoutanddrive

I Imagine we'll need 2 to 3 days to get there then I'll probably bomb home down the Hume after a couple of days in Coffs.

Any tips appreciated.

 

If you haven't already get the front end and sills plastic wrapped - you will get the shit stone chipped out of the paint work, especially on the NSW roads

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2 hours ago, Ozvino said:

If you haven't already get the front end and sills plastic wrapped - you will get the shit stone chipped out of the paint work, especially on the NSW roads

What about clear plastidip or whatever it's called, spray on and peel off when you get home.

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19 hours ago, Lucky Phil said:

This trip is starting to sound expensive.  I bet you did not even think about stone chips when you did the trip in the Datsun all those years ago.

The whole front end, sills, rear guards etc of the GT2 was wrapped by OziCozi by PO.  Despite this it still copped a heap of chips that sliced through the wrap.  So I wasn't going to bother this time.  But dwelling on it, you're probably right!

I probably should get it done to prevent the rash type damage even if the big stone can get through it.  Where do I go next week in Melbourne to get this done? @hugh who do you use?

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On 19/12/2017 at 9:51 PM, DJM said:

See draft route below.  First bit is symsy style but need a few pointers post canberra

Point G is putty Rd but presumably I head NW from there through Putty itself and around into Newcastle rather heading to H Wisemans Ferry?  

https://goo.gl/maps/tTbbg444hG52

Only a lazy 24h drive over 2 days.......mind you the average speed might be a tad higher than google assumes?  Plenty of ULP98 out in those parts?  Or carry a Jerry in the front boot?  Maybe a bit of @TrevMcRev inspired wheels strapped to the rear hatch, rally style?

Turn Left onto C546 to Granya and follow the Murray River. 

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks guys for all the tips and offers to catch up on the way.  

Unfortunately my brother decided it was all a bit rushed and he’s flying home instead.  So the big drive is off.  We did a small group drive on the outskirts of Melbourne today instead.....

Ill do those roads some day.  Thanks for the interest.  The PFA forum at its best with suggestions and offers to catch up.  Really appreciate it.  ??

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