Is now the right time for mid WA?

Hi all,
My first posting here.
After years of dragging and hauling the job in every strange corner of the world, I finally managed to take some time and went up in the attic to dust off some old, but never forgotten dreams. Coming to Australia and explore for the shine yellow metal.

As for now I am set up with a huge to do and to buy list, most of the planning is fine-tuned and outlined, did my research on the “mining rights”, have now a fair view to get valuable info from Tenegraph, on live and pending tenements and so on......! Thus, I am planning to stay for three months at the minimum and right now I start to getting the gear and equipment together, most of it I will buy in WA to save the luggage overpay, rent a car and again, so on and so on.

Basically I am good to go.

Now, whatever you research in books and the internet, the best advice comes from experienced detectors doing it for years and know all the tricks of the trade.

You might think, “Ahh…, another one comes along asking for my secret spots”, No, not at all, my questions are way more profane.

Like time of the year: I have figured the WA Area of Rundall, Trainar, Carnegie, Mc Larty as a good spot since there is the most free UCL. I also know for the time chosen Nov – Feb. there is temperatures around 45°C on a daily base and the fly’s will eat you alive. I can handle the temp. Just finished a job in the Middle East with similarly temperatures, don’t know about the flies and other critters out there, but how about the electronic equipment, I couldn’t t find any reliable source on minelab.com on interference of accuracy by high temperature exposure.
May someone here has firsthand experience with the GPX 4500 or 5000? But don’t hold it over your Sunday barbeque to get field data. Is there any gear suitable for high temp's?

My other question; what is considered to be the best car taking such trip off road in the open plain. I did make some trips in the Middle East deserts in a LR Defender, not the best comfort but still the best car for such trip. Just, I could not find any for rent in WA. My second guess would be a Toyota Land cruiser?

Would appriciate your thoughts.

Cheers to all and good finds

Hi All-Au,
Yes, April to October is the time to choose.
The ground you have chosen is free because it may not be alluvial/elluvial bearing ground?
Prospectors Patch & Reeds Prospecting are suppliers who can support your needs from Perth.
The GPX metal detectors are designed for our conditions, mineralisation and climate.
There are hire companies who deal with the most reliable off road vehicles, Landcruiser, Hilux, Navara & Patrols and many more.
Probably the best advice is to read the following from front to back "Aids to survival", WA Police.
The Australian Outback is some of the most unforgiving land in the world and unfortunately many have lost their lives because of poor planning and ignorance about how remote this land is.
The most important is to carry at least 4.5litres/1 X gallon of water/man/day and at least 3 weeks emergency rations.
http://www.bushcraftuk.com/downloads/pdf/aids22.pdf

Good luck with your plans.
Peter

Hi Peter,
thanks for the interesting points and the link, I will have a printout on it and a well read! Well first off it shall be a good and interesting trip and time to spend and that certainly require good preparation, and right there are spots on the planet, and the mid of WA I suppose is certainly and explicitly one of them, are not made for human habitation. So respect is to pay to this fact.

I will have a look in the supplier shop once I am in Perth, and found also a car rental company suiting my needs and budget.

Thanks again, I will drop in once in a while if I have interesting news and findings (not only about AU) on my trip.
Cheers
Manfred

Gday Manfred

Peter has given you sound advice on our WA conditions and as he says the best time of the year to prospect here is from April to October, so I would just like to add to this a bit, even though minelab detectors are built for our conditions I do believe that they also suffer in extreme temps, as the temps rise so does the activity in the ground, with all the activity and heat the electronics are working overtime to try and deal with it all and I do believe that this reduces depth and sensitivity.

I have found in extremely hot weather, I am talking of temps in the high forties not only does the detector have issues but our bodies do as well, your concentration span is short and you can be easily confused and find yourself becoming apathetic, this can be a dangerous condition as it could cause you to become lost.

Some of the things I do if I am working in these conditions, is to only work for short periods of time, dont drink heavily, just keep sipping your water, avoid sugary drinks, and when you stop for a break hot tea is good, also try to limit your detecting to the cool of the early morning and late afternoon, rest up in the heat of the day and stick around the camp area, whatever you do dont stray from the camp without your gps and water bottle, ever.

Our conditions are unforgiving and some areas are featureless and difficult to navigate in as it is, so under extreme weather conditions this is compounded, if you become lost while ill prepared there is a very good chance that you wont survive, another thing to consider is bush fires, during the warmer months there are places I do not go due to the limited access, and I always earmark somewhere that I can head to if a fire does come, like a dam or open area, what happens in these places a lot of the time is not only does the temp get excessive but you almost always get high winds that can go day and night for days on end.

Its not only us that suffers but also you will find that wildlife does too, in one area after a few days of temps in the high forties we were harrassed by bees and wasps, they were swarming the van due to the water from the waste drain on the ground, they even made their way into the van through the pipes, when I tried to move the van I got swarmed and got stung a few times, lucky for me I an not allergic to bee stings, several wasp stings might have been different.

My advice would be to come during April to October, you will get in more detecting time and have a much more enjoyable trip, and get a good sleep at night.

cheers

stayyerAU

Id be taking an emergency beacon too, just in case.


http://www.ja-gps.com.au/GME/mt410g-plb/

Hi stayyerAU

Thank you very much for the extensive and valuable first hand information’s.
Even though I consider myself mentally well prepared for a longer trip in the deeper Outback, I fully agree with the difficulties in handling the mental and physical aspect under such conditions based on own experience. Being out there for a sustained time alone can get to you fast, not been prepared constantly can kill you fast.

Since I have worked most time in high temperature countries, I certainly enjoy moderate climatic conditions. As I am under no time pressing issue, my Visa for Australia is good for 12 months, I will surly reconsider my traveling time, this certainly also in consideration of the Equipment’s ability to operate properly under high temperatures. As this will be a once in a lifetime trip for about three months I want to have most out of it in every aspect and have no reason to rush into it. Good night sleep is important.

Despite the time of year there are base Rules you go strictly along with if you leave into rather uninhabitable environment.
1st Rule: Never ever have your satellite Phone farther away than hand reach, Day/Night and make sure it is always charged and of course a good GPS and GPS emergency beacon. Thanks Brickie for pointing to it.
2nd Rule, Have your Survival emergency kit checked and tightly packed in a separate Bag close by you and not stuffed under all your other equipment.

Again, thanks for taking your time to answer and you’re well placed thoughts; I will adjust my travel time to them.

It would have been just too good to flee the winter time (- 10°) here.

Manfred

Hi Manfred, I tend to agree with most if not all that has been said before by others. Back in 2008 Xmas I was watching the temps in the eastern goldfields (leonora, Lienster and Kal) and they were sitting around the low to mid 30's, so being bored I decided to take a trip out with my eldest son. Anyway, when we got out there the first day was 43C yet the radio said that Leonora (60kms away) was 33!!! Where they took the temperatures was what I wanted to know. We started detecting around 04:30am and went through to around 10:30 - 11:30 to keep in the cool. We found a rather unique way of staying cool and that was using a Hills Weed Spray bottle set to a very fine mist worked wonders and we only used around .5 litre per day obviously in the shade. At around 16:00 - 17:00 we would start off again until dark at around 20:00. I was brought up in Tarcoola, SA, so the heat wasn't a real drama, just bl@@dy inconvenient.

The detectors run fine in the morning and just a little bit jittery in the afternoon. Heat should not affect the detectors that much as most of the components would be rated at a minimum of 70C and even if the temperature was 40 when walking the internal temp would be lucky to reach 55C and that would be if it was in direct sunlight all the time.

Mainly with my post is not to rely on weather reports as I believe that all the Weather stations are in a shady windy enivironment as even in Dalwallinu where I was at the time the reported temperature from the station (at the airport) was 38C and our place on a hill in town with a nice breeze was 45C!!

Good luck and make sure you have plenty of water...

Watch out for the occaisional snake..................

Hi Ismael,
Thanks for the input, may I can shed some light in to your question,

Temperatures given by any weather station are always measured by the air temperature in the shade. It is a worldwide meteorology standard. So yes, if you are given 35°C and there is no overcast to be expect, means full sun exposure, you easily can add 10°-12° to it to meet your actual temperature. I am well convinced there are spots in Wa which exceed 55°C in full sun exposure.
If you have measured 43°C then the actual temperature in sunlight was 53°C.

Record braking temperatures over 50°C as measured as air temperature in the shade, will be exponentially higher in sunshine, I don’t have the equation for it at hand but adding approximately 25% to it, would be fair to go by.
Ground Surface temperature can be fairy to the measured Air temperature, depending on its reflective properties; blank sand surfaces have high reflective properties and radiate off any energy much faster than rock with a higher density and thus energy storing capability. The sharp drop of temperatures at nightfall in a sandier environment is directly related to this fact.

Sound like you have created yourself a nice outdoor air conditioner.

Drinking enough Water is essential, but as well taking sufficient amount of Sodium (NaCl) especially when you sweet a lot. There should be a balance between Liquid ingestion and NaCl, drinking a lot of NaCI low water can add to the symptoms stayyerAU has described in his post; confusion, unconsciousness, it even can go to shock, coma and death.

The average daily input of sodium should be 1.500mg for the age group 9 -50 and 1.300mg above 50. Salt tablets have served me well and I always have them with me if I am in extreme hot environment. But I would highly recommend checking with an physician if you have any sodium issues, high blood pressure and alike. Fighting heat with heat; drinking hot Tea is certaily a good option, it appears this sort of knowlege is passing around the hot spots all over the world.

Where is the most probable occurrence of snakes, the one I know (Afrika,Middle East) are more likely night active, but I rather meet one awake than step on a sleeping snake.

Cheers
Manfred

Gday Manfred

I forgot to mention that along with the water I always drink staminade a couple of times a day, replaces electrolytes in the body, used to use it when running x country in the army, that was before gatorade and all that sort of thing was available, you can still buy it in powdered form and I always carry some in the car.

People have told me that its useless but I know that when you are feeling washed out it helps to re hydrate you and speeds up recovery, also as funny as it sounds later in the evening a few cool beers help to straighten me out as well.

I understand what Ismael is saying about the electronic components in these detectors being rated at 70c so perhaps its a combination of the components and the operator becoming jittery at the same time, on one trip when the temps were around 47.6 and detecting out in the open I could not even hold the wooden handle of my pick with bare hands and had to keep my gloves on.

The internal temperature of a coil must reach higher temps than any other component surely, with heat radiating up from the ground and the sun beating down from above, as for ourselves we are also copping it from both ways and are being slow roasted as well from the heat radiating up from the rock and ironstone.

Another thing is to wear a wide brimmed hat and an absolute must is the fly net, flies are solar powered and their activity increases with the heat, as their bodies have no cooling mechanism they become more frenzied the hotter it gets, the bush flies that pester the most are the females, they require our bodies proteins in order for them to be able to produce eggs, although they dont carry as many bacteria as the common house fly they still carry bacteria that can infect your eyes with conjuctivitis? think thats how its spelt, this leaves your eyes weeping and sticking together with yellow muck, I have had this happen to me in the early days from not wearing the fly net all the time, waking one morning to find my eyes glued shut and then with hazy vision having to drive the 100 klms back to town for some medicine.

Sorry got a bit off track there, the purpose of the wide hat is to give you shade and also much needed air circulation about your face and neck, I dont wear the type of hat with the flap at the back as I have seen people suffer heat stroke after wearing these in extreme heat conditions, no air circulation about the head and face making them overheat and pass out.

In a nutshell detecting in the hot weather here is unpleasant but it can be done with care and preparation, a common sense approach to how far you push yourself during the hottest parts of the day is needed, I find most of the day unproductive in the heat, unlike in the cooler months where you can wander about from dawn till dusk, cover as much ground as you like and then get a good nights sleep, when its also hot in the night sleeping can be difficult and after a few days you can find yourself quite drained, what I used to do was to wet a towel and lay it out on the bed, and then sleep on that so as you get hot you turn over and then you cool down again, works as well as anything else.

If you can time your visit with the cooler part of the year here I think you will have a much more pleasnt and productive trip, if you have to do it during the warmer months then now at least you know what to expect.

cheers

stayyerAU

I definitely think all the E staters should come over here during the next few months. The weather is fantastic, NOT. a short vid taken mid November about 10.30am and it got hotter, reached 42c in the shade and it near killed me.

Reluctant...., with a heavy heart....., but reason rules to postpone for 3 -4 months, if I am not restructure my whole travel plan. But still…, it won’t get me out of the heat, so…!

Just one thing I would appreciate to get information on as I have found noting applicable on the DMP Website. Once you have applied for a miner’s right, how long does it take to have it approved, or will the register offices hand it right away by submitting all forms and fees in person.

Cheers
All-AU

G'day All-Au , prospecting in the heat of summer in the desert of WA is just no fun at all ..The flies are unbelievable , the midgies and mozzies at night can be shocking , snakes are active at night in summer , and generally it's all a lot of hard work .I would not recommend it if you are out to enjoy yourself ....The cool nights of april to sept/oct and the fine crisp mornings of mid winter with sunny days mostly ..Hangin out for next season already , cheers Paul ..

some little nasty has apeared in the golfields after the rain... spear grass.. this little beasty is like a spring, works its way thru youre socks in to youre skin, there is a lot of it around at the moment, just something else to make it uncomftable during the heat..gim..

hi all au
some good advice from all the previous posts
I am still in the goldfields at the moment and the thunderstorm activity is making detecting difficult ,
also the lightening strikes can start fires which is a worry for me because of the abundant grass everywhere !

You will be given your miners right immeadiately when you apply in person at any of the mines department offices
DB

Hi manifred,

Glad you are taking the great advice offered.
I live and work and detect around the Tom Price area in the pilbara
from Now until March the temperatures soar to well over 40degrees it is an amazing hot heat, the flys are unbearable
the snakes are out in droves and your detector gets very unstable, We all agree up here this time of year its better to crack a cold one and swim. Venture up this way between april and october you will have a memorable experience camping out.

Regards
Marty

Hi Manfred
Plenty of sound advice from our West Coast experts.May to Aug is the best of it for comfortable detecting and the ability to put in long sessions.Ideally if you can link up with someone from this site,would be a good way to go.I have personally staked three tyres in one day,lost ignition to the vehicle,in the middle of nowhere and had a mate who was experienced in east coast goldfields get totally lost ,dehidrated and disorientated.As you would be aware by the time you actually get thirsty its too late.
Jim Foster (granite) tells the story of detecting on a salt pan and actually having to chase after a detecting friend that was 1/2 hour in front of him and heading away from the campsite.He had to physically point him in the right direction.
I am not writing this to put anyone off ,In fact done safely its the experience of a lifetime.
Cheers Dig

Good advice folks,
I have just come back from a weeks prospecting and camping around Meekatharra and Cue and yes

1 - The speargrass is unbelievable at the moment, these little buggers will get through anything and embed themselves into your skin. Was always having to stop and pull them out.
2 - The flies are on the increase, a flynet is a must as they are everywhere.
3 - The heat is definately on the increase, and fast. There were a couple of days up there that I had to seek some shade around noon and I was dehydrating fast.
4 - Mozzies at nighttime is no fun, amazing haw they manage to get through into your tent
5 - Snake trails were everywhere, but didnt actually see a snake. There must be alot more snakes around this year than usual as seriously, I have never seen that many snake trails.

Listen to the people mate. April to October is the best time to go.

Much appreciated.

Basically it all starts up with a misunderstanding. I was asking people “when is the best time to go to Australia?” Of course everybody said “At Winter”. I was well into planning and preparation until I found out the Australian Winter months are not equal to the European Winter months.

I have put everything on halt now, good thing with it; it gives me more time in planning and preperation.
And yes, I would be great to team up when it comes to it.


Cheers
ALL-AU