We have just finished cleaning the red sand out of the caravan and truck that came home with us after our epic 12 days in the Australian Outback. What a mammoth task that was for Chris. He did well and I got some fantastic footage of our driveway looking like Big Red!

Dust. What dust?

We travelled about 3500km from Brisbane to Birdsville through Eulo, and returning home passing through Charleville and Roma to attend Australia’s most remote rock concert, The Big Red Bash. 9207 was the official total of people who attended the bash this year – which was just epic!

Looking down on Bashville from Big Red

History was made on day 3 of the bash as a Guinness World Record title was broken for the most people doing the Nutbush. It took a while to get all 2000 registered participants in the roped off area and a few rehearsal dances helped to pass the time. 1,719 people completed the challenge without being disqualified beating the original record of 522. Woohoo! So. Much. Fun! You can check out the video here: Nutbush World Record.

The entertainment was brilliant with our favourites being Busby Marou, Russell Morris, The Wolfe Brothers, Travis Collins and I loved The Angels. Chris – not so much. He preferred the Hoodoo Gurus which I can’t stand!  Adam Brand, Amber Lawrence, The Black Sorrows, Daryl Braithwaite, Kate Cebrano, John Stevens and John Farnham all hit the stage as well. It was epic. Hmm. I think I used that word already – but I can’t think of a better one! I was lucky enough (or crazy enough not to move! lol) to be front and centre for about 7 hours on the Wednesday. I could almost see up the performers nostrils! It was wow. just WOW – or should I say – epic? Check out my little compilation of The Angels here.

Front and centre! And yes, that’s The Angels behind me 🙂

The Black Sorrows

We had the best time at The Big Red Bash and the journey was definitely as fabulous as the destination! We saw so many amazing things, visited many fascinating country towns and made some wonderful new friends. And while that blog post is going to take a while to put together, I thought I’d share how I feel after my time in the ‘real’ Outback Australia.

The outback is hard to explain. It’s a desolate, lonely and often treacherous place – yet there is something about the vast emptiness that draws you in, tangles with your emotions and makes you think more deeply about almost every aspect of your life. The vibrant red of the sand and the vivid blue skies make for countless ‘wow’ memories that are forever etched into your mind, and when the dust settles and the sun goes down – the stars will burn so brightly that you will never forget the magic.

The wildlife will draw you in (and sometimes scare you back into your car!) and show you eagles bigger than you’ve ever seen, more emus than you can imagine and countless kangaroos, pigs and wild dogs dotted around on the endless flat plains. And when you see those wild dogs strung up from trees and hanging from fences, you’ll wish you had phone reception to google what on earth is going on! There was some serious roadkill as well; some of what we saw splattered on the road made me wonder how the vehicle ended up!

A huge positive of adventuring through the outback is meeting, chatting with and helping out our fellow Aussies who work so hard with minimal support.

There are so many tiny businesses in these small country towns that thrive when visitors spend a few days shopping, visiting local attractions and even just filling up the tank. It was devastating to see the effects the current drought is having on these outback towns, and we are doing all that we can to help.

We have organised a FUNdraise for Farmers camping weekend at Bigriggen, Scenic Rim (QLD) Nov 23-25, 2018 for those of you who would like to come along, and a donations button is right there below ticket purchases for those of you who would like to donate. You can also donate via our Facebook fundraiser here. Click here for ticket purchases and to read more.

And yes, every town we went through had Telstra 4G and we had contact with the outside world. Although, being cut off from the internet definitely adds to the appeal of the outback.

Stopping and having a chat to these inspirational people will open up your eyes to things that may have never even crossed your mind.

Not only are the towns filled with history and so much to stop and see, there are historical relics and landmarks dotted all over the place! Have a look at our drone footage of the Weengallon Aboriginal Rock Wells.

We are already planning our next adventure, and the hardest part is figuring out where to go! Finke? Uluru? Back to the Bash? Winton? Who knows, maybe all of the above. What we do know is that it will be epic and well worth all the planning that goes into it.

If you’ve thought about going, stop thinking and start planning! This is one experience you will carry with you forever.

Here is the link to the Big Red Bash website in case you are a teeny tiny bit interested in heading out to experience the magic for yourself. And who knows, we might even see you there. www.bigredbash.com.au