15.01.11 - So here we are, Tom and Cath, intrepid adventurers. We are about to embark on a rather exciting six month meander across the western half of Australia. We have quit our jobs and as part of our move from the UK to Australia, we have decided to take this time off to explore.
We have (thanks to Cath’s uncle Pete) a 13 year old 100 series 4.2L diesel Toyota Landcruiser. The Cruiser has dual long range tanks (140 litres total), a snorkel for the crocodile infested river crossings, and a Primus beer fridge on top of Black Widow drawers in the back for all our rubbish. We will be towing a second hand (but might as well be new) Cub offroad campertrailer. The Cub has a double bed, two hob cooker and sink. We will hopefully be loading our two mountain bikes on top of the trailer for some National Park snake squashing fun!
The plan is to spend the next six months on the road, from the end of January to the end of July. We will leave from Ballarat where we are now and where Cath’s mum lives. We then go West, with a plan that may change rather regularly. The idea is to go from Ballarat to Adelaide, then across the Nullabor plain to Esperance and the South West corner of Australia. We will then potter around to Perth and up the West coast to Ningaloo reef and on up to Broome. From Broome to the Kimberley and then onto Darwin and Kakadu National Park. Depending on timing, we may then try to go via Lawn Hill in Queensland and down to Alice Springs, and gradually wander down to the Flinders ranges NP and back to Ballarat. We’ll try and get a map up and running on this page so we can plot our progress.
Here we enter our final two weeks of sorting before we leave. Getting last minute bits and pieces. Apparently, according to one of our 4WD mags, we need to put together all our stuff, and then leave half of it behind. Well... we don’t really have that much stuff! We’ll see (which half of the bikini do you leave behind?).
Some thoughts about what we’re most looking forward to:
Tom – Specifics include but definitely not limited to - Possibly swimming with whale sharks in Ningaloo reef (supposed to be as spectacular but quieter than the Great Barrier reef); The isolation in the Kimberleys NP in Western Australia; Camping under the huge skies coming back through the centre.
Cath – Oh how boring, I was going to list exactly those three things! Bah. Um, ok, as well as those three, and in more general terms, I’m looking forward to just enjoying having the time together and learning new things together. I feel like I’ll be more well-rounded if I can change a 4WD tyre and back a trailer and cook interesting one-pot meals for weeks on end and beat Tom at Scrabble and generally Survive the Outback. Bring it on!
We’ll add some more before we leave, plus some pictures of our set-up. Only two weeks to go!
We have (thanks to Cath’s uncle Pete) a 13 year old 100 series 4.2L diesel Toyota Landcruiser. The Cruiser has dual long range tanks (140 litres total), a snorkel for the crocodile infested river crossings, and a Primus beer fridge on top of Black Widow drawers in the back for all our rubbish. We will be towing a second hand (but might as well be new) Cub offroad campertrailer. The Cub has a double bed, two hob cooker and sink. We will hopefully be loading our two mountain bikes on top of the trailer for some National Park snake squashing fun!
The plan is to spend the next six months on the road, from the end of January to the end of July. We will leave from Ballarat where we are now and where Cath’s mum lives. We then go West, with a plan that may change rather regularly. The idea is to go from Ballarat to Adelaide, then across the Nullabor plain to Esperance and the South West corner of Australia. We will then potter around to Perth and up the West coast to Ningaloo reef and on up to Broome. From Broome to the Kimberley and then onto Darwin and Kakadu National Park. Depending on timing, we may then try to go via Lawn Hill in Queensland and down to Alice Springs, and gradually wander down to the Flinders ranges NP and back to Ballarat. We’ll try and get a map up and running on this page so we can plot our progress.
Here we enter our final two weeks of sorting before we leave. Getting last minute bits and pieces. Apparently, according to one of our 4WD mags, we need to put together all our stuff, and then leave half of it behind. Well... we don’t really have that much stuff! We’ll see (which half of the bikini do you leave behind?).
Some thoughts about what we’re most looking forward to:
Tom – Specifics include but definitely not limited to - Possibly swimming with whale sharks in Ningaloo reef (supposed to be as spectacular but quieter than the Great Barrier reef); The isolation in the Kimberleys NP in Western Australia; Camping under the huge skies coming back through the centre.
Cath – Oh how boring, I was going to list exactly those three things! Bah. Um, ok, as well as those three, and in more general terms, I’m looking forward to just enjoying having the time together and learning new things together. I feel like I’ll be more well-rounded if I can change a 4WD tyre and back a trailer and cook interesting one-pot meals for weeks on end and beat Tom at Scrabble and generally Survive the Outback. Bring it on!
We’ll add some more before we leave, plus some pictures of our set-up. Only two weeks to go!
Our wheels for the next 6 months -
