Live2Camp Magazine Issue #19

Issue 19

We take the road less travelled

BLACK ROCKSÂ BUNJALUNG NATIONAL PARK

COOPER'S CREEK

WINDORAH SOUTH AUSTRALIA

INNAMINCKA HOTEL

PEBBLY BEACH YURAYGIR NATIONAL PARK

A WORD OR TWO FROM

MATT

I love this time of year.

Summer’s coming to an end and as it starts to cool down, it’s time to plan the year's camping trips out into the Outback.

In my opinion there is no better place to go camping in Australia than in the Outback. Whether it’s Cape York, the Simpson Desert or out to the amazing Uluru, I can’t recommend it highly enough. Especially during Winter.

The nights are perfect for camping and the days are even better. If you or your friends are planning a trip to the Outback this Winter and have any questions, feel free to send us an email at info@live2camp.com.au and we’ll do our best to help you out.

We were also lucky enough this month to give away to 7 lucky campers, a set of Trash-Ease Garbage Bag holders. This is a great new product that’s just been released in Australia.

I know that one of the biggest issues we have around the campsite is where to put all our rubbish. Well, no more tying a garbage bag around a pole and hoping it will stay, the TrashEase holder is the perfect solution and an essential addition to every camper's camping setup. So, congratulations to the lucky winners, I’m sure you will enjoy your latest camping accessory.

I hope you enjoy reading this edition of Live2Camp Australia and Happy Camping!

Also, make sure you jump on our website for more campsite ideas and subscribe to our monthly magazine for FREE! Happy Camping!

Contents - Issue #19

02 Matt's Editorial 04 Pebbly Beach NSW 08 Innamincka Hotel 10 Camper Trailer Industry 13 Tip of the month 14 Black Rocks NSW 18 A woman's perspective 20 Cooper's Creek Camping

PEBBLY BEACH YURAYGIR NATIONAL PARK

By Josh Ford

There’s something about waking up to the sound of the waves lapping at the shore, sea breeze caressing your skin and the golden rays of sun rising up over the ocean to get the soul stirring in the morning. There are many places along our coastlines where you can camp close to or on the beach, but there aren’t many that I have found that are as tranquil and relaxing as Pebbly Beach Camping Area in the Yuraygir National Park. Halfway between Coffs Harbour and Grafton, the turnoff is easy to miss with only a small sign letting campers know of what lies inwards towards the ocean.

After about 20 kilometers of dirt track through sprawling forests you will come to a gate letting you know that you have arrived in the National Park.

There are dedicated spots to get free firewood, so please don’t collect it from the National Park itself.

Click here for the Pebbly Beach camping area video

A quick trip up and over the sand dunes and you will be greeted with a view over the ocean and its islands, and another couple of k’s up the beach you will cross back over the dunes to a tidal river. It is important to time your trip correctly to correlate with the low tide, as you will need to cross the river to get to the campsites.

The campsites are spacious and generally flat, and most have a fire pit.

There are long drop toilets in the middle of the campground and walking trails to the north over the headlands, or go south to walk along the empty beaches towards Red Rock. Make sure you bring your fishing gear, as there is plenty of good fishing to be had with rock, beach and river fishing producing all the species expected from along the east coast of Australia.

Make sure you take enough food and water as there is none available once you get here and take cash for the campsites as the ranger is on site and collects daily.

It’s best to take a few days to really enjoy what Pebbly Beach Camping Area has to offer, and considering it is consistently in most of the Top 10 camping area guides in Australia, it doesn’t take much imagination to understand just how amazing this place really is.

PEBBLY BEACH

CONTINUED...

M att and I also visited Pebbly Beach only a few weeks after Josh did and we loved it as well! We spoke with Rob the caretaker and wasn't he a great bloke! He advised us that although many vehicles have been lost in the creek crossing to get to the campsite over the years, it only happens when people do stupid things and aren't prepared. The advise he had was as follows: Cross the creek at no more than 1 & 1/2 hours each side of low tide.

Make sure your tyres are down to 18psi, and ensure your vehicle is equiped to make a creek crossing. ie: have a snorkle fitted at the very least. The other thing Rob told us is that he was more than happy to receive calls from anyone coming to the campsite.

You can't book here, but Rob can tell you how busy it currently is, what the crossing is like at any one time and also what time you need to get to camp to still get a site. His number is 0428 581 911 so give him a call if you have any questions. He can also give you lots of information on what there is to do in the area, such as visiting the Keyman Statue (Jonas monument), sand-blast boogie boarding for the kids, fishing and more. There is also plently of wildlife as the images above can attest to.. snakes, goannas, rockpool wildlife and more. Make sure you get out to Pebbly Beach soon!

By Lize Bloomfield

Innamincka Hotel

BY JAMES GUERIN Â

One of my favourite Outback pubs is the Innamincka Hotel. This remote outback pub is located on the banks of the Cooper Creek in South Australia and is very much a sight for sore eyes at the end of the Strzelecki Track. The Hotel was first opened in the area in 1885 however in 1952 the town of Innaminka became a virtual ghost town after the invention of modern transportation. In 1956, the hotel and the town itself was wiped out by floods that went through the area. Finally, in 1979 the Hotel was rebuilt after campers started venturing back into the area in their 4wd’s. Since, then the Hotel has never looked back with the owners doing a fantastic renovation job.

The pub not only offers cold beer, but great meals and if for some reason you need a break from camping (not sure why you would) they also offer great hotel rooms. The camping on the nearby Cooper Creek banks is absoluelty first class as well.

So if you find yourself in the very small and isolated area of Innamincka, head off to the Innamincka Hotel for a drink and meet some of the interesting people that pass on through here.

LOT 1 SOUTH TERRACE, INNAMINCKA, SA 5731 PH 08 8675 9901

IMPORTED

V

AUSSIE

WHAT'S THE BEST CAMPER TRAILER?

I heard some very sad news last

week and that is that one of Australia’s premium camp trailer manufacturers closed its doors for the very last time.

Aussie Swag Camper Trailers, an Australian family business producing top quality campers since the 80’s have closed their business as they are unable to stay competitive in the growing Australian market. So, this very sad news got me thinking. Are Chinese imported camper trailers killing off the locally made trailers. I’m sure you are all aware as you have

seen the increasing numbers of campertrailers on the roads of a Friday afternoon, camping in Australia has exploded in the last ten years. Don’t get me wrong, camping has always been extremely popular in Australia which is why we have seen companies like Cub campers who have been producing campers since the 70’s. However, we have seen a dramatic increase in the last ten years of people choosing to take their families camping instead of going to resorts and the like.

This has not only lead to the rise of locally made campers such as Patriot Campers, Track Trailer and Ultimate Campers, but it has also led to an influx of imported camper trailers, mostly made in China, such as Black Series and MDC campers.

So, which is better? Australian made or Chinese imported. This is a tough question and to be honest, whether you buy one or the other really comes down to how big your budget is when it comes time to purchase your camper. Many years ago, when our children where still in primary school, Lize and I decided it was time to upgrade from our trusty tents to a camper trailer. Now we had four young children, and as you can imagine, money was pretty tight, so we only had a budget of about $6,000 to spend on a camper.

This meant that we had to do a lot of shopping around to find the camper that best suited our needs as well as our budget. Because our budget was so low, it pretty much ruled out any entirely made Australian camper right from the get go. There just wasn’t anything made locally for that kind of price. So eventually we settled for what was then known as a GIC camper trailer despite all the bad publicity online they had received. We had that camper for close to five years and took it all over Australia and it did not miss a beat. Sure, it had a few niggly problems at the start, such as the tap broke and some of the workmanship was a little underwhelming. However, whenever I had a problem GIC never questioned it and would send out a new part immediately.

We have since sold the camper to some deal with, quite often not returning friends who are still using it to this day phone calls for weeks. On a recent and it has never had a problem. trip to Cape York, I stupidly backed it into a tree causing damage to the rear of the Camper. I wasn’t overly stressed though as we have insurance, however it took six months for the repairer to get the spare parts from Track Trailer to fix it, and the parts are manufactured in Melbourne!! So, are With our kids Chinese imported grown up and camper trailers now having a hurting the local little more manufacturers? Yes, disposable income we have moved I have no doubt they are but on to an Australian made Track unfortunately not everyone can Trailer Tvan. We love our Tvan! It is a afford a $30k plus camper, and until fantastic, very well made, Australia manufacturers can start to comfortable, go anywhere camper make one to meet everyone’s trailer and we could not be happier budget, there will always be a with it. However, it cost us eight times market for cheap imported camper more than what we paid for the GIC trailers. It really does come down to and it has still had the same niggly how much the consumer can afford problems that the GIC had. Hand tap to spend on a luxury item such as a has broken on it and we have had camper trailer. I really hope we constant issues with the water hoses don’t see more local manufacturers that lead to the kitchen. Mainly that close down but until they can find a they tend to leak. We have also way to lower their costs and we will found that whenever we have had a continue to see more imports flood problem, the customer service the market. department has been far harder to

By Matt Bloomfield

Tip of the Month Stable tables - buying or making them yourself, either way, well worth it when camping. You can buy them from many stores like Kmart, Big W and so on, but they are also super simple to make. Particle board and a jigsaw to cut the top, left over material sewed and filled with bean bag balls for the

By Lize Bloomfield

bottom and some liquid nails to glue them together. I put our logo on mine and gave it a varnish as well or alternatively you can paint it and there you have it. A stable table making eating on your lap while camping so much more pleasant. Truth be told, I use it at home quite often too!

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BLACK ROCKSÂ

By Michael Coad

We recently completed a trip to the Black Rocks campground located in the Bunjalung National Park (NSW), we took the scenic route from the Dirty Weekends book catching the ferry from Ballina across to South Ballina Beach and headed south along the sand with the camper trailer in tow. This was an easy drive and quite scenic, eventually we came to the crop of coffee rock at Evans Head and this was a nice challenge but nothing too difficult, from there we were back on the bitumen for a short drive through a small township before heading east again and into the Bunjalung National Park. The road immediately got bumpy and bushy and we felt like we had escaped from reality. We were in the wilderness well away from everything and before we knew it we had arrived at camp.

The park is very well set up and has individual and group sites. We chose to book an individual site and it was perfect. The sites are clearly marked and fenced off with trees and bushes separating the sites to give you the real feel of privacy. Each site also includes a wooden table and chairs, a clothesline and a fire pit ring.

The park also has communal toilets located around the park and a very short stroll from our campsite took us to the top of the cliff overlooking the beach and what was a great view of the campground's very own private beach . We spent the majority of our stay on the beach and the kids just loved it. They were able to swim, surf, play sandcastles and write their names in the black rocks on the beach and had enough room to run around when at our campsite. We also spent a lot of time on our site, and with the camper trailer blocking the front and the rest being fenced in, we were able

to sit back and let the kids be kids without having to watch for cars.

Within the park there is also a creek named Jerusalem Creek which you can swim in, the carpark was full of cars where people had launched their canoe or kayak to go for a paddle.

Being a National Park this was great value at just $24 per night. This would have to be one of my favourite campsites for a short getaway, there is no shortage of campsites all of which you are able to preview on the NSW National Parks website allowing you to pick the site that suits your setup. This accompanied with the Live2Camp video of this campground made planning a breeze.

Click here for the Black Rocks camping area video

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CAMPING SHOWS

. . . . .

March/April 2018

NATIONAL 4x4 OUTDOORS SHOW - Fishing & Boating Expo Dates: 16th - 18th March, 2018 Venue: Brisbane Showgrounds, 600 Gregory Tce, Bowen Hills, Brisbane Website: www.4x4show.com.au/brisbane RAC Perth Caravan and Camping Show Dates: 21st - 25th March, 2018 Venue: Claremont Showground, 1 Graylands Rd, Claremont Website: www.caravanandcampingshow.com.au South QLD Caravan, Camping, Boating & Fishing EXPO Dates: 20th - 22nd April, 2018 Venue: Nambour Showgrounds, Coronation Avenue, Nambour.

Website: www.australianevents.com.au The Great Outdoor Expo: Mt Gambier Dates: 20th - 22nd April, 2018 Venue: Mt Gambier Showgrounds, 1 Pick Ave, Mount Gambier Website: www.greatoutdoorexpos.com.au Sydney Caravan and Camping Supershow Dates: 24th - 29th April, 2018 Venue: Rosehill Gardens Racecourse, James Ruse Drive, Rosehill.

Website: www.supershow.com.au

A Woman's Perspective

By Lize Bloomfield

So Matt and I were crossing the creek at Pebbly

Beach and a young man stopped us and asked for help. He said he was travelling with a group of back-packers and they'd got themselves stuck. Of course, as any one of us would do, we immediately agreed to help and he guided us quite a way out of the National Park, down what I can only describe as a 4WD only track. We drove for a wee while and eventually saw what a pickle they had certainly got themselves into. The young lady driving at the time had no experience in off-road driving and this was immediately obvious. Quite funny, all of these young backpacking travellers, covered in mud up to their armpits as they had been trying to dig their way out for quite some time. It was Matt to the rescue with the winch he'd been wanting to use for a while now and a short time later we had winched them out backwards. We had a quick celebratory beer and then left them to it.

After some work and a lot of laughs, they were out at last!

- Along with a little advise from some older and arguably more experienced 4wd'ers. We were so glad we were there to help, who knows how long they'd have been there otherwise!

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WINDORAH

COOPER'S CREEK

Nature's Botanical Garden If you are like us here at Live2Camp, and I’m pretty sure you are, then you are probably planning your Winter’s trip out to the great Australian Outback. That’s right, as the days get cooler and the nights even cooler, it is the best time to load up the camper and head out into the Outback. And if you are heading into the Outback, can I please recommend that no matter which way you are heading that you do

everything you can do to head to the very small South West Queensland Outback town of Windorah.

Windorah, I hear you say out loud!

What the heck is at Windorah? Well for a start it’s not far from one of the best Outback towns in Australia, Birdsville, it also has one of the best outback creek side campsites you will find anywhere. Only a very short drive east out of Windorah towards Charleville you will run into the

NATURE ABUNDANT Cooper Creek, well not into it, but onto the bridge that crosses it and you are able to camp on both sides of the creek. And what’s even better, it’s free! Now there are not a lot of facilities at the campsites, in fact there is only a single toilet, but that’s not what you camp there for though is it. You soon forget about the lack of facilities when you are camped under the beautiful gum trees that swing down towards the slow moving water of the creek.

The Creek

There is lots of room on both sides and this can be accessed by everything from tents to large caravans. If you have read the news recently, you probably

would be aware that Outback Queensland has received a lot of rain lately and I mean a lot of rain!

We last camped at Windorah in 2016 not long after the area had received a similar amount of rain as they are getting now and we have never seen beauty like it! Once the rains had stopped and the dry season started, the wild flowers came in abundance.

The Wildflowers

There were fields as far as the eye could see full of amazing yellow wild flowers. I’m not normally into flowers, you know I’m a bloke and all, but these were a sight to see especially as the sun dropped below the horizon.

WILDLIFE ABUNDANT Then there was the creek itself. It was full of water and flowing at a pace that you would not want to fall into and because of this it was full of life.

The Pelicans

This campsite is truly, one of the best overnight creek side campsites you will find anywhere.

So, this Winter, if you are heading any where near Windorah in South West Queensland make sure you stop and stay the night. The small country town is definitely worth it.

The birdlife was abundant with pelicans sitting on the logs right in front of our campsite waiting to pluck fish straight out of the water.

Click here for the Cooper's Creek Windorah video

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THE MAGAZINE TEAM Editorial Matt Bloomfield Lize Bloomfield Photography Lize Bloomfield

Design Lize Bloomfield Editorial & Advertising Enquiries info@live2camp.com.au

Authors Matt Bloomfield Josh Ford James Guerin Lize Bloomfield Michael Coad

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