3 weeks to go!

Only 3 weeks to go now. I'm trying to picture in my mind (and rather unsuccessfully) what the day we leave is going to be like. No more planning, researching, hours on the internet or re-reading camper trailer magazine articles for the 100th time just in case I missed something! Part excitement, part anticipation and I suspect a fair bit of, "Oh my Gosh we're actually doing this!"

We have a Date!

At this stage we plan to go on April 2. This is the tuesday after easter. We pretty much have all of the gear we  need. I just need to pick up the spare parts for the vehicle and the Satellite Communication device. After much comparisons with Sat phones (even with subsidies), EPIRB devices etc we've ended up going with a US product licensed by Kimberley campers out here. It's a Delorne 2 way satellite communication device called the InReach. Basically it pairs with your smart phone and iPad and allows you to text/email for communication and support, emergency assist and a full GPS mapping capability to track where you are out in the bush. Visit www.track4ever.com.au

Packing

It's just a matter or organising and packing now. The weather has been very unhelpful making it hard to have the camper up for long periods of time. Inside Maria is using space saving plastic containers to maximise space in the cupboards and draws whilst our clothes will be in 1 x 40L duffle bag each. The majority of our days will be in northern climates so one set of warm clothes is all that we've allowed. Down jacket, trackies and some warm socks and a beanie! The rest of our clothes will pretty much be shorts, t-shirts and swimming gear. Space is always at a premium so we've invested in things like microfibre towels which fold up very small and the down jackets also fold up to a very small size.

We don't need to take massive amounts of food as we'll buy fresh stuff along the way. We will have a store of tinned food as a backup if we are remote and running low on supplies. One tip we've learnt is to write on the bottom of the tins with what they contain to allow you to know without having to take everything out. I've yet to determine a good solution for Captain Morgan and wine bottles so any ideas would be very much welcome.

On top of the car we have a large cargo cage with 120kgs weight capacity. On top will be another spare tyre a couple of Diesel and one ULP Jerry can for the generator (more on power later). I also have a large low profile tool box which will carry all spare parts, recovery gear, compressor, spare sand pegs, rope and a few other bits and pieces. In the back of the car with the technical genius of 'Big John' Lobartolo, we've designed a marine ply base covered with marine carpet with a fridge slide attached. This will allow easier access to the Engel 40L fridge and provide a stable base to anchor the generator and cargo box.

Power

To Generator or not to generator - that was the question. I must say I ummed and ahhd on this for months. Eventually I took the approach that having it as an albeit expensive, but reliable source of backup power, to keep batteries charged up, was worth it. While we're not planning to rough it all the time there are enough places we've got planned where there will not be 240v power and which allow generators to be used responsibly. As well as this we have a pair of 120 watt solar panels, 2 x 100 amp hour batteries in the camper and a 70 amp hour battery in the vehicle. Just having that piece of mind tipped me over the line.

School

We have now met with all of the kids schools. I must say all of the principles and teachers have been extremely supportive of the trip. All admitting that the life experience the kids will gain is invaluable. The kids must keep up to date diaries and we've been advised of curriculum areas in maths and english which we'll be able to leverage while on the road. "How long will us take us to travel from Dubbo to Broken Hill travelling at an average speed of 100km/hr for 654km?"

Lachlan will have a bit more to do than the girls but again more to keep in touch with the curriculum in the key areas of maths, english, history and science. Getting into a routine will be the key early to ensure they keep up to date as well as making sure their memories are fresh in their minds. Also, with the wonders of technology all of their teachers have asked at some stage for the kids to link up with skype and present to the class where they are, what they're doing and how they're living, which I'm sure will be a lot of fun for everyone.

We expect the kids will want to write in the blog as well so stay tuned for the kids ripping yarns and adventures from their own perspective.

Keeping in touch

After next week we'll have the communications system setup which will allow you all to track where we are on a map in real time. You'll just have a web link and password which will give you access online to view where we are. This blog will be important, as we'll love to see your comments as often as we can. We'll have our phones, the InReach and a couple of laptops as well, so hopefully someone will be able to get a hold of us if need be. BK and DK will have all of our contact details if required.

Anyhow I'll probably do one more post before we go with a few more details.

Talk Soon

Michael

The Countdown is on!

Well, it's under 10 weeks now till we head off on the Big Lap!

We are heading around Australia on the trip of a lifetime for five and a half months. My wife Maria and I, our three children, our trusty 4WD and a camper trailer. I'm having to pinch myself sometimes. It's starting to get very real.

A little over twelve months ago during the 2011/12 Christmas - New Year school holidays we were having lunch in Sydney after visiting with Maria's family. I announced to the family that I thought it would be a good idea to take 6 months or so off and travel around the country. I was immediately met with stunned silence around the table. Then came the questions, What about the house?, What about school?, Who will look after our beloved Schnauzer Kaspa? But I'll miss my friends! What about Netball, Rugby and cricket? All extremely valid questions which all needed carefully thought through solutions. Then came the excitement.

We could see the Kimberley's! said Caitlin (10). Can we go to Lake Eyre? asked Lachlan (12). I want to see Perth! said Grace (8). Maria insisted Darwin and Kakadu needed to be on the list. Feverishly writing down on the back of a napkin I knew this was going to happen. Maria was quickly on board, as we'd discussed it as one of our dreams to travel Australia. However I was really keen to ensure the kids buy-in though. In my mind I needed them to WANT to go and be part of the adventure, rather than simply coming along for the ride. So many wonderful experiences await them. Many families we've spoken to who've travelled tell us the kids will learn so much about this great land and about themselves. That probably goes for us all really.

So we were going and we needed a plan. All of a sudden, twelve months didn't seem like nearly enough time.

Interestingly, the 2 single biggest issues that we felt needed to be solved early, were the house and the dog. Fortuitously, both were solved in the same conversation Maria was having with a work colleague, lamenting our growing concern with what to do. Should we rent the house out or just leave it idle? Would we have to put Kaspa in a kennel? Maria's friend then mentioned her current lease was finishing up and that she'd be keen to house sit and was more than happy to care for Kaspa as she'd been over many times and really enjoyed his company. Major sigh of relief at this point...

With these hurdles overcome, the rest seemed less stressful. I was in the extremely fortunate position to have just sold my company and had a twelve month handover with the new owners so timing would work out well. The kids schools' were very supportive and the Queensland department of education has an exemption form we can use to apply for the kids to be out of school for extended periods, provided we do some schooling, which we'll need to agree with each of their teachers.

The next step was choosing the right vehicle and of course, our home away from home would be critical to an enjoyable trip.

I've become somewhat focused (Maria would say completely obsessed), with all things involving camper trailer touring. We'd picked up our first camper trailer the previous May. A Vacation Campers Off Road Vacationer which has been terrific for us, particularly with the spare room. Trips to Peach Trees, Somerset Dam, Cania Gorge and Stradbroke and Moreton Islands soon followed. While the Vacationer is brilliant and would highly recommend it to anyone, the nature of our trip needing fast setup times, was an ever present challenge in my mind. The thought of setting up a soft floor camper (no matter how straight forward), with bedding every second night from scratch had me concerned. So the hunt was on for something a little more functional for our families needs. Many trips to showrooms and multiple camping shows followed through the year. I feel compelled to say that Australian Camper Trailer manufacturers need to consider that families do come with more than 2 children on occasion. I always felt I was having to make compromises rather than being offered real solutions. I mean this with the greatest of respect as there are some truly wonderful companies out there building some great product.

Eventually some friends of ours who had been on a 4 month trip the previous year suggested we look at Goldstream RV. Given they are a family of six, we felt we should give Goldstream a go and hadn't previously considered this type of option. We needed a solution which was easy and fast to setup and take down, was tough enough to handle off road 4wd touring, could sleep five comfortably and had plenty of the creature comforts. Thankfully, the Goldstream Storm seemed to fit the bill. The Storm is a wind up camper with one Queen size and one double bed sliding out each end. Gracie our youngest will be sleeping on the lounge and dining table which converts to another bed. Goldstream allows you to put together a package which meets your specific needs. It comes with plenty of storage, 4 burner grill, oven and microwave. 240v power and we added an additional 100Amp deep cycle battery. A 90L 3-way fridge is also standard. An additional 65L water tank has been attached with an auxillary external shower plumbed to a gas hot water system. We also added an additional 9kg gas bottle. A Duragal chassis is complemented by heavy duty independent Cruisemaster off road suspension. A wind out Fiamma awning and an external slide out gas cooker would allow both indoor and outdoor living quickly and easily.

A second hand Toyota Landcruiser Prado Kakadu was the preferred choice of vehicle. The Prado has all of the creature comforts for long hours on the road and with a 4L Turbo Diesel, more than enough power to tow the Storm and get us anywhere we want to go. We have also made some additions like an ARB Sahara Bar with IPF lights. A dual battery to run the second fridge in the car, a set of Cooper AT3 tyres and electric brakes for the camper. Before we go we'll be adding a snorkel and draw system with fridge slide for the back of the car.

Next is the itinerary. Everyone asks us, North or South? While I'd always had in my mind that we'd go south first, the lateness of the wet season in the north this year confirmed our decision. South it is! Now where to go?  Five and a half months seems like a long time but when you are trying to circumnavigate a country as large as Australia and start calculating times and distances you quickly realise that compromises are going to have to be made to make it around in time.

We decided early on that anywhere we could travel to from our Brisbane home for a week or two would be left for another time. So it was decided the majority of NSW, Victoria and Tasmania would be left for future trips. Leaving Brissie in early April, we'll head through Tamworth to the Warrumbungles then onto Kinchega and Mungo National Parks before heading to SA's beautiful Limestone Coast. Then up to the Flinders Ranges, onto Lake Eyre across to Coober Pedy, then down to the Eyre Penninsula and across the Nullabor. We'll then hug the WA coast, slowly making our way up to Broome by the June school holidays. A word of caution here. June to August is the peak season and if you don't book early you may miss out on getting in at all! It's January and we were reliably told we had just booked the last powered site in Broome! This would be our mid trip break and be used as our base for some of the closer gorges and Cape Leveque.

We are then off to the Kimberley and the Gibb River Road, moving onto NT, Kakadu and Darwin before jumping on the Savannah Way through Lawn Hill National Park and across to Cairns, the Daintree and Cape Tribulation before heading south for home through Winton and Carnarvon Gorge.

I can't believe we are nearly there, yet we've still got so much to do. We're all starting to get quite excited. So much careful planning needs to go into a trip like this. A reliable vehicle and camper, safety and comfort are paramount and of course making sure we take time to really explore and appreciate our magnificent country along the way.

It's a little scary, a lot exciting and I can't wait.