Articles » Advice and Tips » Selecting the right off road camper for me
The task of selecting the right off road camper trailer for me.
Referenced from Caravanning Australia - Submitted by a happy customer - Colegate. September 2007.
After many years of tent camping and four wheel driving, my wife and I decided to buy a heavy duty off road trailer.
We started by checking out the Trading Post and other second hand sections of the local paper. We rang and inspected a variety in prices from $5,000 to $8,000. I was always a bit wary as to how they had been treated and maintained. They all had something I wanted but not all had everything I wanted. So we started looking at new instead of used.
I did not want to blow away a lot of money on some of the up-market trailers, as I think some of these are over rated, but everyone to their own.
So what did I look for?
I also wanted to be able to open my rear swing door on my 4x4 fully to make sure I would still have full access to the rear of the vehicle. We also love canoeing and own two kayaks and wanted to transport them on the trailer.
With all this in mind, I ventured around and found that Cameron Canvas at Lonsdale in South Australia would accommodate the fully opening of my 4x4's rear door, and this extra length also helps with towing and reversing. They also showed me how I could tie down the canoes on top with a set of ratchet straps.
For carrying the canoes, I purchased some outdoors carpet to place on top of the trailer, this protect the cover fromn scuffing. This carpet also fits perfect inside the floor of the campoer and makes it soft under foot, and easy to clean.
It came with a 85 ltr water tank, two jerry holders and twin gas bottle holder. The kitchen came with plenty of storage and a twin burner gas stove. There even was a bonus BBQ top that fits the gas cooker or you can put it on the campfire. The best part is it came at around $11,000 and it was all brand new.
There was one more thing I wanted on it, but I decided to do it myself. That was a dual battery system. I wanted to run a 12-volt fridge and some lighting. I set up an inside light, an outside light and twin outlet in the trailer. I mounted a battery box and battery on the trailer and wired it to charge while travelling.
Now it was time to use it. I decided to go on a short trip along the great ocean road and the south east of Australia. I bush camped along the Glenelg River and stayed in a few caravan parks. We both worked out a routine, which made setting up and pulling down easy. All went well with no major problems.
The main trip was going to be from Adelaide to Katherine, Kununurra, the Bungle Bungles, some of the Gibb River Road, Broome, Karijini National Park, then south to Kalgoorlie, across the Blight back home. A total of 11,500 kilometres in four and a half weeks.We drove on some very badly corrugated tracks, the worst one being into the Bungle Bungles. This was a fifty kilometre trip which took two and a half hours, with one major river crossing. The trailer passed with flying colors in all terrains.
On the highway we coasted at around 100 km/hr and averaged 17.6 litres / 100 kms in my petrol V6 Toyota Prado.
I have been extremely happy with the trailer and we both are looking forward to many more trips away in the future.