Innehållsförteckning för Issue 556 från Caravan World

Laura is the newly appointed Editor of Caravan World - only the fifth in the magazine’s 40-plus year history. Having previously worked as Caravan World’s Production Editor and Deputy Editor during Max Taylor’s reign as Editor, Laura has a strong foundation in all things caravan and travel. She has a background in news journalism, a lust for fresh air and activity in great outdoors, and enduring love of road-trips. Her introduction to life in the great outdoors came at age two, when she was packed, by day, into a Toyota LiteAce van and, by night, into a brown canvas tent with her parents and two siblings for an extended trip around northern Western Australia. But WA is a pretty hot place, and canvas tents don’t come with air-conditioners, so many…

You'll be dragged into a whirlpool of features in the aptly-named Vortex 10th Anniversary Edition. Celebrating a decade of caravan production, On The Move Caravans has successfully built an offroad warrior combining a tough body armour with a refined contemporary elegance. CW tested out the new 5.8m (19ft) Vortex near the quaint township of Bonnie Doon, Vic, and around the shores of Lake Eildon, within the shire of Mansfield, around 170km northeast of Melbourne. The birthday edition van really raises the bar, setting a standard in offroad caravan manufacturing that may be difficult to match - indeed, On The Move brands the Vortex its toughest van to date. On The Move owners Lennie and Jennifer Mifsud are revelling in the build of this commemorative Vortex, and were excited about the…

LESS IS MORE Internally, the Coronet is refreshingly contemporary and, sans the ensuite, it’s really roomy for such a compact package. An onboard bathroom can account for 30 per cent volume and 25 per cent or more towing weight, so it’s little wonder why this design still has a place in the urban carport. Coronet RV also offers a fold-up A-frame and detachable rear bumper for those with storage length issues plus lower height and width profiles. The ST3 also can be towed by many medium to large-sized four cylinder vehicles. Needless to say, our Toyota Fortuner towed it easier than a Siberian Husky pulls a sled. I was impressed by the Coronet’s two-tone (silver/white) ribbed aluminium cladding, which presents a classy, warm look. It’s a sleek, albeit traditional exterior,…

It has been 47 years since Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins embarked on their historic flight of fancy to the moon. And now we celebrate a Luna landing of a different kind. But it has no correlation to the iconic US astronauts who piloted Apollo 11. It's the arrival of a new caravan on the surface of the Earth! Not only is it lift-off for Jurgens Australia with the 6.33m (20ft 9in) Lunagazer J2403, it's Mission: Accomplished. CW tested the J2403 upon hearing it's eclipsing all expectations. The Lunagazer's strong engineered Optima galvanised chassis, tough one-piece Duratherm walls, unique one-piece aluminium Uniskin roof and one-piece Integra floor are just the start. The CNC-fabricated Optima chassis is engineered for maximum strength and minimum weight, apparently giving it the capability…

Four-wheel drive rigs are pretty scarce in the world of motorhomes. There are a couple of reasons for that - one is that the necessary base vehicles are either not available or are very expensive; and the second reason is that building a true offroad motorhome is costly. A third problem occurs if the manufacturer uses something like a Toyota HiLux SR 4X4 cab chassis which, in its factory delivered form, has a GVM of 3000kg. If you take this Explorer Vision motorhome as an example, it has a Tare weight of 2750kg, which would allow for a load carrying capacity of just 250kg in the HiLux’s factory form. However, Explorer Motorhomes has developed a legally-modified HiLux chassis that increases the GVM to 3500kg, resulting in a much more practical…

“Kokoda Caravans is leaving no stone unturned to ensure an innovative interior design” The Kokoda Force X-Trail GT giveaway van, announced in the previous issue of Caravan World (CW555), is starting to take shape and is almost ready to hit the road behind the tow vehicle of one lucky CW reader. Melbourne-based Kokoda Caravans is generously supplying the brand-new, offroad Kokoda Force X-Trail GT (mistakenly called the Force GTX-Trail in CW555), valued at $68,990 to a CW reader in an exciting giveaway. CW is following the construction of the Kokoda Force X-Trail GT, taking readers along for the ride as it takes shape. In the first instalment of a three-part series (CW555), we visited the factory to examine the building of the Force X-Trail GT’s frame, plus integral aspects of…

“It may not have the hype of Cradle Mountain, but what it does offer is near pristine wilderness, rainforest and awe-inspiring views” “We’ve put up some new signage for you,” the workmen we meet on the track tell us. We continue our walk on the forest path, marvelling at the lush ferns, rainforest and towering beech trees when we hear footsteps behind us. It’s the workmen again. They have returned to take a photograph of a tree next to one of their new signs. They are clearly very proud of their local patch of paradise and when we tell them how much we are enjoying the bush, they say it gets even better at the end of the track. They are right. After 10 minutes, we come across Trowutta Arch,…

Melanie and Clint Davey are no strangers to the nomadic lifestyle. They lived on a yacht for more than six years before moving to the sleepy seaside town of Ettalong Beach, NSW, to raise a family. Daughter Skyla (4) and son Ashton (2) were soon born but it didn’t take long for the family to get itchy feet again, especially with the long hours Clint was doing as a boat builder. “Something had to change,” Melanie commented, “because Clint was missing out on the kids’ important milestones.” They purchased a 21ft Coromal van in April 2015, upgraded their car to a Toyota LandCruiser and, by the end of October 2015, they were ready to hit the road. Then the unexpected happened. “A freak storm cell swept the central coast,” Clint…

It’s fair to say, in my many years of travelling with and reviewing caravans and camper trailers, I have encountered a few ‘hits and misses’ in terms of what I thought worked and what didn’t in the various RVs I saw. It’s sometimes hard to draw the line of what’s acceptable unless you are living with and in it for a period of time. How easy is it to operate that pop-top or fold-out room when you’re stopping overnight and packing up on travelling days when temperatures drop below zero? How does it react to forces of side winds or oncoming B-doubles on major highways? What about access to the bed or using the kitchen, lounge and ensuite? Is there sufficient room to simply move about without bumping into each…

The subject of legal load weights crops up a lot in all kinds of publications, be they print, electronic, forums and even, dare I mention it, social media like Facebook. Occasionally, the ‘advice’ given is okay but, sometimes, it’s a little dodgy. I’m not going to get into too much specific detail here, but there are a few things that worry me. For instance, far too many people forget that water has weight. Tare weights are frequently measured ‘dry’, so if you have a 100L water tank, this will add 100kg to the load straight away. Towball weights are another issue – some manufacturers’ caravans have a high ball weight to start with and once the water tanks and gas tanks are filled and the golf clubs loaded into the…

Location Great Australian Bight, SA Gear Canon 1DX ISO 200, f16, 1/160th sec, 200mm lens Composition Often, simple compositions offer a more subtle impact to an image. Here, three elements work harmoniously: the dunes, the sky and the single cloud. Handy hint When roaming on sand dunes, think about the shapes and lines they will make in your photo. Move around (avoid leaving lots of footsteps) to find nice curves, sharp edges, and strong angles to create a photo with impact. Photographic fact Images are two dimensional but with the clever use of texture and light, they can come alive and become almost three dimensional. Texture, particularly, comes into play when light hits objects at interesting angles. Side lighting works best for sand dune photography; it enhances the texture and…

“I was one of those kids that had the toy big-game boat in the bath and offshore adventure melded my dreams” What is it about a fishing trip that makes it so appealing? Is it the fishing, or is it the catching? There is certainly a feeling of achievement to hook and land a targeted fish, but is that really what it's all about? serious fishos set goals, others love the thrill of competition; then there's the big-game hunters chasing bluewater beasts, the sweetwater stalkers, the freshwater fraternity, estuary exponents, surf slingers, lure lobbers and fly flickers. No matter your style or preferences, fishing trips take you places, sometimes alone, but often with great mates sharing sojourns in our great outdoors. Let's face it; fishing is a great excuse for…

ARE YOU A RULE FOLLOWER OR A RULE BREAKER? Most caravan parks have a list of rules for travellers to follow in order to make everyone’s stay a pleasant one, but a few recent incidents had Tony Allsop wondering if anyone actually reads the park rules. While parks would have their own versions, rules relating to pets, noise, children, and bikes are all pretty common across the board. You’d think not letting your dog into the communal shower block with you would be common sense, wouldn’t you? Apparently not! And ensuring your children wear legally-required bike helmets when on their bikes? Sometimes that one slips through to the keeper, as well, it seems. The list goes on, and while there is obviously some leeway, the rules are there for people…

On The Move Caravans’ genesis resulted from Lennie Mifsud’s aspiration to travel around Australia with a caravan and boat. But with nothing in the RV market really tickling his fancy, Lennie decided to build his own. And it quickly became the dawning of a new era for him and wife Jennifer. “While building the Ultimate Escape in our shed at home, Lennie obtained a love for caravan manufacturing and we both decided that it would be a great career change,” Jennifer said. “Our eight-year-old son at the time chose the name On The Move Caravans.” During the past decade, the boutique company has designed and manufactured some of the toughest offroad vans on the market, and has earned a reputation for style and craftsmanship. “Winning Caravan World’s ‘Best Aussie Vans’…

Silversun is a relatively small, Brisbane-based manufacturer of lightweight caravans. Up until now, the manufacturer’s vans have been aimed squarely at the on-road market, but a recent development, the shockwave, is definitely an offroad product. However, Silversun has resisted the temptation to produce a super-heavyweight van; instead it’s applied some of the techniques learned in the production of its on-road vans. A look at some of the vital statistics in the Shockwave shows it has a single axle, an external length of 6.6m (21ft 8in), a Tare weight of just 1750kg and a ball weight of 140kg, which tells you the construction techniques used might be a bit different to the more conventional caravans, which tend to be heavier. The body width, at 2.1m (6ft 11in), is slightly narrower than…

Movie buffs might well remember the name Gidget. For many, it conjures up an image of California beaches and surfing in Hawaii because of the early 60s Gidget series of films and musicals. Not by coincidence, it also happens to be the name of a Brisbane-based manufacturer of retro teardrop campers. I say not by coincidence because someone at Gidget the manufacturer is a fan of Gidget the film genre. Continuing the beach theme, except for a new offroad model, the Gidget teardrops have names like Bells, Bondi and Noosa, just to get you in the mood. I don’t have a surfboard but I decided to take the Noosa for a run anyway. The Gidget Noosa might look a bit like a toy, but it's not. And while I know,…

“The Tucson is a refined SUV with plenty of features and has ample performance and good fuel economy” There are plenty of caravanners who don’t want or need a large vehicle to tow their relatively light caravan, and it’s for these people that a medium SUV like the Hyundai Tucson makes a lot of sense. The Tucson was a big step forward from its predecessor, the ix35, when it lobbed into Australia last year. A swathe of new technologies and features were added to the Korean mid-sizer, and design and material quality has come in for big improvements too. ATTRIBUTES This is the top-shelf model in the range, the Highlander CRDi AWD. There’s also 2WD versions and a 2L and 1.6L turbo-petrol engines available. The Highlander’s key features include heated/…

The Trail of the Tin Dragon is a themed tourist route in north-east Tasmania, from St Helens along the Tasman Highway (A3) to Launceston. It follows in the footsteps of ‘celestial sojourners’ – the Chinese immigrant miners who came in large numbers in the late 19th century to work the alluvial tin deposits in the region’s mountainous hinterland. Their story adds a fascinating dimension to what is already a beautiful drive, and it’s easy to spend a few days on the trail soaking up the local history and exploring the forests of the Blue Tier ranges. In the 1870s, north-east Tasmania was sparsely populated, its 10,000sq km home to about 7000 people mainly engaged in agriculture. There were few roads so farming settlements were linked by rough bridle tracks that…

“The countryside is a lush green in most seasons; the rolling green hills reminded us of parts of New Zealand” It had been a few years since we visited Yungaburra in the Atherton Tablelands, west of Cairns, Qld, but friends had recommended the Lakeside Motor Inn and Caravan Park, which was reason enough for us to head back there for a week’s stay. Yungaburra is best approached from the south via the Palmerston Highway, which runs west from Innisfail. The town sits on the edge of Lake Tinaroo, and is about 730m (2400ft) above sea level, so it is much cooler than the coast – bring a jacket for the winter nights. A picturesque village with many heritage-listed shops, Yungaburra is central to Atherton, lakes Barrine and Eacham, and all…

Dometic’s 2016 Follow The Sun ambassadors have rolled through the halfway mark of their road trips but are steaming towards their fundraising target of $100,000 for the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF). This year’s Follow The Sun campaign is NBCF and all ambassadors and competition runners-up are eagerly chasing fundraising dollars from campers they meet on their roadtrips down the east coast of Australia. With three ambassador families plus, for the first time in Follow The sun's history, two runner-up families, on the road for Dometic and the NBCF, the target looks well within reach. CW caught up with the Follow The Sun ambassadors at a fundraising campout at the Big 4 Gold Coast Holiday Park, Qld. It was Father’s Day and it was raining but the rain didn’t dampen…

The older I get, the sillier I get. Hang on, that’s not right, that’s just what my wife wants me to believe. In my formative days, travelling the bush, the preparations – and the machines –were pretty bloody dreadful, to put it mildly. My first trip up to Cape York was planned while brooding over a map in a garage in Cairns, having just been dumped by the love of my life. Okay, so the love of my life for the last fortnight anyway. We’d met down south when she’d been holidaying and I’d followed her back home to Cairns. she'd flown; I'd ridden my old motorbike. I got to her place just in time to meet her new boyfriend. So you could call that a lesson in preparation for…

“But you just can’t beat the smell and taste of freshly ground coffee” Finding good coffee on the road is like chasing that elusive pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. I blame myself! A force of habit, you might call it, addicted to good coffee. Each morning at home, I rise to the challenge of crafting amazing espresso with military-like precision. Flick the switch of the espresso machine and a procession of LEDs dance into life and a low-pitched growl indicates the boiler has taken the wake-up call. The burr grinder competes for attention as it emits a shrieking howl to reduce brown beans to fine grains. Coffee cups are warmed, milk frothed, sugar added and then the magic begins, as the machine extracts a shot of…

QLD EVENTS CIRQUE DU SOLEIL KOOZA Nov 24-Jan 8 Gasp and roar at electrifying acrobatics and comic hijinks under Cirque du Soleil’s iconic blue-and-yellow big top as ‘The Innocent’ navigates a surprise-filled kingdom. Brisbane Airport, Brisbane Area, www.cirquedusoleil.com/australia/brisbane/kooza/buy-tickets HAND MADE UNDER THE STARS Dec 3 Browse and buy delicate hand-made wares from the maker with a glass in hand amid live music while wandering the Cobb and Co Museum’s annual artisan market Toowoomba, (07) 4659 4900 4GR MAYORAL CAROLS BY CANDLELIGHT Dec 4 Local talent will perform to thousands at the iconic Queen’s Park for Toowoomba’s free annual Carols by Candlelight event, with food, rides, entertainment, carols and a fireworks display. WOODFORD FOLK FESTIVAL Dec 27 Enjoy six days of music, dance, cabaret, acrobatics and comedy with workshops, debate, street…

Okay, so you’ve been around the camping scene for a few years now. Your back’s not quite what it used to be, which makes setting up a bit of a mission. Your trips are getting a bit lengthier and you find yourself longing for a little extra comfort. But you don’t want to tow a 22ft-long caravan offroad. Sound like you? If so, MDC just might have the solution. Introducing the all-new XT12-HR! Let’s be honest – as much as we all love roughing it, the whole reason we buy an offroad caravan in the first place is because we want to get well off the beaten track but still maintain that little bit of comfort, right? So let’s look at the MDC XT12-HR as the next evolutionary step. The…

There is definitely something to be said for travelling light. Leave the kitchen sink and chandelier at home, pack the essentials and hit the road. Of course, nowhere is it written that travelling light means travelling uncomfortably, and all manner of caravans and campers are built to suit would-be vanners who don't have the means to upgrade their tow vehicle. The Avan Ray 402 is a case in point. This compact caravan sits firmly in Avan's entry-level range of pop-tops and is the baby of the Ray family, at 3.89m (12ft 9in) in external body length. Its bigger brothers include the 461 (4.7m/15ft 5in) and 490 (4.98m/16ft 4in). Each, however, share the same neat feature: a rear slide-out bed. Avan is known for its ability to create living space seemingly…

Karakampa has been making a name for itself, slowly but surely, over the years. And when Centaur Products, the owner, launched an offroad version of its compact highway tourer, we were the first to hitch it up when it returned from the Border Expo in August, where it made its debut. Though it doesn’t sit as high as other offroaders in its class, the Karakampa Series II Freedom has a certain swagger, with its smooth, upward-sweeping nose, and squared-off rear. But its appeal lies not in its appearance alone; rather, it's the overall attention paid to its fit and finish and the excellent use of space that grabbed our interest. Between 25 and 30 standard Karakampas are built each year; clearly, it is a boutique offering. And with the Series…

It’s the power-laden question, which continues to generate debate around the campfire: which is a better portable power alternative – solar or generator? We called for some professional backup to delve into this technical quandary, and discovered that, unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on your view – there’s really no definitive answer. Indeed, both systems have their merits and shortcomings, and both can truly enhance your caravanning experience. Traditionally, Australian vanners have used generators for backup power, or they simply start up their car and charge their van’s batteries from the alternators for energy when they are off the grid. Both these methods, however, are noisy, produce fumes and are not environmentally friendly. solar, on the other hand, creates no noise, no fumes, and it is environmentally sustainable. However, it’s…

“Don’t be fooled into thinking you can see and do everything in a day; get the most out of your ferry fare and stay a few days” The Mirambeena had just departed the small fishing town of Kettering, 40km south of Hobart, to begin the 20-minute crossing of the D'Entrecasteaux Channel to Bruny Island, Tas. Waves slapped against the starboard hull and threw occasional flurries of spray on board. Behind me, the deck was jam-packed in tight, orderly rows of vehicles of all kinds, some of them, like ours, towing caravans or camper trailers. It's a spectacular introduction to one of Tasmania's premier tourist destinations, rich in history, spectacular scenery and gourmet food. Bruny Island is actually two landmasses - North Bruny and south Bruny - joined by a long,…

“This ghost town in the heart of the Northern Territory was officially the first settlement in the red heart of Australia ” A day trip to Arltunga Historical Reserve on the eastern fringe of the spectacular East MacDonnell Ranges is a journey into Central Australia’s golden past. This ghost town in the heart of the Northern Territory was officially the first settlement in the red heart of Australia. It all started in 1887 when alluvial gold was discovered in a dry creekbed downstream of Paddy's Rockhole. The name of the goldfield is probably derived from the Aboriginal name for Paddy’s Rockhole which was ‘Annurra ntinga’, meaning smelly water. To the early miners, this sounded like ‘Arltunga' and the name has stood the test of time. The discovery sent a shockwave…

A lady I recently met at a happy hour had ‘LIZ’ written on her drink bottle. What a great idea, I thought – I meet so many lovely people on my travels and, like many of us, have a job remembering their names. It was good the other night when two Barrys sat opposite me – it didn’t matter which one I was talking to, as the names were the same. Some of the people I meet are new to the travelling game and are anxious to soak up any information you can give them. Others are seasoned RVers and love talking about where they’ve been and where they are going next. There are some who like the convenience of caravan parks while others are like me and camp in…

The following Camp Oven Roast with Gravy and Yorkshire Pudding can be cooked either over a campfire or in the kitchen. Cooking in a camp oven using indirect heat is similar to cooking at home in the oven. With direct heat cooking, food is often seared by coming into contact with the hot cooking surface; whereas in indirect cooking the food is cooked more slowly by surrounding the food with hot air. Indirect cooking can be achieved by placing the meat to be roasted on a trivet inside the camp oven. Although I have used a roast round in this recipe, you could substitute either topside or a rolled roast. If you want to venture away from beef, then you could roast either a leg of lamb or pork. Camp…