Road tripping provides opportunities for life lessons

School holidays are always a tough time to secure a vehicle of your choosing, and are also some of the busiest times to be on the road. However making the choice to take children out of school is a contentious subject with most parents.

So what exactly can children learn on the road that they might not learn at school? How can travel help children with their future learning?

 Problem solving abilities

Problem solving is one of the most important life skills and although these skills are taught in schools, road trips are a fantastic way for kids to develop these skills in relation to real life situations. Encouraging your children to take part in decision making and problem solving during travel will help them to grasp the concept of identifying, evaluating and discussing problems, as well as creating an environment of trust and respect that will encourage your children to discuss future problems with you.

A great example of this is if you give your child a small amount of money to purchase a souvenir. Discuss what the options might be, for example, should they buy the first thing they see? Spend all their money on one big souvenir? Or should they buy a few cheaper souvenirs from several shops?
Discuss the pros and cons of each choice with them and what consequences could result from their decision. When guided and encouraged to problem solve, these skills will become second nature and with the fun of a road trip, they won’t even notice they are learning.

       Considering the world around them and appreciating what they have

Visiting destinations that are different to their own helps encourage children to consider the world around them. Children often don’t realise how fortunate they are, often assuming that if they have it, so does everybody else.
Although discussions at school are great at introducing these ideas, if they never see or experience anything outside of the environment they live in, how can they be expected to fully comprehend the world around them?

However parents must be careful to discuss different lifestyles not as a problem but as an opportunity to learn.  After leaving a destination it is a great idea to discuss the differences between the culture or lifestyle you have visited and what they perceive the pros and cons to be, as well as prompting curiosity by asking open-ended questions like, ‘why do you think they might need to build houses underground?’ – As is the case with houses in Coober Pedy.

      Flexibility and Adaptability

Adaptability and flexibility are necessary life skills, for children and parents. Whether it’s not getting the same teacher as their best friend in a new school year, not getting into the university course they wanted or not being successful in a job interview, adaptability will help you and your children turn life’s lemons into lemonade.
Road tips are particularly good for teaching adaptability because of the flexibility offered by campervan holidays, allowing children to step away from the structure of school.
Unlike a resort stay or Contiki tour that is planned to the last second, sometimes the unexpected happens on a road trip. For example the weather might turn, changing your route or destination or you may experience a flat tire, putting off your timeline.
How you react to these situations will influence how your children feel. Encouraging your children to see the positives in a situation or how to overcome an issue calmly, will stick with them for life and help them to open up more opportunities, build self-confidence and increase their general happiness.

      Autonomy

If you have ever read a job ad, you will know that the ability to be autonomous is a highly sought after and important skill to master. One day your children will grow up and be required to answer the question, ‘can you work autonomously?’

Travel embraces freedom and independence and is an experience that most employers are very interested in. Whilst school does teach and encourage this, it is difficult in a class of 30 students to be truly autonomous.

Children who can master autonomy are often more inquisitive and self-guided learners, which will help them to grow personally and professionally.

Travelling takes children out of their usual surroundings, allowing them to make unbiased decisions. The exploration of travelling encourages children to take risks that they may not have taken in their comfort zone, that lead to real learning opportunities.

Offering your children choices whilst travelling, creates a monitored environment that will present new experience encouraging self-reliance and moral and cognitive development. There are very simple tools to help you encourage learning and curiosity on a road trip. One of the top suggestions from teachers we have spoken to, is for your children to keep a travel journal. Not only are travel journals a great way for children of all ages to practice literacy skills away from the classroom, but they also encourage children to reflect on what they have experienced and develop critical thinking skills. Journals are also a fantastic souvenir for children to look back on as they grow.

Help your children to create an itinerary to include in their journal before you set off. Not only will they gain an understanding of distance and time, they will also begin to grasp organisational skills. Depending on your child’s age, you may want to sit with them and collect images from the internet or books, or allow them to perform self-guided research on the destinations.

Lastly, don’t forget to give your child a map! Whether it be a paper map or a digital map from an app, allowing children to enter destinations, discover distances, travel time and allow them to follow their journey will open their minds to how big the world around us is.

Road trips are a fantastic learning experience for the whole family, and no matter where the road leads you will be an unforgettable memory. Start thinking about your next family adventure now! Get a quote today with www.discovery-campervans.com.au

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Australia's most remote territories are far from the mainland

Outback towns may think they're pretty remote, but they're not a patch on the most far-flung specks of Australian territory. The country's tentacles have spread out to all manner of obscure places  - some of which are easier to reach than others. But why are they part of Oz, and what will you discover if you, ahem, advance Australia far?

Christmas Island

Distance from the mainland: 1560 km

Discovered on Christmas Day, 1643, this 135 square kilometre speck in the Indian Ocean is around 1560km north-west of Exmouth in WA. It's firmly in the tropics and much closer to Indonesia than Australia.

It became an Australian territory in 1958, after Australia bought it from Singapore, which was at that time still a British colony. The Brits decided to administer the island from Singapore, and it was largely seen as a giant phosphate mine.

The phosphate operations are now long closed, and Christmas Island is now best known for its controversial immigrant detention centre.

But for visitors who have got visas, there's plenty to do – most of it nature based. The annual red crab migration (which usually takes place in November or December) is the calendar highlight. For the rest of the year, expect plenty of bird-watching opportunities, rainforest hikes and fab snorkelling or diving on the reef that surrounds the island.

Unlike many of Australia's other territories, Christmas Island is relatively easy to get to – Virgin Australia flies direct from Perth. See Christmas.net.au.

The Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Distance from the mainland: 2129 km

Also served by Virgin Australia flights from Perth – and even further away than Christmas Island - the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are a collection of tiny islands on two atolls. First spotted in 1609, they became the home of two squabbling British merchants and a harem of Malay women they fought over. Eventually, the islands passed to Australia after a spell of British colonial control in 1955.

Only two of the islands – West Island and Home Island – are inhabited, and the somewhat unusual cultural heritage offers a counterpoint to the nature-based activities. Canoeing over to uninhabited islets and prime warm-water snorkelling aren't bad ways to kill time either… See cocoskeelingislands.com.au.

The Ashmore and Cartier Islands

Distance from the mainland: 320 km

Stranded between Australia's north-west coast and the Indonesian island of Rote, these uninhabited islands are another inheritance from colonial Britain. The only visitors tend to be the occasional scientist, Indonesian fisherman or Australian Navy ship. There are no anchorage points, and permits are required to go there, even if you were thinking of heading over in your own yacht.

Norfolk Island

Distance from the mainland: 1456 km

Uninhabited when Captain Cook arrived in 1774, Norfolk Island was used as penal settlement for the very worst convicts in Australia's early colonial era. Then, after the penal settlement was closed down, waves of Pitcairn Islanders – descended from the Bounty mutineers and their Polynesian wives – moved in.

The island now has a population of around 2,300, and is broadly self-governing without any representation in Australia's parliament. Heritage tourism is the strong suit, although the beaches and lagoons aren't exactly unwelcome either. The convict sites around Kingston and Arthur's Vale are World Heritage-listed, while there is a surprisingly large collection of museums. These delve into the Bounty story, the way convicts were treated, the Polynesian settlers and photography from the olden days.

It's around 1456 km east of Byron Bay, with Air New Zealand operating direct flights from Auckland, Sydney and Brisbane. Seenorfolkisland.com.au.

The Coral Sea Islands

Distance from the mainland: 722 km

On the other side of the Great Barrier Reef from the Australian mainland, only one of the Coral Sea Islands – Willis Island – is inhabited. And that's by the three or four hardy souls manning the meteorological station there.

For somewhere so obscure, however, Willis Island is mightily popular with cruise ships. P&O, Royal Caribbean and Princess Cruises all go there regularly. This might be for the scenic sail-around, where a knowledgeable naturalist lectures passengers about the bird life. Cynics may, however, suggest it's because the detour technically takes the ships into international waters, allowing the cruise lines to sell tons of duty free.

Heard and McDonald Islands

Distance from the mainland: 3985 km

About as remote as you can get, these volcanic islands sit thousands of kilometres from anywhere, in the middle of a rough triangle between Australia, Madagascar and Antarctica. Initially claimed by the British then transferred to Australian control in 1947, there have only been 240 recorded visits to Heard Island in history. For McDonald Island, that drops to two.

Unless part of a scientific expedition – and if you've the money, interests and credentials to join, one (heardisland.org) is departing next summer – there's virtually no chance of getting there.

But if you do, it's somewhere extraordinary. Heard Island is dominated by a Mawson Peak, an enormous volcano, and the complete lack of human-introduced predators makes the islands a snapshot of nature almost impossible to find elsewhere.

Australian Antarctic Territory

Distance from the mainland: 3160 km

Australia lays claim to just under 5.9 million square kilometres of Antarctica – another gift from the UK - although that sovereignty is only recognised in a few other countries. The Australian Antarctic Division maintains three year-round research stations, although the vessels supplying them are for scientists and workers only. The Division's website has good information on how to visit Antarctica too. See Antarctica.gov.au.

There are plenty of Antarctica cruise options, but very few of these visit the Australian Antarctic Territory (the vast majority go from South America to the Antarctic Peninsula). A small minority depart from Bluff in New Zealand or Hobart in Tasmania, but even these tend to go to the New Zealand-administered Ross Dependency.

The cheat's method is to take a scenic flight over Antarctica from one of the Australian capital cities – Antarctica Flights (antarcticaflights.com.au) sells the marathon 12 hour trips.

Macquarie Island

Distance from the mainland: 1470 km

Once popular with sealers, this sub-Antarctic island is technically part of Tasmania despite lying almost 1500km south-east of it. It has a surprisingly mild climate given its position, and is most notable for its large penguin populations. In particular, it's the only place in the world where the royal penguin lives.

The Australian Antarctic Division maintains a permanent base there, but otherwise there are no human inhabitants.

A sub-Antarctic Islands cruise, usually taking in some of New Zealand's more obscure outposts as well, is the best way to visit. Heritage Expeditions (heritage-expeditions.com) is amongst the companies specialising in them.

Written by David Whitley for Traveller

http://www.traveller.com.au/australias-most-remote-territories-and-how-to-visit-them-12nz6m

Australia's UNESCO World Heritage-listed cultural and natural attractions

What does the Great Barrier Reef have in common with the Great Wall of China, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the ruins of Great Zimbabwe?

All four of these places – and over a thousand others mostly without the word "great" in their titles – are on UNESCO's World Heritage List.

According to the United Nations body, this makes their protection the common goal of humanity. As its website states, "World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located."

One of Australia's most significant heritage sites: Port Arthur is a former convict settlement on the Tasman Peninsula. 

It's a worthy goal. In the decades since the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage was adopted, almost every nation on the planet has signed on and submitted its own list of treasures.

So how easy is it for a place to make the list, and how many sites does Australia have in it?

There are two types of World Heritage site: cultural and natural. To be considered, a site must meet at least one of ten selection criteria. These range from "a masterpiece of human creative genius" to "natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity."

Submitted sites are evaluated by expert bodies. Once their recommendations are in, the World Heritage Committee decides who makes the final cut.

For Australia, that process has created 19 World Heritage sites. They're dominated by 16 natural sites, though four of these are joint natural-cultural entries. Regionally, they're a bit lop-sided: six are at least partly in New South Wales, for example, while Victoria has only one.

From sites in city centres to those in remote locations, they're an appealing collection of attractions.

See the FULL LIST 

Article by Tim Richards for Traveller

Board Game Give Away! The Great Australian Road Trip

The ultimate board game to keep the family occupied on your road trip has to be The Great Australian Road Trip!

A Trivia Game about Australian people, places, wildlife and events across Australia.

Players answer trivia questions, choosing between questions marked as Easy, Medium or Hard, moving 2, 4 or 6 places respectively if they get the answers correct.

Victory is achieved by travelling to three randomly selected destinations across Australia and correctly answering a multiple choice trivia question there, plus by collecting three 'Detour' tokens along the way by achieving 'Detour' quests in their travels.

To even out the game there are 'Half & Half' cards which remove one of the wrong multiple choice answers at the destinations, and 'Speed' cards which allow you to move even if you get an answer wrong. These can be given in greater numbers to younger (or non-Australian) players.

Valued at $60.00 I have one to give away to the first travelling family that emails me to say they are in Margaret River and can pick it up! See the contact page for my email address.

Yakima Tips on Packing the Car

www.yakima.com.au

Road train driver has his say

Hey Guys,

I am a roadtrain driver (and 4WD enthusiast) and I travel around 11,000km every fortnight in a triple roadtrain transporting food and other essential supplies from Perth to towns and mines in the north-west of WA. This means I get to witness the annual migration and sometimes the debris left on the side of the road by those unfortunate enough to come to grief along the way.

The problem I have been encountering lately, of which I hope this feedback will raise awareness, is the practice of caravan and campervans setting up for the night right in the middle of the parking bay - equal distance from the entrance and exit and effectively rendering the parking bay useless to a vehicle the size of mine, especially if the parking bay was already on the small side as many in the Pilbara, Gascoyne and Murchison are.

If you observe the parking habits of most long distance truck drivers you will find they will try to park as far forward as they can in the parking bay and as far to the left as possible. This leaves the maximum amount of room free for additional vehicles ( be they roadtrains or caravans ) to pull in behind and get some sleep and it also leaves an unobstructed exit free in the "right lane" so if any vehicle wishes to leave before the one(s) in front it is not blocked in. It is a simple system that has worked for many years.

There is another issue related to a much smaller subsection of the transport industry, it is my specialty - refrigerated trailers. Refrigerated trailers run 24/7 while loaded with all the frozen peas, ice cream, milk, lettuce, apples, etc that people expect to be able to buy anywhere in Australia. If I park my noisy trailers next to you at night it's not because I'm an inconsiderate and aggressive truck driver hellbent on ruining your nights sleep.

Consider this: truck drivers hours are regulated by law - when our hours have run out for the day we must pull over or face prosecution (some think it's closer to persecution but I won't go into that). I'm sorry if it happens to be your parking bay I take my mandated rest break in. Everyone will be a lot sorrier if I continued driving and fell asleep at the wheel.

Also, triple roadtrains are bloody big! There are limited places we can safely pull off the road for our rest breaks. Parking bays just happen to be ideal for the task, especially after significant rainfall - no driver in their right mind would pull off the road into anything less than a bitumen or heavily compacted gravel area (parking bay). To do otherwise usually results in immediately becoming bogged with, considering the size and weight involved, limited means of recovery.

So please keep these points in mind next time you are looking to pull up for the night or even just stopping to make a sandwich. If you are the sole occupant of a parking bay the chances are somebody will pull in behind pretty soon - are you positioned to give them easy access? I am happy to share parking bays with all road users but everyone has to apply a bit of common sense and consideration. I will always try to minimise the impact running fridge motors may have on anyone I'm sharing a parking bay with. Parking nose to tail with other vehicles instead of side by side is an effective way of do this - park in front of me and you are a minimum of 20ft from my lead fridge motor, park behind me and you are at least 45ft from my third fridge motor. Park beside me or force me to park beside you and you might be as little as 5ft from it. I've gotten used to the noise, in fact, I find the constantly running fridge actually masks other irregular noises which would normally wake me. Such as irate campers yelling at me to shut it off ;)

I know there are people out there who are just not right in the head and certain concepts never seem to take hold. On behalf of all the sensible truck drivers I apologise in advance for the actions of the, thankfully, few truly stupid individuals that may at some point in their life write "Truck Driver" on their tax return.

Five Easy Tips to Arranging a Loan for a Caravan

Caravan ownership allows people to take affordable road trips and enjoy nature outings more thoroughly since they can bring the comforts of home with them to the open road. However, this type of recreational vehicle can be expensive, and many people may not be able to afford one easily. To help you obtain your own caravan, financing companies and caravan dealerships have loans available.

Five tips that can help you arrange a favourable caravan loan, include:

1.       Assessing your ability to repay the loan

2.       Investigating lenders

3.       Saving up a down payment

4.       Reviewing a loan’s repayment terms

5.       Knowing your credit rating

Loan Repayment

Before applying for a caravan loan, be sure to assess your overall finances to determine your ability to repay the amount that you need to borrow. Another option is to establish the amount that you can comfortably pay each month, and then, look for caravans that fall into this price point. By requesting a loan that you can repay easily, the financial institution will be more likely to approve the funds. In addition, you can speak with your bank, which will be able to give you the maximum amount you can borrow in a short amount of time.

Lender Investigation

To locate the best caravan loan for you, be sure to assess the terms of each financial arrangement. You can complete research online to compare the different loans that are available. In particular, review a loan’s repayment requirements, down payment conditions and interest rates. Does the interest rate remain fixed for the term? Are there any penalties for paying out the loan early?

The four most common financing methods include a hire purchase, personal, secured or credit card loan. A hire purchase loan is secured against your recreational vehicle while a personal loan is unsecured. If you select a traditional secured loan, then the lender will likely secure it against the value of your personal residence. A credit card loan is usually funds that a creditor has already approved for you, but the interest rates are often higher than other loan types. It’s probably best not to finance a caravan through your credit card.

Down Payment

Consider saving up a sizeable down payment prior to making a caravan purchase. When you put money down, your repayment amount will be lower, and it will decrease your monthly payments. It also means less risk to the finance companies as you are putting your own money into the caravan. Many loan providers require you to make a down payment of at least 10 percent. Most financiers will want to use the caravan as security, meaning the can repossess it in the event of non-payment and when you have put your own money into it, statistically, this event is much less likely to occur.

Evaluate a Loan’s Repayment Terms

Be sure to assess the repayment requirements of a financial arrangement before you agree to a loan. Keep in mind that a lengthy repayment term may decrease your monthly payments, but if you extend the loan, then you will pay more in interest charges. By paying your caravan loan in full as quickly as possible, you can decrease the total amount that you’ll wind up paying for your recreational vehicle however this may not always be possible.

Credit Ratings

When you have a good credit rating, lenders are more likely to give you favourable repayment terms. Consider checking your credit rating before you apply for a loan to ensure accuracy and to verify your likelihood of being approved. Essentially a financier is looking for a stable, reliable person. You’ll be given a better opportunity for a lower rate if you have been in your job for more than two years as well as being an home owner.

Final Thoughts

Caravan ownership is rewarding as the recreational vehicle gives you the freedom to discover the country affordably and explore isolated areas. When you take the time to arrange the best caravan loan for your personal finances, you will gain peace of mind since a thorough evaluation will give you a comprehensive understanding of the financial arrangement’s terms.

Authors Bio: 

James O’Brian is a Caravan loans specialist. He has been working for www.caravanloans.com.au for three years. They are one of Australia's largest caravan and motorhome finance companies. In his spare time James enjoys camping and travelling around Australia.

Back to basics in great outdoors

Written by Scott Podmore for experiencecaravanandcamping.com.au

AT A farewell party for my friend on the eve of his yearlong family caravanning adventure, I asked him whether he was concerned about taking his boys out of primary school for a year and hitting the road for a lap of Australia.

“Absolutely not,” he said. “They’ll learn more in the coming year than they will in the next five at primary school.”

Two weeks later while watching the news on TV, there they were, the entire family knee-deep in the ocean somewhere along the east coast helping to save a beached humpback whale.

It was a goosebumps kind of moment for me; something much more profound for them.

Another Aussie family who recently packed their life into a caravan for a year and hit the road are Nikki Harris and Matt Allan and their four children. Choosing to explore their “own backyard” rather than overseas was an easy decision, according to Nikki.

“We felt a road trip holiday around Australia was easier and safer,” Nikki says. “We allowed 12 months of travel on the same budget that would have achieved for us a quarter of the time overseas.

“For us, the experience was as much about the length of time together as a family as the destinations we took in. We definitely followed the old adage: It’s the journey, not the destination. We wanted our kids to know their own country.

“Matt’s father had planned to do the trip when he retired years earlier and died prior to doing it. That was a big motivator for us to seize the day.”

Seize the day, indeed, and the “Harris-Allans” are just one of a significantly growing number of families choosing the caravanning and camping lifestyle, according Australian Tourism Research findings.

The ATR research found the largest consumer group in the industry is made up of 35 to 49year-olds, who account for about 50 per cent of all travel in the sector. That figure is further backed by the Alliance Strategic Research finding that the key current user group was 35 to 49year-olds, particularly families with children.

“It’s about escapism, getting back to basics and family values,” says Stuart Lamont, chief executive officer of the Caravan Industry Association of Australia.

Lamont and his fellow industry leaders are rightly rubbing their hands together at a time when the global travel market hasn’t been without its

challenges in recent years, namely a global financial crisis.

Caravanning and camping has always stood the test of time and economic challenges, but now it’s surging.

Proposal for Caravan parks and Camping Grounds Legislation in WA

Have your say!

New caravan parks and camping grounds legislation is being developed to replace the Caravan Parks and Camping Grounds Act 1995 (the Act). The aim is to provide a legislative framework which better meets the needs of consumers, operators and regulating authorities, reduces red tape and safeguards the health and safety of everyone.

As part of the review and development process, the Department of Local Government and Communities has released a consultation paper to invite public comment on how the new act could operate. This consultation paper is an initiative of the Western Australia Caravan and Camping Action Plan, which is supported by the State Government’s Royalties for Regions program.

The consultation period runs for three months from 30 May until 1 September 2014.

Access all the info and documents here

Boatbay Launches First Boat Rental Marketplace in Asia Pacific and Middle East

Boatbay is a community driven website connecting boat and yacht owners, with people looking to rent, charter or crew watercraft of any kind. Boatbay's focus is on people who wish to rent a boat located within Asia Pacific or the Middle East, which are massive growth markets for travel, leisure and lifestyle.

The average boat owner uses their boat 15 days a year, while spending a fortune in storage and maintenance fees with no way to offset these costs. Boatbay lets an owner earn money out of his or her boat, while making quality lifestyle boating affordable to everyone.

Tim Gundry, co-founder of Boatbay is all too familiar with the costs of boating, "the expenses really add up. The advantage of using Boatbay is that you can offset these expenditures while still enjoying boat ownership".

Boatbay allows boat owners and boat charter companies to list their boat at no cost. All the boat owner has to do is to add some photos, a description, contact information and pricing. The owner can rent or charter their boat with themself as the captain; or select a captain of their choice or rent to someone with a boat license.

Boat renters can browse listings across their chosen destination, find a boat they like, select dates and book. Boatbay takes a small commission on consumed bookings and the owner gets the rest. Boat rental rates vary according to the size of the boat ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars.

"A wide variety of watercraft can be found on Boatbay" added Tim Gundry. "Boat renters can search and rent a luxury motor yacht in Sydney, a sports fishing boat in Dubai, a 1906 Danish built sailing yacht in Phuket or even a submarine in Bali".

"We are seeing an increasing amount of people taking to the water for a growing variety of reasons, such as hosting a corporate event or birthday party, fishing, water skiing, recreation and family holidays. Recreational boating is a $50 billion dollar industry and Boatbay enriches people's lifestyles by enabling fresh social experiences. A 24 foot boat that costs $35,000 to buy is available on Boatbay for rent as little as $150 a day".

Tim continues, "Boatbay not only improves industry efficiency, but enables transparency and reduces risk. We are building a peer-to-peer driven community which empowers people to write and post user reviews of boat owners, yacht charter companies, and those who rent or charter boats".

He concludes "Boatbay is the airbnb for boating, yachting and people who want to experience a social activity on the water".

For more information about Boatbay - visit www.boatbay.com or www.facebook.com/boatbay

Facebook Page for Travelling Families

I have been a page 'liker' of the Facebook Group... Families on the Road - Travelling Australia... for a few weeks now. It is a really helpful forum for sharing your experiences and asking questions of other families. There are thousands of members who are either on the road or planning their big trip (or ex-roadies like me who like to stay in the loop and offer the occasional pearls of wisdom).

It's a closed group for relevant families only, no spammers please!

Send a request to join the group 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/FOTR.Australia/

Ten things you must see

Ten things you must see and top tips on how to get the most out of your great Australian road trip

Written by Paul Glover for Escape.com.au

THE Big Trip is the dream of countless thousands of Australians. They picture hitching their caravan to the tail of their shiny new four-wheel drive and heading for the Outback and the travel experience of a lifetime.

It’s a dream that is often tied to retirement, when the shackles of day-to-day commitments are lifted, but can also be a multi-episode event that runs through holidays over a number of years.

If only they knew ...

So, here we go with the best way to make a lap of Australia.

The first and only thing to do right is to plan the trip down to the smallest detail. There’s nothing worse than hitting an unexpected snag, or finding you have no choices at a critical point. And it’s always worth thinking ahead about mechanical failures and health challenges – and having the essential numbers logged in your phone.

The Big Trip is usually about a lap of Australia, either clockwise or running ahead of the sun, but it’s important to also remember that some of the important stopovers – Kakadu, Uluru, Coober Pedy and Alice Springs – branch out from the Stuart Highway that creates the north-south spine from Darwin to Adelaide.

And don’t forget some of the obvious or kitsch stuff, from the Stockman’s Hall of Fame to the Qantas museum at Longreach, and even the landmarks in the big cities. After all, there are plenty of people who have never ventured far from home before planning the biggest adventure of their life.

After driving most of Australia, the thing that always comes back to me is this – it’s bigger, further and flatter than you think. The distances in Australia are huge, especially if you spend most of your days on a home-to-work commuter run. So you should think about the right vehicle, lots of stops, and countering fatigue and boredom.

READ MORE

Camping on Private Land

Youcamp is a community of private landholders who welcome responsible visitors.

Are you a traveller looking for;

• accommodation near a festival or big event
• a safe place to park your self-contained caravan
• private cabin
• labour exchange
• farmstay
• a secluded picnic spot
• traditional camping site far from the crowds....

What a great idea! Check out www.youcamp.com

Happy WA Day!

On June 1, 1829, Western Australia's coast was first sighted from the merchant ship Barque Parmelia. leading to the establishment of the Swan River Colony, the first permanent British colony in Western Australia. Traditionally Foundation Day has been celebrated on June 1st however, in 2012, new legislation passed recognising Aboriginal people as the original inhabitants and traditional custodians of Western Australia. Foundation Day was changed to WA Day and is celebrated with a public holiday on the 1st Monday in June.

I'm a proud West Aussie who travelled Australia for two years marveling at our wondrous country. I was open to finding a new home somewhere in Australia and although I fell in love with many places I chose to return to the West. It is a magical place.

Experience Extraordinary Western Australia

Western Australia is home to plenty of extraordinary experiences, the likes of which can only be found right here. Here’s a taste of the extraordinary experiences on offer in Western Australia….this is just the beginning.

• The South West of WA was named one of the top ten places to visit by Lonely Planet.
• The Margaret River region is one of Australia's premier wine regions and one of Australia's most extraordinary locations.
• WA is home to some of the world's oldest art, by one of the world's oldest living cultures.
• WA is the only place on earth where you can see a staircase to the moon.
• Perth is Australia's sunniest capital, with 3000 hours of sunshine a year.
• Western Australia boasts the largest collection of wildflowers on earth.
• Ningaloo Reef is the world's largest fringing reef, reached by the shortest swim and one of the few places where you can swim with the whale sharks.
• WA is one of the world's largest states with enough diversity for an entire continent.
• Karijini National park is one of the oldest and best rock shows on earth.
• The sand on Lucky Beach in Esperance is Australia's whitest. 

Click HERE for more amazing facts about WA.

Aussie Heli Adventure!

Have you seen this amazing rig on your travels?

Over the last six years, Graeme Harrison has spent a lot of time and money to realise a dream of travelling around Australia in a slightly different style.

“I've been around Australia twice before. Once when I was 20 and again when I was 30, and I always figured that for the third time I would like to do  it by boat or by helicopter,” Mr Harrison said. “But the idea of pulling up in a town and flying when the weather was appropriate appealed more than flying everywhere.”

So over the last six years Mr Harrison built the American-designed Rotorway kit helicopter to precision specifications, and to cart it around the 19-metre long truck and trailer set up, which houses not only the helicopter, but living quarters  complete with a double bed, full kitchen and air conditioning which runs on solar power.

“All up I've spent somewhere north of half a million dollars on the rig and trip, and I’m funding the trip entirely myself,” Mr Harrison said.

A mechanical engineer by trade, Mr Harrison said he always loved helicopters, and that he had around 80 hours flight time in small choppers before he decided  to build his own.

“Anyone can build one, technically. But not just anyone can take on the task,” he said.

“They’re not a Meccano set to build... if you don’t know what you’re doing what you put together isn't going to fly or it’s going to kill you.”

To keep himself occupied along the circumnavigation of the country, Mr Harrison has also been filming while flying with five XD Replay cameras mounted on his chopper, two quad-copter remote control drones with GoPro’s attached and while on foot around wherever he has parked.

Follow Graeme's adventure at his blog and Facebook page.
www.aussieheliadventure.blogspot.com

https://www.facebook.com/aussieheliadventure

Written by Sandy Powell from the Augusta-Margaret River Mail