Boating Advice: The lowdown on car toppers

Even today, brands like Quintrex, Savage, Bluefin and Clark are seen bottom sides up, motoring along dusty Outback roads, their aluminium sheeting more pewter than silver in colour.

THE TROPIC OF CROCODILE
If you are working your way across the Top End, above the Tropic of Crocodile, you soon realise that size and material construction are more important considerations than they are down south.

You can get away with an inflatable or plastic canoe in southern estuaries and croc-free waters. Across the Top End, small craft are croc attractors, like the time a few years back on the Mary River system. Anyone who has fished these waters will know about the quantity and size of the crocodile population.

On this trip was an angler who had driven up from Canberra with a 4m punt. It was a shallow draft, low-sided hull of the kind more suited to duck shooting. On consecutive days, the angler came off the water early after, as it turned out, his feeble craft was an irresistible crocodile lure. Some of the 'lizards' that gave him a nudge were bigger than the punt.

It is an uncomfortable feeling when you are in a boat and being followed by a large saurian: instead of chasing a feed, chances are you could become one.

The scuttle in the Stuart Wilderness Lodge Saloon Bar about those events was that big crocs saw the boat as a threat, or potential mate. In my opinion, sex was out of the question, which left the fresh meat aspect. Either way, it didn’t matter. Our intrepid angler got the hint and on the third day decided enough was enough, packed up camp and moved on. Sometimes discretion is the smart thing to do.

The point about croc waters is that in some crocs are more dangerous than others. By this I mean the crocs are aggressive, whereas in others, they don’t seem a problem. But then, why take a chance when there are waters, like Lake Tinaroo on the Atherton Tablelands and Lake Argyle near Kununurra, where there is no big saurian problem.

THE TOP CAR TOPPERS
Aluminium is the material of choice for most buyers, and boat brands like Quintrex, Savage and Stacer have car toppers in their ranges. In fact, the market is ticking along for these simple tinnies thanks to more people hitting the road and heading north.

To this end, your boatsales tested the latest Quintrex car toppers,
320 and 360 Wanderers, which replace the Travellers.

There are alternatives to aluminium, like the fold-away Porta Boat, the Quickboat we reviewed here or the Queensland-built Ezy Topper range made from resin-infused foam with fiberglass. I have an Ezy Topper, but no longer launch it in croc water.  

Whatever your material preference, weight is a major factor. Serious 4WDs like LandCruisers have a roof carrying capacity of about 100kg. It’s about the same for pop top caravans, however, if you fit a ute with carrying frames, this capacity can be as much as 130kg. Some of the imported Yank tanks, like the F250 or the Silverado, will carry more than 100kg.

A couple of lightweight tinnies worth a look include the new
320 and 360 Wanderers (50 and 53kg) and the Stacer 319 Seasprite (58kg). The boats can navigate lakes and estuaries and their modest weight makes them easy to launch and load from the roof of a 4WD.

The smallest tinny from Telwater, the parent company of Quintrex, Savage and Stacer, is the 300 Wanderer. Weighing in at only 40kg means it's a light lift on top of a car yet, at 3.10 metres long, it can fish three people. It is an elementary boat and standard features include transom handles, rear and front bench seats, cowl or foredeck, foam buoyancy and 5hp outboard rating. 

Further up the line, the Quintrex Explorer range has long resonated with estuary anglers. Weighing in at 80kg as a bare bones outfit, the 370 Explorer is a very decent barra-fishing boat with a 20hp rating.

Many anglers cart bigger tinnies atop their vehicles, but many court trouble doing so. It is all about the load your car roof can carry. At any rate, above the three-metre length range in aluminium, you should consider a purpose-built roof rack, and an unloader. Two men can unload a car topper with ease, but you may want to fish alone, and that’s when mechanical help comes into its own.

ROOF RACKS AND BOAT LOADERS
There are several types of boat loaders/unloaders available: Rhino-Rack offers side or rear boat loaders, as does another automotive manufacturer, TJM. These are the two major players, but there are several smaller enterprises operating in the same market.

One unit that impressed me is by West Australian company Custom Boat Loaders. It's a solid rack that allows a boat to be loaded and unloaded, hands free, at the rear of the vehicle.

A QUICK ASSEMBLY PORTABLE TRAILER
Other than roof top carrying capacity, the other reason to watch hull weight is that once you offload the boat you may need to manhandle it. To that end, I use an Australian-made Mangrove Jack quick-assembly trailer, a unit that can be put together or broken down for storage in just 10 minutes.

Most times, I am in the same place for a few weeks, so the boat can stay on the trailer during these periods. Constructed from anodised aluminium and stainless steel, the trailer weighs less than 40kg, can carry up to 250kg, and no single component weighs more than 8kg. The trailer came with a winch and light board, and can be registered for road use.

One thing is for sure, from Kununurra on the Ord River in WA to Kakadu in the Top End and beyond, car topping remains a tradition and quintessential portable tinnies are alive and well in Outback Australia. You'd be mad to head away with out one.