Young families are embracing the off-road lifestyle

We’ve been on the road for nearly three months now, mainly in Western Australia having traversed some of its deserts and then the fabulous Ningaloo coast.

Scattered amongst the regulars who come to this coast were a few long-term travellers who had been on the road for six months or more and were planning to be roving the country for at least another six months, some for a darn sight longer. We met other long-term travellers in other far-flung places, too.

It was great to see, but what appealed to me were the young families on the road who were thoroughly enjoying it and embracing the gypsy lifestyle.

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Tyson and Rebecca Hayes with their son, Jack.

Tyson and Rebecca Hayes with their young son Jack, who was just seven months old, were just some who had been camped on the beach for a week or so when we caught up. They had left Brisbane in early 2020 and as they headed south COVID raised its ugly head, closing borders and the like; so they hightailed it back to Queensland and worked on a property just out of Goondiwindi. Jack then came along and many friends and family expected them to call their long-awaited dream trip off, but Tyson and Rebecca had other ideas.

Once borders started to reopen and with their AOR camper hooked up to their Nissan V8 Patrol, they first headed to SA and, after a quick look around, always aware of what COVID was doing to borders, they crossed into WA where they slowed down to smell the wildflowers and enjoy the travelling.

Tyson and Rebecca expect to be travelling all this year and next – maybe even longer – and their advice is that the hardest thing to travelling for a long time is to actually go, as once you are on the road it is easier … even with a seven-month old! You can follow their travels on Instagram at @Austrekadventures.

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The Miles family with their well set-up 4WD.

Just up the beach were Will and Krystal Miles with their two young kids, Harvey aged nine and Magnolia aged five. They had left their NSW Central Coast home in February 2020, but after 10 weeks in SA, COVID put a spanner in the works and they headed home for a short time. Once borders opened, they set off again, hightailing it across the eastern states to get into WA where they have slowed down somewhat.

With Will being a keen fisherman and the family loving the sea, they wandered around Cape Arid and Esperance before pushing north to the Ningaloo coast, where they had been for four weeks and were planning on another six before heading on.

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Young Harvey and a whale shark - what an education.

But what adventures they were having: catching big fish, finding crays and swimming with whale sharks and manta rays. Young Harvey was in his element, reveling in the adventures his mum and dad were leading him on, while young Magnolia was content to look at the pretty fish and collect shells and the like. It was a hell of an education backed-up by school lessons from the School of Distance Learning for an hour a day, four days a week. The rest of the time the kids were learning in nature, from nature, and socialising with a diverse group of humans young and old. I couldn’t think of a better education for young kids!

Will and Krystal plan to be on the road in their well set-up Hino with custom-made camper, towing a boat, for the next three years or so. Follow their adventures on Instagram at @im_on_fishing.

So get out there, follow your dream – no excuses!