In this episode, we travel in our converted Ford transit campervan, with our dog, Twyla, to Mount Franklin in Victoria Australia.
We also check out a couple of converted Toyota HiAce vans and were lucky to get a tour by the owner, who has converted vans for 6years. We stayed the weekend at Mount Franklin to enjoy and try out some camp cooking and our BBQ.
Mount Franklin is an extinct volcano about 10 km north of Daylesford in Victoria, Australia. A road spirals around the outside slopes covered with pine trees, into a flat 50-acre caldera, now used as a camping ground, and onto the rim which hosts a fire lookout, parking area, and picnic ground.
Camping on a long weekend can be quite crowded, so have a backup plan nearby. The campground has firepits sprinkled around. You will need to bring wood, as there is limited wood around on the ground. There is an enjoyable walk around the rim of the volcano. The few times we have visited Mt Franklin, we run into friendly campers happy to have a chat.
While camping in this episode, we cooked the following:
•Jaffles in a cast iron Jaffle maker
• lemonade scones
• Red wine beef stew in our camp oven
• breakfast wraps on the BBQ
• fish with lemon and herbs
On our first night, we camped next to 2 converted Toyota Hiace. We ended up having a chat with the owner, who was nice enough to give us a van tour of both Toyota HiAce vans. He has converted five vans. The vans had a pull-out fridge, an outdoor shower, plenty of storage space, and a pull-out kitchen.
The second night we got the camp oven out. The exquisite flavors and textures you get from cooking with a cast iron camp oven are like no other, and even the simplest meals come alive when infused with that unique camp oven flair. Don’t expect to master it on your first go but with a bit of practice, you’ll soon get the hang of it and be rewarded with delicious, mouth-watering meals.
A great tip when you’re cooking on a cold or windy day, it will really help to lower your camp oven by digging a hole that’s just the right depth for the coals to be in, and try not to open the lid too much as the wind will blow away the heat. We hope you like what we serve up.
We hope you enjoy our channel. We often get asked, ‘what is vanlife?’ Van life is a lifestyle of living in a vehicle full or part-time. The names are compound words that derive from the fact that it is typically done in a van that has been modified with basic amenities, such as house batteries, solar panels, a bed platform, some form of the toilet, sink, and storage space. Some van-dwellers live this lifestyle by choice while seeking freedom, self-sufficiency, and mobility without paying for conventional stationary housing, while for others it may be one step from living on the street or in a shelter. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, an idealized version has been popularized through social media with the hashtag #vanLife. Although the term van-dwelling implies living in a van, many types of vehicles may be used for permanent, mobile living arrangements, including former public buses or school buses, campervans, recreational vehicles (RVs), travel trailers, mobile homes, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and cars.
We enjoy part-time van life, creating weekly episodes that are live at 5pm (AEST) Sundays, and sharing our experiences on our travels with our cavoodle, Twyla. In our episodes we stay at free and paid campsites, showing our tips and tricks on how to make life on the road easier and fun. Come join us on our adventures!
It’s great to see Australian tourism picking up with many people traveling around Australia in caravans, campervans, RVs, and camping in tents. If you enjoy traveling within Australia too, make sure you Like & Subscribe to our channel. Thanks for watching!
9:48 Campfire Jaffles
18:56 Camp Oven Scones
26:08 Collecting Firewood
27:37 Toyota Campervan Tours
33:37 Camp Oven Scones
48:12 BBQ Breakfast Wraps
49:42 Campfire Fish