Moved - new blog address

Decided to move over to wordpress so Gum Trees and Galaxies can now be found here:
https://gumtreesandgalxies.home.blog/

Queen Mary Falls - March 2019

Just a few photos from our first outing in the new Travelbug Eco Pod.

Set up was very quick.  Even the tent setup was easy even though we had not removed it from its carrying bag before.









The parrots are very friendly.

We were lucky to have had recent rain so the falls were active.

Worshipping the Dawn

So the big reason for getting the pod was to facilitate fast weekend getaways.  This weekend we went up the Sunshine coast to Cotton Tree, not a lot of time to write a long post, but just wanted to share one of  Gary's lovely photos, taken just after sunrise.

A couple of notes about Cotton Tree, so at this time of year, school holidays, the camp is pretty full of families, kids everywhere.  It is a great place for kids with sheltered swimming and kayaking at the river mouth and family friendly spaces.  Some of the best camping sights are right on the beach, so generally speaking a pretty awesome camp, for us, perhaps not as quite as we would like, but despite being pretty packed the stay was still pretty peaceful.  We chose to pay for a powered site so not the cheapest option at just over $60 for the one night, but clean amenities with hot showers and we didn't have to run down the battery on the pod.  Next time we might try to get an unpowered site on the beach and charge the battery with a solar panel, which seems like the best option, certainly that was what all the beach side campers seemed to be doing.  Great swimming and beach walk, a patrolled swimming area just down the beach a bit, and of great importance, several decent cafes just across the road, happily waiting to cater to my caffeine addiction. Good veggie options on the menu at Mojo's cafe where we had breakfast, and great fresh juice.   Free wifi, courtesy of the Sunshine coast council, good speed, but limited to only two hours a day. So all in all a pretty good spot, just maybe not the most economical.

New Teardrop

It has taken us months of research, searching and waiting, but finally we have our teardrop, our little escape pod.  We did have a false start in the quest, when we did make an offer on a second hand teardrop, the owner changed their mind after initially accepting, that kind of did us a favour, as it made us commit to going with, what is without doubt the best current option for our needs, which is a brand new Travelbug Escape pod Eco: https://travelbugteardropcampers.com.au/escape-pod-eco  

The fact is I am a bit of a compulsive researcher, and G is cautious by nature, so a lot of research went into our decision.  Travelbug were the company that came out on top in the research process. Size was important, many teardrops claim they can be towed by small cars and while that is true to an extent, they sometimes stretch the truth in terms of reality, practicality and legality.   Sometimes ignoring the reality of the ball weight of towbars for small cars.  I won't name any brands or companies, not stupid and don't need a law suit, but I have seen exaggeration of what is possible for teardrops and small cars.  Now size matters for us, we drive a small Honda city, a car we originally purchased in part, for its fuel economy, and therefore lower carbon footprint.  And yeah, I know a petrol powered car is never going to be an environmental gold star, but one with the best possible economy and lowest emissions is better than giving no consideration to the issue.  So we have a small car and no desire to change that arrangement, so the weight and design specs on a teardrop mattered a lot in our decision.  Travelbug make a range of teardrops, from our little eco pod through to larger models, and as each vehicle is crafted individually and with the tow vehicle in mind, you can trust the specs and the build outcome.  The craftsmanship, the focussed individual deign is one of the great pluses of the Travelbug company.  There is a professionalism and pride in the work that you just don't get with some of the alternatives out there.  Travelbug is made by people who have a lifelong commitment to camping/teardrop use, so what they have learnt from their own experience goes into the production of a fantastically practical and comfortable teardrop.

So what makes the escape pod eco such a good option?  Well the space for the size, the pod has a comfortable queen size bed and two cupboards inside for clothes and personal items. The internal space, particularly the height is generous and comfortable, Gary is 6ft and he comfortably sits on the bed without any claustrophobic closeness of the ceiling and walls, he can fully stretch out in the bed.  For me, the pod is a comfortable, cosy nest that gives me plenty of room to spread out.  The pod is extremely well ventilated and that is a big thing in a van of this size.  In fact of all the similar teardrops we looked at, none had the ventilation and the insulation that the escape pod has.  You have a screened door and separate screened window on each side of the pod.  The door also locks where you can slide the door half open.  In addition you have an adjustable roof vent and every pod is fitted with an adjustable fan for additional ventilation.   Thermal curtains are also included for all windows and doors.  The pod also has excellent insulation with Earthwool insulation, we are yet to try the pod in really cold weather but our first weekend was a hot one, with temperatures in the mid-30s and yet the van remained comfortable in terms of temperature.  The fan kept air cool and circulating, I was afraid the pod would be an uncomfortable hot box in our hot Australian summers but it performed better than I expected and was surprisingly comfortable on what was a stinking hot steamy weekend.  The earthwool insulation also provides great sound insulation. So ventilation and insulation are one thing that sets Travelbug apart from competitors.  The bed is another.

Travelbug manufacture their own innerspring mattress on site, especially for their pods and what a bonus that is.  The mattress is an optional extra but well worth it, it makes for an incredibly comfortable night's sleep.  Like everything else in Travelbug the mattress is crafted with its unique use in mind and is designed to bend in the centre to allow you to move the mattress within the van, this assists with making the bed.  Now, making the bed in such a confined space with my short stature, was a challenge, but I figure I will get better at that with a bit of practice. The flexibility of the mattress is also designed to assist with moving the mattress out of the pod when necessary.  Essentially a teardrop is just a bed and kitchen on wheels, so a great bed is a fantastic feature.  Before moving on to the galley kitchen, I will also say the interior has a couple of storage pockets, cup holders and more than adequate lighting.

The kitchen space has secure, generous shelves.  We have now kitted out the kitchen space and have found we have more than adequate space for kitchen essentials, both food items and kitchen hardware.  There is a generous storage area for pots and pans, under a work bench  and we have also placed the small gas bottle for the stove in that space.  Next to that is a space for a fridge, in which we have placed a WACO CF40, Travelbug also made sure they included adequate ventilation for our fridge placement.  We have enough room to slide our gas stove in front of the fridge when not in use.  Travelbug can also include and supply a fridge if desired.  There is lighting over the work space and adequate lighting on both sides of the pod exterior. 

The pod is set up with a 12volt power system, battery and charger, we have also chosen to set up for solar charging.  You can include an optional tv/dvd player with the pod, that can run off the 12volt system,  but given that a) we don't watch that much tv anyway and b) we mainly rely on our laptops for our media use, we opted to also include the 240volt option for when we are in caravan parks and can plug in.  The laptops need at least 18 volt so the 12 volt system is not really adequate for charging laptops, so that was a consideration for us.  The battery is stored in the generous box at the front of the pod, which is also where we store the additional tent room that we use with the pod, giving us a private space to sit or change.  The set up and take down time for the tent is noteworthy and this really is camping luxury, taking only a few minutes to get everything up and secure.

All of the specs for the pod can be found on the Travelbug website here: https://travelbugteardropcampers.com.au/escape-pod-eco  I urge anyone interested in teardrops, and a more luxurious camping option to check them out.  Travelbug also represented best value for money of all the teardrop options we investigated. A practical consideration was also maintenance and repairs, the pod is designed in such a way that if you have to fix or replace anything you can simply drop into something like a Repco or Super cheap auto store, to find what you need, so repairs on the road are cheap and easy.

 Now we have our pod we are starting to personalise it and make additions for personal needs and there will be more posts on this to come.  More photos will gradually be added, and photos are on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/sharon.geitz/?hl=en Or: https://www.instagram.com/garygeitz62/?hl=en

So What's it all about?

So welcome to Gum trees and Galaxies, my return to blogging after an extended absence and the first time I have co-written a blog with my partner, GG. This our new adventure in joint blogging, is to act as a record of our joint adventures, but will also contain random tangents and some possible book blogging.  Book blogging is my blogging past and will remain part of my blogging future.

So why Gum trees and Galaxies? That is the phrase that seems to sum up our weekends and our aspirations. On the weekend we aim to escape and head to the bush, even if it is only for a few hours on the weekend.  We adventure out to find spaces away from the city, with minimum light pollution to better enjoy the stars at night, so that is why, this is; Gum trees and Galaxies. Our weekend adventures are not all we hope to record here, we also travel further afield, as far and as often as possible, overseas whenever time and money allows. 

As part of our ongoing adventures, we are embarking on a teardrop journey with the purchase of a teardrop camper.  We are getting too old and spoilt for sleeping on the ground, and, while a teardrop does feel a bit like cheating, when it comes to camping, it is our way forward. More glamping than camping.  It is a great option for quick weekend getaways with some degree of comfort.  So, we will record the teardrop journey; the good, the bad, and the whatever, here.

Gum trees and galaxies is the blog of a couple of Australian empty nesters, (not grey nomads, at least not yet), exploring, experimenting and recording life.

"The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness".. - John Muir