If I look closely there’ll still be sand lodged in between my toes and stuck to my scalp despite returning from a sea kayaking trip a little over 24 hours ago. It’s insidious stuff sand. Myself, the other half (TOH) and thirteen members of the Queensland Sea Kayak Club launched our boats from Paradise Point on Queensland’s Gold Coast early Saturday morning and a little more than three hours (about 13 kilometres) later hauled them out of the water a bit north of the popular camping site, The Bedrooms, on South Stradbroke Island. Quite frankly, I found the northward paddle rather laborious. Some days (and this was one of them) it feels like I’m paddling in wet cement, despite a favourable tide. The thirty plus degree heat and hideous head wind did nothing for my hungry just-pitch-the-damn-tent-anywhere mood on arrival! Sea kayaks are like a floating tardis. It’s ridiculous how much stuff you can pack in the two small hatches. TOH is a bit of a camping gear junkie and over the last few birthdays and Christmases he’s managed to amass a veritable warehouse of light-weight, collapsible, foldable, shrinkable, inflatable, rollable, stuffable, disposable and compact gadgets – and they all got shoved in the hatches. One such cute tool is a folding hand-shovel. It has many uses, but the predominant one is to dig, as TOH delicately puts it, a bog hole. Because people that is what you do – DIG A HOLE. That is in capital letters because I want to shout (and jump up and down, but that’s hard to portray in MS Word). Our beautiful island campsite was a giant toilet. Gross deposits everywhere, marked with fluttering flags of white loo paper. What? People can’t walk five minutes into the vast bush and sandy marsh land to do their business and bury it? Apparently not. Perhaps that’s where the word bogan originated – slobs that don’t know or choose to ignore camping bog etiquette. The litter was also atrocious; dirty disposable nappies on the beach, bottles, cans – the usual detritus of ignorant urbanites in the wild. This dilemma has been keeping me awake at night – at least that and the national heat wave and the sandfly bites – how to educate people about caring for our lovely country. After all, that’s why we love to camp – to enjoy the outdoor environment – and we should want to leave that environment in a fit state for the next like-minded person to enjoy. I’d love to hear your opinion on whether education or enforcement should be the strategy. Or perhaps a mixture of both and, if so, how and who should be responsible? Email me or go to our Facebook page and leave a comment. Despite my disappointment at the carelessness of previous inhabitants of the island, the weekend was a huge success. The new MSR Mutha Hubba tent was roomy and kept out the tiniest bities, and the itty bitty hiking table was invaluable for keeping the Trangia and our food out of the sand. (Miraculously my sore hip was less sore after a night on a very thin mat than a night on my deluxe pillow-top mattress at home – go figure.) Then the trip back was a pearler – tail wind, strong incoming tide and a new kayak sail (courtesy of Santa Claus). Like-minded buddies, fun exercise, the great outdoors – what more could I wish for? Andrea Ferris – Go Camping Australia Editor andrea@vinkpub.com
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From the Editor
TAKE OUR 10 MINUTE ONLINE SURVEY TO WIN! Our New Year’s resolution here at Go Camping Australia is to do everything in our power to bring you the best value camping stories, destinations, new products and know-how. The best way to do that is to find out from you – the camper and traveller – exactly what it is you want to read about. So we’re asking for less than ten minutes of your time to answer a few questions. It’s easy; it’s online; and it’s confidential.
Publisher Michael Vink Editor Andrea Ferris E: andrea@vinkpub.com
Speaking of power, if you choose to enter your email address on the survey you’ll go into the draw to win a fabulous ArkPak portable power system valued at $449. To fill in the survey, simply go to https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ GoCampingAustralia. Survey closes 15 March 2013. Prize drawn 18 March 2013 and the winner will be notified by email.
Advertising Manager Georgina Chapman T: (07) 3334 8007 E: georgina@vinkpub.com Production Team Richard Locke, Wendy Deng, Ellen Powell, Karen Belik Contributors Mark Allen Lee Atkinson Martin Auldist Julie Bishop and Regina Jones Miriam Blaker Megan Blandford Claudia Bouma Andrew Brown Andrea Ferris Fiona Harper
Danielle Harvey Daryll Hitchen James Jackson David McGonigal Sean Mooney Kara Murphy Lee Mylne James Newcombe Gregory Powell Therese Sayers
Go Camping Australia is distributed through newsagents and camping stores across Australia. Recommended retail price A$6.95. Annual subscription A$33 includes postage within Australia and GST. Distribution by Gordon and Gotch. Editorial and photographic contributions welcomed. Disks, transparencies and self-addressed stamped envelopes are required. The publisher takes no responsibility for the views expressed in articles or advertisements herein. The publisher could not possibly ensure that each advertisement published in the magazine complies with the Trade Practices Act. While every endeavour has been made to ensure complete accuracy, the publisher cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions.
The ArkPak is portable 12V and 240V power to run and re-charge all your essential devices all day for up to seven days, via a built-in 6 amp smart charger and 150W inverter, Time Tracker LCD readout, Anderson Plug, USB Port and twin 12V accessory ports. Recharge the ArkPak with solar panels, 240V mains, its Anderson Plug, or with the optional 12V DC-DC car charger adaptor. It’s a portable, dual battery system at a fraction of the cost of a built-in one. www.arkcorp.com.au ArkPak
Winning Entry – Ironman 4X4 Large Recovery Kit (December/January Issue) Doug Blaker Driving through the hills near Tolmie in our new four-wheel-drive ute some daredevil motorbikes passed us. Further along, one of the bikes lost traction around a corner and sailed over the edge down the rugged embankment. Stopping to lend a hand, we used a large rope to tether the bike to the ute and, with a few blokes holding the bike upright, we towed the damaged motorbike up the almost vertical cliff. By some miracle the rider had missed all the tall eucalypts and was unhurt. After grateful handshakes I made a mental note to self – proper recovery kit needed! Ultimate Camping Fit-out Winner Congratulations to Brett Peters from Victoria who was the lucky Go Camping Australia subscriber to win the ultimate camping fitout package (October/November 2012 issue) valued at $2140. OZtrail’s Christmas Package Winner Congratulations to Robert Pfingst from Queensland who was the lucky Go Camping Australia subscriber to win OZtrail’s Christmas package (December 2012/January 2013 issue) valued at $2057.90.
Print Post approval No. PP437181/10. Front Cover: Red road and dust – typical of travelling in Australia’s outback – The Great Central Road approaching Warburton in The Great Victoria Desert, Western Australian. Photo courtesy of Jill Harrison.
Published By VINK Publishing ABN 3107 478 5676 Bi-Monthly Head Office: 38-40 Fisher St, East Brisbane Q 4169 Postal: PO Box 8369, Woolloongabba Q 4102 T: (07) 3334 8000 F: (07) 3391 5118
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NEWS .. Aussie made camper trailer audits The Australian Manufactured Camper Trailer Guild will have professionally qualified engineers audit its members to guarantee consumers that members’ products are genuinely made in Australia and conform to the appropriate Australian standards. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has a clear definition for products to qualify as Australian made and Roger Fagan, the President of the Guild, says there are a number of camper trailer businesses that falsely claim Australian made. Guild members will be audited every two years as proof that their products are genuinely Australian made. Imported camper trailers under 4.5 tonnes are deemed to comply based on the importer declaring that the trailer conforms to the relevant Australian standards. The Guild has made a number of complaints about false claims and non-compliance to the Department of Fair Trading – particularly on the issue of waterproof canvas. Australian canvas used by Guild members meets all the standards, and is far superior for local conditions, particularly our harsh ultraviolet light. For more information visit www.australianmanufacturedcampertrailers.org.au
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