Number Crunching

I’m already back a few weeks now but I finally got round to doing some number crunching.

In 94 days I traveled 21,351km by car and bought 2,961 litres of diesel. On average we traveled 227km a day, wheres the largest distance we traveled in a day was 615km. We spent $4,259 on fuel and on average a liter cost $1.44. The cheapest fuel was $1.16 per litre and the most expensive was $2.2o (at Rabbit Flat Roadhouse). We used about 14.2l of fuel per 100km and it cost about $2o in fuel to travel 100km. Including the car servicing and repair cost (that were quite high) this goes up to $42 per 100km. Quite a bit of money…

Outstanding Equipment

Throughout our trip we have used a lot of equipment and we are proud to say that we didn’t pack too much useless stuff, and that there wasn’t really anything missing. A few pieces of equipment were quite outstanding and you might be interested what we never would leave at home.

1. Bruce – We had a few breakdowns but our Toyota Landcruiser 80 series still makes it to the top of the list. We simply couldn’t have done it without it and despite everything we would buy it again.
2. SPOT – An easy way to let everybody know where you are and that you are fine. And in an emergency it even can save your life. Simply brilliant.
3. Tyre Pressure Monitor – It has already paid for itself by saving more than one tyre. Combined with our tyre repair kit we could fix most punctures before we had to change the tyre.
4. Camp Oven – Some of the best dishes came out of it.
5. Biji Barbi – It’s always nice to have a clean, non-rusty BBQ plate.
6. Jimmy’s Thunderbox – No comment.
7. Shovel – Without one you can’t survive in the bush. Ok, maybe you could but it is a lot easier with one.
8. Baby Wipes – The easiest way to keep hands clean on the road.
9. HEMA Maps – Great value for money and everything important is on it. Plus they kill flies really well!
10. NRMA Premium Care roadside assistance – Yes, it was well worth it.

Memorable Moments

After traveling the country for more then 3 month we where left with some great memories and stories. Some of the most memorable moments were:

• Breakdown on Cape Leveque Road – We almosty lost our front wheel.
• Mambi Island on the Lower Ord River – First my dad caught a barramundi and then we had to evacuate because of a bushfire, crossing a croc infested river in pitch black darkness.
• Crossing the Pentecost River – Very Australia.
• Traveling the Old Telegraph Track – Simply breathtaking.
• Breakdown in Clare – What a great place to break down.

Somehow it seems that great adventures are made out of a few breakdowns, a bit of trouble and a few scary moments. We consider ourselves lucky as we only ever had material damage; never an accidente and nobody ever got hurt.

Great Places

On our trip we have visited some spectacular places and met some amazing people. Some of the places we think you should visit if you ever going to travel around Australia:

• Cape Leveque – One of the prettiest places in the World (I know it’s a big call. Just visit and decide for yourself.)
• Fruit Bat / Elliot / Twin Falls (Jardine River National Park) – A breathtakingly pretty spot. And if you take the Old Telegraph Track it’s even a fun drive.
• Purnululu National Park (Bungle Bungle) – Simply spectacular! And make sure you go for a helicopter ride.
• Broome – What an amazing little city. Sunset on Cable Beach with a nice bottle of sparkling is a great end to the day. Or see a movie at Sun Pictures.
• Clare Valley – Simply a great experience and a beautiful place. Try some nice wines at Skillogalee, Kilikanoon or Tim Adam Wines. Or go for a tour trough the Seven Hill Winery.

I’m already thinking about where I could go next. On this trip we have seen so many amazing places but we have also learned that there are many more out there and quite a few we want to see again.

Enjoy the pictures.

We decided to buy a camp oven, which is basically a large fireproof pot with a lid and special handle. It is designed to be placed directly on the fire or on hot coals. It is made of spun steel which keeps it light. You can also put hot coals on the lid, creating heat from above and below. This allows you to do baking or roasting whilst on the road, and when it’s not used for that its great to heat the dish washing water. Thus far we’ve baked multiple loaves of bread, made pizza (with our own dough), had fresh scones for breakfast and had roast lamb shoulder or roast veggies. We made all this on a normal fire out in the bush.

Another cool piece of equipment is the Biji Barbie. This is a large frying pan style hotplate with three legs that can be locked in. It is designed to be put directly on the fire or it can even be placed on top of a gas cooker if there is no fire available. It makes grilling sausages or meat very easy as you can start cooking as soon as the fire is started (rather than waiting an hour for hot coals).

Finally we couldn’t be considered worthy patrons of Grind Cronulla without making efforts to provide quality coffee every morning. We use Grind beans, an old coffee grinder we bought at some antique store and a stove-top coffee maker. We have freshly brewed coffee every morning while on the road and we even figured out that the stove-top coffee maker works beautiful on any BBQ hotplate. The only problem is ensuring fresh milk is available. If not take it black, or go Thai and use condensed milk.

We also made a few changes to the boot of the car. We started out with just a few storage boxes and a car fridges but by now our boot features a proper shelf system that incorporates the fridge and the water tank. Everything has its spot. We can store all the equipment and luggage for four people.

Just before Christmas we found it, a gorgeous looking Toyota Landcruiser 80 Series. It as already done a few kilometres, 235,000 to be exact, but after a thorough check through our mechanic he gave us the thumbs up and we bought it.

Meet ‘Bruce’: