Lee Atkinson - Explore Australia by Camper Trailer

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Every year for the past decade or two, my partner, Bill, and I have hitched up our camper trailer and headed as far into the bush as we could, in whatever pocket of time we could steal. Weve ventured deep into the wilds of the Great Dividing Range, and out into the endless space of the outback plains. Weve driven remote and lonely tracks like the Sandy Blight Junction Track in the Western Desert along the border of the Northern Territory and Western Australia, and across the Red Centre and on to the Coongie Lakes in South Australia, having had to wait a couple of years for the roads to dry out enough to get in.

In between, weve done trips up and down the east coast and along the countrys southern edge, into the Flinders Ranges, out to Corner Country, through outback Queensland and down to Tasmania.

Finally, in 2014 we decided to go all the way. Turning our camper trailer into a mobile office, we spent the best part of a year driving 40,000 of the dustiest kilometres we could find, on the roads less travelled, eschewing towns and caravan parks for the wild landscapes of national parks whenever we could.

Researching these trips, we discovered that while there are plenty of guides out there for four-wheel-drivers, stacks of information about camping with a tent, and lots of books and websites dedicated to caravanners, there was very little for those of us travelling with a camper trailer.

Camper trailers are not at all like caravans. Off-road trailers can get to places that caravans and motorhomes cant, into wild national parks and along remote outback tracks. Set up with the right battery power, solar energy and water storage, they can also go off the grid, as they dont depend on mains power to operate lights, fridges, air-conditioners and on-board bathrooms. However, caravans can go some places that camper trailers cant. When it comes to choosing where to camp, camper trailers have specific campsite needs, such as reasonably soft, level ground that is bollard-free. They also have a different footprint when erected compared to caravans, one that is square rather than long and narrow; they simply dont fit in many caravan park parking bays, and even some national park camping sites are too small.

Camper trailers take longer to set up and pull down than a caravan, so most campers want to stay put for a couple of days, even when road tripping, rather than making nightly transit stops. Most of us tend to use our camper trailer as a base camp, unhitching the vehicle and exploring the area by car, by 4WD, on foot and sometimes even by boat or kayak so we want to stay somewhere where there is plenty to see and do.

Explore Australia by Camper Trailer is a guide specifically for those who travel with a camper trailer. It contains information on where to go, what to see and do and where to camp with your trailer, including detailed maps, directions and road conditions. Although it covers every region in the country, the information youll find in these pages is not so much about towns and attractions as it is about places: places worth driving out of your way for, braving a few bumps and a bit of dust along the way; places where you can set up camp, sit back and watch the sun set without another soul around; places worth staying put for a day or two or even a week; places that work their way into your heart and call you back again, year after year after year.

These are the best campsites we have found during our travels around 320 of them, at any rate. Theres a mix of bush camping, free camping, station stays and caravan parks across the country, from the tip of Cape York to as far south as you can go in a car in Tasmania. For those who want an off-road, off-the-grid adventure, weve also covered the iconic outback tracks that are suitable for trailers, such as the Gibb River Road, the Oodnadatta Track and many of Len Beadells famous desert roads.

The Canning Stock Route is still on our bucket list; weve crossed over it a couple of times on various trips through the Western Desert, and even done a small section on our way to driving the Gunbarrel Highway, but were itching to get on the road and do it from end to end. Maybe well meet you on the track.

Camper trailers offer the perfect middle ground between rolling out a swag and hitting the road with a monster caravan in tow. They provide power, storage, a decent stove, lights, a comfortable bed, protection from mozzies and insects, living space and a whole lot of other little luxuries, but without the trials, tribulations and limitations that towing a caravan or driving a motorhome can present. Much bigger and more comfortable than a tent, and more affordable to buy than a caravan, they are also great for families on the annual two-week (or longer) holiday.

In its most basic format, a camper trailer is really just a box trailer with a tent section that unfolds to make a sleeping space. Some models feature heavy-duty construction for off-road use. Most include a double or queen-sized mattress, a gas cooker, a 12-volt battery for power, water storage and a sink. Camper trailers are easier to tow than caravans because they are smaller and lighter, so theres also less wear and tear on the towing vehicle, plus greater fuel efficiency.

You can spend anything from $5000 to $70,000 or more on a camper trailer. Here are 10 things to think about before you invest.

1. Off-road or on-road One of the major benefits of most camper trailers is that you can take them to a lot of places that would be inaccessible to caravans or motorhomes, including 4WD tracks and many national park camping grounds. Make sure the trailer and the coupling (the tow bar and tow ball or hitch that connects the vehicle and the trailer) you are thinking of buying are capable of negotiating the types of roads and country that you want to visit.

2. Weight This is one of the most important things to consider. Theres an exponential relationship between the size of your trailer and the extent to which you can get off the beaten track. Often its a compromise between weight and robustness, so once again, think about where you want to take your trailer and what youll be towing it with before you buy. And dont forget to add the extra weight of all your camping gear, food and water (typically a couple of hundred kilos) to the equation, and ensure that the fully laden weight of your trailer doesnt exceed the legal maximum aggregate trailer mass (ATM), which will be stated on the trailers compliance plate. Trailers over 750kg need trailer brakes, too.

3. Putting up and packing up Probably the next most important thing is the ease and speed of setting up and dismantling the tent, or living space. Some pretty much put themselves up at the touch of a button although you pay for the privilege. Hard-floored tents are generally easier to erect (and keep clean), and you dont have to worry about poles and pegs, which can be a great advantage in rocky or uneven ground and at camping grounds with small sites enclosed by bollards. The more poles and ropes, the longer it will take to put up. The flip side is that living space is usually smaller in camper trailers with a hard floor and, of course, they are more expensive than soft-floored tents. Also worth considering is the layout; the outdoor cooking and living area/annex of a hard-floor trailer is typically at the side of the trailer, which means you will be looking directly into your neighbours camp while eating, whereas a soft-floored camper will often have its kitchen at the back, offering much more privacy in places where you find yourself sharing the camping ground with others and there is not enough room to park sideways.