MySwag.org The Off-road Camper Trailer Forum
General => General Discussion => Topic started by: McGirr on July 22, 2016, 06:09:49 PM
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I have been asked a couple of times whats it like living in a remote area.
I will break it down into catergories:
Food:
There are no takeaways apart from some places that nay sell it in the community, no restaurants, no clubs or recognised fast food shops. You cook most nights. Shop prices are like corner stores or dearer. Eg tim tams are $8.00, soft drink is $5.50.
Car Maintenance:
There are no mechanics, some places may have tyre machines, all repairs are done by you and parts must be ordered in.
Mail:
All mail is flown in once a week. If the parcel is heavy you may have to wait a few weeks until they have less weighted items on the plane.
Phone Service:
Some places will not have mobile phone reception only landline and internet that may be very slow and limited.
Shops:
No going down to a hardware store, supercheap etc. They dont exist. Again item has to be ordered and flown in. Hopefully the right item is sent.
Alcohol:
Most remote places are dry communities. Where we are now its ok to drink as we have permits. But you must buy enough to survive until you head out to the nearest major town for your next break or weekend off to stock up.
Traveling Distances to nearest Town:
This can vary from over 900 klms to 350 klm. Taking 5 to 11 hrs driving. The roads will be dirt and rough and can be closed for the wet season being 4 to 5 months.
Freight:
This can be once a week to once a month. If you want a big item or an item that cannot be flown in on the mail plane it will cost you. We get road trains that bring all items for the stores plus other freight.
Accomodation:
This can vary from a 40ft renovated shipping container, an old house thats seen better days, or you supply your own accomadation.
Health:
Most places will have a clinic with basic services. A doctor may come onto the community once every 3 months. Normally he will only see the very sick. If its an emergency you either drive out or catch a plane. RFDS if its deemed needed by the nurses. Dentists also come every 3 months.
Entertainment:
There is none. Its what you make of what you have. You sign up to netfix etc or go for the odd drive. No cinemas or shows.
Security:
Depending on the community there will be police living there. You may end up in a rough community where they try and break in, rock your roof, jump your fence. I have seen locals scale a 9 foot fence with rows of barbed wire like a gazelle. Some places are good some are not so. Your accomodation may include having a cage that is padlocked. If you left your car outside chances it will be stolen or smashed up.
The Benefits:
No rent, free power and water, free internet. You only pay for food and fuel which is very expensive.
What we like about it:
You get to experiance a cultural change, travel to places you never expected to see, enjoy some spectacular scenery and meet some great people. We have been to Alice Springs, Uluru 3 times, Kalgoorlie, Mataranka, Lake Argyle, Kununurru, The Kimberley, Broome and Derby just to name a few. We have worked in SA, WA and now NT in mostly indigenous communities.
So could you do it.
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Yep, done it a few times, great lifestyle.
600klm to the nearest town for shopping at one place.
Have lived at Lajamanu, Borroloola, Thursday Island, Cape York, just out of Boulia on 900,000 acres and a few other places in the NT as well.
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In a heartbeat...
You like the convenience of the local supercheap etc, but soon learn to get organised and be frugal and adaptive.
I can't wait till I'm back at it......
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with no hardware store all projects start with a good look around the dump for things that can be repurposed!
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Yep. Done 12 months in Warburton. What you miss out on in convenience stores and the like is more than made up with some of the most interesting caracters you meet, the drop dead gorgeous places you visit, the billion stars at night preceded by the most amazing sunsets.
Every place has its good and bad points. I reckon its what you make of it and how you choose to see it.
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You knew the job was Dangerous when you took it .
lf you are not able to take it don't do it . Simple
Problem Solved
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"The roads ... can be closed for the wet season being 4 to 5 months."
Mark, question thanks.
If / when the roads are likely to be closed for so long, what do you do before the Wet hits? Stock up on 5 mths worth of booze, food, spares, fuel etc etc etc, or are they able to still get "vital" supplies in?
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"The roads ... can be closed for the wet season being 4 to 5 months."
Mark, question thanks.
If / when the roads are likely to be closed for so long, what do you do before the Wet hits? Stock up on 5 mths worth of booze, food, spares, fuel etc etc etc, or are they able to still get "vital" supplies in?
lts only booze you need & food . You don't need spares/ fuel as you cant break a rig you cant drive . get floaties & learn to amuse yourself in puddles . Or Run before the Wet stopes you .
lf its not for you please try to not be there prewet .
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I loved the 2.5 years I did in Doomadgee! Looking around again hoping to get a similar placement in next few years up the cape somewhere!
Fizzie, depends on where you are some places have a local store that can get fresh food flown in, but easiest is pretty much to stock up... It makes it fun when electricity isn't entirely reliable (diesel gens eat runs the whole town) and you have 3+ months of meat in the freezer.
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with no hardware store all projects start with a good look around the dump for things that can be repurposed!
in all honesty. don't they all.
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In 2020.......we will be seeking something similar.
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Take the challenge or sit on the couch to watch Foxtel ..................................
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I have been asked a couple of times whats it like living in a remote area.
I will break it down into catergories:
Food:
There are no takeaways apart from some places that nay sell it in the community, no restaurants, no clubs or recognised fast food shops. You cook most nights. Shop prices are like corner stores or dearer. Eg tim tams are $8.00, soft drink is $5.50.
Car Maintenance:
There are no mechanics, some places may have tyre machines, all repairs are done by you and parts must be ordered in.
Mail:
All mail is flown in once a week. If the parcel is heavy you may have to wait a few weeks until they have less weighted items on the plane.
Phone Service:
Some places will not have mobile phone reception only landline and internet that may be very slow and limited.
Shops:
No going down to a hardware store, supercheap etc. They dont exist. Again item has to be ordered and flown in. Hopefully the right item is sent.
Alcohol:
Most remote places are dry communities. Where we are now its ok to drink as we have permits. But you must buy enough to survive until you head out to the nearest major town for your next break or weekend off to stock up.
Traveling Distances to nearest Town:
This can vary from over 900 klms to 350 klm. Taking 5 to 11 hrs driving. The roads will be dirt and rough and can be closed for the wet season being 4 to 5 months.
Freight:
This can be once a week to once a month. If you want a big item or an item that cannot be flown in on the mail plane it will cost you. We get road trains that bring all items for the stores plus other freight.
Accomodation:
This can vary from a 40ft renovated shipping container, an old house thats seen better days, or you supply your own accomadation.
Health:
Most places will have a clinic with basic services. A doctor may come onto the community once every 3 months. Normally he will only see the very sick. If its an emergency you either drive out or catch a plane. RFDS if its deemed needed by the nurses. Dentists also come every 3 months.
Entertainment:
There is none. Its what you make of what you have. You sign up to netfix etc or go for the odd drive. No cinemas or shows.
Security:
Depending on the community there will be police living there. You may end up in a rough community where they try and break in, rock your roof, jump your fence. I have seen locals scale a 9 foot fence with rows of barbed wire like a gazelle. Some places are good some are not so. Your accomodation may include having a cage that is padlocked. If you left your car outside chances it will be stolen or smashed up.
. You only pay for food and fuel which is very expensive.
sounds as appealing as the clap to me.. leave ya car out ... it gets ****ed up and the cops wont touch the untouchables... need to live in a padlocked cell??? Oh yea sounds fantastic..
Glad you like it though
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Could I do it?...probably
Would I like to do it?...probably not
Good too see you guys are enjoying what you're doing, but it's not for me.
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Untouchables? You must live in a dream world
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The pics of your rig & CT in a lockup garage at your last place tells us a story of a place that might not be an ideal existence , as the brochure may have told .
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Untouchables? You must live in a dream world
ask richo after 4000 of stuff was stolen out of his car... cops knew who it would have been... too much trouble that would end in no result.. here is your report # for insurance... have a nice day..
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Grew up in places like that so yep, I could handle the lifestyle no problem.
However due to a chronic health problem the lack of medical services would stop me from doing it. Have to be a city boy now.
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"The roads ... can be closed for the wet season being 4 to 5 months."
Mark, question thanks.
If / when the roads are likely to be closed for so long, what do you do before the Wet hits? Stock up on 5 mths worth of booze, food, spares, fuel etc etc etc, or are they able to still get "vital" supplies in?
A barge comes into Ports Keats and we get our supplies from there as the road from Daly River closes. If the road from ports keats gets closed then we wait. We also will be stocking up for the wet season with approx 60 pallets of non perishable goods. They also look at flying fresh produce in which can be expensive but needed. It will be our first time here for this so it will be interesting.
Regarding fuel, we sell it here. We can carry 40,000 ltrs of Diesel and 20,000 ltrs of Opal. We get a delivery once a month and I have to make sure our tanks are topped right up in case the wet season starts early which is what they expect. We still get our weekly mail flights in the wet season as its an all weather airport.
This lifestyle is not for everyone but we cherish the experiance. As long as we are healthy and fit we will continue our journey.
We will look back when we are retired and say look what we have done over the last ten or so years. Great Memories.
Mark
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I reckon I could live in a place like Bourke or Birdsville for a year.
I do like living within 40 mins of the local town. We live 40 mins out of Toowomba and that's far enough.
Having been through the likes of Maningrida, Oenpelli and Daily River up in the NT, where you can't tell where the town starts and the local tip finishes, they can have it.
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ask richo after 4000 of stuff was stolen out of his car... cops knew who it would have been... too much trouble that would end in no result.. here is your report # for insurance... have a nice day..
Cause that never happens anywhere else does it.
There is a thing called evidence, sort of needed to prosecute.
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I could do it with no problems.
The further Iam from people/cities the happier Iam.
Swmbo defiantly could not.
Bill
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Yes.
Did it a few times in my travels as a single bloke,
Now with young kids, no.
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1990 banana/tiger prawn season up the gulf we did 9 months without setting foot on land. Tie up to the mother ship each 4 weeks or so, to refuel, offload product and take on provisions. The only clue we had that the gulf war had started was the gps went spare.
Doing Nav Aids I'd provision a work crew for a month in the scrub at a time, drive in and that's it - nil contact except via emergency sat phone. Not fun when some wanker freezes all your fresh veg in the first few days by trying to get beer cold in the wrong fridge.
The ship we worked off did 6 or sometimes 12 week swings.
Living in close quarters with no respite 24/7 does strange things to some people.
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Old Slim loved to visit Peperminati too ..https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYUvAVdMsik (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYUvAVdMsik)
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1990 banana/tiger prawn season up the gulf we did 9 months without setting foot on land. Tie up to the mother ship each 4 weeks or so, to refuel, offload product and take on provisions. The only clue we had that the gulf war had started was the gps went spare.
I did 1994 both seasons in the gulf for Raptis as an engineer, and the refit season in Kurrumba between.
Barge day, the high lite of the month...... ;D
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How much fun is refit haha. We used to refit at Portsmith in cairns. I was alway jealous of the 90 footers with engineers and cooks. I used to wear both those hats and more. The little (20m) Aquarius was 4 crew on the bananas and 3 the rest of the time. We slept every now and then too.
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Hi,
we gave serious thought to doing some lighthouse sitting at Maatsuyker Island (https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/43%C2%B039'17.0%22S+146%C2%B016'26.0%22E/@-43.6547142,146.2717327,762m/data=!3m2!1e3!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d-43.654718!4d146.273881?hl=en) for 6 months or a year, but the bureaucratic bumf with restrictions on everything, (and the paper work) left us thinking we could go and find our own. Which we have done, quite well so far we feel.
More info (http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/file.aspx?id=38806)
Cheers
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We slept every now and then too.
My 1st trip was good, got the boat back with a polished and painted engine room, even called into Gove to get a Wipe your Feet door mat for my engine room. On the Evia Pearl, had a medium speed Cullasen Main Engine.
My reward for the tiger Season was the pride of the fleet........ NOT
Two main engine rebuilds, hydraulic pipes bursting, 2 elec fires in the wheel house, it was great. Punched our way to brissy with hardly enough fuel, go to port and I just walked. Didn't even worry about my log book, just left.
Here some of the few happy moments just to reminisce.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8571/28454270256_a70ce85154_o.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8794/27869968664_313b39c47f_o.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8400/27869968704_9ef8921501_o.jpg)
Here is Yours Truly, long ago.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8726/28454270126_53d571fff0_o.jpg)
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Nice. Was sandy wood the skipper of the pearl? He might have built the red boats by then.
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The name rings a bell, but no, we had Barry Allen, as in Gavin Allens (the former Qld origin player) BIG brother.
Top bloke, as long as you support the correct team.... ;D
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Cause that never happens anywhere else does it..
yes, and the cops don't hesitate to arrest them.
There is a thing called evidence, sort of needed to prosecute.
You don't sell dot paintings do you?
(http://www.transformgroup.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Blog-66-Passive-Head-in-Sand.jpeg)
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Self portrait?
You have zero clues as to what is required to arrest and prosecute someone
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We did 6 years in communities over a 12 year period.
Started in 2003 and came home early 2006 (as a couple), then another 14 months in 2007/08 with our 5 month old and then again from 2012-2015 with two kids 2 and 5 when we went out.
The first and third times were at the same community which was in a beautiful part of the country, and was a great community. We applied for a different community store in 2012, and were actually quite happy not to win that store, but be given the one we ended up in.
We always said to each other that if either person wanted to go, then we would leave regardless of whether the other person was happy... this never happened. We never felt threatened or unsafe, but as I said we were in a good community. There certainly are places I wouldn't want to work though.
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We planned on 2 years in Weipa as teachers, 7 years later, 2 kids a boat and a camp trailer and we are still here 😀. Mind you Weipa is a bit different to other communities but still has many of the same issues.
We have a woolies which is stocked 1.5 times a week, however in tourist season we run out of everything as soon as it hits the shelves. Not to mention if something delays the barges....baked beans for a week anyone?
We have a Mitre 10 known locally as Mitre 20 ... cause its twice the price.
Mail...well our Post Office doa fantastic job but allow an extra week or two for standard non-express mail.
Unlike most remote communities Weipa has typical mining town rental costs ($850-1000 p/w for a 4 bdrm)
Wet season crazies...internet, mobiles and tv reception are sporadic, slow or non-existent due to storms and you become isolated. Although the fishing tends to heat up.
However, the best sunsets anywhere-bauxite dust gives the most amazing colours.
Being totally spoilt for fishing/camping/hunting
The people you meet and the friends who become your family.
No it's not for everyone, but go in with an open mind and clear yor predjudices and you will have one of the most amazing journies.
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Hi,
we gave serious thought to doing some lighthouse sitting at Maatsuyker Islandfor 6 months or a year,
Mate of mine has put in several sessions at Bustard Head Lighthouse for 2 weeks at a time.
Living in the cottage on site, just doing general caretaking duties & being on hand to talk to people when the LARC tours come in 3 - 4 days a week - loves it!
I know - not really remote though!