Get out there - travelling with a medical condition

About three years ago our eldest son (aged just over three at the time) was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes.  It was a bit of a watershed moment in our family, causing a readjustment of priorities in our lives.  We embarked on a strict diet regime, overcame our fear of needles, and learnt how to administer insulin to our young son.  We were (and still are) determined to give him every opportunity to live a normal life, and don't make a big deal of his diabetes.

As such, the aim of this blog entry is to share some techniques we have found helpful in getting the most out of going camping and exploring with someone who does have a medical condition that requires constant vigilance.

Our philosophy is simple.  One of our sons has a pancreas that doesn't work properly - in the same way that people who wear glasses have eyes that don't work properly.  We all have little quirks and ailments, and we consider diabetes to be just one of these things.  We, as parents, just need to be a bit more organised that we would normally have been and a little more selective in what equipment we use.

In a way his diagnosis galvanised us into action.  At the time, Project 2014, our year long camping trip around Australia was but a distant half conceived dream. We took a long hard look at where we were, and committed to our dream.   We have been since been slowly refining our travelling and camping in order to ensure we are ready for our trip to give both our boys the opportunity of a lifetime.

So how do we do it?

A shiny Terry returns - but it isn't long before I break something!

It seems that everything happens in the lead up to Christmas, and of course we don't seem to do things by halves in our family.

With a busy schedule of school concerts, assemblies, swimming lessons, BBQ's, community breakfasts and the rest in the last few weeks of school, Jo and I have been having nightly planning meetings to make sure we get everything both of the little helpers to their assigned activities.  How families with more than two kids do this is completely beyond my comprehension and my sincere admiration goes out to you.

Somewhere in the middle of this, Terry was booked in for repairs, following our little mishap a few weeks ago.  With careful examination of the calender, we chose a week and a half block where living with one car would have the least impact on our family.  So on Monday 5th of December we dropped Terry off to get a new bumper, to be picked up on the 14th.

A New House For Terry

After three years of frosty winter mornings and living outside, we decided it was time for a new house for Terry and Suby.  Whilst we chose a simple 6m x 9m carport design, we decided that we didn't want the standard colourbond K Panel cladding.  We were fortunate to know of an old hayshed that had long fallen over, and with kind agreement of the owners, we removed the old iron.

The old hayshed iron is loaded into the trailer

After my efforts building the cubby house, and knowing the limitations of my building experience, I decided that the main construction of the carport was to be outsourced to local contractors.   We thought that this would be a straightforward operation, but no it was not to be.

What Terry Gets Up To In His Spare Time, Part II

In my last installment we looked at two of Terry’s primary duties - Taxi for the Little Helpers and being a mobile tool-shed.  Of course Terry has many other duties....  

iPhone Cover Load Tester
Not an intentional role at all, but on one occasion I dropped my phone whilst removing a stick that had been caught up under Terry. A few kilometres down the road I realised I didn't have my camera, not even realising at this point that my iPhone wasn't in my pocket either.  I returned to find the camera unscathed by the side of the track, but my phone was lying face down with a dirty great Cooper STT tyre print running right over the top of it.  

I thought my shiny new iPhone's days were over, but full credit the the Otterbox Impact cover – the phone escaped with nary a scratch, and eighteen months later it is still going strong!

Firewood Collector
Our house is heated with 100% renewable, ecologically friendly firewood, collected from a nearby farm. Terry hauls an empty trailer to the farm and watches by whilst the trailer gets filled with timber.

What Terry Gets Up To In His Spare Time, Part I

Nearly all my blogs so far have been about the wonderful camping adventures we have got up to as a family, and a few misadventures too. Now whilst it would be a great thing if we could make a career out of exploring Australia, reality is a little more mundane.


We lead fairly normal busy lives around our two active young boys. We live in a small village, are involved with the school and all the associated social events that it entails such as birthday parties, community morning teas and the like. It is all good healthy fun. Somehow around all that I work full time, and whilst the tax man considers Jo’s employment part time, any mother would agree that being a mum is anything but a part time job!


As this blog started on the Australia4wd forum, it is only fitting that we look at what Terry – our 2005 Hyundai Terracan gets up to in his spare time. After all it is a well known fact that the majority of four wheel drives never venture off the blacktop.

Truancy and Bad Luck go Hand in Hand.

Over the past few weeks, Mr Four and a Half has been enjoying Kindergarten Orientation at our local school.  Over three Thursday mornings, he has gamely set forth into the Kinder classroom and emerged a couple of hours later with exciting stories to tell and new friends made.  Mr Six has been far too important to even be seen with his little brother as he has been spending the same mornings doing Year One Orientation.

Whilst the kids have been off learning about what the next year has install for them, the parents have enjoyed education seminars on Literacy and Numeracy, before enjoying a delicious morning tea with other parents.  Happy days indeed. But it is funny how things happen in our family.

Week three and final, and we had decided that on completion of Orientation, we would pull both the kids out of school and race away for a longer than normal weekend down at the coast.  We had a meeting on Friday afternoon, but decided we would make an extra night of it and give ourselves the opportunity to relax as well.  So it was fitting that on the morning of our planned escape, the school had invited someone from the Department who chose to give a talk on truancy.

The Department spokesperson proceeded to lecture all the Mums and Dads on truancy and how missing a few days of school would result in your child protegee failing to reach their full potential, indeed any potential and how they would be doomed for life.  She did proceed to explain what did constitute a valid reason for removing your child from school for a day.  Apparently fishing or camping is not a valid excuse, but attending a family event does pass the grade.

So it was with a wee tinge of guilt that Jo signed the vacancy log for Mr Six as attending a “Family Event”, and we loaded the kids into Terry, with fishing rods on the roof and the camper in tow.  We took off, first stop Oallen Ford for a fish.  After all, what could possibly go wrong!

Mr Four and a Half tries to fill the river up with rocks whilst Mum wets a line.



Watagan Wanderings – don't forget to check the oil!

The sun was almost shining as we bade farewell to the Cousins and thought about commencing our southerly journey home.  We were planning three more nights under canvas before returning, and were still undecided as to our destination.  Upper Colo Reserve and the Watagan Mountains were our options, but we were in no hurry to make up our mind... so we went to the beach!


Such country kids... jeans and boots at the beach!

But lovin' it

After an ice cream at Bar Beach Kiosk, we thought we would give the Watagan Mountains a go, as they were close to our track south, and there is a myriad of camping sites on offer.  We had heard the Watagans are a mecca for 4wd challenges, trail bike riders and the like, we were a little hesitant as to what we would find given our ability to choose campsites near doof-doof stereos. 

Western Plains Zoo

We made good time from our camp at Boyd River to Orange via Oberon and Bathurst.  We enjoyed a leg stretch in Orange, and followed the railway line north to Wellington via Euchareena, appreciating the diversion off the main highway.  We did have a peek at Lake Burrendong, with the intention of stopping at the State Park for lunch, however we were politely told that it was $10 to enter the park.  Needless to say we wern't that desperate for lunch and drove on to Wellington, 27km to the north west.


The suspension bridge over the Bell River at Wellington

Cameron Park at Wellington is a favourite place of ours to stop for lunch, with a suspension bridge over the Bell River providing entertainment for energetic little legs. A short stint on the Mitchell Highway to Dubbo reminded us of why we enjoyed taking the roads less travelled.  Mr Red Audi was a menace to all on the road, tailgating and trying to take every chance to get past us.  We were following a truck at a reasonable distance, and whilst the Audi got past us easily enough we had the pleasure of watching his dangerous driving for the next twenty five minutes or so as we meandered into Dubbo.

For the boys the Zoo was the whole purpose of our trip north.  We booked into the Big 4 Caravan Park, just a short cycle from the zoo, and caught up with CarieNan and PaBob who had joined us from the north.  The park well laid out, and with so many kids staying with bikes to explore the zoo, they had laid out a BMX track to keep the kids amused, in addition to the jumping pillow, pool and playground. I think Jo was just happy to have a hot shower!


About to head off for our safari at the zoo!

The Saturday of our Zoo adventure dawned drizzly with a forecast of passing showers.  We gamely packed a picnic lunch into our backpack, and prepared to boys for a day on their push bikes.  As we arrived and bought our tickets the heavens opened and we started making alternative arrangements, however the shower passed and we entered to zoo on our bikes – raincoats on!

Caves to Caves - Part IV – Boyd River

Our camp at Boyd River was beautiful, but at 1250 metres above sea level was rather chilly.  We set up camp quickly decided that we would spend the afternoon inside the tent playing games and reading the Muddle Headed Wombat.  The rain was now coming down in a good steady way, and our relief at being at the top of the plateau after our journey here was immense.

I reflected on our previous few hours and realised that perhaps we had bitten off a bit more than we could chew by coming along the Kowmung River Fire Trail, but the satisfaction of taking on the track and emerging triumphant was intoxicating (or was that the celebratory beer or two?).  Jo confided in me that although our situation wasn't exactly pleasant, she was comforted in the fact we had the Personal Locator Beacon in the glove box.  We also were trialing a SPOT Messenger and my parents had lent me their satellite phone for the trip.  She was extremely confident that if all went to custard, at least she could get the kids (and her too no doubt) into a nice warm bed for the night...

Caves to Caves - Part III - Recovery should be a four letter word...

Our plan on departing Yerranderie was to retrace our steps to Mount Werong, where we would then proceed to Boyd River via Dingo Dell and the Kowmung River Fire Trail. On the Banshee Road into Dingo Dell we had our fist hint things might get a bit more exciting with a small NPWS sign stating simply 4WD ONLY. Hmm. I had been wondering to myself if we were going to see any steep hills requiring low range during this trip. Sure, some of the hills in and out of Yerranderie required first gear hauling the camper up them, but nothing thus far would have presented a challenge for a normal car, carefully driven. All this was about to change...

At last we engaged low range for the descent into Dingo Dell. As we continued down into the valley we realised that the trail was very steep in places, and the surface was clay in several places. We were looking forward to lunch at the bottom, but the clouds started to close in, and a shower of rain greeted us as we pulled into the camp site.

Descending on the Banshea Road to Dingo Dell

The creek at Dingo Dell campground

A little word in the back of my head said we needed to get out of there... now. Jo echoed my thoughts by voicing them, clearly and succinctly.

The Little Fisherman was most disappointed as we elected to continue our journey up and out of the valley before the rain set in - delaying two of the most important things in the world - an opportunity to wet his line AND lunch.

As we headed north from Dingo Dell towards the Tuglow Caves, the track seemed to be even more steep that the entry. We then stopped at the bottom of a steep and badly rutted section for a pause, a think and to drop another 5psi out of the tyres.

Caves to Caves - Part II - Yerranderie

Yerranderie

We followed Langs Road and then Range Fire Trail from Wombeyan Caves north before joining the Oberon – Colong Stock route near Mount Werong Camping Area.  The tracks were in reasonably good condition, and we stayed in 2wd for the majority of the run north.  As we proceeded east on the stock route, the road slowly deteriorated for the final run down into Yerranderie.

The old gardens

Yerranderie is a ghost town, testament to the fickle nature of silver prices and the requirement to secure long lasting water for Sydney.  All but abandoned it is a time capsule of historic buildings, slowly being invaded by termites.

Caves to Caves - Part I - Wombeyan Caves

With foreboding skies, and a forecast for showers and rain, we thought we would make the most of a rare opportunity for leave and school holidays and make tracks north. Over the next week or so our plan was to head to Dubbo and the Taronga Western Plains Zoo, via the Wombeyan Caves, Yerranderie and Kanangra Walls.

The plan was to live in the camper for the best part of two weeks – the best we had managed thus far was a three day run. We relocated the awnings and spare canvas to the roof of the car, and put six wardrobe draws into the under-bed storage of the camper. This way we all had one draw each for clothes, one was for spare medical supplies and the other was extra food. The fridge and freezer were stocked, bikes loaded and car checked. It seemed we were ready.

We managed to get away in good time on Saturday and arrived in Goulburn for lunch. Belmore Park is a favourite haunt of our kids with its fantastic kids playground, however on this occasion we were surprised by a collection of fire trucks and ambulances of all shapes and sizes. It wasn't an incident at the Francis Greenway designed courthouse, but rather an Emergency Services Open Day. Joy of joys, the Little Helpers nearly wet themselves with excitement at being invited into the back of an ambulance. The Little Fisherman was able to correctly identify the breathing apparatus in the back of a pumper - but the RFS trucks were his favourite as they could go off-road! Ah, he must be my son.

The Taralga Fire Truck - Dennis

Finally we dragged the tykes away, only to be hauled off the road again at Taralga. The Taralga fire shed was also hosting an open day, however the star attraction was an ancient Dennis Fire Truck. The boys were excited, but were muscled out of the driver's seat by their mother! An unusual turn of events for sure.

Communication and Distress Alerting

** UPDATE - 12 Feb 2013**
Since this article was published, a full summary of distress communication options has been published at http://campingcommunication.com  I highly recommend you check it out.
** UPDATE **

On one of our previous camping trips, we enjoyed several days deep in the bush, to discover on our return to mobile phone range that Toowomba and Lockyer Valley had been devastated by flooding, and Brisbane was underwater again.

Our family and friends in the affected areas were thankfully alright, however we were berated for being out of contact during the crisis by concerned family who had no real idea where we were camping or when we were due back. All they knew was we were camping in a valley by a river somewhere in Kosciuszko National Park.

It got me thinking about what information to leave with family and friends, and how to communicate with them should things go wrong. More importantly perhaps is to communicate with family enough information so that they don't fret if they cannot get hold of you, or can raise the alarm should you fail to come home.

IsatPhone Pro

My parents recently purchased a new generation prepaid satellite telephone running on the Inmarsat network, the IsatPhone Pro. The phone costs about $650 up front, with $100 buying 100 minutes of talk - with a two year valid period. This phone proved really handy on their last adventure, as they were able to send an SMS message from the phone's inbuilt GPS.

Melbourne 4x4 Show

I had the pleasure of attending the worlds biggest toy store last weekend as part of the Melbourne 4x4 and Fishing Show.

What a collection of stuff - and how easy it would be to blow a couple of hundred grand in no time... Of course I had been sent without my credit card to avoid too many impulse buys :)

Over 35 000 people attended the show over the three days of the show. Thankfully Friday was a little quiet, so I was able to sneak away and check out some of the great gear on show.

I stopped in on the guys from Aussie Swag Campers to check out their new model. They now have a neat diesel heater in their 2011 model, and I think the changes they have made to the kitchen over the years has been fantastic. I enquired about putting a new kitchen box on our 2005 Aussie Swag, but with the changes up front adding too much tow ball weight, the whole axle has been moved forward about six inches. Hmm, too big a job for this punter.

The simple luxuries of life

How do you get the whole family to embrace camping?

Easy, bring all the comforts of home into a natural setting. Allow the kids to poke sticks in fires, marvel at wildlife passing through your field of view, enjoy a home cooked meal, a chilled wine or beer, count the stars as they come out and retire to a comfortable bed after a warm shower.

Impossible? well not really.

There are a few really neat looking vehicles that will allow you to explore almost anywhere in the world, with most of life's luxuries to hand. Some that look amazing are the Australian built Earth Cruiser and the Adventurer 4x4 Motorhome.

The only problem is the price tag - and the fact most of these vehicles are perfectly set up for a couple. There is no market for a self contained family 4x4 touring vehicle except for in America, home of the Earth Roamer based on the F550 truck (I don't mind their Jeep version, but perhaps once the kids leave home). These are all highly specialised vehicles and if you wanted to tour the world's remotest areas, they would be ideal. In the meantime I can continue to use Google to dream and try to find the perfect compromise :)

Most of us mortals are constrained to using a 4WD wagon or ute that doubles as the family hack during the week. Now whilst a vehicle of this type is more than big enough if your camping equipment consists of a swag and an esky, there are a few creature comforts necessary to ensure repeated camping experiences with the wife and family.

Free Hand Winch!!!

After our last camping trip turned out to be a little chilly, we have been waiting for warmer weather to head out under canvas again. As with all these things, life gets in the road of camping adventures, and finding free weekends seems to be more and more challenging. Still we can take solace in the beautiful weather that has graced the Southern Highlands recently as we re-discover our old friend, the Sun.

With a busy schedule of birthday parties, school excursions and home renovations, I haven’t had much time to tinker with the Terracan or the Camper, Matilda. Indeed the camper lies under wraps eagerly anticipating the next opportunity to get dirty, whenever that might be.

Always an opportunist I had been keeping an eye out for a Hand Winch. Second hand winches are available, but the quality was a concern. Also cheap winches from China seemed to make the grade, but I was not confident to leap in and purchase one. You can thus imagine joy when I ducked into Repco for a couple of small hose claps the other day to discover a 20% discount for NRMA members and a lonely Hand Winch and Tree Truck Protector looking for a new home.

To her credit, Jo didn’t even roll her eyes when I came home with my $400 hose clamps that came with a free winch and tree trunk protector…. I am a lucky man!

But having a new toy in its packet is a sad state of affairs. I was determined NOT to be on the side of a track, bogged to the gunwales, only to find out the new winch is missing some critical piece of hardware or worse still I am unable to make it work. I elected to give the winch a try on the weekend.

Oallen Ford - July 2011

This is my first blog from Blogger - hopefully a little easier to use on the road and import into the Australia4WD site. Please let me know how it works.

How cold do you want it?
I am sure there is an expression somewhere about Mad Dogs and Englishmen being out in the fierce midday sun. If so there must be an expression of similar but opposite sentiment about camping in the middle of winter…

But I had finished making a bike rack for the camper and was keen to test it out. Also we had missed the opportunity to get away a few weeks ago and my feet were getting itchy for a night or two under canvas, so with half an eye on the forecast, we set off.

We decided for want of convenience Oallen Ford, a beautiful spot on the Shoalhaven River in between Nerriga and Tarago. Normally the place is full of campers and their dogs and bogans with their hounds, however we were a little surprised and relieved to have the place all but to ourselves.


Our Campsite

We set up camp and enjoyed a curry I had prepared earlier in the day whilst the kids were at school. The Thermal Cooker dispensed the delicious curry which the family devoured wholeheartedly. It seemed that in the short hour or two since we had arrived the boy’s appetites had grown enormously and I was glad I had prepared double rations.

Snow - and the longest journey to get there!

With all the cold weather blasting its way over the southern tablelands this past week or so, I had it on good authority that there would be a good dusting of snow in the Brindabella Mountains, just south of Canberra. I figured when the BOM said there were likely to be blizzard conditions and snow down to 900 metres we would have as good as chance as any of finding plenty of the white stuff to play in.

In previous years we had organised a convoy with either the good folk from this forum, or from our local community to go into the hills with the simple objective of finding enough snow for the kids to make a snowman, have a snowfight and perhaps even a simple toboggan (on an old boogie board). We have found snow on each of our previous excursions to the south of Picadilly Circus on the Mount Franklin Road.

The late notice meant we were setting forth solo. Maxtrax were loaded into Terry, along with a primus stove, dry clothes, lunch and extra provisions for the Hobbits.

The Little Helpers are excited to be heading south!

So off we set – confidently proceeding over Uriarra Crossing and on our way up the mountains. The little helpers knew we were off to find snow, but we hadn't promised anything until we saw the mountains in the distance, with a great white colouring... excitement was building, promises were made that we would be soon playing in the snow when disaster struck...

4WD Storage - How we fit it all in...

One of the challenges facing any family going camping is how to fit everything in, and more importantly, how to keep everything organised during the trip. Our first camping trip in our humble Subaru nearly ended in disaster. Everything we needed seemed to be at the bottom of the pile of gear in the back, and required a major exercise in repacking every time we wanted to access it.

Needless to say a new system was required - and fast if I was ever to convince the family that camping could be fun!

Along came the Terracan, and I started thinking about how we could make life easier for us when we went camping. I had a few rudimentary ideas running around my head, when we bought an alloy sump guard. With the sump guard came a wooden box that the former owner had made for his newly traded Terracan.


The simple box structure is made out of 12mm ply


The top had cleats to allow use of the original cargo net

It looked like a great template from which to base our draw system. We thought we would start using it with the aim of working out what we wanted from a draw system. Funnily enough, we have worked out a system to fit the box!

We found some plastic tubs at Bunnings / Magnet Mart that fit perfectly in the box. They stack inside each other if required, or on top of each other if full of stuff. You can also purchase lids it you want. Originally there was a fridge slide on the right hand side, but we found we could fit a tub neatly in the space, with enough room for our esky to sit on top. On the left hand side we can stack up to three standard tubs, with enough room for a folding 1200 x 600mm table to sit flush next to them.

This is our most common configuration - the bottom box on the left contains heavy tools and spares

We can fit the tubs in various configurations:



We can even put two tubs on the top shelf - which is handy when camping. Usually we can keep the top relatively open, but when tent based camping, the top shelf contains most of our bedding, and it also will easily fit our camp chairs and bench.

There is enough room on the sides to shove all manner of items - we tend to put the kids sports gear on the right hand side (totem tennis, cricket bat and ball and picnic rugs). On the left we can fit in a first aid kit, axe, shovel and various ropes and odd bits. With careful packing, sleeping mats can also fit shoved down the side.

An added bonus of this style of draws is that we can do the majority of packing inside the house (or shed) and simply slide the draws in when required. This is fantastic as it means that we can get most of our packing done early (or leave all our gear packed) but don't have to leave it in the car. You can see on the right one of the taller tubs we use sometimes - it is compatible with the smaller tubs.

It is great being able to pack everything inside and just take the full box to the car once!

One other thing that has made our lives a lot easier is a seat-back organiser for the Little Helpers. There is plenty of room in this offering from Supercheap Auto for colouring in pens, colouring book, a few matchbox cars and a water bottle. It has worn surprisingly well considering the purchase price but I think will need to be replaced soon with something a little more hard wearing. It means the boys have their own little space that they look after and allows plenty of activities to keep them amused on the road. No we don't have a DVD player, and we hope to keep it that way.

Supercheap Auto Seatback Organiser

We have been trying a few different options with where we keep everything. On our last trip we stored the camper's awnings in the car, and used the space under the bed in the camper for clothing (in baskets we borrowed from one of the boy's wardrobes). It worked really well and made life a lot easier once we had set up, as we weren't tripping over a bag of clothes in the camper. Once we had the awning set up, we had plenty more space in the car, which was welcome.

Of course it is all a work in progress, and subject to constant change and modification (but that is half the fun), we have found that sometimes a really simple and cheap solution is really effective, and actually suits our purposes more than a more expensive inbuilt unit might.

Green Patch - June 2011

The lead up
What is it about mechanical appliances? Just as I am about to board a flight for sunny Cairns, our Subaru develops an alarming noise when depressing the clutch… No worries me thinks – I am away for the week, so we can put the Suby in for a new clutch, leaving Terry to be the primary family hauler whilst I am away. Whilst I am away our oven dies, requiring complete replacement (thankfully without requiring a cabinet maker’s services), and then after a particularly cold night and day in the frosty Southern Highlands, Terry decides not to start.

I received a panic call from my wife, Jo, telling me Terry won’t start because the battery is stuffed, and asking if she should buy a new battery for the Terracan. It seems a fair request – battery is original and the weather was particularly bitter that day (I think she said it got to a maximum of four degrees on our verandah). A little more discussion and it turns out that Terry actually started and ran for a moment before stalling…. Hmmm…. I start thinking that perhaps the battery is fine, and it was the repeated attempts to start the car that flattened it.

I am in no position to help. Cairns is so far away and about 25 degrees warmer… I can feel Jo's frustration as she is stranded with two little helpers suffering a very bad dose of Cabin Fever. I try to make noises of how tough I am working, but I fear I have no sympathy at all coming back down the phone line.

I suggest that charging the battery overnight would be a good start (another bitter frost) and see what happens in the morning. The next morning Terry started and stalled again.

NRMA man comes and Terry starts and runs beautifully after pumping the fuel hand pump. It would appear our Terracan had an air pocket or similar in the fuel line. No obvious explanation. Yes, the fuel is winter blend. No, there are no fuel leaks. Yes, the battery is fine.

I figure that everyone was just more than a little jealous of my time in far north Queensland. I try to remind them that I suffer sea sickness and am not looking forward to the next few hours, as I climb up the gangway of the “Reef Magic”… My sentiments fall on deaf ears as I discover that the chill from the southern highlands can indeed be transmitted to Cairns via a phone line!

I don't know how she does it
I came home to a miracle. After a challenging week with the two little helpers pushing every button, vehicle breakdowns and appliance failures, my wife has managed to organise a group of friends to come away camping for the long weekend, pack Terry and Matilda and . Within a couple of hours of touching down, we are back on the road as a happy (if slightly exhausted) family heading east to paradise.

Our destination was Green Patch, in the Booderee National Park, Jervis Bay, about 2 and a half hours east of home. We were catching up with some good friends whom we have camped with before. The kids were primed for a weekend adventure, however I think the rest of us were looking forward to (hoping for???) a relaxing weekend. Dean and Mandy brought their three girls to try out their new caravan for its maiden voyage - a slight step up from our last Bendethera Valley adventure, and Nic and Dave persisted with their tent that had shared adventures with us in the Kosciuszko National Park and Ravine.

We arrived just before dark and quickly set up camp. The weather held off just long enough to enjoy a delicious curry dinner that had been prepared earlier. Not for the first time we appreciated the Thermal Cooker Pot. A shower or two or rain saw us set a record for the set up of the awning (beaten only when it hailed on us when setting up last December), and we retired early to enjoy the sounds of rain falling heavily on the canvas.

Green Patch
The south easterly weather pattern dominated our long weekend down the coast, but it didn't stop the fun. Thankfully the rain was heaviest at night, all but disappeared during the day and occasionally, very occasionally the sun came out to brighten the day. Fresh from the tableland winter, the little helpers thought it was paradise and we couldn't keep them out of the water. When they finally turned blue and admitted they were cold, we simply gave them nice warm showers and put them in dry clothes.


The water was chilly, even if too tempting to resist


The famous white sand was perfect for sandcastles

The Little Fisherman was determined to add to his catch of a single flounder on our last expedition. At school he had recently presented a short speech about how much he loved fishing and one day he hoped to catch a fish big enough to eat. Unfortunately it was not to be.. but that's not the point is it?


It is all about having fun


Especially when your fishing friend Dave is on hand to untangle the lines!

Of course the Little Helper had lost all interest in fishing by this point in time, much preferring to dig more sandcastles and swim some more. And who could argue with him. The water, whilst chilly was crystal clear and the beach sheltered with barely a ripple save for the tiny waves breaking on the beach. Green Patch is one of the few truly north facing beaches on the east coast, and when the sun did appear for its brief moments, it was really very pleasant.


When the fish aren't biting there is plenty of sand to play with


Or water to swim in

The main aim of any such weekend is to take some time out of normal routine and relax. And in such a beautiful piece of paradise it is easy to do so. Of course you have to be careful that:


the kookaburra's don't steal a sausage from the electric BBQ...


or the rosellas and parrots don't eat all your bread...


or you trip over the kangaroos!

Of course we all appreciated the down time and break from our seemingly hectic schedules. We loved the fact that we could sit and relax. The kids conducted numerous laps of the camping area on their bikes. Time trials were a great challenge that never seemed to lose their appeal. They also frequently raided the comfort of Dean and Mandy's new caravan to enjoy drawing and colouring in (or was it DVD's?) in the comfort of the settee.


If you look carefully you might see some of the campers flat out enjoying the serenity

The facilities of the camp included hot showers, electric BBQ and washing up facilities. Each campsite is clearly marked, and separated by landscaped boundaries. For a long weekend, the area was surprisingly empty with only a handful of us braving the weather and enjoying the campground. The Rangers were friendly and helpful, however when booking our sites, the office seemed a little disorganised and our sites were moved a couple of times before we finally arrived.

In all we had a great long weekend camping in a winter paradise. More photos of our adventure can be found at our Gallery, and more information on Jervis Bay generally can be found at Jervis Bay Tourism.

Thank you to Dean and Mandy for tolerating our little helpers who made themselves at home in your new caravan, and to Nic and Dave who helped keep the little ones amused by day, and the bigger ones amused, fed and watered by night. A huge thank you to my wife, Jo, who pulled it all together after a challenging week home alone with two boisterous lads.

South Coast Fun - Easter 2011

With the unusually long weekend over Easter and ANZAC day this year, it was too good an opportunity to miss. With many other like minded souls, we headed down from the hills to enjoy the coast for a few days. The weekend was not intended to be a 4WD adventure, merely a leisurely drive down through Tarago and Nerriga to our destination on the northern shores of Lake Conjola.

We were staying with good friends, whom despite our best efforts, we catch up with infrequently. Whilst we try to meet around ANZAC day annually, we seem to only make it every third or fourth year. So you could say we were really looking forward to our weekend down at the coast.

With the spare bedroom (Matilda – our Aussie Swag Camper) hooked on behind Terry, we pushed off on after I finished work on Saturday morning. It was a great feeling to hit the road and coming down the hill near Sassafras we glimpsed the Tasman Sea, looking very blue and inviting.

Having done our first four wheel driving in this part of the world, we thought we would take a short cut to the Princess Highway from Main Road 92, so instead of turning right onto Turpentine Road, the GPS suggested a short cut through Wandean Fire Trail... Of course I didn’t have our topographic maps with us, the Maxtrax were sitting next to the long handled shovel in the shed at home and I was just a little tired after night shift the previous evening... What could possibly go wrong?

If we had stayed on Wandean Fire Trail, we would have come out unsurprisingly at Wandean, on the highway. Instead we ended up heading off in the wrong direction. A few moments later it dawned on us that we would have to turn around – no easy feat on narrow forest trails with Matilda hooked on the back.

A nice wide drainage culvert was chosen to do the deed, however after backing and filling to get the nose into the culvert with the trailer straight, I (driving now) felt an uncomfortable slipping of the tyres as we slid sideways to the bottom of the culvert. Attempts to move forward were met with no result. Attempts to move backwards were also met with no result. Stuck!

A dark cloud formed over us as the air turned blue and the little helpers slowly began to realise that they would not be getting lunch in 10 minutes… My mind was trying to work out a way out… letting tyres down was an option. We did have a garden spade and an axe in the car to assist in moving a bit of dirt around. We could wait for someone to pull us out. Nothing was going to be quick and we were all in ‘good clothes’.

Ah – but I had just finished two nights shifts, I was grumpy and by now a little hungry. So with a bit of right foot, and rocking back and forward we finally broke free from the mud and made our way back onto the track where there was much rejoicing! Sorry I didn’t pause to take photos - but we were by now on a mission to get to our destination and get some hungry boys fed!

We drove on another 200metres and turned around comfortably at the junction of two tracks!!! Lesson learnt.

The rest of the weekend was fantastic. Lake Conjola was beautiful and the waters crystal clear. The Little Fisherman was in his element, with whiting, flathead and puffer fish nibbling his bait under his very eyes. Despite our best efforts of putting a little bait on a very large hook to avoid catching any fish, he managed to catch his first fish – a Flounder.

The Little Fisherman patiently waits


Success!

The other little helper loved the warm waters, and frolicking in the shallows. He has little interest in fishing – much preferring to build sandcastles or play with his trucks and diggers. The coast here gives many options from sheltered lake waters to open surf beaches to suit all levels of experience and adrenalin.


The beach was glorious, the food delicious and the beer cold. We enjoyed a great game of Settlers of Catan one evening, which was hotly contested. This is a fantastic game where strategy and luck combine with negotiation skills to ensure that everyone has a reasonable chance at victory. The extension pack allowed six of us to colonise islands and build our empires with much merriment all round.

On ANZAC day we attended a very pleasant Dawn Service at Ulladulla. The Little Helpers both were given the option of attending, and both willingly agreed. They behaved beautifully through the service, and as a treat later we enjoyed some cinnamon toast at a café overlooking the harbour, before hitting the (in)famous Funland for a drive of the Dodgem Cars.

The dodgem cars were a great hit... literally!


The boys enjoy a stroll along Ulladulla Harbour... a minute later they were both in the water up to their necks!

In all it was a great weekend – with great company and we hope to do it all again soon. We must say a big thank you to Bel, Rob and little Hugh for hosting us at your piece of paradise. Thanks also to Nic and Dave for putting the gourmet into catering!

Needless to say we came home via Turpentine Road thankfully without further incident!

Deua National Park - March 2011

With foreboding skies we escaped from the grind for a much anticipated trip into the Bendethera Valley, south of Braidwood. We planned on camping with a group of friends for a couple of relaxing nights in paradise.

The mighty Terracan was packed to capacity with essential supplies for a successful weekend in the bush – bikes, cricket set, totem tennis set, soccer ball and matchbox cars for outside play, with colouring-in books in case of poor weather. We also fitted in a tent, some bedding and some food… little did we realise until after we arrived that we had left the milk at home!

After rendezvousing with our good friends in Braidwood we pointed the vehicles south for our entry to Deua National Park. We let our tyres down while the kids attempted to fill the Shoalhaven River with pebbles. After a nervous look at the sky we crossed our fingers and engaged 4WD for our entry into the park and the trek into the Bendethera Valley.

Successfully across the Shoalhaven River From Deua NP March 2011

Our friend's Hilux takes the plunge From Deua NP March 2011

As we headed into the valley the rain continued to fall which made for a picturesque journey in. Some of the sections in the mist of the clouds were positively eerie, however the track was in good condition and being rocky based, we left little trace of our passage.

The misty trip in From Deua NP March 2011

The descent into the valley From Deua NP March 2011

Unfortunately on our arrival in the valley the Deua River was too high and fast flowing to cross safely. With evening approaching and the little helpers restless, we decided to make camp. Our resultant camp was with the leeches on the junction of the Dampier Mountain Fire Trail and the entrance into the valley. Not the picturesque haven he hoped for, but at least we were able to get out of the valley if we desired. Some other poor party had been stuck in the valley for three days and things were getting desperate – they had run out of beer!

Camp From Deua NP March 2011

With the rain continuing to threaten, we were all thankful for the dinner that was sitting in the thermal pot. Some good foresight by SWMBO resulted in a delicious caserole for minimum effort. The thermal cooker has become one of our most used kitchen items, being used to prepare a delicious creamy porridge in the evening, so that when the hungry little helpers awake, we can rest a few moments longer knowing that breakfast is already cooked.

The other accessory that has become essential in our travels and at home is our travel mug. This mug by Contigo is hard to find, but is spill and leak proof. It also keeps my coffee really hot. As I am the only coffee drinker in my family (apparently it makes me a nicer person), a full plunger is too much coffee to drink in one session. With this cup I can pour one for me now and one for later. I have been told it works well on peppermint tea also!

Aaah.... coffee :) From Deua NP March 2011

The following day our camp expanded with two other families arriving from the west. Another two tried to make it in from Mourya, however were thwarted by the mighty Deua River still flowing far too strongly to cross. We made the best of our time enjoying watching people enter the valley full of bravado only to have second thoughts when they saw the river. Unfortuately with the river so high and fast the Little Fisherman was bound to be disappointed, however a lot of assistance was required in freeing lines and hooks from obstructions and tangles, so as a time killing exercise the fishing was a success.

The Little Fisherman... dejected isn't the word From Deua NP March 2011

The first lads across the river were a group of young fellas from the Thong Strap 4WD club – and to tell the truth we were a bit relieved. With camping equipment consisting of a swag and an esky, these young blokes proved that after a few considering ales, nothing was impossible. Thankfully they all made it across with a lot of right foot and luck, and took their vehicles and doof doof stereos well into the valley.

The young lads make their crossing... just	Lots of right foot and a loud stereo helped From Deua NP March 2011

On Sunday we broke camp and bid adieu to our friends and returned home. The skies had cleared and apparently the river continued to drop, although crossings into the valley remained challenging. We heard on the grapevine that a Hilux was swept off one of the crossings on Sunday afternoon. I guess it goes to confirm the advice that you should plan Bendethera valley for dry weather only.

As usual, more snaps of the weekend can be found

Ravine - Kosciuszko National Park

With the sun shining, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Soundtrack playing and Matilda hooked up, we departed home and headed south for a four day camping trip back in the High (or as it turned out not so high) Country.

We took the scenic route south from Tharwa to Adaminaby via the Boboyan Road. Whilst it is 60km shorter than following the main highway via Cooma, it has quite a bit of slow going sections. I don’t think we saved any time, however the Gudgenby Valley Lookout is well worth a stop and look and we enjoyed the road less travelled.

We stopped for lunch at Adaminaby. The bigger of the two little helpers (The Little Fisherman) correctly identified the giant fish which adorns the small park in the village as a Rainbow Trout. This of course is not from the actual experience of catching a fish, but the addictive iPhone application Flick Fishing.

From Ravine Camp

Giant Trout at Adaminaby

We pushed on as we were keen to meet up with our friends who we had planned to meet at Ravine, on the Yarrangobilly River. Armed with the worthy directions of Craig Lewis and Cathy Savage we soon found our way to the perfect campsite on the banks of the river.


Yarrangobilly River at Ravine

We camped just downstream from the ruins of the Washington Hotel, in a lovely clearing with good access to the river. The bridge over the river has long been washed away, and the river crossing looked rather gnarly with large rocks and holes awaiting the unsuspecting. A couple of lifted Cruisers with much bigger tyres than us made it over during our time there, but we decided it wasn’t worth the risk of damage for the sake of driving over onto Lobs Hole Fire trail.

Instead we sat back - tried our luck fishing and enjoyed the serenity.

From Ravine Camp

The Little Fisherman tries his luck

On our second day we decided to explore a little bit of the area, and ventured back up the hill. The views from Wallace Creek Lookout were very pleasant, although the little people seemed more interested in a line of cicadas on a nearby gum tree.

From Ravine Camp

Wallace Creek Lookout

We then thought Three Mile Dam would be a nice spot for lunch, with the opportunity for The Little Fisherman to wet a line. How wrong we were. The weather at nearly 1500m above sea level is considerably cooler than at the 600m of our camp, and was not entirely unexpected. What was really unexpected the size and ferocity of the March Flies that commenced swarming as soon as we started putting lunch together. The kids were bustled back into the car, lest they be carried away by the monsters. Lunch was made hurriedly with two ‘swotters’ appointed to protect the sandwich makers, before we all beat a retreat to the safety of the cars to enjoy our lunch in some relative peace.

From Ravine Camp

Three Mile Dam

We headed down the hill to what is left of Kiandra and the relics of the heady days of the Gold Rush. It is great to see the old Kiandra Court House being restored, however much of what is left of the town can only be imagined from information plaques around the old town site. We tried our hand at fishing on the Eucambene River, however this time a large Tiger Snake discouraged further efforts and we returned back down the hill, our exploring efforts complete.

From Ravine Camp

Ore Crushing Battery at Kiandra

Sadly our friends had to leave us on day three, but we had two further nights down in the valley. It drizzled off and on, but thankfully due to our elevation, it wasn’t too cold. The little helpers even borrowed a bucket or two from the river to ensure the mud was just the right consistency for good old mud pies. Between the mud, bikes, matchbox cars and a totem tennis kit, we had plenty to keep us amused.

From Ravine Camp

From Ravine Camp

We thoroughly enjoyed our four days away, however were horrified at the news of the Toowomba and Lockyer Valley floods on our return to civilisation and mobile phones. We hope that those of you affected by this tragedy, and all the other flooding from Queensland to Victoria stay safe and well, and are back on your feet before too long.

Some more photos of our adventure can be found here:

Ravine Camp