The Magazine for Australian Travellers

July 2005

GREAT PLACES TO GO

Visit Mt Augustus in Western Australia, a “sleeping giant” that is bigger than Uluru.

Not far from Mackay in Queensland is an area known as the Pioneer Valley, where rainforest, sugar cane and wildlife help to make a visit extra special.

Waterfront camping in NSW

These four national parks, hidden among the ranges, are sure to leave you with fond memories.

Campsite reports

This month our campsite reporters have found some superb places to camp in South Australia, New South Wales, Western Australia and Victoria.

CARAVANS & MOTORHOMES

Tough and elegant

Trakmaster’s Nullarbor caravan won’t mind being taking through the rough stuff.

GOOD GEAR & GADGETS

Walkabout

This month we’ve found some excellent books for travellers, where to go and see koalas in the wild, how to have a special bicycle holiday and much more.

CAMPERS’TALES

Bush trailers

If you plan to take your trailer off the bitumen it, and your vehicle, must be prepared. Dick Eussen offers some practical advice to get you there and back again safely.

Campfire safety

2005 Australian of the Year Dr Fiona Wood talks to On The Road about burns prevention and first aid in the
outdoors.

In luxury on the Ghan

Pat Hayes takes it easy on a journey to Alice Springs aboard the legendary Ghan.

Campfire cooking

An expert on camp oven cooking shares some secrets on how easy this methods of cooking can be.

2004/5 index to 12 months of On The Road

JUST FOR READERS

My Favorite Place

This campground in the Northern Territory is a pleasure to stay in and has won for a reader a pair of fantastic daypacks from Snowgum.

GETAWAY VEHICLE

Affordable and honest

Kia has updated its Sportage
soft-roader.

CATCH A FEED

Stay safe, stay alive

Paul B. Kidd offers advice for every owner – and occupant – of a small boat.

REGULAR FEATURES

Readers’ letters

A reader urges others to learn what their four-wheel-drive can and can’t do.

We’re not sure if four-year-old Tom Spicer caught this flathead or not, but if he was out on the boat you can bet he had the necessary safety gear on for a little fella.

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Stay alive on the water

Want to hear some awful news that hasn’t happened yet? Of course you do. More than one Australian will be killed through stupidity in a small boating accident in the next 12 months.

And it just gets worse. Some of those “more than one” victims will be children. They could be your kids. Kids who had no choice but to put their faith in adults too stupid to abide by a set of rules designed by experts to save lives.

Especially the lives of those who are not old enough to make their own decisions.

In the hands of idiots a small boat is a killing machine that places the occupants in grave danger from the minute they leave the boat ramp. And for that reason, the rules are there to save lives and should be abided by at all times. And that means five metres or five miles from shore.

I feel so strongly about small boat safety that I believe that boat owners who have not taken the essential safety precautions, and as a result a child is drowned, should be charged with murder. Or at the very least manslaughter.