The Camping Thread

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by blueoval

Spot on. Even going to Chookaloo in Kuitpo Forest is almost impossible no matter the time of year last year. Ive tried going mid week, non school holiday, non long weekend and can never ever get a spot. Cannot prebook. Its first in best dressed. Makes me wonder if these 'campers' are actually permanent residents there or not. I've given up trying to get in there, its hopeless.

I have a mates with land in Myponga and Mt Compass which I have been welcome to stay at. So I will probably do that again in future.

Wait till it goes online prebooking and it'll be even worse as you get people booking well in advance and then not showing up for whatever reason, Ranger at Mambray Creek said he's had to turn people away on popular weekends despite empty sites due to prebooked and no show.

We started going to Mt Crawford just before they ditched the envelopes system to go online, used to be able to send someone up midweek to secure a good site then roll in over the next few days, we'd get a big site to accommodate a couple of campers and a few cars, now its online you can book the days leading up to the weekend but come Friday lunchtime and youre out.

Its silly really as they're losing 2 or 3 nights when the site is otherwise vacant, to allow online booking of 2 nights on the weekend.

[Jack91]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Yes but not to the current extent, its due to the huge influx of people holidaying at home that the amounts of rubbish and excrement has come to attention, hence the media interest.
This inturn will draw the wrath of the do gooders and soon after the easy fix of restriction.

12 months ago i could free camp anywhere around lake Bonney, now due to ferals and 4wds theyve reduced access to many of the good spots and will no doubt start charging for the few spots, it'll only get worse.

Its hard enough finding a bush camp setting at the moment, with many of them going to online bookings and when you can its packed solid and the facilities are filth.
I can get that in a caravan park on any long weekend or holiday period.

If you cant find a free camp at least 5km from anyone else, you need a better 4wd. Id rather set the swag up in scrub then be next to the flogs on their dirt bikes and hiluxes in a camp ground.
It sucks but theres so many people out there now we cant even have a uhf channel to ourselves without some idiot playing music over it etc.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by blueoval

Spot on. Even going to Chookaloo in Kuitpo Forest is almost impossible no matter the time of year last year. Ive tried going mid week, non school holiday, non long weekend and can never ever get a spot. Cannot prebook. Its first in best dressed. Makes me wonder if these 'campers' are actually permanent residents there or not. I've given up trying to get in there, its hopeless.

I have a mates with land in Myponga and Mt Compass which I have been welcome to stay at. So I will probably do that again in future.

Chookaloo (all forestry sa, including chalks, rocky paddock etc) is book online. Has been for over a year now.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

Wait till it goes online prebooking and it'll be even worse as you get people booking well in advance and then not showing up for whatever reason, Ranger at Mambray Creek said he's had to turn people away on popular weekends despite empty sites due to prebooked and no show.

We started going to Mt Crawford just before they ditched the envelopes system to go online, used to be able to send someone up midweek to secure a good site then roll in over the next few days, we'd get a big site to accommodate a couple of campers and a few cars, now its online you can book the days leading up to the weekend but come Friday lunchtime and youre out.

Its silly really as they're losing 2 or 3 nights when the site is otherwise vacant, to allow online booking of 2 nights on the weekend.

Booking online is a fairer system. It allows those who are traveling a reasonable distance peace of mind that they have a site when they get there. Yes, some people abuse it by not cancelling if their plans change but you can't have a system that pleases everyone obviously.


I don't understand the last couple of comments either. Are people not allowed to camp? Are you only allowed to use campsites if you've been camping for x number of years?

I think it's great that more people are camping.

We love mambray but haven't been for a while so knowing it's harder to get in to, we booked our spot for this Easter over 6 months ago.

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by prydey

Booking online is a fairer system. It allows those who are traveling a reasonable distance peace of mind that they have a site when they get there. Yes, some people abuse it by not cancelling if their plans change but you can't have a system that pleases everyone obviously.


I don't understand the last couple of comments either. Are people not allowed to camp? Are you only allowed to use campsites if you've been camping for x number of years?

I think it's great that more people are camping.

We love mambray but haven't been for a while so knowing it's harder to get in to, we booked our spot for this Easter over 6 months ago.

I dont care who goes camping, so long as theyre respectful of environment and others, you need to remember, Aussies are really despised in Bali etc. for being arrogant ****ers, sure the locals smile as they take their money and clean up after them, those same arrogant ****ers are now stinking up my favourite spots and guess who's cleaning up, thats right, someone else.
Its not a fairer system at all and if the bloke running the show says its worse i'll take his word.

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by prydey

Chookaloo (all forestry sa, including chalks, rocky paddock etc) is book online. Has been for over a year now.

Thats good to know. Its been a while since I've tried getting in.

[prydey]

Originally Posted by BENT_8

I dont care who goes camping, so long as theyre respectful of environment and others, you need to remember, Aussies are really despised in Bali etc. for being arrogant ****ers, sure the locals smile as they take their money and clean up after them, those same arrogant ****ers are now stinking up my favourite spots and guess who's cleaning up, thats right, someone else.
Its not a fairer system at all and if the bloke running the show says its worse i'll take his word.

Sure, but it seemed like the discussion had turned toward places being booked up more now as opposed to how the campsites are treated. Kind of two different discussions.

I like the online booking system. I like to know before I leave home that I've got a site. I'd hate to travel quite a few hours/km and find the site booked out.... to each their own I guess.

[Tassie f100]

Originally Posted by prydey

Sure, but it seemed like the discussion had turned toward places being booked up more now as opposed to how the campsites are treated. Kind of two different discussions.

I like the online booking system. I like to know before I leave home that I've got a site. I'd hate to travel quite a few hours/km and find the site booked out.... to each their own I guess.

The online system is alright until you rock up Friday night and find someone already on your spot.Try ringing Forestry to get the problem sorted and get a message saying the office is closed,ring back Monday after 9.00am

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by prydey

Sure, but it seemed like the discussion had turned toward places being booked up more now as opposed to how the campsites are treated. Kind of two different discussions.

I like the online booking system. I like to know before I leave home that I've got a site. I'd hate to travel quite a few hours/km and find the site booked out.... to each their own I guess.

It is the camping thread so caters to all aspects of camping, conditions and availability of sites.
Its not hard to see a link, before you would expect peak times to be just that, high demand and naturally a bit messier, but due to every man and his dog turning to camping instead of jet setting around the globe, the peak is now continuous and the fallout in terms of availability and conditions has become noticeable.

Dont get me wrong, i understand what you're saying about pre booking and knowing you have a spot waiting for you, but how do you know what the weather will be like 6 months out?
You have a Jayco camper, it'll only withstand so much wind, what happens if the weather report leading up to your getaway is forecast to be gale force during your stay?
You might head home early or cancel, a lot wont and so the park is half empty.
I cant decide at the last minute that my van can stand up to it and go because its sold out whereas under the old system you'd stay home and id take the punt on getting a spot.

You've mentioned before that your family like reasonable amenities to enjoy camping, if places like chalks etc. are missing out on 2 or 3 nights of revenue midweek due to allowing someone to prebook only weekends, whats the chances of them ever improving the facilities, id be interested to see the figures to see how the takings have changed since bringing in the online system.

The old system allowed for more than one vehicle on a site, you just paid per person, we'd have a couple of campers and 3 cars on a big site, now you can only have one vehicle to a site so our group alone has gone from 5 people paying and using 1 site leaving the rest for others, to us needing 3 sites which is almost impossible to do now.

The con's far outweigh the pro's if you look at the bigger picture.

[prydey]

The fact that systems get abused doesn't make the system wrong. I have cancelled bookings before and would never leave a site booked if I wasn't attending, or planning to attend.

How many people would hook up the van and head off, with the family, not knowing if they had a site available? I'm talking at least 4+ hours of travel from home.

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by prydey

The fact that systems get abused doesn't make the system wrong. I have cancelled bookings before and would never leave a site booked if I wasn't attending, or planning to attend.

How many people would hook up the van and head off, with the family, not knowing if they had a site available? I'm talking at least 4+ hours of travel from home.

Thats you, a lot dont, it couldnt happen under the old system, so this is a backwards step.
The Ranger said it himself.

People have been heading off under those circumstances since cocky was an egg.
How do you think people got sites pre online booking, you headed up early or took a punt and gave yourself margin if you had to compromise.

[Tonz]

I now manager a Christian campsite, they used to have online booking, purely so I have control over who is going to be staying.
last Oct. phone call ....
'yeah, g'day can I book the place for couple of days>'
"any dates in particular?"
nah anything will do"
"What high school you from?"
silence......"whats that got to do with it?
" Id say xxxxxxxHigh school, any teachers or staff coming?"
more silence
(me) " Tell you what I can give you these dates, cost will be for min of 20 people plus a $2000 bond up front."

click...

has solved a lot of problems

[BENT_8]

I dont know about you guys but part of the adventure that camping is is the unknowns, will i get a site, did i pack the mallet. Its what you laugh about round the fire and becomes part of the story you take back home.

Back at the end of 2006 we decided at the last minute to head up Yorkes for new years, we packed and left for Ponde Bay mid arvo on the 28th, Us with our 3 and Nephew and partner. We stop at the inlaws in Maitland briefly and arrive at Ponde just on dark, little did we know theres only 2 sites left in the entire park and were looking in the dark when one appears, so im looking at it under headlights and im thinking, the place is packed and theres this nice flat vacant site, what am i missing.
Then i look closer and see the site is 70% bullant nest.
On we go searching in the dark and after a while we come across another...minus the ants.
Looks good, grab the tents, whack, whack, whack, pegs bent, solid rock, oh well too late to mess around, bent the whole bloody bag.
We still laugh about it to this day.

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by prydey

The fact that systems get abused doesn't make the system wrong. I have cancelled bookings before and would never leave a site booked if I wasn't attending, or planning to attend.

How many people would hook up the van and head off, with the family, not knowing if they had a site available? I'm talking at least 4+ hours of travel from home.

Thats because you have ethics Rob. A lot of people who book sites then dont rock up are becoming more common. Especially when a site is $20 per site plus $10 a car. Some are happy to sacrifice that fee if a better deal comes up else where without cancelling. I know of a few people with this mentality. Ticks me off as they can have the monopoly of what they do without missing out or who it affects.

[BENT_8]

Originally Posted by blueoval

Thats because you have ethics Rob. A lot of people who book sites then dont rock up are becoming more common. Especially when a site is $20 per site plus $10 a car. Some are happy to sacrifice that fee if a better deal comes up else where without cancelling. I know of a few people with this mentality. Ticks me off as they can have the monopoly of what they do without missing out or who it affects.

Thats been the problem at Mambray and a few other places in the National parks, cashed up nomads booking sites on the off chance they make it there. There used to be a discount card which you paid a yearly subscription for and gave you cheaper access, it was being abused in that fashion so they had even less to lose, not sure if the park pass is still an option.

[davenl5l]

The re has been big problems with sa national parks booking service as well allowing multiple bookings for sites saw this first hand at Innaminka last year

[prydey]

Originally Posted by prydey

I'll put some pics up when I get a chance of our stay at Wirrina. We had the place to ourselves basically. Was a great weekend (Dec 18 - 22).

finally got around to uploading some pics of this trip...

Great weather the week prior to xmas and had the park basically to ourselves, as you can see by this pic and the third one down.


The big attraction for us is being able to feed the many horses they have. A few young ones and some older ones as well various breeds. We go through a lot of apples and carrots when we visit.








There is a kind of walking trail up to the bluff where you can look over the marina. It gets quite windy up here. The walk trail was virtually non existent this time due to the lack of patronage brought about by Covid restrictions during what would normally be there busiest times (easter etc).





This is a family owned private property and is now only open to the public during school holidays and long weekends. Its great for families, or just kicking back, but it is a bit of a lottery as to how many people will be around. Some times there's over 200. Other times its quiet, like it was for us.

[prydey]

Our latest purchase for the van


to be paired with my wacaco nanopresso with pod adapter. Trialling a lot of pods at the moment trying to find something that tastes half decent.

[prydey]

I thought I'd put this weekends activities in this thread as it was essentially camping...

I came across these in a visitor guide i was printing at work
https://cabn.life/
https://cabn.life/cabns/#sa

We stayed in Georgia
https://cabn.life/product/georgia/

















I really like the concept these guys are doing. I'm not in to the whole 'envionmental warm fuzzy feeling' type stuff but l like the idea of feeling like you are alone in the wild in your own little cabin. Its totally off grid and you kind of pay a premium for that and its also the reason I've felt it appropriate for this thread as its basically camping. There is power but basically only to charge phones etc. Strictly no heating devices of any kind (toaster, coffee machines, hair dryers etc etc) as the power is all solar and battery and heating uses a ton of power. There is a diesel heater if needed and a petrol genie to run the split system a/c if needed. We didn't need either.

There was a couple of things we weren't too happy about given the price we paid (freezer section of the fridge so frosted up we had to chip a heap of ice out before we could fit in a couple of ice creams, pots and pans and utensils that looked like they'd been salvaged from a scrapyard.. not exactly the premium experience they portray) however overall it was a great weekend just kicking back and forgetting about the world for a couple of days. My wife and I hadn't had a holiday without kids for 20 years so it was long overdue to get away by ourselves. I would have loved to have stayed a few more nights but they are that popular they are all booked fairly solid until april and there was a two night opening at Georgia for this weekend so i grabbed it (booked about 6 weeks ago). Too expensive for us to do on a regular basis but great for those special occasions.

[NeillNZ]

Originally Posted by prydey

Our latest purchase for the van
image

to be paired with my wacaco nanopresso with pod adapter. Trialling a lot of pods at the moment trying to find something that tastes half decent.

We have one of those, does a great job.

[raised by monkeys]

Originally Posted by prydey

Our latest purchase for the van
image

to be paired with my wacaco nanopresso with pod adapter. Trialling a lot of pods at the moment trying to find something that tastes half decent.

That's a nifty gadget. Im a big coffee drinker, for the flavor not necessarily for the caffeine. I don't do espresso shots but I probably should. We use a weber Q for camp cooking and will do still when we get a caravan or camper van and due to fire restrictions I bought a single burner for the camp kettle. Best $50 ive spent to have the luxury of a fresh brew in the morning at the beach.

[blueoval]

Great pictures Rob. Awesome location for the van. In Wirrina I assume? I need to check this place out and perhaps stay a night or too. My old mate Ben Taylor and his family own the property.

The CABN units look the business but Im glad you were able to provide a real world review. Been reading reviews but found it hard to find any negative feedback.

As for coffee makers. I have a ROK coffee maker which is handy as long as you have access to hot water and bring your own ground coffee

[prydey]

Originally Posted by blueoval

Great pictures Rob. Awesome location for the van. In Wirrina I assume? I need to check this place out and perhaps stay a night or too. My old mate Ben Taylor and his family own the property.

The CABN units look the business but Im glad you were able to provide a real world review. Been reading reviews but found it hard to find any negative feedback.

As for coffee makers. I have a ROK coffee maker which is handy as long as you have access to hot water and bring your own ground coffee

image

Yeah, Ben and holly are the nicest people. Chat to you like they've known you for years, every time we go there. They are well aware there are things that need doing to their park and if you have any issues it's best to just go chat to them rather than leaving negative reviews. Really nice place.

The ROK things are meant to be good but I went with the nanopresso because it was cheaper and much smaller.

[davenl5l]

I loved our bellman but found it too slow so switched to aeropress

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by prydey

Yeah, Ben and holly are the nicest people. Chat to you like they've known you for years, every time we go there. They are well aware there are things that need doing to their park and if you have any issues it's best to just go chat to them rather than leaving negative reviews. Really nice place.

The ROK things are meant to be good but I went with the nanopresso because it was cheaper and much smaller.

Ben loves his dogs too. Ive known Ben since we went to school. But we went out of touch for a while. Been meaning to get back in touch with him for sometime now. Yeah I have no issues with them making improvements to the park. Its good they are slowly progressing. From what I heard, it was a dumpster prior to them taking ownership.

The ROK is expensive for what it is and I paid more to get custom made Lathe spun tamper. Plus all the other accessories. Its ok and does the job. Doesn't create crema as well as I'd like, but the flavor is still there. Good enough for camping.

[Tonz]

Originally Posted by raised by monkeys

That's a nifty gadget. Im a big coffee drinker, for the flavor not necessarily for the caffeine. I don't do espresso shots but I probably should. We use a weber Q for camp cooking and will do still when we get a caravan or camper van and due to fire restrictions I bought a single burner for the camp kettle. Best $50 ive spent to have the luxury of a fresh brew in the morning at the beach.

so you would be a big supporter of That Coffee Cart & Boston Bean, both great friends of mine

[raised by monkeys]

Originally Posted by Tonz

so you would be a big supporter of That Coffee Cart & Boston Bean, both great friends of mine

I have only bean to Boston Bean a couple of times. I like a slightly larger serving but the coffee was amazing. Coffee Cart coffee is good too 9 time out of ten and they sit out the front of my office on Mon and Fri but it is pricier. We have approached Coffee Cart though to cater for our wedding... when that happens. I usually take the opportunity to go for a walk and buy a coffee though I actually like GLO's and R&R coffees.

[sgt_doofey]

I've gone and made myself a budget battery set up to run my fridge. Curious to get feedback and see what others think.

Battery: XCell 75Ah Battery $120

150W Solar Panel with 10A solar controller: $89

Kings Battery Box: $69

Twin core wire: $25

Anderson plugs: $9.80

Total: $313

A bit of solder + sweat equity to put it all together. I also bought a lead that plugs in to my fridge using an anderson plug. My fridge is a Kings 60L single zone one that is a couple of years old now.

I've used it a couple of times now to run my fridge whilst I've been out playing cricket and it has worked like a charm. I've just charged the battery back up again afterwards using the solar panel to charge.
Am planning on using this set up for camping.

Edit: just thinking about it, with the Kings Battery Box, it's probably best to grab a cheap ratchet strap to hold the lid in place. The provided strap doesn't hold very well and is plastic. I was surprised to find that the lid to the box basically just sits on top and there isn't anything that it clicks in to place with. It's only held together with the strap.

With the other components, longevity will have to be determined, considering the cost of them

[hayseed]

Originally Posted by sgt_doofey

I've gone and made myself a budget battery set up to run my fridge. Curious to get feedback and see what others think.

Battery: XCell 75Ah Battery $120

150W Solar Panel with 10A solar controller: $89

Kings Battery Box: $69

Twin core wire: $25

Anderson plugs: $9.80

Total: $313

A bit of solder + sweat equity to put it all together. I also bought a lead that plugs in to my fridge using an anderson plug. My fridge is a Kings 60L single zone one that is a couple of years old now.

I've used it a couple of times now to run my fridge whilst I've been out playing cricket and it has worked like a charm. I've just charged the battery back up again afterwards using the solar panel to charge.
Am planning on using this set up for camping.

Edit: just thinking about it, with the Kings Battery Box, it's probably best to grab a cheap ratchet strap to hold the lid in place. The provided strap doesn't hold very well and is plastic. I was surprised to find that the lid to the box basically just sits on top and there isn't anything that it clicks in to place with. It's only held together with the strap.

With the other components, longevity will have to be determined, considering the cost of them

We've got a similar setup. Only I went to a 250watt solar cell, & also have an Inverter mounted inside a Toolbox along with the Controller.& those battery Box lids are a bit of a Flimsy setup..

[sgt_doofey]

Originally Posted by hayseed

We've got a similar setup. Only I went to a 250watt solar cell, & also have an Inverter mounted inside a Toolbox along with the Controller.& those battery Box lids are a bit of a Flimsy setup..

I'm going to have a think about it, but I want to mount the solar charge controller somewhere. Currently it's just loose with the 3 Anderson plugs hanging off off it.

Having said that, I would also like to think about mounting it to our 6x4 trailer that we take when camping, so a lot of thinking is required