Last year, we had a few questions in our family. Should we get a pool, or should we get a camper trailer? As in all good families, we decided that we should have a vote to achieve the outcome. I wanted a pool. I am a water baby, and although we live within streets of The Strand and Tobruk Pool, I still wanted to be able to just duck out the back door and jump into the pool.

We took a vote. I lost. I was both shocked and devastated. Really? Who on earth would not want a pool? Well, so it seems a certain husband of mine and two of my children.

It took ages to decide on what we should get, finally after talking to everyone we know who had either a caravan or a camper trailer and even those who didn’t (most likely because they have a pool) we discovered that each family is unique and you have to go with what suits you. Alas, we are now camper trailer expeditionists.

On our first trip, we headed out to Winton to the Oondooroo Station where we have now been a couple of times. We have worked out that we prefer to stay at Farm Stays so that we can take our beautiful Mac with us and enjoy meeting like-minded people and exploring parts of our beautiful country.

We’ve been told that when someone arrives at a camping spot, those who are already there sitting around their lovely camp find much enjoyment as they watch newcomers arrive. I can safely say that at the moment we are still married, there is no divorce and we’ve been able to work pretty well as a family to unpack the trailer and set it up. Although so far, we have a pretty high percentage rate of arriving or leaving and having to unpack or pack up while it’s raining. Maybe my desire for water is jinxing us!!

We are total beginners at this type of camping. I grew up in a world of canvas tents and you didn’t touch the canvas until the sun came out to dry it out or it would drip inside the tent. Gordon grew up in Germany on a British Naval Base, not much camping there, although he did have summers spent camping in a caravan at the seaside. Mac is enjoying every moment of it sleeping at night time in air-conditioning somewhere between our side of the camper trailer and the kid’s side. Dog hair is a nightmare!

Some of the places were are visiting are just beautiful and that part I am thoroughly enjoying. The skies of Winton traditionally inhabited by the Koa People are some of the most beautiful I have seen. The creeks up at Hidden Valley – Munan Gumburu were icy in winter, a sweet change from the warm waters in North Queensland. The beaches of Ngaro Land now known as Airlie Beach are perfect for one small blue heeler to run along. Flowers! The flowers of the highlands of NSW are gorgeous. The wildflowers are beautiful and grow anywhere on the land that was traditionally inhabited by the Gundungurra people.

So much beauty brings a great deal of peace to us as a family. We have no tech, screen time, or whatever you call it when we go camping. We wake up to the sounds of nature in either very hot or very cold weather lol both of which we have been caught out in with the wrong clothing. We are slowly learning the camping routine by our small errors……don’t they say the best way to learn is by your mistakes? We love game nights, campfires, and exploring with Mac.

I am coming to love camping. Some mornings when I wake up and look out the window and see the sky I am incredibly happy with our democratic family decision. When it’s raining and we are packing up to leave before sunrise to get home having to drive another six hours I silently wish I was floating in a pool in my backyard. However, the part I love the most is calling out to the family “Stop, stop here” and I jump out and take photos of the light or whatever I see, a bit like before I had my business and just took photos for fun. That part does beat floating around a pool, but only just!

Hope you enjoy some of my photos, T xx