queensland: mareeba, atherton, tablelands

In the nine months we'd been travelling we'd not heard such enthusiasm from the back seat as when we drove the windy road in to the Tablelands from Undara.

"Can we LIVE here?" 

"We love it!" 

It was the first time any of us had seen such lush greenery in a very long time. We opened the vent in the car and breathed in fresh, clean, damp air. 

Mareeba, famous for its pineapples and we bought a few sweet, juicy ones for $2.50 a piece. B was also completing a study on the production of peanut butter which tied in nicely with a visit to The Peanut Place. 

The Rocky Creek Memorial Park free camp was a good place to set up for a couple of nights while we visited Atherton and Mareeba. Overnight visitors are expected to leave a donation. 

A serious restock of our fridge was needed and for the first time in many months we could buy fresh, fresh veggies and fruit. The Termite Fruit and Veg shop was our first port of call but even the op shop in town sold bananas! We picked up half a kilo of the most delicious dried mango for $25. Though a big outlay it proves to be vital to have good snacks in the car save the children simply "die of hunger!"

As well as the fridge the liquor cabinet was looking dry so we took the excuse to buy locally distiller scotch and gin from Mount Uncle Distillery. These guys are producing award-winning spirits. The gin is packed full of Australian botanicals and to drink it with tonic water is to defeat the purpose of the delicate flavours. I'm drinking mine with lime juice and soda. Not right now, of course. I'll wait until 5pm!

Rifle Creek free camp is just outside of Mount Molloy on the road from Mareeba to Wonga Beach. We made a planned reverse trip the morning after we stayed - to Kah Veh Cafe and Fine Foods in Mount Molloy. Kah Veh brews a mean coffee. They make tasty raw treats and sell a range of locally produced fruit and veggies.

queensland: karumba to undarra via belmore lake

It was a relief to leave the confined site at Karumba though we all began to miss our new friends, Mitch, Veronica and their kids! 

We waved goodbye to Mitch and Veronica and jumped in the car, ready for a few hours on the road before another resident of the caravan park pointed out our flat tyre on the caravan. It must have been a slow leak from that magic dirt road from Leichardt Falls. J was quick to act - replacing it with a spare one from the truck - while the kids practised their diving one last time in the pool. 

We were on the road by eleven and grabbed a good coffee at Normanton Art Gallery. 

Our small stop was just out of Croydon on the dam. This town has been ravaged by fires, drought and floods in the past decade. On the drive to the dam there's a small historical site- the remnants of a Chinese village - from the glory days of gold mining. 

Once again we picked a beautiful free camp. Belmore Lake is a bird watchers paradise with hundreds of water birds inhabiting the lake which appears as an oasis in the dry country. Once again the large open campsite was welcome and the kids collected a range of rusted tools before we ate dinner by the lake watching the birds and the sunset. 

It's particularly beautiful and was a restful night before we head off to Undarra the following morning. 

This section of the Savannah Way is interspersed with kilometres of single lane bitumen road. In reality there's plenty of space to pass oncoming traffic but it can be dicey with showering stones as both parties leave the tar. 

queensland: boodjamulla to karumba on the savannah way

It was hard to leave Adele's Grove. It was a relaxing week that we could have extended. 

We broke our rule again, briefly, and back tracked along the road back to Gregory Downs. If we had the time we would have stayed a night by the river like so many were. It looked beautiful. 

Heading north we hit the tiny town of Burketown where we bought a few supplies from the grocery store that had been recommended - in the post office. Some of these remote towns have deliveries of fresh food once a week. We made the most of a delivery. 

We almost stayed in Burketown but opted for the freecamp at Leichardt Falls instead. This must be an incredible sight in the wet or even after a wet wet. So much of the top end has struggled after a dry wet season. 

We do love just pulling up at a free camp for the night. 

The dirt road from Leichhardt Falls to Normanton was the best dirt we've encountered in our lives. There's always talk about the condition of dirt roads and there's a lot to be said about the impact of lots of traffic, weight and speed. 

One of Normanton's claim to fame is the shooting of the suspected largest croc in Australia by a local croc hunter. Obviously this practise isn't condoned or encouraged anymore thankfully. Normanton also housed a teeny tiny public library where the kids went crazy over the books!

Karumba is a town on the coast on the Gulf of Carpentaria. We wanted to see that sea since we had no intention of doing 'The Cape' on this trip. The population is predominantly made up of grey nomad fisherman holiday maker who fill their freezers over a few months each year. 

queensland: mount Isa, corella dam

Wow. Mount Isa. A town built on mining and which literally is built on the mine. A view from the town's lookout gives you a perspective of the size of the mine with the town sprawled out underneath it. We had a full day of jobs to get done in Mount Isa. The kids patiently tagged along before we took them to the huge playground. Despite sections being closed this park was the best we've seen on the trip with activities for kids of all ages. 

We were quite sure we didn't want to stay overnight in Mount Isa so at 4pm we headed the 60km East to the Corella Dam freecamp. There's so much room by the dam here (which used to provide water for the nearby now extinct uranium mine). It was a stunning place!

But we had to childproof our fire in the morning. 

It was lucky we'd bought that playpen in Darwin. 

western australia: wooramel station

Wooramel Station is a few hours drive from Monkey Mia but only a few kilometres off the highway. The campsites are right by the river though it's very dry at the moment. When Cyclone Quang came through a few weeks ago it took down a lot of huge branches from the old gums on this property but they've been tidied up. 

Our kids had a ball playing in these giant trees when we arrived. Another family set up next to us in the dark and we ended up chatting with the parents in to the night. The four kids roamed together, making games and having adventures under the trees and on the wide sandy river bed for a couple of hours while we chatted and packed up in the morning. Making friends on the road can be tricky. The kids meet little friends and within minutes one of the families can be leaving. Depending on how quickly/slowly the families are travelling we might not see them again on the road. So the kids are learning to grasp at opportunities to make friends. It's has done wonders for their confidence. 

The Artesian hot tub is a real draw card at this station stay. The bore water is steaming out of the ground and spilling out in to two tanks. It's a really well done bathing area and a novelty on a free camp! The amenities are in the halves of water tanks (I wish I'd taken a pic) - showers and toilets. 

western australia: nullabor, baxter rest stop

A quick game of cricket before hitting the road at Baxter rest stop (has a toilet and a dump point). 

It won't surprise you that the longest straight stretch of road in Australia - 146km - is on the Nullabor. At night you can see the lights of a road train approaching from kilometres away! There's plenty to look out for during the day - camels, cattle, kangaroos and huge wedge-tailed eagles. We were hopeful but didn't see a camel! 

south australia: the nullabor, WA border,

How's this for a view? We lucked out with the weather too! 

This free camp is called Peg Stop 13km as it is 13km east of the South Australian and Western Australian border. 

Please if you are travelling and intend to use free camps, remove your rubbish and ensure you are self-contained. The saddening part of so many stops on this pretty stretch of road is the damage people have inflicted on the scenery. 

south australia: fowlers bay

We met this shingle back lizard on the road in to Fowlers Bay. He was not too pleased to see us! 

Remember Bob from Napperby? He suggested we stay in Fowlers Bay as he's visited many times over the years and  fishing for squid off the town jetty is popular. We didn't catch any squid but we did stay for two nights. 

View of Fowlers Bay from the sand dunes. 

I've never seen sand dunes like the ones at Fowlers Bay and it seems they're slowly encroaching on to the town as the towns main road was where the dunes now stand. 

It's an interesting town of only a few houses and feels so isolated given that the town's water supply is from an aquifer. What look like garden hoses run from the aquifer amongst the dunes to the homes of Fowlers Bay. The town uses solar energy and a generator kicks in when that runs out. 

If you're intending to stay at Fowlers be sure to fill your water tanks beforehand as you can't fill from the caravan park. There's also no dump point. 

We enjoyed sitting by the camp fire at night at the caravan park and the kids enjoyed meeting other kids who were staying too. 

south australia: perlubie beach

Pandurra Station to Streaky Bay is a decent drive with the kids so we made sure we stopped for a play in the park at Minnipa! And there was Tully and his folks again! Now we don't know who was following who but it was nice to see familiar faces!!

If we'd had the time we would've visited Pildappa Rock. Apparently it's a delightful place to stay. Our list of places to visit on our next trip is getting longer! 

We stopped in at Streaky Bay which was our last stop at a supermarket before hitting the bitumen across the Nullabor. I made sure we stocked up on fresh veggies (including carrots, sweet potato and corn which can be taken across the border) and frozen veggies because I knew we'd miss them in the few days from the WA border to the next supermarket. 

Oh and another tip. Fill up with diesel at Poochera. Streaky Bay was an extra 20c litre which adds up!

If you can free camp then Perlubie Beach is a place you'll want to stay. If you have the right gear you can even camp right on the beach. We arrived at Perlubie late in the afternoon and found ourselves a spot in the carpark just behind the beach. J remarked "I reckon we could get the van on to the beach. Might be an adventure." As we were planning to leave as early as possible the following morning it wasn't really an adventure I was comfortable with. We settled with a compromise and ate dinner on the beach after the boys explored the caves on the western end. What a spot!

victoria: hepburn springs, sovereign hill

Many teacher friends of mine have taken school groups to Sovereign Hill which is hardly surprising. It's an enjoyable educational experience for kids and adults. The Sovereign Hill experience really is a step back in to the time of the gold rush. Characters from a town - a doctor, a sweet maker, a blacksmith, people trying their luck in search of gold and others - interact with visitors. 

Our kids loved visiting the blacksmith, the lolly shop and panning for gold in the creek which runs through the property. We also watched as gold was poured (all $140k worth), had a ride on a horse and carriage and watched a demonstration by red coats. 

This easier free camp for the night. We found out later that it was wrongly identified on a map and isn't a public place but we were able to stay. 

victoria: mount franklin reserve

There are some places that we visit that we'll never forget - Buchan (Vic), Boat Harbour Beach (Tas), Bay of Fires (Tas), Cradle Mountain (Tas) to name a few. 

Mount Franklin Reserve is another place to add to the list - a free camp - which we found in Camps 8. In paddocks, just out of Castlemaine, is an extinct volcano and within it is Mount Franklin Reserve. There are toilets but otherwise campers need to take home rubbish & have their own water. 

The sites are under towering pines and it's absolutely beautiful. The kids & J enjoyed a short walk around the top of the volcano and playing hide and seek in the forest. 

I'm sure there'd be times when this is very busy. 

tasmania: bay of fires (cosy corner)

These were the recipes we used for the squid and the mackerel. Reknowned for being an oily fish it was perfect for the bbq. We had our trusty Weber on hand.

On the road there are times when it's just us and the kids but we've met quite a few lovely people including other families travelling with their kids. 

At Bay of Fires we met two families one if whom we sat chatting in to the night and then had a fry up the next morning. The other family we met had a little girl who shares the same birthday with our youngest. These guys brought champagne and salad to our feast of squid and mackerel.  

Have you eaten mackerel? How was it cooked?

Squid on bbq 

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/32665/barbecued+salt+and+pepper+squid

Mackerel 

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/4465/barbecued-mackerel-with-ginger-chilli-and-lime-dri

tasmania: bay of fires

We created some great memories at the Bay of Fires. Many times since we arrived in Tassie people recommended free camping at Cosy Corner. We arrived after lunch and we're really lucky to find a site. If you intend to stay at either Cosy Corner North or South it would be best to arrive at about 11 - giving people enough time to pack up & vacate their site. It's a popular spot but you can still find yourself a nice private site. 

We chose to stay at Cosy Corner North so we had toilet facilities close by. It's good to give the van a work-out and find out the limitations.

We can comfortably free camp for three nights as long as we have enough sunshine to power the batteries (though in some places we can crank up the gennie). It's pretty good that, as a family of five, the solar panels, water tanks & toilet in the van give us that independence. I must say we were grateful for the shower yesterday (after 4 days) though! 

We've only had a few instances when we could have been more prepared for meals. If you're planning a stay at Bay of Fires you don't have to worry too much. St Helens is only a quarter of an hour from the campsites. There's a large IGA but the smaller Hilly's IGA is a fabulous supplier of local cheese (Payengana) & the best bacon I've ever eaten - Bok's - from Glenorchy in Tassie. 

And if you need your coffee fix Marika at Coffee Away - a hole-in-the-wall - can make you caffeine in whatever form you desire! You can grab a takeaway or just sit on the benches in the sun out front and watch the holiday makers wander by. 

We'd been told about Lease 65 Oysters but I took a wrong turn and found myself at Clean Water Oysters (200 Binalong rd) where i grabbed three dozen unshucked for $24! We ate some natural (with lemon) and turned some in to Kilpatrick with the Bok's bacon and homemade Worschestire sauce from the providore in St Helens. Oh man. They were good. The kids guzzled them down too.

B had his eye on the sweet tiny wrens at the campsite. He was desperate to cuddle one so he spent about 3.5 hours one day designing and re-jigging a trap. He used various lengths of string, sticks, bread crumbs and cheese crumbs when he heard they love those best. Unfortunately B didn't have any luck. 

Unlike J in his kayak! Early one morning he managed to catch a mackerel (not the nicest but we do have a good recipe) and a squid.  

tasmania: brady's lake

Bradys Lake is in Camps 8 and there are a few spots to pull in to for the night for those who are self-contained. 

Last night we sat by a fire with some lovely Tassie locals. Our son introduced us to them and our kids cooked marshmallows over the fire.

Bradys Lake is meant to be a great spot to catch brown & rainbow trout and Atlantic salmon. We were hoping J would bring one in on the kayak or B on the rod but it wasn't to be! 

What a morning! 

This was a stunning place to wake up. We were shrouded in fog but it cleared to reveal the mirror-like lake.