We left Euroa on 22 April 2016 driving our Hyundai i30 and 10'6" homebuilt van.
Just a few comments you might enjoy. All just our opinion.
The small 10" wheels rotated about 10 million times
The Chinese bearings held up OK
The shower portapotti in such a tiny van was worth the effort also to enable us to turf wet clothes or shoes
Worse bitumen roads- Roma to Blackball Qld, Mildura to Rainbow Vic Governments of both roads should be ashamed
Best roads- WA coastal
Worst state for signage- WA
Best views from road- Kimberley's
Best inland town we visited- Nannup WA
Best coastal towns- Streaky Bay SA, Esperance WA
Best free camping spots- Cosy Corner 38km west of Albany, Heron Point WA, Morven rec ground Qld ($5), Burra SA showgrounds ($15), Fitzgerald Bay SA, Bulehdelah NSW
Best fish and chips- Darwin wharf, Cervantes WA, The fresh fish place Port Lincoln.
Best caravan parks- Darwin big4 Howard Springs, Shelly Beach Ceduna SA. Barkley Homestead NT
Areas lacking free camps- Great ocean road Vic, SW of WA.
Best historical town- Burra SA
Best whale spotting- Augusta WA from before the lighthouse.
Worst value for money whale spotting- The head of the bight SA.
Most expensive dim sims (small)- $2.40 !! BP overlander roadhouse turn off to Denham. No wonder we love sangers.
Fuel cost $1850 95% towing. Economy 7.9-9.7 L/100km
Most expensive diesel Barkley Homestead $1.65L, couple across the Nullabor and northern WA
Cheapest- 94c/L Sydney.
Cheers
Fringe Dweller said
05:08 PM Jul 30, 2016
Some interesting 'stats' there Tony . You surprised me a couple of times with besties.
As long as You are enjoying it . Keep reporting & Keep it SAFE.
Dougwe said
05:13 PM Jul 30, 2016
Well done Tony. Some good info there but you failed to mention total KM travelled mate. With that missing I can only give you 9/10.
The great Ocean Road is very disappointing freedom camping wise with places to prop a night or two, always have and more than likely always will. Sad really as they want the tourist $$$$ but not willing to give back in that department. That said, I love the drive along there though.
Keep Safe on the roads.
Eaglemax said
06:01 PM Jul 30, 2016
Thanks guys
Fringe dweller.... Total travelled. 18,400 km according to my book keeper lol. 10/10 now? :)
Eaglemax said
06:05 PM Jul 30, 2016
Dougwe
They want the big dollars off the Melbourne high incomers. Towns and shires supporting us get my shopping.
Dougwe said
07:39 PM Jul 30, 2016
Oh ok then Tony 10/10. However, can you write a little neater next time please
kandagal said
08:45 PM Jul 30, 2016
What a lot of great info
NeilandRaine said
09:37 PM Jul 30, 2016
You left in April 2016 and travelled 18400 k's. Did you see anything.
rayaroundoz said
10:17 PM Jul 30, 2016
Some great info Eaglemax. Its been a while since I left school. Am I right in thinking it cost you .10 cents per kilometre travelled?
Eaglemax said
02:55 AM Jul 31, 2016
Neil and Raine. Re: "did you see anything"
I don't know if your question is sarcastic or flippant. Either way its questions like yours that discourage relative newcomers from posting.
But I'll try this.
We are on DSP, our income and health restricts us in places we can go
We have a dog we won't leave ie no national parks and we are fine with that
Our specific interests include wildflowers, beaches and coastal history so little desire for inland ventures
We don't go to all the tourist places due to costs
We are all different
Building our own 11' van with shower and toilet and doing the trip for such little cost was I believe a major achievement of which we are proud.
We had some mechanical issues we budgeted for but had fuel cost been greater the trip would not have been possible
We avoided Qld, Vic and NSW sites as we've done them before.
We had no desire to travel inland.
Unlike many nomads we had no desire to see everything
I hope that answers your question.
Eaglemax said
03:04 AM Jul 31, 2016
Rayaroundoz
Correct. Our Hyundai crdi without towing gets 5.5 L/100 km. So towing a full height van at around 9 L/100 km was OK. It needed a new turbo prior to the trip $$%$$ , a melted thermatic fan connection at Karrartha and had a crank seal fail near Katherine. But its done 320,000 km
moamajohn said
01:17 PM Jul 31, 2016
Well done Eaglemax .A nice simple report yet informative .Like you we sometimes travel more efficiently than others and yet they seem to castigate us .My wife and I are not sit in the sun types we like to look, see set up camp ,wake up and move on,other times we stop although others seem to presume to travel to a consistency. I look forward to meeting you on the road .Cheers
Ron-D said
04:34 PM Jul 31, 2016
I enjoyed reading your report eaglemax Iam only a new kid on the block here as well, but compared to a lot of other sites this one seems have mostly good easygoing members.
Eaglemax said
04:39 PM Jul 31, 2016
Thanks moamajohn
meetoo said
12:33 AM Aug 1, 2016
Enjoyed your post, Eaglemax, thanks.
Cheers, John.
NeilandRaine said
07:17 AM Aug 1, 2016
Eaglemax wrote:
Neil and Raine. Re: "did you see anything" I don't know if your question is sarcastic or flippant. Either way its questions like yours that discourage relative newcomers from posting. But I'll try this. We are on DSP, our income and health restricts us in places we can go We have a dog we won't leave ie no national parks and we are fine with that Our specific interests include wildflowers, beaches and coastal history so little desire for inland ventures We don't go to all the tourist places due to costs We are all different Building our own 11' van with shower and toilet and doing the trip for such little cost was I believe a major achievement of which we are proud. We had some mechanical issues we budgeted for but had fuel cost been greater the trip would not have been possible We avoided Qld, Vic and NSW sites as we've done them before. We had no desire to travel inland. Unlike many nomads we had no desire to see everything I hope that answers your question.
My comment was not meant to be flippant or sarcastic, it was to show my amazement that you travelled so far in such a short time. If you had explained your circumstances maybe I would of seen it differently, however, I would still be amazed that you did such a trip in such a short time. We are in a similar position and had to rush our big lap because of the impending birth of a grand child. Our trip still took us almost 12 months and there was so much we missed out on seeing.
wombat56 said
08:06 PM Aug 30, 2016
Hi Eaglemax
Wow what a trip and very informative I can't wait till 2017 on the road hopefully 2-4 years 2016 Mazda BT50 freestyle towing a Regent Cruiser
thanks again
Wombat56
Some interesting 'stats' there Tony . You surprised me a couple of times with besties.
As long as You are enjoying it . Keep reporting & Keep it SAFE.
The great Ocean Road is very disappointing freedom camping wise with places to prop a night or two, always have and more than likely always will. Sad really as they want the tourist $$$$ but not willing to give back in that department. That said, I love the drive along there though.
Keep Safe on the roads.
Oh ok then Tony 10/10. However, can you write a little neater next time please
Enjoyed your post, Eaglemax, thanks.
Cheers, John.
My comment was not meant to be flippant or sarcastic, it was to show my amazement that you travelled so far in such a short time. If you had explained your circumstances maybe I would of seen it differently, however, I would still be amazed that you did such a trip in such a short time. We are in a similar position and had to rush our big lap because of the impending birth of a grand child. Our trip still took us almost 12 months and there was so much we missed out on seeing.
Wow what a trip and very informative I can't wait till 2017 on the road hopefully 2-4 years 2016 Mazda BT50 freestyle towing a Regent Cruiser
thanks again
Wombat56