City and Outback Australia

Im in the planning phase of a short trip to Orange in New South Wales Australia. I have to drop my daughter off near there so we were going to spend some time there. Firstly we are changing the brakes from hydraulic to electric. This is going to cost around $1100 and an additional $300 for the controller. We will be fitting 10 inch Electric brakes. When I bought the camper I was not sure of the condition of the brakes and bearings. We shopped around and due to the age of the van we are better of retrofitting electric brakes. The trip is around 5 hours from where I live in Lake Macquarie ( Near Newcastle ). We plan on staying at a caravan park and taking our two smallest children as we have 5. We will be travelling through the Blue Mountains so getting the brakes done was a must. We have a 14 ft Jayco Wind up camper. It was made in 1978 so we have some work to do on it though it is water tight.

Registering a Caravan NSW  Unfortunately, the camper I have just bought is due for registration and needs the NSW Pink slip roadworthy certificate. Im so stressed as I can’t really afford for it to fail. I need three new tyres as when I drove it home they did not feel the best even though they had plenty of tread. I spoke to the mechanic and he was of the belief I should change them also.  So tomorrow I find out if I dodged a bullet as I have never gone through this process on a caravan before. I really just want it over and done with. My saving grace is a normal pink slip mechanic can do the inspection due to the weight of the camper, Blessed.

Goulburn NSW Australia On the way to Canberra today, we stopped in at Goulburn. Goulburn was Australia’s first inland settlement.  The town nowadays looks a little run down and I more than likely will drive past it in future. It still has the Big Marino though it’s been moved 800 meters from its original location.  Goulburn is the home to the NSW police academy. It’s sort of fitting that there is a large jail here also.

National Arboretum, Canberra - Australia Great day today! I thought the Arboretum would be a boring place so last time I was here I didn’t see it. This time I thought I would give it a chance and I was so surprised. There are mass plantings of trees and it looks great. Plenty of stealth campers enjoying what it has to offer. The views are stunning and it’s such a short drive from the city. 5 minutes I’d say.  Make sure you come out for a visit as there are plenty of areas to view and explore and your able to drive from place to place and parking is a dream. Here are some photos.

Telstra Tower, Black Mountain - Canberra - Australia Had a great time at Telstra Tower. It’s about a 10 minute drive from Canberra City in black mountain.  There is a notice that you car may not start and to contact security if this happens. This is apparently due to the transmission from the tower. The Telstra museum section is free and has some interesting old time phones etc. Top of the tower is a viewing platform which costs to go up to. I wouldn’t bother about that. The best view is of the tower not from the top of it. I would allow twenty minutes for your visit. Great little stop and the drive up is picturesque. Enjoy the 140mbs 4g data while your up there.

The Worst Tourist Attraction Ever, Rock Garden - Canberra - Australia I’m not joking when I say it’s awful. It really crap just about 10 big rocks of different type. This is supposed to be an attraction, What were they thinking. Anyway here are some photos so you don’t have to go. Truely the worst thing ever promoted by a tourist commission.

Old Parliament House, Canberra - Australia You will have no problem finding old Parliament House. It has exhibitions and tours at regular intervals. As a kid we all had school excursions to the Parliament House and now school kids visit both old and new.  The house has been very well maintained and I feel a very pretty piece of architecture. It’s in contrast to the super modern and advanced design of new Parliament House. Most famous piece of footage from here is when the Governor General sacked Prime Minister Gogh Withlem and the famous lines - Long May we say god save the queen as nothing will save the Governor General. Well that didn’t work out for him but really a defining piece of film on the steps of the house. The Aboriginal tent embassy is out front which is just shipping containers. They are friendly as anything and are happy to have a chat to you so give them a bit of love and support.

LED Camper Lighting Solution / Canvas update.  The main problem I’ve been having is the self adhesive doesn’t stick. Tape in areas also came away on hot days. It was driving me crazy so my daughter suggested I try hot melt glue gunning it. Ans it worked so mush better than all my other options. My wife is making the bed end fly’s for the camper out of King’s Awning walls and sewing them, I can wait till they are done. This is a temporary solution until I can afford a full new canvas. I have a picture of what canvas I’m ordering as I really like the colours and it will make a big difference when complete.

Caves Beach - Newcastle - Australia  Caves beach is simply stunning. As the name suggests there are caves in the rock walls on the beach area. During the hotter months this is a patrolled beach with a small canteen for food and drink. Parking is limited so you may or may not get parking depending on the day.  The beach is very clean as is the water. Ive never had an issue with poorly behaved beach goers at any time that I have been. It really is a great place to spend the day and there is shade areas just back off the beach which are grassed so you can comfortably have a picnic. I feel this is one of the best beaches in NSW. It is certainly a must if your in the area.