Travel Diary » Camping around Australia with kids: Our next big adventure
Camping around Australia with kids: Our next big adventure
If you've met Colin or myself, or read our blog, you've probably figured out by now that we're not very good at planning things ahead of time or sticking to anything that we may have planned. One of the reasons we love our lifestyle is that it allows us to do things on the spur of the moment. When we came home to Australia for Christmas our plan was to head back to Asia in mid January for three months before returning to Australia for my brothers wedding. We had decided to move all our gear to Penang and have a more permanent home base from which to travel from. We still want to travel most of the year, but after a year of living out of backpacks it would be nice to return 'home' occasionally and have access to all of our 'stuff'. But as of yet we haven't been able to figure out if there is a visa we would be eligible for that would allow us to ship our gear over without being taxed heavily by Malaysian customs.
Onto Plan B: pick 2-3 locations to spend a month or two in and rent a house in each before returning to Australia at Easter. It was a brilliant plan except after a year on the road making decision after decision about where to go next, where to sleep next, where to eat out next we were too tired to make more decisions. Do we go back to Bali or Chiang Mai where we what to expect or go somewhere totally new? And if it's somewhere new, where?
We needed a Plan C.
After a few weeks we finally came up with one - instead of heading back overseas, why not explore Australia for three months? We're here now and need to be back in three months time anyway. We have a 4WD and a tent. We have friends and family living all around Australia that we'd love to catch up with. It also gives me the chance to sort out Noah's homeschooling while we're still in Australia.
Of course the plan isn't without flaws. We're heading camping in a tent in summer in Australia - we must be crazy. It's also one of the wettest summers on record. In all likelihood it's either going to be over 30 degrees every day or raining ... perfect camping with kids weather right? We're not sure how Colin is going to work out of a tent in the middle of summer but I'm sure he'll either figure it out or become a regular at every McDonalds between here and Perth! I'm hoping rather than rain we'll strike plenty of overcast days ... but maybe I'm being overly optimistic.
What do you think? Are we insane or about to embarked on the most amazing road trip ever? As far as I can tell it could go either way but why not give it a go!
Tomorrow we're packing up our car, affectionately named Optimus by Noah who was mad for Transformers when we first bought the car, and heading off. We've added a second hand pod to the roof for extra storage and a bike rack so we can bring all our bikes and maybe for once get around to doing exercise. Maybe! We've purchased a portable fridge and borrowed or bought enough extra camping gear to get us by.
The rough plan is to leave Brisbane and head south along the coast until Sydney, before heading inland and across the mountains through inland Victoria to Melbourne. From Melbourne we'll follow the coast to Adelaide and then keep heading west.
At least that's the plan for now. Did I mention we don't tend to stick to plans?
We're conscious of the fact that Australia's a really big place and three months really isn't long enough to make it all the way around if you don't want to be on the move every day. We'd like to keep following the coast all the way around through Perth and up to Exmouth where my father lives but we might have to take a few short cuts.
The kids are excited to be travelling with their bikes and sleeping in a tent with their own special beds and torches. We've raided the storage shed for their favourite Ben 10 and Dora bed spreads and Nana has sewn them special sheets to go over their camping mats.
Today Hayley asked "For our next trip can we camp and drive all the way to Africa? But it's a long way so I might need to take a nap before we get there, I'm a little bit tired".
We should probably warn her not to suggest silly travel ideas to us. That might just end up being Plan D. Did I mention that we love our lifestyle :)
If you've done a similar trip and have suggestions on places to stay or spots we can't miss we'd love to hear them. Or if you're currently travelling around Australia and would like to catch up somewhere just tell us where and we'll bring the beers.
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Family of four who decided to change their lifestyle & travel the world. Follow our adventures, hear about our mistakes and dream creating your own travel lifestyle
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20/01/2011 8:11pm (1 year ago)
Having just done the school hols camping with our Big M (6) and Little M (4) just before the big wet hit Brissie (and then where we'd been staying just north of Kempsey) the things I learned: Big 4 campsites are wonderful for kids (www.big4.com.au), they're also good for adults if you need to swipe some battery power for the laptop from the laundry room or camp kitchen, ALWAYS put the tarp over the tent and common area when you first arrive, likewise a tarp underneath also makes the constant taking down/folding of the tent a much less disgusting proposition (duh- we used to know all this stuff when we went camping as a couple and seem to have forgotten when the kids popped out). We also invested in a cheap (Big W) gazebo with mozzie screen which made dinners together much more fun and less slap-tastic. I could probably go on, but don't want to bore you to death. Best of luck - think you will have a fabulous adventure!!
20/01/2011 11:36pm (1 year ago)
Thanks for the tips Anj. We had thought about putting a tarp under the tent but wasn't sure if it was worth the effort. So it's good to hear someone else recommend it! We just went out and bought a bigger tent as our old 'couple' one a) couldn't fit the kids in a screened area unless they were sleeping on top of us and b) didn't have a screened area we could eat it. We looked at one of the big W gazebos like you had but since we needed a bigger tent anyway ...
I'm pretty sure the next few months will be filled with remembering all those useful skills we used to know as kids and couples who went camping. I haven't picked up a hammer in years or lit a fire! Colin is going to laugh his arse off at me the first few weeks!
21/01/2011 9:24am (1 year ago)
As you know, we did the Red Centre thing. And I'd really recommend you do that as part of it. You don't need to spend a long time in the centre.
But, I think, to check off Uluru and Kings Canyon -- really kid-friendly walk in the middle of it, only about 1.5k, Hayley could do it easily -- would be pretty essential...
Other things that are helpful? Campsite kitchens can be shitty. Grab the opportunity to prepare food while you can...
You can do Adelaide to Uluru in 2 days, easy, with a stop in Coober Pedy. Spend 3-4 days around Uluru, then bomb it back.
21/01/2011 3:01pm (1 year ago)
So glad you're finally traveling in oz it will be so rewarding. We love camping and tenting it! I would recommendchecking out the church campgrounds or scout campgrounds. Google the association or find their numbers through thechurches or scout groups. They always have large camp sites with access to communal kitchens with fridges and ovens/stoves and electricity- ablutions etc and usually in fantastic locations. You will have to book ahead though so would be worth ringing around.
We thought you have to be members but found out that you just need to ring and book.
Hope you enjoy your travels!!
Love the Parishes xx