Day 1 - Friday - Sydney to Canberra via Lake George

You may or may not know that I have been travelling to and from Canberra for over 7 years, several times a month for work.

40km out of Canberra is Lake George. Having driven past and flown over it several times a month it was time to stop and take in the view, on this my first day of adventure.

Standing there you can gaze across the 25km-long, 10km-wide lake which, when full, looks like a permanent fixture. But that doesn't happen often as locals know well, it's possible for Lake George to disappear entirely. The large body of water rises and falls seemingly mysteriously, and has done throughout its history.  As was typical over the past ten years its is close to empty again.

Just by co-incidence the two strangers I met at the service station also drive into the rest stop to take in the amazing view so we caught up for another chat.

Definitely worth a look if your travelling past. Finally Now Im starting to feel excited about this big adventure im heading into.

Lake_George_(New_South_Wales)

Below is a picture of the student accommodation buildings I was involved with in the design over many years. Some of my best work assisted with this fabulous building.


UniLodge @ ANU pictures

Day 1 the trip to Uluru = Journey 3 Yay...

The day has finally come. Still not excited for some reason.

Travelling down the Princes highway to turn off into the M5 Tunnel i hit my first traffic jam.
The semi trailer driver behind me was suffering road rage with his vehicle almost shunting Tommy Touareg off the road to ensure other drivers didnt jump the queue.

I met a lovely couple for 5 mins at the servo half way to canberra who kindly came up to me and said how much they loved Tommy Touareg. ( they drove a new Audi Q7)

A quick trip to Gloucester

After a night in Newcastle with Angus, Michelle and little Archer,  I did a quick trip to Gloucester.

A nice drive that probably not enough Sydney locals do passing Dungog and the Barrington Tops national park. I must come back here.

Thanks to the guys at Drifta Car Kitchens who custom fitted the new drawers in Tommy Touareg. Really cool.

For the gardeners out their check out this Bouganvillia noted on the way through Stroud. (sorry about the quality of the picture)

Less than a week to go.!

Shopping is almost done. I have  that much safety gear that one would think i was going to the Sahara desert.  Have all the 4wd recovery equipment, 10L spare diesel, fridge, solar panels to run the fridge, tent, mattress etc etc.  Still waiting on the satellite phone to arrive.  I have also bought a personal EPIRB ( emergency positioning location device ) just in case. Lets hope i dont set that off by accident.

UHF radio, Roof Rack and extending sunshade installed.
Bash plates are installed under the car Monday, drawers in the back Tuesday,
Pack Wednesday and on the road Thursday.

The Journey then begins. The destination is Uluru. When and what direction i take to get their is flexible.

New camera lens yet to arrive from the store..fingers crossed

Must not forget water....Hmmmm that's the most important.

A day of reflection

Today is a day of reflection.
Sitting beside your partners grave to celebrate your 20th anniversary is a tough thing to do. Remembering all the experiences we shared together over two decades makes me very thankful that we had the opportunity. Losing him being the last part of that journey has been by far the hardest thing ever.

2013, the year Jay left us all will be our last “true” anniversary. This is yet another chapter in the year of firsts. The first Easter, Family dinner, Birthday, Anniversary, and Xmas to come without Jay makes the grieving process drag on.

Through the great memories and some tears that flowed today comes hope. Hope that 2014 will be a new chapter ahead. Jay touched people in many ways, and today he touched me with hope for the future.

Happy 20th Anniversary Jay……I will love you always….. Tonight will be dinner for you with some bottles of very expensive wine. (Chardy of course)

Friends, have a drink for us this evening and hug those around you.
Oh and also, Jay would want me to say……..Donate blood if you can.

So time to prepare with the big boys

Guess who is the beginner in all of this... It may be obvious that the Touareg owner is not as butch as the others

Here we are at the 4wd show at Eastern Creek near Blacktown

Picture shows Tommy Touareg can stand equal to the other guys

UHF radio. Roof racks. Epirb. Recovery gear all purchased

Have to be safe. As Jay would expect Im travelling in style over practicality. ...

Down and dirty.. then up again

Recently I have been worried that I bought an all wheel drive Touareg instead of a 4WD. There were no 4WD models in the country and I would have had to wait up to six months for delivery. Hence my choice.

When I rang to book training, John the trainer was reluctant to take me on a group training day with my Paddington Pram Carrier, ( not his words ) due to the unknown capability of this "Soft roader".  He was although, happy to do a one on one day with me to test the car out.

So up at 5am and off to Lithgow I go. Arriving at our 4WD spot with a warm temperature of only 3 degrees
was in stark contrast to the 36 degree day in Sydney the day before.  Fitting that the Touareg started chiming with an alert on the dash warning of snow.........(cute)

To Johns surprise and mine ( after almost soiling myself on occasions) , Tommy Toureg proved himself climbing steep ascents of rough rocky, rutted and very steep tracks with relative ease. To be honest I was shocked what my car can do. Heaps of fun ( and nerves ) but I ended the day with a new found beginners confidence. Of course much more practice is needed. (any takers?)

I probably wont go to the extremes of what I have learnt often, but at least I know how to approach obstacles and decide if i can get out of a situation or just turn around.

The photos don't really show the how steep or rutted the dirt was, but it was not kids stuff.

Thanks to John for a wonderful day of training and knowledge on how to prepare for my trip.

Recommend Johns training to anyone interested in off road and has a vehicle.

http://australian-4x4.com.au

(Peter Warrington lets book you and i will meet you there)

http://australian-4x4.com.au