April 2017
We take the road less travelled
Camping
A woman's perspective
Camping Nightmares
Don't let them stop you!
d e l a e v e r t u H s y r r a H & Kinkuna
A word or two from
MATT Pack up the camper, we’re heading for a road trip! That’s right, Live2Camp is hitting the road in May to film as many camp sites as we can in NSW. This means a whole lot of new camping areas for you to explore at home before you decide where you’re going to spend those couple of precious weeks off a year! We are mostly heading down the coast of NSW with a slight detour into the Blue Mountains. If you at home have a camp ground in mind that you would love to see in HD video, please send us an email or message us through Facebook and let us know. You just never know you might just get your wish granted In some more exciting news, the Live2Camp Magazine is expanding.
Each month you can now read all about your favourite Aussie Pub with James Guerin joining the team. I know when I’m travelling around this great country, I love nothing more than stopping in at a great outback pub for a cold schooner or two. Every month you will be able to visit one of these great pubs with James as he fills you in on the ones you need to visit on your next trip. Here at Live2Camp we hope you really enjoy our monthly magazine and I can tell you, it's going to grow even bigger every month and it’s all for FREE. So why not sign up for a free subscription and get your favourite camping magazine delivered to your email inbox every month.
THE MAGAZINE TEAM Editorial Matt Bloomfield Lize Bloomfield
Design Jack McCappin Lize Bloomfield
Photography Lize Bloomfield
Editorial & Advertising Enquiries info@live2camp.com.au
Authors Matt Bloomfield Josh Ford James Guerin Lize Bloomfield
Contents 4
April 2017
2
MATT'S EDITORIAL A word or two from Matt
HUT CAMPING 4 HARRYS Camping meets history
14
7
KINKUNA CAMPING AREA Burrum Coast National Park
9
CAMPING NIGHTMARES When camping goes wrong!
12
A WOMAN'S PERSPECTIVE Camping - a woman's view
13
CAMPING NEWS The camping exhibitions and shows for March 2017
14
Apollian Hotel est 1868 This weeks country pub.
12
7
HARRYS HUT By Matt Bloomfield
Harrys Camping Area
When I see the name of a campground has ‘Hut’ in the title, then curiosity always gets the better of me. I have to go and see the campground and I want to know everything about it and delve into its history. Harrys Hut was no exception. I have wanted to go camping there for years but for a variety of reasons had never made it there. This time I was not going to miss out. No matter what happened, we were going to camp at Harrys Hut and that’s probably why my mate Josh and I turned onto the dirt road heading to the campground in darkness. We had pushed on all day to get there and had lost the daylight hours. It’s times like these that you realise why you spend all that
money on LED light bars for your 4wd. The drive in, under artificial light was nothing less than spectacular. Single lane dirt road winding its way through tropical rainforest type bush with little creek crossings to boot. I could have driven it all night but it wasn’t long before Harrys Hut itself was in our headlights. So why is it called Harrys Hut Campground, I hear you ask? In short the area was used for logging up until the 1950’s and the hut was built for the timber cutters to stay in.
Click here for Harrys Hut camping area video
The location was perfect as the loggers used the Noosa River, which is located next to the hut, to move the logs around. The hut however got its name from Harry Spring, a pharmacist from Cooroy who purchased the hut in the 1960’s for his own use. Fortunately for us the logging stopped and now we have a great area to enjoy. The hut still stands today and as you stare at it you can only imagine what it used to be like to return to it after a hard days logging. We soon settled in to a very nice fenced off campsite just a short distance from the large toilet block and called it a night. We woke early to the sounds of birds and I wandered off to have a look at the campsite while Josh pulled a fishing rod out of his fourbie. I spent the next hour wandering through the range of camper trailer and walk-in campsites nestled in amongst the bush. It wasn’t long before I reached the Noosa River, which runs parallel to the campsite.
Stunning, in a word. Full of water and wildlife. If you’re into kayaking and canoeing, then this place is heaven for you. There’s landing and launching platform areas and stands to store your kayaks while you camp over night. My walk came to an end at the Harrys Hut itself. A small wooden and corrugated iron hut perched just a short distance from the river. Unfortunately people feel the need to graffiti their name on it but if you can look past this you will get a glimpse of the history of this beautiful area. I made my way back to Josh who took great joy in telling me he had been pulling in Catfish, one after the other since I had left. He was a happy man and so was I. It’s fair to say that Harrys Hut Campground has a little something for everyone and I can’t believe I waited so long to get there!
Words by Matt Bloomfield
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Kinkuna Camping Area BY JOSH FORD
I really enjoy a getaway to new and exciting places and with friends and family it's even better. This trip started with a simple message from Matt Bloomfield: “Hey Josh, are you keen for an adventure?” and soon we were setting out our plan which involved towing our camper trailers up to Agnes Water, following the coast through Deepwater National Park and back down to Kinkuna Beach Camping Area for a night under the stars. Leaving early we made good time and after having a look around in
Agnes Water it wasn’t long before we were traversing a single lane sand track reminiscent of parts of Fraser Island with palm trees and forest adorning the road on both sides. We continued for a while through Deepwater National Park, passing just one other car in what felt like hours. A quick cast in Baffle Creek, peak hour in Bundaberg and onto the sandy trails that lead
Click here for Kinkuna Camping area video
into Kinkuna, it looked like we were going to be setting up camp just after dark. The sun was setting in the plains to the west and we decided to drop our tyre pressures after a couple of sketchy moments in the soft sand. After catching a glimpse of some tracks leading into some camping spots, we swung in towards the beach and skipped the first campsite to see if there were any better ones. And then Matt came to a grinding halt in the powdery soft sandy tracks following the beach and quickly advised me that he was bogged down deep in the soft stuff. What followed was a 2 hour recovery mission for both the Patrol and Pajero using Max Trax, snatch straps and the winch to get a total distance of 50m to a lovely little clearing where we quickly set up and fell asleep in our our 1.5 ton sand anchors.
In the morning I saw that the beach was literally metres from where we slept and that Kinkuna was an amazing place, with plenty of campsites, ample fishing opportunities and that isolated feeling that really makes me feel relaxed after working all week. Kinkuna Beach Camping Area is an easy 5 hour trip from Brisbane and there are no toilets or facilities but it is an unbelievable spot that you could spend a week at and enjoy every single minute. It’s important to be self sufficient and always take enough recovery gear to get you out of trouble. Make sure you add Kinkuna to your to do list, it is well worth the trip. Just be aware if Matt ever asks “Are you keen for an adventure? Words by Josh Ford
Camping Nightmares
Don't let them stop you!
I’ve been camping my whole life but I didn’t really start taking it seriously until I had kids of my own. And by taking it seriously, I mean planning our family holidays as camping trips rather than going to a hotel. So for about the last ten years all our family holidays have involved going camping and over this time we have had some absolute shockers!! Yet, I still love camping more than ever. One particular camping trip that stands out in my mind is a trip in 2008 which we had been planning for over 12 months. We had booked a site in a campground at a place called Merry Beach in NSW. We packed up the tent into the trailer we were towing and headed towards the coast.
As we headed out we could see storm clouds started to gather behind us and this should have been a sign! A couple hours into the trip, my young daughter decided without warning to empty the contents of her stomach onto the roof of the car in a manner that can only be described as projectile! A quick exodus followed and a number of towels were ruined before we got rid of that horrible smell and we continued on with our journey. A few more hours on and the rain started. Not just a little bit of drizzle but what I would call a downpour and this did not stop until we reached the campground. We didn’t let this dampen our spirits (excuse the pun) as the camp site was perfect, Right on top of the sand dune over looking the water. So, leaving the kids in the car, the wife and I started setting up our large family tent.
We didn’t have a flash camper trailer then, we couldn’t afford one. We managed to set up in the pouring rain only to discover that our tent wasn’t waterproof! Two trips to the local camping store later, and the top of the tent was covered in two waterproof, and very expensive, tarps. Exhausted we decided to call it a night. Perfect sunshine greeting us early in the morning after a night of continuous rain. With this came a sense of relief. Lize headed off to the laundry with a basket full of wet clothes and I headed to the pool with the kids. It wasn’t long before the whole family was laughing and splashing in the pool. Then the wind came. And oh boy, did it come! It was probably as close to a cyclone you could get without having a cyclone. We rushed back from the pool to our flimsy family tent just in time to see it fold in on itself. The next couple of hours were spent trying to secure the tent and stop it from landing in Tasmania. The true spirit of campers kicked in and everyone around chipped in, even tying our guide ropes to the tops of their cars. Words by Matt Bloomfield
I never forget the sight of all the kids running around stopping our stuff from flying off into the ocean. It was at this point I heard the gut wrenching sound of the tent poles snapping. One after the other, like someone setting off firecrackers. And with that, it was the end of our camping trip. Tears and sadness followed and we were off home. Discarding the tent along the way! Now why would I write about such a terrible camping trip in a camping magazine I hear you say! Because this nightmare trip made us better campers. We got straight back out there with better equipment and better knowledge. We love camping even more after this experience so don’t let a bad camping experience stop you from going camping. Get right back out there because you'll have more good camping trips than bad. Happy Camping!
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CAMPING A woman's perspective
I don’t know about the rest of you girls but as much as I LOVE camping, I also like to make it as easy for myself as I can. It’s all well and good to enjoy the bush, the red dirt, the birds and wildlife and getting away from the stressors of city living, but I don’t believe it has to be such hard work that you may as well have stayed home! Matt told me the other day that I bring a whole new dimension to camping as a woman and I guess that’s true. I mean, he is quite happy to wear the same pair of
shorts and t-shirt for 5 days straight. I however, am NOT! Years ago, when our kids were smaller, we had a camper trailer.I took a large white bucket with a tight lid, secured it to the A frame of the camper and while we were travelling to our next destination, put all our t-shirts, undies and small items in the bucket with water and washing detergent. By the time we got to the next campsite, the washing was almost done. A quick rinse and it could be hung up. These days, I have a handy little washing tub which has a crank and drain pipe. A few turns and rinses and the washing is done in no time. Just small items mind you; t-shirts and undies mostly, but that’s perfect for me! Words by Lize Bloomfield
CAMPING NEWS
April & May 2017
April SOUTH QUEENSLAND CARAVAN, CAMPING, BOATING & FISHING EXPO Dates: 21 – 23 April 2017 Venue: Nambour Showgrounds, Coronation Avenue Nambour. Website: www.australianevents.com.au CARAVAN, CAMPING & HOLIDAY SUPER SHOW Dates: 25 - 30 April 2017 Venue: Rosehill Racecourse, Cnr James Ruse Rd and Grand Ave, Rosehill. Website: www.caravan-camping.com.au
May 2017 Cairns Home Show and Caravan, Camping and Boating Expo Dates: 12 - 14th May 2017 Venue: Cairns Showgrounds, Corner Severin Street & Mulgrave Road, Cairns Website: www.cairnshomeshow.com.au 2017 Mackay Home Show & Caravan, Camping Expo Dates: 19 – 21 May 2017 Venue: Mackay Showgrounds, 24 Milton St, Mackay Website: www.mackayhomeshow.com.au
Apollian Hotel What do you get when you cross beautiful gardens with an historic building? The Apollonian Hotel! Located a short distance from Lake Cootharaba at Boreen Point, this beautiful historic pub has been beautifully maintained. From the perfect green lawns to the wine barrel tables on the balcony, this pub is a perfect stop as you head through the Sunshine Coast of Queensland. First constructed during the Gympie gold rush of the 1870’s it was moved to it’s current location in 1985 and as you walk past the ‘Bar’ sign painted on the window to enter into the main bar you will feel as if you are stepping back in time. Not only does the pub offer cold beer
EST. 1868
and great meals it is topped off by a welcoming balcony in the Summer or a warm fire in the Winter. Stopping in recently for a look around, a couple of beers later I was in love with the place. Address: 19 Laguna Street Boreen Point QLD 4565 Phone: 07 5485 3100 Words by James Guerin
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