The following article was provided to us by TIffany & Matt and at Ozroamers. If you want to follow their adventures look for the links at the bottom of the article.
Lifestyle ? What is it? We say ours is our life, our way, and we created it with a caravan, a car and a tinny.
We were just your average couple, who were working long hours in a trade and in an office space. We both decided that we needed a change in our life so decided to head off in our caravan for three months to reset and enjoy some time together. Two years later, we were still travelling and could not get back into the regular 9-5 grind of what some people classed as a regular lifestyle. This was our new lifestyle and we absolutely loved it.
We have travelled to some amazing places around Australia including our top 10 favourites moments so far:
- Hiking various gorges in Karjini National Park
- Swimming in freshwater creeks in The Daintree
- Riding our Bicycles around Uluru
- Fishing on rock ledges in Willie Creek
- Staying on beach front camp sites on the Ningaloo Reef
- Learning about a slow gypsy pace in Byron Bay
- Watching the sunrise on the beach with Kangaroos at Cape Hillsbourgh
- Exploring the coastline of the Great Australian Bight.
- Living the island life and spending 24hours on Magnetic Island
- Sleeping in the back of the Troopy exploring Tassie for two weeks.
But how do we afford to keep doing this life for two years?
This is something that so many people ask us. Here are some things that worked for us and we would love to share to help make it possible for you to get out on the road travelling.
- Like most we have a home, so we decided to rent that whilst we travelled. This meant we had a base to come back to if we needed, and the rent covered our mortgage whilst we travelled.
- We invested in a vacuum sealer, which allowed us to buy meats in bulk and portion them to serving sizes we could eat. Some of our meat packs got down to as low as $3.33 for the both of us per night, add some vegies or a side dish and you have a meal for two for under $10. This is way cheaper then eating out all the time, but we did have the odd pub meal at special locations when it was available.
- Sign up to reward apps like G’Day Parks where you can get special deals and rates on nights in caravan parks. You can also claim free things like ice, kids buggy rides and if you’ve stayed enough nights, a free upgrade or night on them!
- Apps like Wiki Camps, Hi Camps and Facebook Groups can help you find free or low cost camping options all over Australia. Sometimes you might only pay $10 a night for unpowered camping/caravan site on a station or farm, but its also security in a little community where you can leave your things and explore an area. Sometimes you might even get a free spot behind the pub, just head in to support them and buy a beer or a meal. Western Australia by far had its best selection of roadside free camps like Mary River or several with big van pull in bays well off the road.
- If you're handy like Matt, he was all around getting the basic car serving and mr fix it jobs done on the car and caravan whilst on the road. We did our own five tyre rotations, oil filters, checked the bearings, replaced leaf springs, fixed broken caravan pipes or replaced parts when they needed to. If we didn’t know, You Tube was your best friend. If there was a video on how to fix it we found it, and if there wasn’t we created one to help others!
- We also worked on the road, which gave us some purpose too. We have an online business in High Ticket Sales which helped fund our trip. This was a game changer for us. We also called into caravan parks and helped out with office duties and maintenance as it also provided a spot to park the caravan up at a low or free cost. Matt packed his welding helmet and a bag of hand tools which allowed him to work on some job sites as well, and some pretty cool ones like The Byron Bay Brewery and...
- I loved to write articles and share our experiences so we also contributed to blogs, magazines, podcast and radio shows which then also had its perks of accommodation in those areas whilst writing. This was also the case for working with products with companies and showing how amazing they are and what we believed in that worked for us including Dreamer RV & Berkley Fishing.
Pregnancy in a caravan?
To give us another challenge we were really excited to announce we were expecting our first baby whilst travelling on the road. A lot of people commented and said “ well I guess you had no tv or radio reception that night”, and of course a few giggles were had as we shared the news with strangers during our travels. A new little life to bring into the travelling world, and we could then do all these exciting things again and watch them witness it for the first time through their eyes.
Pregnancy in a caravan? Some people thought we were crazy and should come home to the comforts of family, friends and a house. But we were happy to keep travelling as we are very lucky to live in a country where our medical facilities and care are amazing.
Here are some tips how we got through the first 28 weeks of pregnancy whilst travelling:
- We booked a doctors appointment in a local town soon as we found out to know what we needed to do.
- We booked ahead scans, blood tests and any other tests in major towns before we booked accommodation and planned some of our travels around those important dates.
- Pharmacies do free blood pressure monitoring, so we would call into do regular checks between major doctor appointments.
- I had some crazy cravings like butter chicken, but you don’t have that luxury when travelling remote so always have a variety of snacks and healthy food in the van.
- Keep a folder with you with all your results printed like bloods, a diary and all info you have collected. This makes it easier when seeing a doctor or hospital you’ve never been into before.
- We kept up exercise, but dulled it down a bit due to morning sickness and being extremely tired.
- Have a plan where you think you want to birth the baby, whether that is hometown or base yourself in a town for a while. We wanted to come home so we communicated back with our doctor for dates he wanted us home, and anything we needed to do.
- Australia can be hot, and heat with pregnancy was not fun! The hotter the climate we always made sure there was a water source to cool off in. If not quick cold showers and ice packs helped!
Plus heaps other things we did. Our pregnancy journey has been low risk, and we always listened to doctors advice and listened to my body. We always knew where the closest hospital was, and if we would tailor activities around how I felt. Including not going fishing in Cape York which was a bummer for me as I absolutely love fishing!
Which brings us to my favourite part in this article on this lifestyle of ours. FISHING!!!
Fishing has been a big part of my life ( Tiffany) since I was a very young age. Six years ago I got involved in a program called the WIRF Network ( Women in Recreational Fishing), which was an initiative by the Victorian Government body Victorian Fisheries Authority to get more women fishing. I flew up to the Gold Coast on scholarship with other likeminded women who wanted to change and pave the way for women in the industry to give fishing a go, voice opinions in round tables, break the stigma of it’s a man’s sport and challenge industry leaders on marketing/ access to fishing apparel etc for women. All we want is a fair go and to be recognised within the sport and recreation, and not sexualised through the industry. Let’s change and break the mould for future generations. I continued to attend events, talks, radios and more Queensland trips to further mentor new women into the program. The skills, leadership and friends I have made have been amazing.
For those looking at finding out more join in on Facebook, WIRF NETWORK.
