With another year down, it was time to drive up to Hervey Bay to spend Xmas with my family. We’ve done this trip a few times now and we always try to break things up a bit so each trip is distinct and interesting. This year we pre-planned a bit and booked places on the way up before even leaving Canberra. This worked well and took the stress of finding a place for the night off Rosie.
Day 1 – 19 December – Canberra to Mudgee
We spent Wednesday 18 December packing up and getting things ready for the trip. The next day we got into the van and headed off around 8am. Ollie was very excited to see his Nanna and cousins, though we’re not sure he realised how long it was going to take to get to see her.
We did a quick pit stop in the park in Goulburn. It was quite chilly and grey, so we were glad to be able to get back in the van. At this point we gave up on using Waze – it’s amazing when you’re in a capital city, but no matter what we did it would always try to get us to take major roads only. We switched back to Google Maps for the rest of the trip – it has some massive flaws, but at least it knows there are B roads.
We took the back way up from Goulburn up to Oberon as we’d heard the drive through the Abercrombie River National Park were good. There were a lot of hills, but the scenery was excellent. We stopped for lunch in Oberon at a small cafe, then had a bit of a wander through the town. We ended up in a small shop that sold saddles, music and a bunch of local craft goods. The owner showed Ollie how a record (LP) worked. Ollie was a bit dubious about the whole thing. We ended up purchasing a couple of small trinkets for Rosie’s family, then headed back on the road.
Google Map’s ‘eco’ mode took us down some very narrow and winding roads. We saw camels on ‘Curly Dick Road’, then we ended up on Range Road driving on some newly laid asphalt. Overall I’m not sure it was the most efficient way, but it was quiet and we saw some interesting sights along the way.
We arrived in Mudgee a bit earlier than expected, and had a walk around Lawson’s Park. After that, we were a bit thirsty so we ducked into the Lawson Park Hotel for a cold beverage.
Rosie’s cousins Amy and Claire met us there and we walked over to wait in line for Santa photos in the hot sun with her kids. After photos and another quick beer at the pub, we headed back to Claire’s place for a couple of drinks and to let the kids go feral. They had three dogs, including 2 sausage dogs, so Ollie thought it was great. The kids played with water guns until around 9pm and Ollie was very sought after – we had to give the kids 3 minute intervals with Ollie on their team. After some pizzas and the kids going to bed we played some trivia and watched a few shows, then went down for the night in a spare bedroom at Claire’s house.
Day 2 – 20 December – Mudgee to Mount Kaputar
The next morning we got up fairly late, with the kids not waking until 8am. After some coffee, hugs and goodbyes we were back on the road. A big thank you to Rosie’s family for welcoming us to Mudgee. We had a great time and we’ll definitely be back.
We pushed on to Coolah and stopped for some very good pies from the bakery there. After that we drove into Narrabri for fuel, then continued east to Mount Kaputar National Park to our campsite. The road into our campground was very steep and rutted out. It was 2wd accessible still, but we were glad for 4wd, good tyres and clearance over the corrugations and washouts. During this hard climb the automatic transmission light turned on. We stopped to let things cooldown about halfway up the hill, then made the decision to keep going. I do have an extra transmission cooler installed, but the day was about 35 degrees and the slow uphill sections meant not much air was passing over it.
We arrived at Dawsons Spring Campground and found we were the only people there. This turned out to be a great campground, with a good shower and toilet block and nice roomy numbered sites. Highly recommended, especially in summer as the altitude brings the temperature down a couple of degrees.
About the only downside was some very pushy kangaroos in the area that kept bothering us for snacks. It was very unusual behaviour for kangaroos – they were basically begging like dogs for scraps, so obviously some other campers had been feeding them.
After lunch and settling in we decided to undertake a short nature walk that was in the area. This turned out to be a great idea, as the walk wound its way through lots of different types of bushland. Rosie decided to push on to the summit about half way through the trail, so Ollie and I did the last little bit by ourselves.
That afternoon there was a little rain that cooled things down a bit. The kangaroos got more pushy and agressive as dusk came. One actually started gnawing at our camp table as it had some grease on it. We did see a greater glider climbing one of the nearby trees in a fairly ungraceful manner. It was quite cute though, looking vaguely bear-like. We were the only campers until later that night when a couple of others made it to their spots.
Day 3 – 21 December – Mount Kaputar to Chinchilla
The next morning Ollie and I were woken up early by a lot of birdsong, but Rosie managed a bit of a sleep in. Pack up was quick as we hadn’t unhitched the night before. On the way down the hill we stopped at a lookout and were treated to some spectacular views.
We spotted a fox, a feral cat, a goanna on the way down, as well as a lot of rocks that had fallen onto the road that looked like echidnas in the dappled sunshine.
We got back to Narrabri, filled up again, and then set off. Overall camping at the NP had been a 100km detour from our trip, but it was well worth it.
Our first stop was in Goondiwindi for lunch at the ‘Relaxed Cafe’. As soon as we crossed over into Queensland the roads deteriorated significantly. We stopped in Moonie for some fuel and to check out the big yabbie. It was very hot though, so we didn’t make Ollie ride it for a photo opportunity.
We kept going north along some very dodgy backroads heading straight to Chinchilla. Once there we pulled into Charleys Creek Campgrounds around 3.30pm. This is a sort of farmstay, family-run caravan park that has a bunch of different things to do and see, including a brewery. Steve (the owner) showed us to our site and we set up quickly. It was a hot day, so Rosie brought out her secret weapon. A Ryobi misting fan and a Bunnings 20L bucket. It works pretty well and is definitely a must if you can’t find a creek or river to cool down in.
Ollie made friends with the kids in a caravan near us and they all ran around playing with their respective weapons (water pistol, nerf bow and plastic sword) and poked ant nests. They were joined by one of Steve’s sons.
We’d come on a Saturday, so we’d booked in for dinner. We wandered over to the bar area around 6pm. It was quite nice, with most of the campers coming down for a beer and a yarn, though it was a bit hot for a fire. More of Steve’s kids appeared, serving behind the bar and setting up activities for the camper kids. They showed off a short powerpoint presentation on the farm and its history which was pretty interesting. Dinner was smoked wagu brisket with all the trimmings. The beef was from their farm – apparently they are a big producer of wagu beef in Australia. It had a very smoky flavour, but was overall pretty good.
We got chatting with a nurse that was relatively new to the area. I think she was looking for someone to talk to because we learned basically her entire life history. A fairly early night, around 10pm, hoping for an early-ish start the next day. I did manage to kick a cane toad in the dark while putting the camp chairs away, so it was a very authentic QLD night.
Day 4 – 22 December – Chinchilla to Hervey Bay
We got up early due to still being on daylight saving time. After a quick pack up we were on the road by 8am. We stopped by the Big Watermelon Slice on our way out of town. It was a surprisingly good roadside distraction. Apparently it had been donated by the website wotif.com – we’ve no idea why.
It’s a pretty straight run to Hervey Bay from Chinchilla, down some backroads that are relatively looked after by Queensland standards. We barely saw any cars until we emerged on onto the Bruce Highway at Tiaro. That’s where we found massive traffic jams and some very irate drivers. We headed up the Bruce for a while, then turned into Maryborough before finally arriving at my parents place. We were the firsts ones there, so as per tradition we got to chose what room we stayed in.
Day 5 – 23 December – Hervey Bay
This was a pretty chill day, with some time destressing in the pool. We took Ollie to the beach that afternoon and he found he really enjoys playing in the waves. That night we played a few different types of games, including one called Blank Slate which was good even for the little ones.
Day 6 – 24 December – Hervey Bay
This day was spent trying to get ready for Xmas lunch. Me and my dad went food shopping. Everyone else seemed to be having the same idea. It was pretty hectic.
We had fish and chips for lunch. The kids were taken to a local splash park, but they were too small for any of the slides so they went to the beach instead. Ollie’s birthday cakes were baked that night, ready for me to badly decorate them the next day. The kids were obviously excited with Santa coming that night.
Day 7 – 25 December – Hervey Bay
Christmas Day went very well, with only one small hiccup that was easily fixed. Santa got mixed up and put some of Ollie’s cousin’s toys in his Santa sack. But Santa sent us an email explaining that a magpie attacked his reindeer and that’s why a couple of the toys were mixed up. Ollie was deputised and sent to deliver the incorrectly delivered presents to his cousin. All sorted with no issues.
After presents and breakfast I put together the cake Ollie had specified. He was after a ‘tall yellow cake with a Mimikyu on it’. I think I managed that brief, although we ran out of icing so were forced to use different type of icing that didn’t have time to set. Mimikyu is a type of Pokemon in case you were wondering.
Ollie’s birthday kicked in after a delicious Xmas lunch. He got a couple more presents. He’s pretty stoked that his birthday is on Christmas – we’ll see how long that lasts.
After a big day we left the three grandkids with their nanna and the adult kids went to a nearby Airbnb for some time without any kids. That was great fun and a welcome break from looking after the kids. A big thank you to my mum and dad for looking after the kids and letting us get away.
The night got even better when we had midnight nachos (at 9.43pm), before a relatively early bed at the Airbnb.
Day 8 – 26 December – Hervey Bay
As it was a hot day, I decided to take the kids down to the movies on Boxing Day. The other dads came along and we had a great time at the Hervey Bay Boat Club movie theatre watching Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
The mums all went off for a boozy brunch/lunch, then back to the Airbnb for food and naps. I think all of the mums managed to avoid seeing their kids on this day – a welcome holiday gift.
Day 9 – 27 December – Hervey Bay
This day was spent mostly getting organised and out the door to catch up with my aunt and cousins at a nearby park. It probably didn’t take all day, but getting ready sure did feel like it. My mum had procured a bunch of gloriously bad matching Christmas shirts for us to all wear. We looked fantastic, though there were a couple of detractors.
After some drinks and food at the park we headed down to the beach. It was quite choppy for the Bay, but Ollie loved the waves even when he was getting knocked over by them. He was great in the water, but not so good at finding our beach gear – he kept thinking they were up at the top of the hill like when we went to the beach days earlier.
That night we attempted dinner at the Hervey Bay Boat Club, but found everyone else in QLD was already there. With a big party we were never going to find a table, so we walked over to a nearby Chinese restaurant instead. The food was pretty good, but the service was pretty terrible.
Day 10 – 28 December – Hervey Bay
Rosie took my niece on an ‘Aunty Day’, so me and Ollie chilled out in the pool. We spent a lot of this day organising and packing things up so we’d be ready to leave the next day.
Day 11 – 29 December – Hervey Bay to Amamoor
Ollie and his cousins were taken to mini-golf early in the morning to try beat the heat. They didn’t manage it, as it got very hot and humid early on that day. While he was gone we started moving things into the van, and went shopping for some new recipes we had decided to try on the way.
We were all packed up and on the road by 11am. It was very humid having rained the night before, so Rosie was keen to be safely back in the air conditioning. We said our goodbyes to the family and set off south down towards Gympie.
As a special ‘decompression’ treat after a hectic week with the family, we’d booked a solitary campsite for two nights at a farm in Amamoor via Hipcamp. We arrived pretty early in the afternoon and were quickly set up and chilling in and around the small creek very quickly. This site was great. They had a decent toilet set up and we’d splurged the extra $4 a night for the Frogmouth Park campsite away from everyone else. Highly recommend checking out Bunya Grove Campsite near Amamoor if you’re in the area.
That afternoon we cooked up some scallion bread on the BBQ which turned out pretty good. Thunder and dark clouds teased us for some time, but finally some light rain came down at dusk. We sat under the lid of the camper to watch the lightning and listen to the rain/thunder.
Dinner that night was an excellent Dan Dan Noodle dish. The rain eased off and on, before becoming relatively heavy that night while we were sleeping. Not before we got a quick little night time swim in though.
Day 12 – 30 December – Amamoor
This day was spent lazing around the campsite. There was a lot of rain that morning so we chilled in the camper reading and watching movies. We got some time in the creek though, and I took Ollie for a bit of a walk up to the other campsites to check them out while Rosie had a nap that afternoon.
Dinner that night was an excellent spicy pineapple chicken wrap. Very highly recommended and one of the best meals of the trip.
Despite the rain coming and going we gave a fire an attempt. It last through quite a bit of the night, even after the rain forced us inside for a final sleep at the campsite.
Despite all the rain we were all safe and dry. Rosie had reception a lot of people contacted us quite worried. It turned out a lot of areas nearby had been affected by massive rainfalls and flooding, so people were just checking in on us. We must have been sheltered a bit though as we didn’t see any of the massive rainstorms affecting other parts of QLD.
Day 13 – 31 December – Amamoor to Buderim
Despite rain overnight, the camper was fairly dry when we packed it up the next morning. After hitching up we travelled east for an easy drive to Buderim to visit some Canberra friends that were visiting relatives in the area. We enjoyed their company and took the chance to have a brief swim in their pool before leaving around lunch time to head to other friends of ours that also live in Buderim. We’ve been to their place for new years eve a few times already and knew that we’d have a good time.
That New Years Eve we had a great time, going to bed very late and enjoying a swim in yet another pool just after midnight like we usually do.
A big thanks to our friends for letting us visit and catch up during a hectic NYE!
Day 14 – 1 January – Buderim to Coraki
The next morning involved massive hangovers. Still, we slowly got ready and packed things away with the help of water and Panadol. We refilled the camper water tanks before we left as well. We said goodbye to everyone that was awake and left around 11am, heading as far south as we could make it.
The roads were very busy as they usually are between Sunshine Coast, Brisbane and Gold Coast, but we kept plugging away. While we were travelling Rosie managed to book a campsite at a place called Coraki just off the highway. We did about 320km that day, which is a great effort with a hangover.
Once we arrived at Coraki Caravan Park we set up and then headed up to the pub across the road to see if the hair of the dog would help. It did for me, but Rosie didn’t enjoy her drink. After that drink and letting Ollie run off some energy in the beer garden we headed back to the camper for an early night. The caravan park was pretty good, but had a few quirks like the amenities block being accessed from the road outside the park itself, so not ideal for younger kids.
Day 15 – 2 January – Coraki to Telegraph Point
The next morning we were all feeling a lot better. We quickly packed up, grabbed some pies for breaky, filled up and then headed back to the motorway for more driving. While driving Rosie booked us a night at the Stoney Holiday Park and Aqua Park just north of Port Macquarie. We had no idea what it was about, just that they had free spots while every other caravan park and campsite in the area seemed to be booked out.
We stopped for lunch on the way at Kempsey, heading to the local RSL club. This place was very large and the food was pretty good. We got stuck trying to get out of the carpark with the camper attached, but no harm done.
After a few more hundred kilometre’s we arrived at the Stoney Aqua Park and found out it was massive. The camping extended almost all the way around a huge lake dominated with a floating aquatic obstacle course. We drove around for a bit and managed to find a fairly secluded campsite down the bottom of a hill near a different lake filled with birdlife.
After setting up we set off to check out the campsite and managed to get a couple of hours swimming in the lake before the sun went down. Ollie did a great job fetching new beers from the cooler bag on the shore for his dad, so I was pretty chuffed.
We had a light dinner that night after our big lunch, then as the sunset was fading the thunder and black clouds rolled in and treated us to an epic thunderstorm. This lasted a couple of hours, but the heavy rain continued almost all night.
Day 16 – 3 January – Telegraph Point to Glenworth Valley
That morning myself and Rosie got a bit of a sleep in to let the canvas dry out a bit. Around 9am we started seeing black clouds coming over the horizon again so we packed up very quickly. After pack up Rosie had a quick shower, then we went back on the road where it immediately started bucketing down rain. We had a crazy drive down from Gosford with a lot of water over the road and a lot of aggressive traffic.
Feeling peckish, we pulled into Taree and stopped at the Red Shop; a great little takeaway on the side of the street. There we had some surprisingly good coffee and egg and bacon rolls.
Back on the road we pushed through to the final camp of the trip. I’d found this site via Wikicamps – it’s called Glenworth Valley Wilderness Adventures. Like the night before, we’d not been able to find any other campsites free that close to Newcastle and Sydney, so we’d just booked in a large adventure campsite for second night in a row. Who knew these types of campsites existed? We usually stay in national parks and small campsites.
The road into Glenworth Valley is quite steep and has some dirt sections. With the camper brakes having been acting up (and inactive a lot of the time), I had to shift into 4wd and apply the handbrake occasionally to slow down, but it wasn’t that bad of a drive. There had been a music festival at the site over new years so there was still a lot of infrastructure being packed up. That said, there were hundreds of families camped out as well, all sprawled out over a very large area.
After checking in at the reception that’s quite a fair distance away from the campsites and with no room for trailers, we eventually got to head down to the main camp area to find a place to set up. We managed to find a place a bit removed from the other campers near (but not underneath) some lovely eucalyptus. Rosie had procured a bag of firewood from reception, but at $24 for 15kg you’re much better off bringing your own.
The campsite had a lot of trees around, and being a valley there’s a number of creekbeds and gullies to explore. You wouldn’t know that a festival had been there as it was quite clean. The facilities were woeful however, with only 2 showers at the campgrounds servicing hundreds of people.
As it was our last day camping we got Ollie set up with his Pokemon toys out of the sun, and wandered the 25m or so to the closest little shallow creek. There we set up with beers, wine and chairs in the the water for a couple of drinks in the afternoon sun.
Eventually a nearby camper came down with her chair with the same idea and we chatted a bit. Her kids came past, so we forced Ollie to come down as well and they started playing a few games and going exploring the nearby area.
Dinner that night was a one-pot spaghetti bolognaise around a fire with a few glasses of red wine. The weather was perfect – not too hot or cold and with a nice breeze cooling things down. The wood provided was pretty terrible and I had to work to keep the fire going well.
A few of the other dads had their fires sputter out though – very shameful. Curfew for noise was 10pm and despite a huge Cambodian(?) family nearby that was noisy all day, everyone very much abided by the rule and it was a quiet night.
Day 17 – 4 January – Glenworth Valley to Canberra
The next morning Rosie tried to book Ollie in for a pony ride, so she drove the van back to reception while I packed the camper away. Ponies were all booked out, so instead they got a couple of bags of feed for the barnyard animals. Rosie’s favourite were the Highland cows (emo cows).
She brought me back an egg and bacon roll back once they were done from the kiosk, so obviously despite 17 days travelling together she still likes me.
Back on the dirt road heading up to the main road I noticed that at least one side of the camper brakes had fixed themselves. We headed down south through the Northconnex tunnel and onto the M7. The M7 is currently getting a few extra lanes added, so it was 80km/h the whole way. Back on to the Hume, we were surrounded by a lot of traffic. We had to emergency brake just before Pheasants Nest as the traffic slowed to 20km/h with very little warning and no obvious cause.
A quick lunch at Pheasants Nest and then we continued back home, arriving safe and sound around 3pm.
All up this trip was around 3000km long and we did a lot of things right this time. The trip inland was a great way to avoid traffic, and booking ahead for the first part saved a lot of time and effort. The two nights of camping immediately after the hectic family xmas was a great idea and something we’d probably like to do again. We don’t stay in one place for long enough and we should do more multi-night stays.
I’d like to thank my parents for letting us stay at their place and welcoming a lot of people into their home for Christmas. Thanks to my other family members as well for a great time, especially the night with the card games in the HB Airbnb. I’d also like to thank our friends in Buderim for letting us chill at their place on the way back home. Finally, a big thank you to Ollie and Rosie for not ditching me at the Hervey Bay airport and just flying home!
Boring technical stuff.
We filled up 13 times over 3000km, with the average fuel consumption around 17.6l/100km.
The trailer brakes were a bit of a worry for a lot of the trip. Just starting out for the trip north they started squealing and chirping a bit when braking, but the brakes still provided decent stopping power. After HB though, the brakes occasionally failed to operate and I was forced to brake with the van alone. The good news is the van weighs much more than the camper (2000kg vs 1200kg), and I deliberately didn’t try any steep or winding roads on the way home that would rely on braking.
The brake magnets are just worn according to the guy at a trailer shop I spoke with in HB. I bought completely new brake assemblies from him just in case things got much worse, but didn’t have the tools or time to fully install them on the side of the road or at my parents. Still, they were there if we needed them and I’m sure I started replacing them at a caravan park on the way home I would have a thousand retirees coming past to watch and tell me I’m doing it wrong within a few minutes.
I’ve never replaced trailer brakes before, but it doesn’t look that hard when you just replace the full assembly so I might give it a try. We’ll see if the mobile mechanic needs to come around in the next few weeks. (I did try adjust them in case you were wondering, but that doesn’t fix the magnet not engaging).
The camper held up well to the rain we experienced, as usual. There’s no leaks or seeping we’ve found. The canvas is wearing out a bit and I have a couple of things that I either need to fix up or find a sailmaker to fix up for me. Apparently there’s a good one in Bateman’s Bay. The door zip doesn’t work anymore as the canvas has shrunk (a known issue on these campers), and one of the ‘eyebrows’ over the side windows has had its fibreglass rod poke through (another known issue with a pretty simple fix).
The van used a bit of oil on the trip and got a little rattly at the end of the trip, but about 600mL of oil fixed that up.
The fridge was using a bit more power than usual, which I attributed to the hot weather we’d been having. While checking things out and connecting up DC/DC charger from the van house battery to the camper battery I noticed that the fuse for the fridge was discoloured. It appears to have melted at the terminal, with the fuse still intact, so I’m guessing there was a lot of resistance in the tiny sliver of metal connecting the fridge to power.
Replacing the fuse fixed the extra power consumption I think – the fuse was just low quality or not seated correctly to blow it out in such a weird fashion, so I’ll keep an eye on it and probably replace it soon.
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