“We have always been nomads at heart, and we love to travel. Between us we've visited over 70 countries, and we've both lived and worked overseas too. When the global pandemic put a halt to our overseas travels, we decided to build a van and travel Australia for a year or so.
Our van is a 2011 4x4 Long Wheelbase Mercedes Sprinter van. In its previous life it was a work van for a fibre optic company, who had it set up to work in the outback - there was even a roll-cage in the rear.”
“We knew nothing about building a van, although Nigel is handy with tools, and had renovated a house before. Thank goodness for the University of YouTube. The build took us the best part of 6 months, but as anyone who's built a van knows, a lot of that time is spent researching!
We wanted our van to be a true "home on wheels'' which is why we added a full shower & toilet. The other thing that was important for us was to be able to bring our "toys'' along. Under the bed in our garage, we have 2 mountain bikes on a slider, along with all our hiking and kiteboarding gear.”
“Up until March 2020, I (Sue) had a big plan to travel South America for the year of 2021, which would coincide with my youngest son finishing school. We'd been watching lots of Vanlife channels on YouTube and figured it would be a great way to see South America.
Then along came the pandemic and we had to change our plans. We bought a van here in Australia and set off to see our own country. We planned to travel around Australia for a year or so, and here we are, still going 2.5 years later! This lifestyle is addictive.
Currently Nigel is working FIFO overseas, so we are travelling slowly, but hope to complete our lap of Australia within the next year. But there are no plans to stop travelling!”
“We started our build during the first lockdown, so we couldn't really go around looking in stores for appliances and things for our build, so we turned to online shopping. Caravan RV Camping had the best range and usually the best prices. It was great to find a "one-stop-shop" for almost everything we needed for the van build.
But more important than that, the customer service was excellent. Whenever we had a question about an item we were answered promptly, and they were just great to deal with.”
Electrical:
Appliances:
Hardware:
“Hmmmm, that's a toss up between our entire electrical system but especially the battery monitor so we can see at a glance our battery percentage, OR our Nautilus Suburban Gas hot water on demand. Being able to have a hot shower whenever we want is a game changer when you're living on the road full-time.”
“I think I would have to say an electric step for getting in and out of the van. Our van has a 2" lift, so we definitely need a step getting in and out. We currently have a plastic step from Bunnings that we just put outside. This is about step #8! We have driven off and left a few, and one of us may have driven over one or two as well!”
“The beauty of our set up is that it allows us to be off-grid, and being 4x4 we can get to places a lot of other vans can't. We absolutely love wild camping in remote places.
We spent a couple of months in the Pilbara and discovered some hidden gems there which was amazing. We recently drove the Oodnadatta Track and just loved the South Australian Outback.
We also love some of the amazing beach camps we've stayed at too, like Winderabandi Point in WA or Archer Point near Cooktown in Queensland. It's too hard to pick just one place in Australia - it's such an awesome place to travel with a van!”
“We understand that vanlife or full-time travel isn't for everyone. But if you've ever thought about seeing more of Australia, there's no need to wait till you're a "grey nomad". Whether it's a campervan, towing a caravan or even a Roof Top Tent, the best way to see Australia is a road trip. What may surprise you are all the amazing "places in between" that you wouldn't otherwise get to see travelling more conventionally. Just do it!”
Learn more about Nigel and Sue and their travels here.
Electricals
- Enerdrive 200AH Lithium Battery
- Enerdrive eSYSTEM-E Board with 40Amp AC Charger & DC2DC Charger & Battery monitor
- Enerdrive ePOWER 2000W Inverter with remote switch
Hardware & Accessories
- Surban Nautilus on Demand Gas Hot Water Heater
- Suburban Nautilus Vent
- Suburban Nautilus control centre
- John Guest pipes + fittings
- 110L Atlas Water Tank
- 86L Atlas Grey Water Tank
- Shurflo 12V Pump
- Fiamma F80s Awning 4m
- MaxxAir fans
- Airhead Composting Toilet
- Wall mount shower head
