I tell ya, #4wdlife gets you more places than #vanlife - it's a little more heart in mouth sometimes, but it's also a little wilder, and a little more quiet as well when you get off the main roads. Last week we did a track that we wanted to do for ages - the old coach road between Princetown, near the 12 Apostles in Victoria, and Moonlight Head. It's a wild stretch of coastline and we lucked out on a big ocean - the wave were around 15 - 20 ft and spectacular to watch thunder in as we made our way along the sand and mud track.
Princetown is a great little spot with a river and a headland, a recreation ground for camping, and a campground with a small general store. For more supplies, such as a coffee and almond croissant before hitting the track, you'll need to head to Port Campbell, about 15 minutes west - there's a petrol station, a pub, a supermarket and a few cafes there for the tourists.
The first part of the track, which begins just past the recreation ground, takes you on a super bumpy sand track - I had to reach behind and stop the 12V fridge from leaping out of it's moorings. Taking footage was impossible as my head was nearly hitting the ceiling. Sometimes I prefer taking the footage as it takes my mind off the fact we could crash, sliding into a tree, off a cliff, or into a ditch.
When we hit the above section of the track, we debated about whether to go through at all - the wet clay sides were a bit full on and we did worry we'd go into the ditch and join the trash people had thrown in there to obviously try to get vehicles out. We were told that there was always someone at the rec ground to help out, but it was a quiet weekend and we didn't REALLY want to wreck dear Buttercup.
For lunch, we found an awesome spot on the clifftop - almost impossible along the Great Ocean Road as you're either fighting tourists for a space or there are trees in the front, or nowhere to park. We had leftover soup and fell asleep in the back listening to the waves - a rare moment of peace and quiet.
From there we continued along the track until we hit a really, really big puddle. Now, we did have a 4WD, yes, but you don't understand how deep this puddle was, and how thick the clay is on these tracks. It was getting on for 4pm and we just didn't want to risk getting stuck, and with only scrub around there was no way we would be able to winch out. So we did the sensible thing and turned around, and tried the track from the other end. Again, no go - a huge puddle prevented us from going forward. We realised it was just getting too close to the end of season, and track closures happened for a reason.
Instead, on dark, we drove a little way down to a carpark where we had a great spot with a view, and no one around. It's usually super hard to find a spot due to tourists and no camping rules, but this place only said 'no tents' and there was just no-one in sight. The lack of international tourists and the onset of winter has really affected the place - for the better, in my opinion, as it was more like it used to be in the old days - a wild and lonely place.
It was pretty special to sleep with the thundering of the waves, and to wake up in a beautiful secluded spot. We walked down to the beach before breakfast to gain a bit of an appetite, then enjoy last night's mash reheated as rissoles with left over pasta sauce and olives. Satiated, both bellies and minds, we took the long route home along bush tracks, looking forward to returning again, maybe when it was a little less wet.
For those of you that are interested in Landrovers, and perhaps seeing a little bit more about where I live, check out the Youtube by Tasmanian photographer Jessie Bonde. His 4WD is a Landrover 130, which we are doing up as a camper too.
There's so much he misses out in this video, but you do get a sense of the landscape. I did get a little annoyed with him climbing on the cliffs and setting up 'influencer' photos as the environment is quite fragile and some of those cliffs are really dangerous - I'm not sure he should be 'influencing' anyone to do that. Hell, maybe I'm just getting old. But I do get a bit protective of this place I call home.
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With Love,
https://gateway.ipfs.io/ipfs/QmcGSZxvsXD8YbSCNAo6KWc4a9RjXyRCjWupZdPXJapkXk
You can read our other Landrover posts by clicking on any of the links below. Follow us on Instagram @wildtrackdreaming
Landrover Club Meet Up Victoria
Sunday Driving in The Great Otways Park
In Which We Buy A Series 2 and a S3 Military
RedNeck in the Australian Bush: A Landover Horror Story
Buying the 130
Landrover Camper Improvements
Progress on Series 3
Series 3 Restoration Complete
Nut and Bolt Restoration Ending - Series 3
How to Trick Your Wife Into a New Landrover
Series 3 Build Progress
Starting the Rebuild
70th Anniversary at Cooma
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Ah you are quite an adventurer, that is cool! That road definetely had a lot of puddles, it is good that you didn't get stuck. Secluded places are the best and they should remain that way. Sometimes advertising done by the influencers harms the place more than it helps.
Yeah I totally agree, and the worst thing is, they aren't even aware of the damage they cause. There will be no true wild places left to enjoy if they have their way - everything's for the next shot. Drives me crazy!
That looks very cool, I want to have this car too, then my family goes everywhere. 😻
I can just see it full of the family and lots of coconuts!
I miss this so much. I haven't taken a trip for more than an year now and for the next 7 days, i'm totally stuck in my room :( It's nice to see your pictures and especially the one where you are cooking inside. Amazing!
Oh honey, I'm so sorry - are you still in lockdown? That must be hard on the family! I hope you can get out soon. I was sad to read that the cases in India are getting more.
Oh how I miss the off road, I'm stuck in that crappy mid youth age of having young kids and waiting for them to grow up lol
Looks absolutely beautiful! Awesome stuff
Oh just chuck em in the back with the dog and off ya go mate, they'll love it.
Thats what I'm scared of. Lil Miss had no fear and would head off exploring with the dog!
Haha, then that'd be so much fun!
Glad you had a great time out👍.
Thanks mate, hope you are well!
Big fan of Buttercups :-)
When you take your spare tire , attach the winch to it , and bury in in a hole about 1mtr deep some 25mtr in front of the car , you'l need nothing like a tree or pole to get going again ,... just don't forget to fill the hole up and really bury that tire .
It takes some effort , but would give some great off-road action shot's .
Oh yes, we know that trick, but we haven't done it yet! We look for trees, but we should have more courage!
That sounds like an amazing time! I used to have some off-road fun in the past but I can't even remember the last time I did that. Good times for sure!
Thanks so much! I hope you get to do it again soon!
It was like reading a sales pitch, I kept waiting for the toll free number to schedule a tour guide.
Oh man I knew I forgot something... Dial 1800 FUN TIMES!
1-800-Oh It's On!
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Wow! Sooooooooo cool! And what a scenery!!!
Thanks so much! It's really beautiful there.
Hmmmm, that puddle was a bit large....
I love that photo of you on the top! I do miss my traveling days, these photos really make me reminisce about those good old days! You really did find some awesome spots and the inside of the landrover looks awesome. Love all your photos xxx
Aw, shucks. Yeah man I'm looking forward to the day I can proper travel again, no job, barefoot, dirty and happy