Gday from Australia - a very experienced RV'er Down Under across USA and Canada

[airtrafficone]

  GDay from the sunny Gold Coast in the State of Queensland, Australia. I'm a 55 year old retired Air Force Officer. Travelled all over the USA for more than a year in a Motorhome I bought and sold again in LA years ago. Visited every State except Alaska (on my bucket list) and every last Province across Canada. Have owned a Mercedes Motorhome here for a few years. If anyone is thinking of either bringing their motor home to Australia under a Carnet for a year or buying/renting one here, just give me a shout with any questions and I'll do my best. Cheers!  Gordon

 

[DeanG]

Hi Gordon, would you consider renting out your RV direct? What sort of issues do you see renting privately in Australia?
Cheers
Dean

 

[airtrafficone]

Hi Dean - wish I could help but have sold the Mercedes - wish I'd kept it as I got all sorts of enquiries from USA and Europe when I was on other forums! There would be just comprehensive insurance to sort out...I would, if I had a motorhome to rent out, ask my insurer if a driver on a USA licence, with Passport ID, could drive and if so, what increase in premium would be applicable.  Our insurances here are far simpler to understand that USA insurances (you litigious lot!)...Apart from that, nothing really...don't forget we drive on the other side of the road, so best get an automatic!  Hope this helps. Cheers - Gordon

 

[camperAL]

Hi Gordon,

Check out the Rv'n outside of the usa in this forum (see link below). I posted on my interest of traveling in Australia and problems I have encountered on a number of items. I hope you'll have more opportunity to travel the USA. Thanks for sharing your experience here.

http://www.rvforum.net/SMF_forum/index.php?topic=49192.0

Looks like it is pretty cost effective to rent a caravan in Australia. That is probably what we will do if and when we go. To be frank, the snakes in Australia concern me as I like to get out at night and observe. I need good advise on what to watch out for being in the outback. Any and all comments you can share would be of interest to me for sure and I am sure for others. Best wishes!

 

[airtrafficone]

Hi there. In all the years of bushwalking, being on major exercises out bush when I was in the RAAF Ive only ever seen large nasty snakes about a dozen times. I did step on a sleeping red bellied black once but ir=t was v early in the morning and cold so he didnt stir much. I jumped eighteen feet in the air so he didnt stand a chance! You just have to make lots of noise if you are bushwalking - snakes will feel the vibbrations through their bellies and go AWAY from you 99% of the time. At night have plenty of bright light ahead of you and dont go walking through long grass - you are asking to be bitten!  And here, if you get bitten and you are far away from help and antivenom, you will die...

You most certainly CAN bring your RV to Australia on a 12 month carnet.  Ive met USA folk with massive A Class 550 HP jobs wheeling around.. if you have a large RV, even if it is left hand drive, it doesnt matter. You cannot sell it here, or take out a loan against it, and you must re-export it within 12 months...its a very cost effective way of doing it if you own a nice RV...just makes overtaking real difficult!

1 US gallon = approx 3.79 litres

Our fuel (gas) here ranges from $1.40 a litre to $3.00 a litre in the outback.  That's USD$5.70/US gallon to USD$12.00/US gallon...  OUCH!

Alice Springs, for instance is about AUD$1.75 per litre or USD$7.00/US gallon

 

[camperAL]

Hi Gordon,

Never really gave much thought of fuel prices. Alice Springs is one of the places that I want to travel to. I am good with metrics so no real problem here.

Snakes, I am an amateur astronomer and would like to observe the southern skies. Observing requires dark conditions but you don't move around too much. I'll have to contact some astronomers in Australia and ask if they do anything special to keep out of snake trouble. I agree make noise and stomp a bit and you should have no real trouble.

 

[airtrafficone]

Set up telescope on top of camper or RV and you'll be fine! or set up in a tent with a hole for telescope/your head - snakes won't get through any sort of basic tent... easy!

 

[camperAL]

Greetings,

Wondering, if a round perimeter with a one meter high wall (canvas or plastic) would do so you would be open to the night sky. Reason is that a telescope can be swung around 360 degrees and at various elevations in the sky. A tent with a hole would only facilitate viewing in one general region. The question is a serious one and I am guessing that a snake wouldn't be able to slither up a wall barrier. I know it would have to be well sealed or any crack or hole might invite the unwanted snake. Going in for the night one would have to use the flashlight to be careful.

Also wondering if packs of dingos might be a problem. Best and thank you for your help!

 

[airtrafficone]

The plastic would work for snakes...check thoroughly anytime you leave a tent and come back.  Ive had a foreign armed serviceman severely bitten by a very large angry brown snake that had crawled into his seeping bag.  Always unzip and hang your sleeping back over the tent ridgepole inside or outside and give it a good shake after prodding with a LONG stick.  Don't forget about centipedes and scorpions - we have those too...and in some areas redback spiders (very painful but rarely kill people)  see here 

http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/Find+out+about/Animals+of+Queensland/Spiders/Modern+Spiders+Infraorder+Araneomorphae/Redback+and+Brown+Widow+spiders/Redback+Spider 

and ....

the ultra deadly funnel web spider.... see here

http://www.qm.qld.gov.au/Find+out+about/Behind+the+Scenes/Museum+Experts/Biodiversity/Funnel-web+Spiders 

DINGOES - see here - http://www.nprsr.qld.gov.au/parks/fraser/dingo-safe.html 

Hope this helps... Hope I haven't put you off - general care and open eyes and you'll be fine  Cheers again

 

[camperAL]

Greetings again Gordon,

No haven't put me off at all on trying to make it to your great land. I just believe in being educated well in order to be out in the out back. Funnel spiders are more common in the eastern part of Australia but good information to those who might travel down under.

The Red spiders are much like our black widow spiders. Think they are related. In all unless you are very careless, I doubt most people would have any problems while spending a couple of months in the outback. Thanks for all your help and comments.

Ian and Jan are two people living in Australia right now and have chimed in once or twice on this subject.

Here is another great resource for traveling to Austraila: http://www.ritas-outback-guide.com/

 

[Robert Ryan]

The most Dangerous animal in Australia is the European Honeybee. More people have died from allergic reaction to their stings than, snakes sharks spiders  combined ,you name it.
  Camping in Australia and New Zealand is much safer than North America, we do not have furry predators that want have you for dinner or you have  accidentally infringed  into their territory.

 

[airtrafficone]

Agreed. In a period, 20 bees tings deaths, about the same number of lightning strikes (silly golfers), about 10 shark attacks and 8 crocodile attacks/deaths. In my city of the Gold Coast, we lose more people to falls from high rise balconies each year than the whole of Australia has shark attacks.  We've lost 6 in the last few months of 2012 alone!

 

[GaryandAngela]

See the link in our signature line if you need tips in Aus or NZ