The Big Weigh

Both Chunky Bum and Big Ears are a little bit on the chubby side, not to mention Peter and myself. But what does this mean? Well, in order to conform with safety requirements, we need to go to an engineer who will inspect Big Ears & Chunky Bum and, if compliant, we can be recertified.

We had planned to travel south from Kingaroy, but we found a company called Transmod on the south side of Maryborough who specialise in recertifying caravans and cars to meet Transport and Main Roads requirements, so off we went northbound yet again.

The Good news is, is that both Big Ears and Chunky Bum have been inspected and have passed with flying colours. The Ford Ranger has anti-sway as standard, and not long after we bought the Ranger, Peter had the suspension overhauled with heavy duty springs and a two-inch lift. This means that the 3200kg gross vehicle mass can now be upgraded to 3500kg.

Chunky Bum has been fully inspected and has been recertified from 2900kg to 3400kg gross vehicle mass, and now you know why we call the van Chunky Bum. All jokes aside it is a big relief to have had this done. Our combined towing mass is still six ton, that alone is a scary figure, but now we know that the Ranger is more than capable of towing the van, and that the van is not legally overweight. Saying that, we have decided to head back to Redland Bay and leave a few more things in storage. Things that carry a bit of weight and that in truth, will rarely be used. I briefly considered leaving Peter, but he does most of the driving so… 🤪

…here we are, six days after starting our big Australian trip, Big Ears and Chunky Bum have been weighed and found wanting. They have both been recertified to a heavier specification, our wallet is considerably lighter, and we are heading home.  But just long enough to offload some non-essentials, then we will be back on the road, this time heading south.

That evening we camped just off the Bruce highway south of Maryborough in a little town called Tiaro. Petrie Park to be precise. This is a small free camp right on the banks of the Mary river. It is a small area and there is not a lot of level ground, but it is a pretty spot, well away from the road and very popular. We were on a bit of a slope, but we didn’t think it would be much of a problem as our heads were up hill. What we didn’t account for though were the slippery sheets. They are not satin or silk, but on a decent slope they act as a remarkably effective slippery dip. It felt as though we spent more time clawing our way up-hill in the bed, than we did sleeping.  

It’s worth mentioning that there is a good boat ramp at Petrie Park, and though we were tempted to put the kayaks in, we were on a bit of a schedule, so decided not to take the time to enjoy the river. I have to question the accuracy of this sign next to the boat ramp,

I’d have thought we were a bit far south for crocs, but hey…who am I to argue.

See you out there somewhere

On Tow and on the go