Monday 17 December 2012

Season completed

Well the work on the station has been completed and maintenance is all that's left to do. Jay has spent time working on the trucks fixing pump problems, serviced all the water pumps and the firefighters for the utes. A few weeks have been spent yard building and putting up some new fence and that's hard work in over 40 degree heat. There are lots of yards all over the station as its so big which means you don't have to drove the cattle for too far to the house yards.
Jay has learned a lot about the yard building process and the welding side of things even getting the opportunity to drive the bobcat and the big heavy rigid trucks.
Most people learn at a training facility but out here you learn as you go. Driving the crash box through sandy creeks and dirt was certainly a task.
We have both been able to get a bit of time up in the helicopter and its just amazing to see the land from the air. Everything is so flat but the landscape is beautiful. Wild brumbies, pigs, dingo's and crocs can all be seen more easily from the air.


Flying over the Mitchell river was amazing and you can see how big this majestic river must swell to in the wet season. The view is stunning and not many people will get to see it from this angle, another perk of station life.



At the end of the season there is now nobody to cook for and it's time to go for a holiday, we have decided to head to Melbourne without the camper trailer and visit family and friends. We will take the big Suzuki bike with us and leave it in Melbourne as we have not really used it like we thought we might. Rather than carry the weight it's best to take this opportunity to redefine the load we are towing and give the old Jackaroo a break.

The Jackaroo has had new suspension fitted all round from ironman in cairns, new BF Goodrich A/T tyres too. The car feels like its floating on air and a lot better than we had expected !
Jay serviced the car before leaving and using the stations multi purpose 15w40 oil soon discovered its not working too well in the Jackaroo !
We will have to look into the best oil for the car as its a bit hit and miss with what you can get your hands on being so remote......but fresh oil is better than none I guess.



We a due back at Dunbar early in January to look after the place whilst the mangers go for a holiday. Jay will maintain the generators and keep the water pumps running
Whilst they are gone. It will be an amazing sight to see the new green growth and all that water. The wildlife will get a bit more in your face too we are told as they scramble for somewhere dry to stay. I guess jay will have to share the workshop with some roo's !

The weather in Melbourne is as you would expect and cold one minute, raining then sunny.....but we packed our clothes for this kind of change so its good to be wrapped up and feel cold again........lol












Location:Dunbar station

Thursday 2 August 2012

Our First Cattle Station Job

Dunbar Cattle station

The Jackaroo is fixed and running as well as it was and we where getting itchy for another location now we are mobile again.  Stookie has spent some time working for HONDA in Cairns but we where more looking for cattle station jobs to get the outback experience.
Stookie put an add on www.gumtree.com.au with a brief description of our abilities and enthusiasm for cattle station work. We also mentioned we are travelling as a family and where available to travel anywhere. We waited with anticipation on somebody contacting us. The website was full of backpackers looking to extend their work visa doing 3 month rural work to achieve it. We felt a bit disheartened that being a family would not work in our favour. Australian news was full of outback businesses complaining they could not find workers, yet here we are prepared to travel and even bring our own accommodation and still nothing after numerous applications. I thought that maybe the Rural Outback preferred immigrant workers due to the level of pay and the subsidising they got from the government.......how is an Aussie family meant to get on battling that ?
Within a week we did get a call from one of the largest family owned beef companies in Australia. Unfortunately for Stookie it was a cook they where after so Lil stepped up and within 4 days we had left Cairns and where on our way to Dunbar Station, 310 km North of Chillagoe.
We where invited as a family with all accommodation (3 bedroom house) food, electricity part of the salary package and a weekly wage would also be paid. 
We where ecstatic at the offer and keen to get out there and give it a shot.
We headed to Chillagoe and spent  2 nights in the caravan park in a cabin, I know a bit of spoiling was going on......no unpacking the CT again.
We spent a day exploring around the area looking at "the arches" and some ancient aboriginal wall paintings. We also took a look at the old smelting plant but due to uman existence being wrapped up in cotton wool now you couldn't get within 1/2 km of it.
The arches

Cave Paintings































The road from Chillagoe to Dunbar is all dirt with some decent washouts and rutted areas, not to mention the bulldust holes. Since we had the Mighty DR650 bike Stookie rode ahead and let us know of Road trains and Bulldust holes before we hit them. We often saw a massive puff of dust as stookie ploughed through a bull dust hole and then waited for the call on the radio to let us know which way to go, left or right of the track. Some of the scenery is spectacular as you get to a raised hill and look out over the savannah, its very beautiful.
The beauty is then disturbed by Stookie screaming on the radio......."GET OFF THE ROAD NOW.................ROAD TRAIN "
Travelling at 80kmph with 1500kg of trailer is not the easiest thing to slow down so getting a headsup of the road train was very helpful........the dust storm left behind is out of control, its post apocalyptic and creepy as the sun gets dull   and your breathing in the outback. These trucks are 3 carriages long and would need a LONG TIME to slow down so you need to get off the road and wait as you cant drive through the dust storm that follows as visibility is NIL.
We felt happy we where in the car as Stookie up front on the Motorbike copped it big time.........
After the first one passed we had just started to move then we get another call to get off the road as there was another one coming........3 in totals which gave us the chance to get a pee break for the kids.




Road Train




Tha Jackaroo train........no comparison !!!


 We soon came across our first causway crossing over the Walsh river. There was a little water on the causeway but nothing to be concerned about. the water is a welcome sight in the dry outback.
No stopping for a dip or a break as we have quite a distance to go.
Walsh River Crossing


 We got a call on the radio that Stookie had stopped on the bike as a Father and son out camping on the river had a flat battery. They had been playing the radio for days on end and running some 12v accessories and had no idea how they had flattened the battery. They didn't have jumper leads and had spent the morning walking to the main road in the hope a car would go past.
We unhitched the trailer and sat and had a picnic in the shade as Stookie took the Jack to help them get going again. The track to the river was rough, and there wasnt really a track for most of it.
The car got a good and proper workout and lots of new pinstripes. The Pajero was a diesel and the battery was buggered. It took Stookie 30 min to get enough charge into it to get the thing to crank. The father kept turning it over and draining what was being put in until Stookie ripped him a new one and told him to leave it alone until he fixed it. This father and son combo knew NOTHING about cars, batteries and would have been really in trouble had we not came along. A Scotsman helping 2 useless Aussies stuck in the bush out of sheer stupidity, generally its the other way around....... They got going again and where told to leave the car running and pack up and go home as they had been very lucky.

We hitched up the trailer and made tracks again arriving at Dunbar station in the later part of the afternoon. We where greeted by Peter and Debra Hagan and shown to our home for a few months.
We where happy to be here and with our own little part of paradise in the middle of the savannah country. We are the luckiest family to experience this station till the end of the season and we are sure to make many great memories here.

This is what its all about...........
Our new Home for a while
If you are looking for station work you can check out our facebook page for a comrehensive list of rural employment options.
click here for facebook page 

Monday 18 June 2012

Cape tribulation

We managed to get out in the car on the weekend as it was finally fixed.
3 weeks of not knowing what's going on and what it's going to cost. Our dream trip may have been ending early but the Jackaroo lives again.
The guys at Repco service in cairns done a great job and I was very happy to dish out more money as I knew the lengths these guys went to to get it perfect unlike HOLDEN.
I've discussed with Holden in Warragul about there monumental failure but they don't take customer service seriously and are offering a tiny amount in comparison as to what we have now shelled out.
Anyway...........

We headed of up to cape tribulation to a little beach I found when out riding the dirt bike a few years back after the CREB track. It's on the Bloomfield and I'm guessing it's not widely know about ( unless your a local)

The beach is just past Donovan's range after about three creek crossings.
It's stunning and has the finest golden sands. The water pools up in shallow areas so it's perfect to let the kids go wild in as there is no danger of rocks or critters. Further out you can see coral reef and some bigger fish and even stingrays which I encountered when walking through some pools with the camera.

The water is warm and the kids all had a ball running around soaking each other and digging holes. There are smaller fish in the pools and if you sat still they would come nibble your fingers and toes. Matilda wasn't quite sure what to make of them nibbling her toes but lil looked at it as a free pedicure.

It was great to be out and about again as we had all really missed the old Jackaroo. The kids had a great day out and slept most of the way home as they where buggered from all the action on the beach.


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Location:Cape tribulation

Saturday 9 June 2012

Car troubles

Car troubles are something we had not anticipated after getting a complete overhaul from our local Holden dealer in Warragul. The old Jackaroo had been running great and our fuel economy was better then ever after I gave it the NULON E30 treatment. This bottle of magic reduces friction and frees up the engine and any sticky valves.
We had the Holden dealer replace the timing belts and the water pump. The other belts were also replaced along with new coolant and brake fluid.
The car was towing well except when there was poor fuel in the small petrol stations which we tried to avoid after getting really bad economy.
After leaving Yeppoon we headed for Cairns not expecting to arrive the next morning. We stopped at St Lawrence 226km from Yeppoon to find there was a rather large RV club meeting and the place was jammed and had big RV's taking up every available spot.
We gave the kids a break and decided we would just pull and overnight drive and get to Cairns. We got all the kids gear organised and headed away from the giant motorhomes.
I fell asleep through Townsville and Lil carried on along the Bruce Hwy expecting to fuel up in Ingham. On arriving in Ingham the 24hr servo was closed leaving us with a reserve light on the dash.
We jumped online and sure enough the Caltex in Ingham was advertised as 24hr but it wasn't
. We could head on and take our chance or head back to Townsville where we had passed a fair few.
We had just enough to get to Townsville and headed back for fuel.
After our detour we managed to get to the start of the Banana plantations and then the rain started. I remember it happened at the same place last time we drove to Cairns a few years back.
We arrived at a friends place at 6am and it was great to be able to let the kids out to meet their new friends and let Boo stretch her legs.
We parked the trailer up in the garden and got everything set up.
The following day I decided to take Hamish and Boo to the beach and off we went in the car.
It was really noisy, there was a metallic tapping noise that I didnt like the noise of. After some poking around and research I came to the conclusion that the timing belt tensioner had given up.
The guys at Holden said ours was in good condition and didn't need replaced. They informed us the part was no longer made and we where lucky ours was intact. Now I know a bit about engines and was a bit perplexed that a tensioner was not available !!!!
I called Holden in Warragul and let them know what had happened. The Service manager explained it was going to be pot luck if the tensioner held out anyway.
I was well beyond furious and hung up on them wondering what are we going to do now.
I noticed the belts had DAYCO written on them so I called them and spoke with Dave who informed me the tensioner is available and he had it in stock.
Dave told me that a timing belt should NEVER be replaced without a tensioner as the extra pressure of new belts would destroy an old tensioner.
Dave said he would give us a new kit and tensioner for free as he was very disappointed the HOLDEN had buggered up the job.
We where sent to a reputable mechanic in Cairns called Keith Wone.
Keith had a look and told us the noise was the valves and that the damage had probably been done and we now had scrap.
He said he would have a more in depth look and inform us the following day.
Let me tell you that it was the longest 24 hrs ever !!!!!!

We got a call and Keith said that the it was in fact the tensioner and that the car was repairable. The Jackaroo has a free spinning engine and the timing belt jumping a tooth was not enough to damage the valves.
This was great news for us and we where so relieved the Jackaroo was going to make it.
Dayco sent up the kit and keith had a chat to the mechanics at Holden and he lost his temper a bit i think as he was very animated in telling me about the conversation they had.
Keith also confirmed you would NEVER replace a timing belt without a tensioner and its best to not replace it at all.

So the car was fixed when Keith noticed a hairline crack on the timing belt pulley and gave it a wiggle to see if it was cracked, sure enough it snapped in his hand. Now Murphy's law enters the equation and sure enough this part cannot be purchased anymore and we would have to locate one from a wreckers.
3 weeks have gone and Keith located one. These pulleys are hard to find as the wreckers wont take it off a working engine otherwise they are left with a useless engine. We where lucky to get one and waited on its arrival.
Keith gave us a call to let us know the part had arrived and I told him we where so grateful for his amazing service........he interrupted me to let me know that the freight company had damaged it in transit and it wasn't going to work. After some more calls he has managed to locate another one thats made of metal and he is sure it will fit.
This is where we are at so far and now just waiting o the arrival of the new pulley so we can get our car back.

Once the car is working starts my battle with the Holden Dealer to have them pay for the repair that need not have happened had they done their job properly. They knew we where traveling in the car but where still content to do half a job and almost wreck a dream of a lifetime.

Fingers crossed the part arrives intact and fits...........




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Location:Cairns

Wednesday 9 May 2012

Camping with a crawler!

Kids are grubby enough at the best of times and the amount of washing they generate in an environment with easy access to a washing machine is bad enough, let alone when on the road and your washing machine is a bucket on the roof of the car! A crawler just adds a whole new dimension to washing when living on the road. I never want to hurry the kids through developmental milestones, however I'll be one happy mumma when Matilda starts walking! I've always prided myself on whites being white and clothes stain free, but I'm finding that a massive undertaking these days. I've pretty well resigned myself to the fact that Matilda's pants will all be dark at the knees and her tops slightly stained around the neckline. Fortunately I've made some headway getting some nasty stains out of the sleeves of some of her tops. I have to fold the sleeves in on themselves a little before giving a really good rub and they come up pretty well. I'm using a home made washing powder, mostly for environmental reasons. I do much of the washing close to waterways and don't want to contaminate them with anything nasty.
My recipe is: 1 bar of Velvet Pure soap or Sard soap, finely grated 2 cups/500g of Borax (can have environmental impact, but in these levels is considered minimal) 2 cups/500g of Lectric Soda Powder (not the crystals!) Mix together well. Use 2 tbsp per normal sized load. Add a couple of drops of Eucalyptus Oil as a softener. White vinegar also acts as a softener as well as an antibacterial. For tough stains, I use a bar of soap rubbed into the stain and worked in a little to help with removal, though this takes a little more work to rinse out. This is Matilda helping me on washing day (which is most days, really!).

Tuesday 8 May 2012

No more gremlins.

After sleepless nights with the fridge cutting out it turns out the setup you have been sold and recommended isn't quite upto sustained use. Sure it might be adequate for a long weekend but living from it is different.
After the fridge giving me errors I sent an email to Evakool and got some amazing tech support from Brodie. Turns out the wiring I had installed was not thick enough and I was getting to much voltage drop. After changing the wiring and leaving the fridge close to battery there hasn't been any dramas. We drove from moruya NSW to just past the QLD border overnight as it was cold in moruya and we had hoped for better weather.
After arriving at rocky hole camp spot the sun was out and the solar was going off it's cracker.
With the advice from Brodie at Evakool the gremlins have been laid to rest.
It just goes to show that sometimes the best gear isn't always the right gear and all you need is 6b&s all round. Shorter wire lengths and some decent bloody sun.

Stookie can now go fishing in peace.




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Tuesday 1 May 2012

Moruya Heads, NSW

Sunrise



Sunrise over the beach is a spectacular sight here. Lil couldn't sleep and decided to go for a walk on the beach with the camera and take some pictures of the sun rising. The weather here has been a bit windy in the afternoons but nice before lunchtime.

Sunset over our camp



Moruya Heads Campsite

The Moruya Heads campsite is right next to the Moruya airport on North Head Road. There are four flights a day which land commercial passengers (Rex airlines) and is quite busy with smaller aircraft throughout the day. A skydiving operator has flights daily as well. It has very basic facilities with bore water taps placed throughout the area and a large concrete drinking water tank which was filled by a water truck during our stay. There are newish pit toilets and older flush toilets which, according to the caretaker, are more popular...I know which I'd rather use having seen them both! There are also cold water showers and a large skip onsite for your rubbish. Firewood is available for sale for $10 for a recycle box full from one of the 'permanents'.
Fishing is excellent with salmon, flathead and sand crabs able to be caught from the rocks and some success from the beach. There are plenty of boat launching points along the river and a jetty on South Head Road. Another camper had been fishing in his boat off Jimmy's Island and caught plenty of Snapper, Flathead, Moa and Pigfish. He offered us some fresh fish for dinner and we were quick to take him up on the offer. We'd never had Moa or Pigfish before, so Lil had the (unenviable?!) task of filleting her first fish and cooking them in the camp oven. Turns out they're pretty tasty fish ;)
About 25km north of Moruya is the pretty little town of Mogo, which has some kitschy shops and is also home to the Mogo Zoo. The Zoo has won several NSW Tourism Awards and is well worth a visit with big cats, primates, African mammals, reptiles and other animals.
Every Saturday there is a decent sized local market held in the Rotary Park on the banks of the river. You can buy some local produce as well as arts and crafts and other goods. The town itself is pretty well serviced by supermarkets and other speciality

Gremlins

The electrics on the CT have been driving me barmy.
I have wired up 2 x 80w Solar panels to keep the 120AH battery charged. With the nice clear days you would expect it would be a bother with 160w of solar power but its not proving to cut it at the moment.
The EvaKool fridge will run all day until the lights and music go on at night then it gives me a LOW VOLTAGE error and switches off.........
When I check the battery its got 12.4v with no loads on it and the battery indicator is full.
I plug the battery into the car and charge it off the alternator for 20 min and it seems to come good but its driving me insane. I think I need a multimeter to check what's going where and how much is getting sucked out the battery.
The fridge prefers being the only device hooked up to the the battery and dislikes anything sharing the juice.
But, the $299 cheap 3 way fridge is going like a good thing and is not proving to be any problems running on gas and 12v.

Surf Fishing

I've been fishing of the breakwall on the Heads and last night caught 2 Salmon. The only issue was how do you get them over the wall..........? After watching another guy lift it out with the incoming wave it certainly seems there is a knack to it....!!
Well I couldn't for the life of me get these fish over the wall as they where a bit large and in the end the line snapped.
I went back this morning for another go and the wall was mobbed with keen anglers looking to get some fish before work.
I caught a Flathead and threw it back as it wasn't big enough, but at least I got the bugger over the wall... ;)

Stookie


Sunday 29 April 2012

April 23 - April 25 Paradise Beach, Victoria


The day has finally arrived!! Monday 23rd April. We stayed at mum’s place overnight to make sure we were well rested and left the trailer at Keith’s place as he let us use his garage for security.
Jay let me sleep in a little, so I felt as though I was on the back foot as I had planned on making lunches and still had to do a run to the shops! We left Glen Iris at about 11am, which was a bit later than we planned. By the time we loaded the bikes onto the trailer and changed the kids, it was 1pm.


We were on the road just in time…..for the rain!!
 
With our goal for the night being Paradise Beach south of Sale, we just drove until we arrived. We left that rain band behind, only to set up with the rumbling of thunder from a southerly band heading our way. The decision to put our big tarp over the whole set up was unspoken. Thank goodness Jay decided to buy it before we left! With two and a bit days of pretty constant rain, we had no leaks and were also quite warm.
As we were fairly well tent bound, we took full advantage of sorting through things again. I wasn’t happy with the way the kitchen was organised and went through it again. I found it very difficult to decide on things I would need to cook whilst on the road and now feel as though I’ve whittled the utensils and equipment down to things I’ll use regularly.
Paradise Beach was recommended to us by several people and also seemed good from the camping guides, websites and apps we used. One of our resources mentioned mosquitos. OMG we should have listened!!! They are FIERCE!! Poor Matilda was covered in them at one point while we were setting up. They were into everything! Fortunately, we seem to have come out of that experience relatively itch-free.
During the breaks in the weather, we would venture down to the beach. Paradise Beach is part of 90 Mile Beach. Matilda had her first beach experience here and had a ball!



We drove 7km west of Golden Beach to see the Trinculo wreck, though the weather and sea have taken their toll. There’s not much left!


Big Boo was happy to be at the beach again. She did an excellent job in her role as security, letting us know when people were nearby. 

We decided to pack up the bulk of our belongings on the night of 25th April to try to get away as quickly as possible in the morning. This is our storage box fully loaded. Believe it or not, it's actually pretty easy to find things! Having bought the sensational Aussie-made Drifta kitchen with return (DPOR), the matching storage box was high on the list of things we wanted, but just wasn't absolutely essential for us to be able to travel. After talking to Jason at Aussie Jay's, he sold us this storage box as an ex-demo for a fantastic price and we just had to buy it! We spent a lot of time anguishing over the extra money to buy the box and are really pleased we did. No more piling stuff on the ground and waiting until the tent's packed. Now we can pack things straight into the trailer as we go. Having the food at the back makes the pantry relatively easy access and can be pushed out of the way when not needed.

The morning dawned overcast but dry and we packed up as quickly as possible as the mosquitoes were just impossible. Glad to be on the road, we were aiming for Moruya though would be happy to get to Eden.

Friday 20 April 2012

We've left Warragul and spending the weekend saying final farewells






The car and the trailer is packed and we are out of our house in Warragul.
We need a little more time over the weekend to sort the trailer and the car out as far as packing it goes.
When your moving house you move A to B but when your travelling you need to load the trailer ad car and always have stuff left over and so a few trips to the Salvo's was needed.
On top of the car in the roof basket is my motorcycle gear, Sunday best and formal job interview clothes and shoes, the kids pram and the tag along skateboard, and a nappy bucket.
We have a long handled shovel which attaches via the Quickfist holders.
In the car we have a half shelf unit (poor man's home build) made out of 18mm MDF .
Instead of a slide out drawer we have another plastic storage container that has Lil's Uni books and the toiletries and swimming gear. On top is the 3-way fridge which plugs into the 12v for travelling.
Then we have Boo's bed and, of course, Boo.
There is an Anderson plug on the back to charge the CT while travelling and keep the batteries topped up.

Thursday 19 April 2012

Last night in our house.

The camper is packed, the fridge is packed, the roof luggage is loaded. Lil is busy cleaning stuff and I've been loading the car and camper.
We are hoping to have a little space left over which I doubt will happen.
Moving house is easy compared to getting rid of everything.

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Saturday 7 April 2012

Leaking exhaust

Just when we thought everything on the car had been sorted, we thought we'd investigate what we thought was a small exhaust leak. This is what we found....




So, now looks like a trip to an exhaust place to replace/repair the catalytic converter! We just need the planets to align and all higher beings smiling on us so nothing else goes wrong with the Jack!!

Lil :)

Sunday 1 April 2012

Crazy busy and pretty successful weekend!

It has been my job to try to sell as much as possible before we leave, so I made the decision to hold a garage sale. Last week I also came across an advertisement for a car boot sale in town and decided that would be a good way to sell some things with higher exposure and advertise the garage sale for the next day. How wrong I was!! The market was an absolute flop!! I think I sold more than anyone else there and I made just under $50! I took quality items to try to encourage people to come the next day to the garage sale as well...I think that plan worked well, as I saw a few of the same faces.

Roll on Sunday and I opened the gates to a couple of people waiting...I was feeling pretty positive (one of Jay's frequent comments to/about me is that I'm ever the optimist!). Jay took Hamish to fit a storage system in the back of the car, while Matilda, Boo and I tried our hand at sales. There were several garage sales on yesterday, but I think we were the only one near us on today. I think that worked in our favour as we had a pretty constant stream of people until around 11:30. Quite a few items sold and I met some more lovely people...I'm going to miss living around here!

There is still a lot of clothing and toys left...things I thought would sell well, but didn't. All is not lost, though, as I think I'll try for one last ditch effort on our last weekend in Melbourne. I'm thinking that combining our stuff with some from mum and maybe my sister may work out really well for us! Anything that doesn't sell will be taken away by a charity afterwards. Fortunately, much of the work I've done with pricing and sorting can be easily transferred straight over to mum's, so it shouldn't be quite so much of a head cave!!

Lil :)

Saturday 31 March 2012

Going, going.......GONE!!!

Lil went to a car boot sale today and didn't do too well, but she is also having a garage sale so hopefully we will get rid of a lot of gear.Most of the motorbike gear is gone, the washing machine is gone and the other big items are listed for sale on various sites.
We are now mapping our route and calculating the cost of fuel. I think we will be heading up the coast and spending a great deal of time exploring the places we have not seen.
I'm not really a beach person as I don't sunbake or swim, however my new 12ft surf rod is going to get a hammering and Hamish and I will be on the beach fishing and crabbing.

Ive mounted a fishing rod holder to the camper so I can carry the rods without them banging around in the trailer.
The trailer is beginning to look like an adventurous bit of kit now with all these add ons.
We have bitten the bullet and bought a compressor fridge too. We have our 3-way fridge which cost us $299 from Aldi and so far its been amazing.
When living full time on the road we have been thinking about food storage and our Aldi fridge will be our general fridge for everyday and the new 45lt Evakool will be our freezer.
Lil is great at buying in bulk and saving heaps. The vacuum sealer she bought recently will be put to great use! She is also a very good cook so the menu will be very varied as she experiments with her camp oven cooking.

I will get around to posting up a list of our gear, what we use and the general cost.
There is a great deal of gear snobbery and debate over Engel vs. Waeco and the very heated Landcruiser vs. Patrol argument.
We are not made of money and cant justify spending $1800 on a fridge. Our home fridge was about $400 and its now 7 years old...........
We will be aiming for a very tight budget on our gear and travelling. We will see the things we want to see as memories are priceless........
Hopefully we can give an alternative lifestyle without the big brand names.......
I'm Scottish ........ did you guess that already?... !!!!!!

Stookie

Wednesday 28 March 2012

We've never had to worry about weight...until now!

I've spent a bit of time reading forums regarding weight/overloading/GVM of vehicles. After googling, I have just read that the Jackaroo has a payload of only 475kg. I'm pretty sure I understand that to be the weight we add to the car. I guess it's lucky the kids are little and we're taking the dog, otherwise the potential for overloading would be huge! As it is, there's around 160kg of humans and 45kg of dog leaving around 270kg max for us to put in/on the car. The roof racks and Prorack basket would add a significant amount to that as well as the awning (of course, there are no weight figures listed for these). I want to take the pushy...16kg, we will need the pusher and buggyboard...10kg, kids car seats...20kg.  Fortunately we had already planned only light stuff for the roof basket....

We will definitely have to be careful of how we load both the car and the trailer. Unfortunately, there don't seem to be any public weigh bridges close by for us to be able to weigh before we set off.

Lil :)


Thursday 22 March 2012

Kids stuff we have to take!

I've spent a couple of days writing a list of what we need to take. It's been hard deciding what we need vs. what we want! I've also tried to assign a location to each item - in the Prorack basket on top of the car, in the drawbar toolbox, in the storage box or kitchen in the trailer, or in the car. We have to allow for things like a pusher and booster seat, dog food and study equipment that many others travelling Australia probably don't need to consider.

I decided on a Valco Tourer Toddler buggy board for behind the pusher for times when Hamish gets tired while we're out and about. This clips onto one of the lower bar on the pusher so he can be pushed along as well.





I also have my very favourite baby accessory - the Ergo baby carrier! I can carry Matilda on my front, back or side while having two hands free. It is SOOOO comfortable, spreading the weight nicely, and I never end up with a sore back or shoulders. The added bonus is that she loves being in it and is a guaranteed settling tool when she's cranky! It's rated up to 18kgs, though I think I'd have to be desperate to consider carrying Hamish in it.
I also looked into feeding restraint options for Matilda. We already have a fairly compact swing tray booster seat similar to this:




Doing some research, I came across these Totseats. They would be perfect IF they fit over a camp chair and were made of some sort of PVC or similar for ease of cleaning.




If this was just a short trip, we could have just used the pusher to feed her, but as a more permanent setup I think it would be horrible - too messy and probably end up sticky and smelly. Booster seat it is!

For their sleeping arrangements, Hamish will be on a single camp stretcher with a mat on top to keep the cold out and make it more comfortable. We'll have his doona as well - he doesn't sleep well in a sleeping bag, though we'll have the sleeping bag in case he needs it or if Stookie decides a bike camping trip is in order. We had a conventional portacot which, as people who've had them would know, are very heavy and bulky. For Matilda, we've ditched the bulk and bought a Kinderkot. Dutch designed, they weigh only 3kg and come in their own little carry bag about the size of a serving platter, and include a self-inflating mattress and a sleeping bag and sheet to fit the shape. I'm so pleased with it!! Takes a minute (literally!) to set up and maybe 2 minute to pack it all away.




We still need to source organisers for the back of our car seats, where I'm hoping I can put most of their books and small toys. Something similar to this looks perfect!



Last week I bought a stash of MCNs (modern cloth nappies). We'll be able to wash these easily enough and will minimise our environmental impact (i.e. stinky rubbish!!). After much research, I decided to buy 20 Hippybottomus Bamboo Charcoal nappies. Bamboo charcoal is antibacterial, helps prevent smells, stays dry against the skin and feels really soft. They seem to be less bulky than many other nappies I've tried and seen, so I hope they are comfortable for Matilda. I've started toilet training Hamish this week in the hope he'll be daytime trained by the time we leave. In case he's not, these nappies will (just!) fit him. One of my requirements with choosing a suitable nappy was that both kids would be able to wear them - that really limited my options (as well as price...some nappies are expensive!).




I think we have the kid's essentials sorted!! I'm really pleased with the decisions I've made with these items, though time will tell....

Lil :)

Tuesday 20 March 2012

Around 4 weeks now until we have to be out of the house...eep!!

I handed in notice to the agents yesterday of our intention to vacate. Today has been spent sorting through the kids clothes and taking photos of the big stuff. The lounge suite, washing machine and kayak have been advertised on Gumtree and eBay as well as our Garage Sale, which will be on Saturday 31st March.

This is becoming so real! I have butterflies in my stomach even as I type. Fingers crossed that we are able to sell our things for good prices and feel comfortable about the money side of things for a while!

Lil :)

All wired up.

So I've had a busy weekend. I have installed 2 100amp circuit breakers, one in the dual battery system and one in the camper trailer. I have hooked up an Anderson connector on both batteries also which now gives us a great deal of options.
We can run the fridge whilst travelling on 240v which will allow it to run cooler. We can also recharge the Camper battery whilst driving. To monitor all this I have a projecta dual batter monitor that tells me all my charge rates on the dual battery system. Whilst we are setup I have an 80w solar panel to top the battery up on the camper.
The deep cycle in the camper also has an Anderson lead and allows us to plug in the laptop and recharge the camera too.

I think we are done for the moment !

Stookie :)



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Thursday 15 March 2012

Projecta IP-600 Pure sine wave inverter.

Our Projecta Pure Sine wave inverter has arrived and I'm looking forward to setting it up.
My plan is to hook the leads up with an Anderson lead so it can be swapped between the car and the camper. I already have an Anderson lead on the Camper which allows us to hook up the inverter and then use our laptop and camera.
I'm going to wire up the aux battery in the car with an Anderson lead and some 6 B&S cable so we can charge the laptop whilst travelling and run the fridge on 240v which will keep it running cooler.

The unit also has a separate controller which allows you to see voltage draw and current rate whilst on the move. The unit also has built-in cut off and alarms for low battery and short circuit protection.
I will be wiring in a 100amp circuit breaker at the battery to protect it and us from any dramas.

My weekend projects are starting to mount up.......

Stookie :)

Wednesday 14 March 2012

The Jackaroo overhaul

Well the Jackaroo has returned from the Holden Dealers after having all the belts replaced, the water pump replaced and the clutch and brake fluids changed.
I could not believe the difference in the way the car drives, its like a different car.
The ride is far smoother and the engine just purrs........
The brakes and the gear change is so silky smooth , its like a new car !!!!
The mechanics at Holden have done a great job and we both feel very confident in taking the Jackaroo around the country.
Time will tell but its always been a reliable car so far so fingers crossed it takes us where we want to go.

 We have been told that the front hubs need new wheel bearing and seals so that another job for me on the weekend..........another dirty weekend under the car.........excellent.

Stookie ;)



Holden Jackaroo 3.2lt V6 Manual.

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Can't forget to keep the study motivation up!

I finally completed my first two units towards my Accounting Diploma!! I intend to keep studying while we're travelling, though I can see it will be hard at times. I'm hoping that I'll be able to work some jobs that are related which would be very helpful for cementing my knowledge.

I've just received my text books for two of my next three units....best I get off the computer!!

Thursday 8 March 2012

Sad day today

The chooks are going to a new home today :( . Our funny feathered friends are going to have a boyfriend and maybe even babies! The beautiful eggs we had each morning will be sorely missed. I did think about finding a way to take them with us, but decided it would not be fair on them. Chooks stress out quickly and travel would not be conducive to happy girls.

This will also give me time to tidy up their part of the yard. There is some beautiful compost in there I think I'll offer to the neighbours.






Bye bye girls!!

Wednesday 7 March 2012

Quick Fist


I'd seen this little rubber holder called a "Quick Fist" which is like a clamp that you can use to hold items like a shovel, hi-lift jack, axe and a whole host of other things.
Lil and I went to Bunnings with neither of us game to ask for a "Quick Fist". So we took the search online. I remember seeing the advert from a company called OVESCO in the Camper Trailer Australia magazine so went through my copies and found the advert. At $8 a pop these little clamps are brilliant.
We have now managed to put the Axe on the tailgate of the camper so its out of the way on a space thats normally unusable. Next is the broom and the shovel and we even have one that will mount the fire extinguisher too........brilliant.
I think I will be back online to get some more.


Busy!

Started the selling process. Online ads placed for the big baby things and Stookie's studio gear. I've also applied for a couple of temp positions in the Far North. Things are on the get-go now! Now to start crossing fingers, toes and boompsydaisy everything sells quickly and I hear back about a job!

Tuesday 6 March 2012

The tedious tasks continue in preparation...

Sorting through files and getting rid of paperwork. I have a box full to destroy yet seem to have the same amount as I started with in the files?! How does that work?? Some will need to come with us, some will go into storage. Lucky I'm reasonably organised!


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Monday 5 March 2012

More bits that will come in handy...

While the rain keeps tumbling down, what is there to do but browse eBay for bits!! Looking at high lift jacks and mounts and recovery hitch and shackle. Also need MCNs (modern cloth nappies) to limit our rubbish and not have the added expense of disposables. Even if we're eating grass and bark soup, the kids will be clean!


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Thursday 1 March 2012

Today has been a day to season all my new camp iron cookware. We bought a 10 piece Wild Country set which comes with two pans, one camp oven, jaffle irons, a flat griddle and some extra accessories. They all come in their own wooden chest which should hold up well and make for easier packing.

We've also bought two fire extinguishers, one for the car and one for the trailer. We still need one fire blanket as well.

Stookie has fixed the water leaks in the home made water tank.

I'm starting to freak a little thinking about the things I would like to take and how little room we have!! Fortunately, things like bedding and the camp chairs will live in the tent, so only have to worry about clothes, food, tools, dog food, toiletries and toys! Sounds easy, right?!

Tuesday 28 February 2012

Extra water capacity

Jay came across a clever water storage unit that was fitted to a tailgate. We weren't keen on the added weight on the back and the (for us) inconvenient location, so decided on the space between the storage box and the trailer tub. Here he is assembling the 100mm PVC pipe unit on the back of the storage box.


 Hamish was acting as Site Supervisor for this project. Here there is serious conversation about the colour of the PVC cement :)


This is the unit in position from the driver's side. The tap is a 1/4" so we can fit a hose if we want. This idea has added around 40 litres to our capacity which will give us extra time in remote areas if needed.


The view from the passenger side.