Our plan for Christmas is to head across the Nullarbor Plain to be with BB's Dad and his family. They are great to us and have welcomed us into their family. I am so grateful that BB has them all in his life and am committed to nurturing those relationships.
The last time we went to visit them for Christmas was 4 years ago, our first Christmas back in Australia. This required us to drive over 400km to Perth airport, pay a significant sum for airport parking, fly to Melbourne, hire a car and drive another 450km to our destination. And then of course to do the same in reverse. I declared then and there that next time we come we will drive.
Well next time is here. Not only is it Christmas, it is also a celebration of DD returning to Australia to live, and BB's Grandfather will be turning 80. I decided to stick to my word and we are driving across, leaving next weekend.
Although I have lived in Western Australia and the Northern Territory for a total of 14 years and remote driving is something I have done many a time, the Nullarbor Crossing is a trip I have never taken before. I'm feeling a bit under prepared and inexperienced. I'm nervous but excited. I am looking forward to showing BB more of this vast and beautiful land, and nervous as to how he'll cope without wifi 🤣.
I spent a lot of time thinking about the ideal rig for us. For the Nullarbor trip a camper van would have been perfect, but for everything else beyond its not what we want. Long term I want something I can leave behind at a campsite and go exploring. I'm not a big fan of caravans, although we did see one at the Caravan and Camping show last weekend which had a slide out veranda which looked rather nice - that's not in our budget though, and it's big to tow. In general, a caravan to me feels very closed in - it's just like being at home, only much smaller. I feel cramped and claustrophobic. Camping for me is about getting closer to nature, about freedom, fresh air, being outside. So I decided a camper trailer was the way.
There's a few options here too. We looked at several hard floor trailers, these would be ideal in terms of ease to set up, but those in our budget weren't great quality. I've seen several, and heard of many more, cheap trailers falling apart on dirt roads throughout Central Australia and this is an area I really want us to explore. Central Australia is very close to my heart and there are many remote places I'd love BB to see.
So we've gone for the simple but sturdy option. An off road camper trailer with a soft floor. It's a bit of a challenge to put up and pack away by myself, though I've only had one practice so far and I figure I'll get better at it with time. BB will grow too, and hopefully if we get really stuck in the meantime, a friendly fellow camper will help me out.
Our trailer on our practice run at a friend's place |
BB enjoying reading by torchlight |
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