At a glance…
- MasterChef Australia winner and columnist for The Weekly, Julie Goodwin, is going on a road trip and taking The Weekly with her!
- Julie and her husband Mick are recreating her grandfather’s caravan trip from Victoria to South Australia in the caravan he built 70 years ago.
- She’s documenting the caravan’s maiden voyage on her socials and here at The Weekly.
MasterChef Australia winner and The Australian Women’s Weekly columnist Julie Goodwin is hitting the open road – and she’s taking The Weekly along for the ride.
Julie and her husband, Mick, are retracing her grandfather’s journey from Victoria to South Australia in the very caravan he built more than 70 years ago.
As the lovingly restored caravan embarks on its maiden voyage, Julie will be sharing every memorable stop, story and surprise on her social channels and right here at The Weekly.
Read on for her story!
And we’re off!
We’ve been planning this trip for a while, ever since we realised that this beautiful little caravan was celebrating its 70th birthday this year.
My grandfather, Roy White, built the van in 1956. It was his third caravan; the first one he built was for him and my Nan to take on their honeymoon – before they even had a car! They had to borrow a car for their first trip.
This van was built after work and on weekends. He and Nan used to leave the after-dinner cleanup to mum and her brother, and they would go outside and work on the caravan. It took only six weeks to build; it blows my mind that 70 years on it doesn’t have a loose cupboard door, not a rattle or a squeak. It is a beautifully crafted thing, and Mick and I are very proud to have had it passed down to us to take care of and enjoy.
My grandfather died just a few years after he built this van; it was his dream to travel all over Australia with his family. He didn’t get to do all the travel he wanted to, but we have made sure that we are doing as much as we can in his memory. He and Nan travel with us in our hearts always, but especially during this trip, our recreation of this caravan’s maiden voyage all those years ago.
On to Mildura!
We made it across the Murray River to Victoria and stayed in Mildura for two nights. It’s always nice to stop down for a bit of extra time and have a proper look at the town.
Mildura is a citrus growing region, a bit like home on the Central Coast. There are some really beautiful murals on the buildings around town.
Instead of cooking one night, we had a lovely dinner at Botanica before snuggling up into our little van. It’s getting pretty chilly at night. But we manage to stay cosy with a good feather quilt and robust woollen bedsocks!
Last night we took in a beautiful sunset over the Murray River, right where we were camping. It’s incredible that, even though the water is constantly moving, it is slow and gentle enough that the water is like a mirror.
These are always my favourite times on a road trip – those moments where we are still, and nature is just doing her thing all around us; the birds, wheeling and calling, the water, the clouds and sun painting the sky.
What a beautiful country we live in.
Reaching Adelaide
We pulled up in West Beach, Adelaide, in a caravan park right on the ocean. We only had two nights here, so we decided to spend one of our days exploring Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills. Traditionally called Bukartilla, Hahndorf was settled by 39 Lutheran families who were fleeing Prussian persecution. Full of handmade sweets, candles, fashion, and crafts, it also has dozens of options to eat traditional German fare. We stopped in the pub and had schnitzel, pretzels, and bockwurst, and later in the German cake shop for strudel and bee sting pastries and strong coffee.
Mick is very keen that I point out that the main street parking is three hours, which is generous and welcoming and encourages you to linger in the town browsing the small businesses rather than rushing away for fear of a parking fine.
Just a minute up the road is the Beerenberg Family Farm, with an astonishing array of beautiful produce, from their jams and chutneys to dressings and olive oil, all produced right there. It’s a food lovers’ paradise, and I had to rein myself in as we only have limited space in the caravan!
On our second day in West Beach, we stopped in Glenelg, an historic beachside suburb just ten kilometres from Adelaide. Among the slides that Mum and Dad have given me of the van’s very first holiday is a beautiful picture of Mum and Nan sitting on the sea wall.
They seem unaware that they are being photographed. Pictures like this are rare and precious, and it is lovely to be standing in that same place seventy years later.
Clare Valley to the Big Lobster
Road-tripping is like a travelling box of chocolates – you never know what you’re going to get. And that’s especially true of the weather in this wide, fickle country of ours. We have found our plans changing due to a severe and unexpected weather event. Thankfully we had stopped into the tourist information centre in Port Augusta to look at some maps, or we may not have even heard the news that the massive downpour and windstorm had seen the roads closed between us and our next stop, which was going to be the Flinders Ranges. We hung around for an extra night to see if the waters would subside enough for us to still visit, but alas they did not.
There’s always an upside though, and this has given us the opportunity to explore some other places on our way to Mount Gambier to resume the original route of the caravan’s maiden voyage. From Port Augusta we went through some really picturesque little towns to Clare, in the Clare Valley wine region; and from there to Kingston, home of the Big Lobster. We stopped in at Robe for a look, a beautiful seaside town, and we’re now on the limestone coast southeast of Adelaide. We’ll be stopping here, in Mount Gambier, for a couple of nights to see the sights before heading off to the Great Ocean Road.
There’s something so beautiful about being in the countryside, watching the landscape change from red earth and arid vegetation to scrubby seaside trees and limestone-washed aqua waters. And to finish each day so simply, in this dear little van lovingly crafted seventy years ago and still providing us with all the comforts that we need on the road. And what a lucky person I am, to be doing it all with my best friend. Life is good.
Mount Gambier, Halls Gap, Great Ocean Road
Mount Gambier is one of the most unique and interesting towns around. Built on a volcano, the lake in the crater is the town’s water supply. It is a vibrant, sapphire blue from November through to March. We found it was still a beautiful blue despite it being August.
Underneath the town is a series of caves, tunnels and hollows created by the volcanic activity. This has led to a number of sinkholes which have become their own thriving and beautiful ecosystems.
Since we could not go to the Flinders Ranges we have booked a couple of nights in Halls Gap, in the Grampians. This is the most gorgeous little town, and our campground is right at the base of the mountains. We spend hours bushwalking up to the pinnacle and to other lookouts and waterfalls all within a very short distance of the town. It is breathtaking. (Cold, but breathtaking.) We are travelling very comfortably in our little van. It does get a bit chilly at night but we have a little fan heater to take the edge off.
The Great Ocean Road is I think, on a lot of people’s bucket lists, and for good reason. It’s just stunning, and we’re really lucky with a clear, sunny day to see all the colours in the cliffs and crystal blue ocean. I have with me a couple of photos from when I was here as an 11-year-old, when mum and dad took us out of school to travel the country in the same little van. It’s interesting to see the changes that have occurred in the past four decades just through natural erosion.
Saying goodbye to the caravan…
It’s been such a special few weeks travelling around in our beautiful old caravan. It’s been meaningful, occasionally emotional, to try and see the country through the eyes of my Nan and her beloved husband with their young family. They didn’t know at the time, in 1956, that my grandfather would only love six more years; he died when he was 50 years old. Nan was in her forties, left to raise two children on her own.
Throughout her life, Nan kept my grandfather alive for her children and grandchildren. He was always spoken about with such love. And of course, his memory was kept alive too in the beautifully crafted little caravan, still without a leak or a rattle after seventy years of family holidays.
On the last leg of the trip in 1956, my grandfather pulled off the highway and discovered a hidden gem on the far South Coast called Dalmeny. He bought some land in a new subdivision before he died. Nan held onto it, paying rates even though she could barely afford to, and in the 1980s built a little house there. I have holidayed in Dalmeny all my life; so have my sons and now my grandchild. Mum and Dad live there permanently.
We stopped in Dalmeny on our way home and had a 70th birthday party for our little van. Safe to say that my grandfather and my Nan’s legacy lives on through all of our generations, and Mick and I look forward to our next opportunity to take her out on the road!
Follow Julie’s journey on her Instagram page and check back in here for more updates.
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