G'Day Rod,

As a general rule I tow in 3rd gear, however if I can "feel" that the vehicle is not labouring I will knock it into Drive (4th) and go along until such times as I feel the motor starting to work that little bit harder.( By the way, I use the Power function on the auto transmission when ever towing as well.) As a guess I'd say that it's around 80% of the time I'm in 3rd.
At the moment however we are up in the NT and roads are a lot flatter and straighter so I'm travelling a little bit more in 4th than perhaps I've done previously.

Re the noise, yes I do agree that it's noisier in 3rd & it can get bit tiresome if you're in the car for any length of time. As for towing speed, as I said I can count on an AVERAGE of around 80kmp from point to point, so on a decent bit of road I sit on around 90-95 quite comfortably, with something up my sleeve if I need to overtake. Like many out there, I'm very aware of the traffic around us so keep up a good pace at all times and not hold up traffic. Of course if you want to go faster, you'll use more fuel etc etc.

Hope that helps.
Cheers
Rob

Nikki and Chris: So glad to hear that you're ready to start the 'big trip'! Not surprised to hear that you're hooked on caravanning after 6 months... we knew the lifestyle was for us after the first week! You'll really enjoy it. I hope we get to catch up with you on the road somewhere. And if you have a favourite recipe, don't forget to share it!

Ross: I think your van was over near the beach... we passed it on the way out of the park each time we drove out, if I've got your position right?

You're right about it getting harder to remember various vans and tow vehicles as we move on. There's so much choice around these days. It's fascinating to see the different setups.

Cheers
Marg

Hi Rob and Marg

Great to have you back in Shellharbour last weekend, now we need to see the ultimate "Geek Girl" in action and review that Ipad and the Amazon Kindle. Belinda and Bruce.

Hi Rob and Marg,

You are probally sick of hearing this now but " loved the DVD" It is really informative.
I really enjoyed the Tow Ed section - as I don't tow - too scared! But after seeing the segment I tried to look them up in W.A. but I can't find one over here. Just my luck!
I was just wondering - as no-one has asked yet - Do you have a camera crew travelling with you? Or do you set a camera up on tripod?

We have just picked up our new Spinifex Off-Road van and can't wait to hit the road fulltime in a couple of months. Maybe we will be able to catch up somewhere.
Happy Travels,

Shell

Hi Rob & Marg,
my husband and i are also from Wollongong. We were hoping to meet you before you left but it come together. We are picking up our Playmor 31' Fifth Wheeler next week and are so excited to be heading out on our big adventure next year. We will take between now and then to settle into it and become familiar with the lay out. We have sold our house so this will be our home from now on. I am also writing a travel journal and would love to share it with everyone. Can you tell me how I can go about this please. We wish you & Rob a successful and safe journey. We hope we can catch up with you somewhere along the way. Look forward to hearing from you,
kind regards,
Ruth

Belinda and Bruce: so, you've finally stopped lurking!!! Good to hear from you. Keep posting.
I love, love love my iPad (now I've got it all working) and guess what? Rob - after seeing its Google Maps function and calendar and all sorts of other funky things - actually asked me in the car today: "Did you bring your iPad?" because HE wanted to use it.
Yay! A win!
Geek girl triumphs.
Marg

Shell, we will never tire of hearing that people loved the DVD! But seriously... we do want to make it as much fun AND as informative as possible, so all feedback is welcome. (Although if you say "Hey, you guys really suck" I will probably cry.) No, not really. We do want to hear what you need to know or what you want to know more about. And (honestly!) the crew back at Caravan and Motorhome feel just the same. They are trying really hard to bring you what you want. So tell us! (OK: of course we can't fit EVERYTHING in... but we'll try to suit most people.)

Actually someone HAS asked (in a PM) whether we have a camera crew travelling with us, so I'll reply here so you will all know.

We have a team that flies out to meet us for a section of our trip every month, staying with us anywhere from a week to two weeks, depending on the length of the segment. Generally we have two video guys (right now it's David and Adam - hi guys!); a cameraman (Brett) and our director, Lauren (with a delicious American accent, which is very contagious. Hence I sometimes inadvertantly pronounce things with an American accent!) Actually, keep an eye out for Adam on the DVD for the Mackay-Cairns leg!

You will be hearing more about the team as we travel: they work very hard to bring you the DVD and they're a really nice bunch of people. In addition, we have other people back at the magazine working away at video editing (hi Rob), magazine articles, and being generally supportive.

Tow-Ed was a great course to do, but if you can't do it, Shell, still have a shot at backing the van now and then when you strike a quiet spot. Nobody could be worse than I am (hey, Cathy/Jayco Gypsy, wanna train me some more???) but I am determined to get it right!

How about posting some pics of your Spinifex van? Especially the inside!

Cheers
Marg

Hi Ruth,

I would LOVE to see photos of your fifth wheeler. Sounds like it's going to be a very comfortable home for you! Where are you heading out first? (And where did you live in Wollongong?)

If you want to keep a travel diary the two most common options are probably Blogger or Wordpress. Visit these sites to find out more about them:

https://www.blogger.com/start

and

http://en.wordpress.com/features/

We would love to see you somewhere along the way.

Cheers

Marg & Rob

Hi Rob and Marg, just a request about the info in the DVD...would it be possible to post the prices of attractions to things that you guys go to see? I know there are times when the navigator and I see something and think that it would be great if we knew how much it was going to cost and we could budget for it in our trip. Not sure if I am the only one who has an interet in this side of things or if it is even possible, but you did say to let you guys know...lol.
Anyways continue having fun out there guys...we look like starting our trip in early January 2011.
Take care
Al and Lou

Rob & Marg,

Yep that was us at Hawks Nest.

I see you're in the NT. Dont do what my brother did when he was in the NT. Rounded a bend on the Stuart H'way. A couple of kangaroos were on the road way up ahead, he slowed down, they hopped off the road onto the verge, he kept a slow speed but one of them decided to hop back onto the road again just as he was adjacent to them, wiped out his rear vision mirror and put a decent sized dent in his door.

Take care. Best wishes and safe travels.

Ross