Bushtracker factory visit

Monday 30th April:

This is the first time we have towed our Bushtracker with our new Ute and the experience has been most enjoyable and effortless. We left home just before lunchtime and drove to the Yelgum rest area just north of Brunswick Heads on the NSW north Coast. We have stayed here before when we are on our way to the Sunshine Coast and to the Bushtracker factory which is where we were going again.

We are having our VAST satellite decoder converted from 240 to 12 volt and upgrading our internet aerial. We also have a minor issue with our door that needs rectifying.

Of the many accessories we fitted to the Ute, one was a ScangaugeII. These compact unit's serve as a scan tool, digital gauges and trip computer, providing real time feedback whilst simultaneously tracking the data. With the new ScanGaugeII, it is now possible to add up to 25 additional gauges to the 12 that are currently available to most vehicles.
I have set up some XGAUGE's to use while we are away travelling. For instance I can now report the following for today's drive:

Distance driven today: 262 kilometres
Time driven today: 4.1 hours
Average speed today: 63 kilometres per hour
Average fuel economy: 16.4 litres per/100k's
Fuel cost today: $66.60
Fuel used today: 43.2 litres

The most surprising figure of all is the fuel usage. Our Patrol which was fitted with the Chev V8 diesel engine was very heavy on fuel averaging just over 23 litres per/100k.

Wednesday 2nd May:

We picked the van up from the factory later than expected and with the chance of more heavy rain we decided to spend the night at the caravan park at Forest Glen. Not long after we set up, the couple who were at the Bushtracker factory having a handover of their new van arrived at the park and parked in the site next to us. Mark and Julie had driven from Perth to pick up their new 20 footer. 

Thursday 3rd May:

After the past several days of rain, we woke to a beautiful day. We left late in the morning and headed out through Landsborough, Beerwah and onto Kilcoy. We stopped for morning tea at Moore before tackling the Blackbutt Range where work is still being carried out after all the land slips they encountered with the rain over twelve months ago.

I had never been through Oakey before but we had a special reason to visit. Outside the council chambers is a statue of Bernborough who just like Black Caviar is doing today thrilled the public back in the years just after the 2nd World War and who was trained by my grandfather. Our plan for tonight's camp was Yarramalong Weir but with the mixture of threatening looking skies and black soil we thought the showgrounds at Millmerran were the safer bet.

Friday, Saturday 4&5th May:

A very short drive today totalling 125 kilometres and we are camped at Texas just outside town on the Dumaresq River. Lovely days with cold nights with the first morning down to 6 degrees. Thank goodness for the diesel heater!! Unfortunately the town with a population of 900 looks to be in the first stages of decline with many of the businesses closing in the main street. We did what we could by buying groceries and magazines.

Sunday 6th May:

Today's drive of 224 kilometres sees us passing through Bonshaw, Ashford and Inverell before camping at Guyra at "mother of ducks lagoon".

Monday 7th May:

It was a very cold night with just 4 degrees in the van at 6am so we cranked up the heater yet again.
Another short day's drive today of 189 kilometres mostly downhill passing through Ebor and Dorrigo before reaching flat country at Bellingen until we arrived home which is a further 34 kilometres away.

Our average fuel consumption for the week away has been 16.5 litres per/100k and when considering some of the hilly country we have traversed we are over the moon with this figure.

Latest and final additions

Tuesday 3rd April:
The following items were installed on the ute. A set of Airbag Man Firestone ride-rite air bags, an Engine Saver, a TM2 Engine Watchdog and a Thermoguard digital EGT Gauge (Pyrometer) kit.

The Engine Saver is a device which monitors the coolant level in an engine. Low coolant alarms are fitted to very few engines as standard equipment by manufactures. When the coolant level drops due to a split hose, a stone through the radiator, a faulty pump seal or simply because the radiator cap wasn't replaced properly this device is designed to help warn you before any engine damage is done. A screw in sensor replaces the nylon air bleed screw in the top radiator tank.

The TM-2 Engine Watchdog is an ideal aftermarket engine temperature gauge and audible overheating alarm, that will prevent premature and costly car engine replacement and engine rebuilds.

The ThermoGuard EGT Gauge (Exhaust Gas Temperature) provides a precise digital readout of EGT and includes, as standard, the facility to record and display the maximum temperature measured.

Wednesday 4th April:

We have been looking at rear view camera's for the ute and to hook up the existing Axis CCD camera on the rear of the van. After looking at several options we decided on replacing the existing stereo/CD unit with a 7" Alpine high resolution LED WVGA display that is also iPod and iPhone compatible.

The last and final addition's will be the purchase of a flexible RAM mount that attaches to the bolt holding the seat in place and a RAM holder that the iPad fits onto. The iPad has all our Hema, Great Desert Tracks and Australian Topo maps installed giving us full moving map coverage where ever we are.

Finally the canopy!!!

Monday 5th March:
Well it seems like a lifetime ago that we ordered our canopy but in reality it was just the 22nd of December 2011. The tray has now been removed and the ute looks naked without it.

Tuesday 6th March:
We drove to Warwick today and booked into a motel then dropped the ute at the factory so that they could make an early start at 06:00 Wednesday morning. The forty three kilometre drive from Woodenbong through to Legume is a real ball tearer without any weight in the back and with 600 kilo suspension our brains were bruised by the time we reached Warwick. 

Wednesday 7th March:
Received a call at 13:00 today to say that the canopy was now installed. The drive home with the added weight of the canopy was an absolute pleasure.

We are now booked into have the fridge wiring completed and have our reversing camera installed.

Our new canopy

These are the plans for our new canopy. The manufacturing process has now started and we hope installation will be the first week in March. Hopefully the time will pass quickly!!

Pictorial view:



Side view:

Rear view:

Our new purchase

We have finally replaced our GU Patrol with a new 2011 GXL Toyota Landcruiser V8 turbo diesel ute. We were interested in purchasing a merlot coloured one and while looking on the net one evening the Toyota dealer at Moryua on the NSW south coast had a brand new one for sale. A phone call the next morning and a holding deposit secured our new 4WD.

We had several weeks wait until the tray was manufactured and installed so it was off to ARB here in Coffs Harbour to get prices on accessories. While working out what we wanted they saw the Patrol was for sale and asked about taking it for a test drive. On their return they made an offer which we accepted. They were very impressed with the amount of equipment in the Patrol but mainly by the Chev V8 diesel we had installed.

On our way home from Moruya we stopped at Berrima Diesel in the southern highlands to have a Taipan stainless steel 3" mandrel bent exhaust fitted along with a Safari snorkel head and a Dyno Tune. We have now fitted the following options. Bull bar with side rails and steps, Hayman Reese towbar, dual battery with Redarc 20 AMP in-vehicle charger, centre roof console housing a GME Electrophone Tx3540 - 80 channel UHF, IPF 900 Xtreme spot lights, window tinting and a GVM upgrade to the suspension which includes replacing existing components with new OME parts and gives a 2" lift all round.

We have just returned from visiting http://www.csmmanufacturing.com.au/storage-solutions.html at Warwick in Queensland and paid our deposit for an aluminium canopy. Canopy takes between 6 and 9 weeks to produce. The canopy will house our engel fridge, generator, chain saw and all our camping equipment that we now carry in both the van and the back of the Patrol and will allow us much more freedom when we are away.

Strathbogie to Home

Friday,Saturday,Sunday 21,22,23 October:
We were so impressed with the "Police Paddocks" that we returned for another 3 days. We used the clear creek water for washing and also to fill our tanks for showering.

We called into All Saints Winery where we sampled cheeses and wines purchasing a variety of items.

While there we had lunches in Rutherglen and on Sunday lunch at Vahalla Wines where we had wood fired pizzas with a bottle of cold Mascato overlooking the vineyard.
We also befriended Graham who has been coming to this area for twenty seven years and camping for up to four months at a time. 
Over this period he has become friendly with the landowner on the adjoining property who lets him collect yabbies from his dam which he uses for bait. One of  his secrets to catching Murray Cod is to use Aldi tasty block cheese.

Monday 24th October:
We were now on our way home. The morning turned out to be just beautiful but by 11 am we were driving into a severe head wind which made driving difficult so we cut short the days driving at midday and decided to camp at the caravan park at Junee. We had previously camped here nine years ago. We had lunch at the chocolate and licorice factory which is housed in an old flour mill and took away some of the goodies that they produce.

Tuesday 25th October:
We left Junee heading for Ponto Falls #1040 which is situated nineteen kilometres NW of Wellington. The camp site is right beside the Macquarie River. We had heard reports that there may be severe thunderstorms within the area and considering we would have to negotiate quite a steep track out the next morning I went to see about camping on higher ground but after nearly walking onto of a large brown snake we decided that the river flats were the place to be. We experienced thunder and lightning during the evening but no hint of rain.

Hows the serenity:

Wednesday 26th October:
We continued on through Gulgong, Cassilis, Merriwa and Denman before spending the night at Broke #206 which is situated in the Hunter Valley wine region west of Cessnock. The camps book describes the site as being next to the river but it's not possible to see it and after my effort yesterday with the snake I was not very interested in making my way through the scrub.

Thursday, Friday 27th & 28th October:
We spent our last two days camped at Booti Booti National Park which lies just sixteen kilometres south of Forster and is on the coast. We stayed at the " ruins campground" #107.

We had a lovely lunch at the "Dorsal" at Forster before our short drive home the next day.

Pooncarrie To the Police Paddocks and Strathbogie

Sunday 16th October:
We were to meet our friends on Wednesday 19th October who live in the Strathbogie Ranges east of Euroa in Victoria. We left Pooncarrie and camped at the Euston caravan park to replenish water and do some much needed washing. We also took time out to watch the Wallabies loose to NZ. Damn!!

Monday 17th October:
Leaving Euston we continued east along the Murray Valley Highway before spending the night camped at Lake Barham which is about thirty seven kilometres NE of Echuca. Camp #308. The camp site is still showing the effects from the floods earlier in the year with about 75% of the camp ground still under water.

Tuesday 18th October:
We had a very short drive today. We were off to camp at the "Police Paddocks" north of Rutherglen. Camps #292. The "police paddocks" is an island of 405 hectares used to spell police horses in the 1880's. It was connected to the mainland by a private bridge over Murphy's Creek which is an annabranch of the Murray River. It is now part of Gooramadda State Forest. The bridge no longer exists. Photo shows the creek and island in the background.

Wednesday, Thursday 19th, 20th October:

We spent 2 lovely days with our friends at their property. Over two days I mowed Les and Kath's five acre block.

We played croquet in the afternoons on his croquet lawn which we found to be quite amusing after a couple of drinks.

A lovely time was had by all!!