bundy

Or Pat, in honour of all of us her on the expat forum

hevs

grrrrrrrrrr, its so frustrating being off line, i've obviously missed something, but i hope whatever it was that it is sorted now and that you enjoy the trip. Keep us posted and enjoy it guys

Vee

We just killed them in the van. When lieing there at night and it's so quiet you can hear the bastards buzzing around. We made sure that we didn't cook too late in the day so we wouldn't need a light on when we were cooking (and therefore keeping the back door of the van open). We would never have the car light on while the doors were open.

But we also noticed that after a while the mosquito bites didn't bother us. Either we got use to the stuff they put in ya, or we just learnt to live with it. However tea tree oil helps. As does making a cross in the mossie bit and spitting on it. Your own spit works best. Its the friggen sand flies you have to watch out for!

As for fire making - we started off using those fire lights that you get for bbqs. But after doing it for a while we learnt how to build a fire without using anything....Scott's proudest moment was making a fire using only one match and nothing else.

If you are going to cook on an open fire best to invest in some good heavy (the word escapes me for the moment) cooking pots. We had a good frying pan which was great for cooking breakie in.

Ooh you'll have so much fun experiencing so many new things. If you look at it as a true adventure then you'll have a whale of a time. Make sure you keep a diary.

bundy

Camp ovens! Camp ovens! That's what you need. Cast iron pots (bit like cauldrons), come in a variety of sizes, available from camping shops for A$60-$150.

Here's a picture of my cooking arrangements, complete with camp ovens in action

bundy

Blimey, sorry about the size. I never learn to reduce before posting!

Vee

Cast Iron! That is the word(s) I was looking for. Ta.

Yeah the oven ones look lots better than a frying pan.

They are damn heavy tho! Smack your partner over the head with a cast iron frying pan and s/he'll know about it!

jandjuk

okay extremely jealous now.... these are the kinds of experiences you'll remember forever.

more so than what the rest of us are doing - ie in our offices!

best of luck

Jirrupin

I now realise we are reasonably sane compared to this guy:

Cycling experience was not something that 22-year-old adventurer NEIL THOMAS had to draw upon in deciding to take on the challenge of a ride across the Nullarbor Plain in summer. He didn't even own a bicycle but not even this could daunt him, as he explains in:

http://www.multiline.com.au/~bta/touring/march93.htm

bundy

I remember watching some Ben Dark thing when he was driving across the Nullarbor and came across this old guy who has been walking the Australian outback for years earning money for charity. He also met a mad Japanese cyclist. They're nuts, the lot of them. Campervan is sheer luxury in comparison!

Vee

God I hope he didn't cycle in those shorts.......