It’s taken us 6 weeks at home, but we are just about to get back on the road.
Of course we have been longer at home than we expected, but we can’t just blame the socialising we’ve been doing – it’s been really worthwhile as we’ve made some mods to the van and car..even Grant had time to make more brackets! However, we’re (I’m) not grizzling, as the major improvement he’s made I’m sure will be the envy of many a boatie on the road. Grant, using his famous “blue box” (the welder!), has put together a bracket which will enable the boat to be towed from the water back to our camp only using some portable wheels, eliminating the need for us to always use the trailer. We now also have a home for the satellite dish on the rear of the van (moved from under the bed) thanks to another bracket, so the time at home has not been wasted.
“Another Bracket!…this one for the boat”
We’ve also managed to offload many things to lighten our load which was a major issue – goodbye coffee machine, bikes and bread machine (very sad), however other major issues we had on our shakedown trip related to load, and our inability to spend a lot of time free camping.
So we need to say thanks to ARB, who assisted with the installation of a first class suspension set up which will meet all of our requirements. And, to keep ourselves high and dry away from the water, we’ve added a snorkel.To drive all of our accessories, ARB have also added a dual battery system to compliment the existing Thumper set up.
As we weren’t able to generate enough power to take care of our 2 Engels in the car and everything else in the van comfortably, we did a quick trip to see the gang at the Home of 12 Volt . The team have installed a couple of extra solar panels which should help us get back to the outback, and be able to stay there!
As mentioned in other posts, after Christmas we were looking to head east to Victoria, then continue around Oz in an anti-clockwise direction following the coast where possible. Grant’s dream has been to get to the tip of Cape York around April/May, but given the cyclone circumstances in Queensland, we have finally decided to head west first and head around Oz clockwise, which we hope keeps the rain away, but doesn’t lead us into any other nasties!
So sit back and watch the trip unfold – just as we experienced adventure during our travels prior to Christmas, we’re sure we’ll continue to have a few more adventures along the way, but that’s what makes travelling so much fun. We will continue to write the blogs and post a few pics as we go, and Grant assures me he will continue to provide the entertainment!
Join us next time as we begin the trip over on the Eyre Peninsula, and one of us celebrates their 50th birthday very early in February on the road (and in case you’re wondering who…..no, it’s not Linda!)
Until then, stay safe.
Grant & Linda.
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