WEDNESDAY WRITE-UP: #45 Cruisin WA

Maddie & Alex are from Perth, WA and when they’re not busy studying at uni building their careers, they are taking advantage of their time off, exploring as much of their ‘backyard’ in Western Australia! We asked them to “describe yourselves in 5 words” and they chose, “Young. Adventurous. Resourceful. Motivated and Aussie”. They are one cool couple with a solid passion for travel, an impressive Rig and aren’t afraid to lay their own tracks in order to experience an exciting path! Enjoy their story! 

Tell us about the RIG you travel in?
She’s a 2012 VDJ 79 Series Landcruiser workmate (the one with the wind-up windows and vinyl seats- just how we like it). Completed with an Alu-Cab gen 4 RTT.

Swag, RTTent. Camper Trailer or Caravan? What’s your choice & Why?
RTT. We’ve used tents in the past, including most recently the ’30 second’ Oztent RV5, and since we’ve upgraded to the RTT we’re questioning why we didn’t do it sooner! Our RTT is so easy to put up and pack down! It suits our style of travel by allowing us to drive, stop, sleep and get off again within ten mins of waking up. The rooftop tent maximises our time spent at our destination as we are always pressed to fit big trips into a couple of days.

What’s the BEST PART of #CruisinWA ?
The best part is exactly that – exploring the diverse landscape and spending time in some of the most amazing spots. We live in this amazing state, and so many people travel overseas yet haven’t even explored their own backyard. We do a lot of long-distance highway driving, and I think half of the adventure is being out on the road, ‘cruisin’ the kms.


It’s a tough one we know, but…. FAVOURITE DESTINATION or MEMORABLE MOMENT?
Our favourite spot and most memorable time spent would be at Cape Leveque, 200km north of Broome, WA. Best sunset, incredible water, great fishing and the road to Cape Leveque itself is something else…
 
What AUSTRALIAN DESTINATIONS are still on your BUCKET LIST?
I would love to get a bit more time off and do the NT. Of course, Cape York is also somewhere on the list but maybe not as high as it is on other peoples’. We’ll get there eventually though. Maybe I just have a thing for red dirt?
 
Best LOCAL TRACKS in your area and Why you’d tell interstate ‘Explorers’ to hit them up?
This is seriously a hard one. Our style of travel is very expeditious, and we’ll usually only head away when we have 3+ days off, and even a 3-day trip can mean we drive 800km to our camp site. We’re yet to do any good ‘weekend’ trips closer than 500km to Perth, so I’ll give you some of our faves in WA;
 
1) The Pilbara is an amazing region of Australia, and there are a few tracks out of Newman (my home town) which offer a 4-wheel drive through some breath-taking Pilbara scrub (yes believe it) to some of the most unique swimming holes. Sure, Karijini is nice but it pays to venture off the beaten track and do it like the locals!
 
2) Another favourite is Francois Peron National Park which gives you a taste of the Dampier Peninsula without driving the 2400km to get there, with red cliffs/dunes contrasting against turquoise waters, and complete with awesome fishing. You’re going to need a 4wd to access the best parts of the park due to the soft, sandy track in, meaning the lesser-equipped tourists are deterred.
 
3) My last favourite is the Esperance region, to the south. You might have heard of the roos on the beach in Cape Le Grand National Park, but if you really want something extra special away from the masses of tourists, you have to hit up Cape Arid National Park (about 150km east of Esperance). Drive on the beach nearly 50km around Yokinup Bay to find your own piece of paradise, crack a tinny and do some fishing.
 

What does the term ‘ADVENTURE’ mean to you?
To us, adventure means ‘getting off the beaten track’ and going somewhere different to the majority. It means experiencing somewhere new or somewhere that interests you, and facing the challenges along the way.
 

Follow Maddie & Alex on Instagram:
@maddiesskinner
@cruisinWA

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