As I left my little campsite and began the days driving, I had two things on my mind other than the migraine that was developing. Find breakfast and find a place to have a shower.

OK, so I may as well get it out in the open now. I am somewhat of a clean freak. I can’t ever remember a day where I skipped having at least one shower. I also used to be one of these people who washed my hands every five minutes, an urge that I’ve been able to tame in the last few years. Just the idea of getting on the road and driving without feeling cleaned first, was somewhat distressing.

I headed back into the township of Golden Beach where I was delighted to see some public showers that I hadn’t noticed the night before in the dark. I made my way over to them only to discover that you had to pay to use them. Five dollars for a three minute shower. Are they kidding! Who the hell can shower in three minutes? This was going to cost at least fifteen bucks.

I guess it’s time to point out another one of my failings. Believe me, I have many... I am a man of principle and I don’t like being ripped off. I will stand up against what I believe is wrong, even if it’s only a small wrong like this. It’s this line of thinking that led me to make a decision that I would come to regret.

To hell with you Mr. Shower... There was no way I was going to pay that much. Maybe five bucks for an un-timed shower, but even that would be pushing it. One of my best friends Chris, had traveled around Australia the year before and told me that there were plenty of roadhouses where you could get free showers. I wasn’t worried... Yet!

I thought about getting some breakfast across the road at the same take-away shop I’d gotten dinner. The thought was instantly replaced by “you have all of Australia before you, why eat at the same place twice?” Besides, I really wasn’t that hungry anyway. I headed back to the car.

As I started off down the road, again I got a whiff of gas again. What the hell was going on. I stopped the car and once more, unpacked the bottle and checked it out thoroughly. Again, nothing and again the smell had disappeared. Somewhat bewildered, I packed everything back up again and set of once more.

Feeling somewhat paranoid, all I could focus on was the gas. Could I really smell it? Was it there now and I’d gotten used to it? Was I imagining the whole thing? Maybe I should toss the bottle out just to be safe...

Not far down the road and the smell definitely returned, even stronger than before. That was the last straw. I was just going to turn the tap on the bottle and empty it all the gas. I figured I could pick up a new one at the next big town. As I made my way to the back of the car, I noticed that the smell was in the air. Something wasn’t right. How could the smell of the gas bottle be outside the car too? It was then that I noticed I had stopped on a causeway that was crossing what used to be a lake.

The water had almost all dried up from this vast area. What remained was a massive sandy, muddy, stink pit of rotting vegetation. I thought I’d better check the bottle, just to satisfy my paranoia. I let a little bit of gas out to smell it. There was a subtle difference but I was amazed me how closely the stench was to that of bottled gas.

I looked at the map of the area and noticed that this was the same lake that ran close to where I was camping but had been hidden by the trees. The mystery was solved and I dare say this also explains the reason for the migraine. I was somewhat relieved that the gas bottle was ok and more to the point, that I wasn’t going crazy. Well, any more so than normal at least...

Last week I caught up with fellow traveling buddy Heather of There’s No Place Like Oz fame. She told me that she was planning a road trip from Cooktown to Brisbane with another friend, Brooke of Why Go Australia and Brooke Vs The World fame. Even before Heather had finished talking I was spewing forth excited information. “Ooo you’ve gotta go here” and “You’ve gotta do that” and “If you go through this place make sure you check out those”... You get the idea.

Needless to say Heather just looked at me and calmly said, “would you mind writing that down cause I can’t remember all that.”

So I did. I grabbed a scrap of paper (actually it was the menu of the cafe we were in) and started scribbling all the places down. In my enthusiasm to put down all the ideas that were erupting from my head, I made an unreadable mess. As I handed her the menu with my chook scratchings all over it, the look on her face could only be described as dismay. I pulled the menu back “Maybe I should type it up for you...” Her face lit up in agreement.

A few days later when I finally started trying to figure out what I’d written, I thought it might be a good idea to type it up as a blog entry so that others can enjoy it too. So that’s what I’m doing now.

Cooktown

I would recommend planning your trip to Cooktown so that you arrive in time to see the Sunset. As you drive through town head straight for The Grassy Hill. You’ll see it, it’s a hill, with grass on it. About half way up there is the most perfect spot to look down on the town and across the Endeavour river to the tablelands of Yimithirr country in the distance. This was an awe inspiring magical sight.

After the spectacular view, you can’t go past the magnificent Restaurant 1770 for dinner. My night here was truly one of the best dining experiences of my whole trip, if not my whole life. It’s not just the food that was great, it’s the whole experience. This place is an absolute Must Do.

Something I only recently learned about and was sad to have missed, are the Guurrbi Tours with Aboriginal Elder Willie Gordon. This walk along some of the Nugal-warra tracks and through woodlands in an area known as Wangaar-Wuri, is an exploration of Aboriginal rock art, giant rocks and spectacular views. I’ll definitely be heading back at some point to experience this amazing insight into our native Australian’s heritage.

I really loved Cooktown and there is lots to see and do but the last thing I will recommend as a must, is heading back up the Grassy Hill. This time, however, early in the morning. It really is worth the effort to see the Sunrise from the lighthouse on the very top. Being on the ocean side of the hill, it is very different to the Sunset but just a magical to see.

Not Quite Cooktown

Ok so this should possibly still fall under the Cooktown heading but that would mean I lied about the Sunrise being the last recommendation. As you’re leaving Cooktown, you’ll go past Black Mountain. My first sight of this enigma was very much a ‘WTF’ moment. It is a mountain made entirely of black boulders. As there is no dirt, nothing grows on it other than fig trees that dangle their roots deep inside.

I’m not going to recommend venturing too close to the mountain unless you’re with someone who knows the area very well. It is an easy place for all kinds of accidents to happen so stay safe.

Port Douglas

There is so much to do in Port Douglas, I could ramble on for hours but I wont. there are only two things I’ll recommend as must do’s. First up is visiting the Rainforest Habitat. They offer Breakfast with the Birds and Lunch with the Lorikeets packages that are worth taking up. If you’re an animal lover like me, then this is one of the best wildlife parks I’ve visited. Just remember, when you feed the animals, the Emu wants some love too. They’re not that scary, really...

The second must do here is ribs at the Rattle n’ Hum hostel restaurant. these ribs are so good, they could almost tempt a vegan to cross over from the dark side. I even had them for lunch and dinner one day. Probably not going to recommend doing that though...

Cairns

I liked Cairns but there isn’t a whole lot I would say is a “Must Do”. However I did have dinner at Casa De Meze where I had my first experience of Emu meat. I know, I know, I was just making friends with the Emus in Port Douglas. But they taste sooo good. Emu has now become my favorite meat.

This is turning into a Must Eat rather than a Must Do list...

Kuranda

This little village, tucked away in the hills above Cairns, has some real treats. Even getting there and returning can be a fantastic adventure. I took the Skyrail up the mountain and the Kuranda Scenic Railway back and both would be on my “Must Do” list.

The Skyrail is a series of cable cars that glide you above the spectacular rainforest up the mountain. There are several stops along the way where you can wander around tracks in the thick forest and get views of the magnificent Barron Gorge and waterfalls.

The Kuranda Scenic Railway winds its way on a journey through the rainforest and along the opposite edges of the Barron Gorge. There are plenty of breathtaking views and a couple of stops for some great photo opportunities. One thing to keep in mind, is to book your bus trip back from the train station to the Skyrail station in advance. You don’t want to get left waiting for an expensive cab ride back.

Once in Kuranda, the Butterfly Sanctuary is worth a look and there was a fantastic bakery there too, somewhere. I wish I’d written down the name of the place. Kinda makes this one the useless “Must Do” tip of the page. But I can assure you it was good.

Mission Beach

Down the road a bit, you get to Mission Beach. To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t that impressed with the area as a lot of construction and development was going on. However, I did stay at a really interesting place called Sanctuary Retreat. Basically your room is a treehouse in the overgrown rainforest, with only netting for walls to keep the bugs out. It’s like camping in the wild but with a comfortable bed. It’s hard to describe but was a great experience. Just remember not to leave anything you may need in the car, it’s a long walk back if you do.

Townsville

I really only passed through Townsville, but the one thing that caught my attention was Castle Hill. If you approach this monolith from the West, it looks like a volcano sticking out of the middle of an otherwise, flat city. However, the East side is a sheer cliff face that looks like a cutaway diagram in a geology school book.

There is a roadway to the top and some really nice scenic lookouts. Be prepared for a bit of walking if you want to get to the best ones where you’ll find magnificent views of Magnetic Island among other things.

Capricorn Caves

Keep on trekking down the highway and just before you reach Rockhampton, you’ll come to the Capricorn Caves. Not the most spectacular of caves in terms of calcite deposits, stalactites and stalagmites but this place has a secret weapon all of its own. An acoustically perfect chamber and I’ve gotta say, I’m getting chills just remembering it. Don’t be afraid to sing while you’re in the chamber. It’s an amazing experience and you’ll regret it if you don’t.

Hervey Bay

I’ve spent quite a bit of time in Hervey Bay and although I really like it, I wouldn’t say there is anything that is a “Must Do”. However it is the doorway to Fraiser Island and that definitely is. I would recommend doing one of the guided tours unless you are experienced at off-road four wheel driving. I don’t want to scare you off but also don’t fool yourself, this is dangerous territory for the inexperienced. Two people actually died the day I was there when they flipped a 4wd at a river crossing and drowned. Have fun and enjoy this natural beauty but stay safe.

Glasshouse Mountains

Back on the Bruce Highway and heading to Brisbane, there is a turn off for the Glasshouse Mountains that is well worth the time. These are a bunch of ancient and extinct volcanoes that have weathered away leaving only the trachyte volcanic plugs standing. Be prepared for some serious bushwalking and steep hillside treks to get the full experience of this primeval landscape.

Brisbane

Finally you’ve reached Brisbane, my personal favorite city in Oz. The funny thing is, I couldn’t actually pinpoint one major reason why. I can’t even think of one thing that is a “Must Do” here. I think it’s just the whole atmosphere and buzz that seeps into your soul while in this town. Maybe that’s what the “Must Do” is. Just to “Experience” the life that is Brisbane.

From Brisbane to Cooktown

But what do you do if you're planning a trip in the opposite direction? Well you can either read this backwards, starting at the bottom and reading up or hold it up to a mirror for the reverse order

Just be warned. If you're travelling in this direction and end up in Cooktown, you may just want to stay forever..

Even before my eyes opened, I could feel the pain of a migraine rippling through my head. Some people think a bad headache is a migraine, they are so wrong. The pain is uniquely different to a regular headache no matter how bad it is. I slowly opened my eyes to the world. Right now the pain was manageable and I could still function but I wondered how long that would last.

Every part of me wanted to pack up and get going. As I got out of the car, I wondered why I’d gotten this migraine. For me they are usually caused by a lack of water, which is why you’ll never see me without a bottle in my hands and if I ever forget it, I go into a quiet panic. However I’m sure I drank enough the previous day. I seemed to have slept quite well too, and the car was surprisingly comfortable. Then I realised I’d slept with all the windows shut. I‘d thought enough air would be able to get into the car but maybe I was wrong. It was the only solution I could think of.

I finished packing up the bedding and set the car up for the days driving. As I sat in the drivers seat ready to go, I stopped myself and had words... “What are you doing you wussy bitch! So you’ve got a little migraine, so what! People have achieved great things with much worse afflictions! Get your lazy, fat arse out of the car and go explore the area! At the very least go check out the ocean you’ve been hearing all night!!”

Who can argue with that?

I got out of the car and made my way down a narrow track through the scrubs toward the sounds of the crashing waves. As it turns out, I’m glad I hadn’t attempted walk to the beach the night before, the sandy track was riddled with uneven rocks and uncovered roots. I would have surely damage myself in some way.

The walk was not doing any favors for my head either but when I finally climbed over a sandy hill and saw the view before me, it all became worthwhile. I hadn’t actually realised until now, that the Sun hadn’t risen. I could tell from the glow in the horizon that it was only moments away.

Instantly I kicked into photographers autopilot. I turned and sprinted back down the track careful not to lose my footing. I made it to the car and retrieve the camera and tripod. As quickly as possible, I raced back to the beach. Thankfully I had made it in time and the Sun still hadn’t broken the horizon. Quickly, I set the camera on the tripod, found my shot and waited for the perfect moment to click.

A few minutes later and the magical moment finally happened. It struck me that I had never actually seen the sun rise above the horizon before, there had always been some kind of obstruction such as trees, hills or buildings. I guess, technically, I still wasn’t truly seeing the Sun break the horizon, as there were some low clouds just blocking the visibility. However, it was still a magical sight. So magical in fact, that I almost forgot to take the photo. Thankfully I came to my senses in time and got a series of shots that I think turned out quite well.

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After standing in awe of the spectacle until the sun had well and truly risen, I decided to go for walk along the beach hoping that the fresh, crisp air would clear my head. Still obsessed with the sunrise, I continued to experiment with shots as I walked. I got some photos down at sea level and then clambered up a sand dune for a different perspective.

A different perspective is certainly what I got. Now picture this for a moment. I’m standing on a beautiful, empty beach, there’s a light cool breeze moving the air around me like a gentle caress, the mesmerizing golden Sun is rising above the horizon, casting orange glows on the backlit clouds and shimmering reflections across the calm waters and the small waves are crashing gently on the shore, making a sound that can only be compared to having your ears massaged by angels. The moment was amazing but my mind was distracted by thinking of an old song by Ween that I hadn’t heard in quite a while... “I’m waving my dick in the wind.”

The hilarious sight before me kind of overpowered the moment. Someone had obviously been down here the night before and built this giant sand-knob... Balls and all... I had to laugh... Thinking back, I wished I’d gotten a photo of me standing next to it, as you just don’t get a sense of the scale. From balls to tip, it was probably about eight meters long. It was at this moment that I realised this was going to be an interesting trip, full of surprises.

I began to make my way back along the beach and was struck by another surprise. Another magical display was taking place before me. As the Sun rose, it was beginning to warm the surface of the ocean. As far as I could see, wispy, white tendrils of steam rose up and danced across the water’s surface. If it wasn’t for the migraine, this would have been close to a perfect morning.

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As I climbed the hill that lead back to the car, I turned to take in the view one last time. With the additional height, I could now see further into the distance and made out a faint but strange looking object on the horizon. I switched to the telephoto lens on the camera to try and get a better view. At full zoom I could only just make out what appeared to be a drilling platform. I couldn’t believe I actually spotted it with a naked eye.

I made my way back to the car and put the camera and tripod away. My head was pounding, the crisp air had made it worse. As I got in the car I noticed the slightest smell of gas. I wondered if the gas tank had been leaking all night and that was why had this migraine. I opened up the back of the car and pulled out the gas tank to check it. The tap was definitely shut and even after closely sniffing all around the tank, I couldn’t smell any gas.

I packed everything away again, got in a car and started off on the second day of my adventure. I wondered just how far I would get before this migraine consumed me and I would be forced to find a dark quiet room to haul up in.

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As much as I love traveling and landscape photography, I thought it’d be cool to introduce you to some of my other photographic and digital art work too. As well as give some insight into my thought process, inspirations, stories behind the images and possibly a look at ways I went about creating them.

At first I was thinking about going through all my work in some kind of order (probably chronological). As good an idea as that might be, it’d mean the first picture I showed you would be crap. So then I figured it’d be good to start with the first piece I ever sold JOTTPOI.

Last year a friend helped me get in touch with a new gallery that was opening in Camberwell near Melbourne called “Lioli”. The name stands for Love it or leave it. It appealed to me straight away. I sent them links to my work online and they wrote back to me to say they’d love to have some of my work as part of their opening. I was excited to say the least.

I got to the task of choosing ten pieces and getting them printed and framed. I have to at this point give a huge thank you to Tony Knight at Manark Printing who helped me immensely with this process. Tony is a very talented photographer himself and clearly has a passion for creating the very best quality of work. He took the time to teach me a lot about the process.

I delivered the final prints to the gallery, and have to say, for a moment I felt a sense of pride, more so than I have with any of my other achievements. A few days later I attended the opening night, which was totally insane. There were so many people there, you couldn’t move. I think the reception even overwhelmed the owners of the gallery Chris and Jackie.

Upon leaving I decided that I would not react my normal neurotic way, calling up every five minutes to see if anything had sold and then pacing around wondering why no one had called me back and all the time having a knot in my stomach. I decided to not think about it and get on with normal life. It’s not that I didn’t care, cause I did. I just didn’t want the possibility of rejection and failure to crush me. This was, after all, the first time I had presented my artwork to anyone other than family and friends.

So I got on with my life, looking for new projects to work on and dreaming up this website among other things. Then several weeks later I got an email from Chris and Jackie at the gallery, stating that a lady had put the piece titled ‘JOTTPOI’ on layby and wanted to know more about it. If it meant anything and what the name stood for?

I could’ve been in trouble as a lot of my work has no pre-thought behind it and just evolves out of me looking at a photo and tinkering with it to try and evoke a feeling more than anything. Fortunately this particular piece did have meaning and was created for a purpose.

J.O.T.T.P.O.I. - Journey Of The Two Professors Of Imaginality

Basically the image came out of a conversation I had with one of my best friends, Chris Daniels. We were talking about creativity and the paths we were taking. He told me about a vision that he had about these spiraling light rays and how it represented creativity. We got into a discussion and came up with a rough diagram that represented how we both journey through the creative process. How at first we are bombarded with constant external input. From experiences we have, people we meet, things we read, TV and films we watch, games we play, etc...

Over time, all of this input comes together and starts swirling around and mixing and intertwining until BOOM! It reaches a critical mass in our minds and explodes into a creative focus like a laser beam. The creative energy that is released then ripples outward in all directions, affecting all that it comes into contact with.

Almost as soon as the conversation had begun, I had visualized this image in my mind, When Chris made a rough sketch on a bit of paper it was identical to what I was seeing. As soon as he left, I jumped on the computer and set about making it into something spectacular. I set the whole thing against a backdrop of deep space with distant nebulae to give it the sense of scale it deserved.

All of this took place way back in November of 2005. Since then I’ve shown quite a few people the completed image and received a varied amount of interpretations, more so than any other piece I have created. “transformation from mind to body, becoming one with the divine”, “space and time with the threads of life”, “a spacial anomaly like wormhole”. For some reason, everyone likes this one and I am yet to hear any negative feedback. I wish I could say the same for all of my artwork...

Beautifully crafted photo prints and other products featuring this image are available from the gallery section and I have to say this is definitely an image that benefits from the metallic processing.

I hope this has given you some insight into this image. I’d love to hear any other interpretations or comments you may have.

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On my travels along the east coast of Australia, I accumulated a lot of experience, especially as a solo road-tripper. Some of what I learnt was just plain old common sense, other things I picked up through trial and error, and then there was the stuff I learned from simply failing miserably. I thought it would be fun to share some of the hints and tips that I’ve gained along the way, to help any of you that may be planning a similar trip.

For this first tip, I thought I might focus on one of the safety aspects of driving on Australia’s outback roads (if you can call them roads that is). I’m not talking about the little roads in the rural areas of Australia, I’m talking about the seriously outback, unsealed and often unkept roads. They are called the Developmental Roads.

My first encounter with a developmental road was on the Cape York Peninsula. My goodness what a shock to the system this was. I could write a whole book just about surviving this one road. However, today I’ll just focus on one aspect of the dangers these roads have to offer. The “dip” in the road.

It doesn’t sound that bad and I never actually came across one that didn’t have a sign, but some of these dips can be brutal and quite often the sign appears at the last moment. The scary and most dangerous thing about these dips, is that you can’t see them until you’re on top of, or should I say, down in, them.

These dips are usually there to allow excess water to drain over the road when it rains. Depending on the time of year and the weather, you could be greeted with a number of different scenarios. A soggy mud pit to get stuck in, or at dried up, cracked trench that can send your shock absorbers running home to mummy, to name a few.

So “how can you not see these dips?” I hear you cry. Well, it’s a matter of perspective. Big stretches of these roads are so long and straight and look exactly the same mile after mile, that when a section dips below the general level of the road and then back up again, it creates an optical illusion and your eyes perceive one continuous stretch of unbroken road.

I remember coming across one early in that trip and completely missed the sign. I didn’t know the dip was there until the car droped below me and my stomach shot in my mouth. Which was kind of cool for all of the moment until we (the car and me) came crashing down hitting the trench at the bottom at 80 Kms p/h. I thought every atom had just exploded. Scared the bejeebers out of me. From that moment on I kept a clear eye out for these “DIP” signs and realised I needed a lot more concentration than a regular road.

Of course these dips can be on any of the roads throughout Australia, they just seem a lot more severe on the Developmental Roads. At least if the road is sealed there usually isn’t a nasty surprise waiting for you at the bottom. One thing’s for sure, these are not the kind of roads you can drive on autopilot. Concentration and observation are key in having a safe trip and surviving some of our most spectacular roads.

To find out more about these and other roads throughout this country, I suggest taking a look at the Oz Roads web site.

If you have your own road trip travel tips or survival tips and would like to do a guest blog post, please get in touch through my contact page, I’d love to hear your ideas.

I pulled up the GPS map and tried looking for a good place to camp for the night. I was surprised to see that I’d traveled quite a bit further than I had thought. I noticed that I wasn’t far from an area I had been intrigued by when I first started thinking about this trip and was scouring Google Earth. In fact the previous few months saw me suffering from an unhealthy addiction to Google Earth, checking out every area and looking up things that would be interesting to see.

From the maps perspective, the area ahead seemed quite odd. It appeared to be a thin sliver of land between the coast on one side and what looked like a wet, sandy pit on the other. I figured there would have to be some nice areas to camp around there and it was only a fifteen minute drive away. I set off.

As I approached the beginning of the area, just past the small town called The Honeysuckles, I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of view. The road was lined with thick scrub, just high enough to block the view and the light was just at that point of twilight, between light and dark where you can see nothing.

I kept on driving, keeping an eye out for a place to camp that was off the road. As I ventured down the dark road, I was pleased to see that there were plenty of little inlets and camping areas off to the sides. I decided to continue on toward the town of Golden Beach at the other end of this thin strip of land. I hoped I could get some dinner as I was starting to feel tired and really couldn’t be bothered setting up the cooking stuff and making my own. Lazy I know and probably not in the true spirit of camping and adventure but I didn’t care... Who would know? Besides, all I’d packed was tinned beans and other uninspiring packet food. Good for emergencies I figure.

I got into town just before seven and realised just how small it was. Thankfully there was a general store that was still open that also acted as the local take-away. I parked the car, walked in and looked up at the menu on the wall. The owner appeared from out the back and told me that they were just about to close and the deep fryer was turned off. The only cooked thing he could muster up was a burger. I really didn’t want it considering that’s what I’d had for lunch but with no choice, that’s what I ordered.

As I stood in the tiny store waiting for the food to cook, fatigue set in and began to overwhelm me. It felt like I could almost fall asleep right where I was standing. Thankfully the owner snapped me out of my standing coma before I could fall down and he handed me the burger. I grabbed a giant bottle of Orange juice (the only size they had) and a few other supplies and headed off.

I made my way back along the road toward the camping grounds with the fresh burger at my side. I was surprised to find that the first few areas I came to already had people in them. The first thing that went through my mind was “what kind of crazy people come out camping to areas like this in cold, wet weather like this?”

Eventually I found an empty spot and was pleased that it was quite a distance from the main road. I parked the car and got out. I could hear the ocean crashing but wasn’t going to risk twisting an ankle to get to it through the thick scrub in the dark. I opened up the back of the car and pulled out one of the fold-up chairs. Then I attempted to set up the gas lamp. Something I wish I’d at least tried at some point before. It was really fiddly in the dark but after about ten minutes I finally got it working and was amazed at just how bright it was.

Finally I had reached the end of my first day. I sat back in the chair and enjoyed the burger, unaware of the juices that were leaking down the front of my jacket. Once finished I figured I’d better pull out the laptop and do some writing. I really didn’t want to but I had to force myself to get in the habit of writing every day. I got myself nice and comfy and started the days recollection.

Shit! It began to rain...

I quickly threw the computer into the car (not literally to anyone at Apple who may be involved with any future warranty claims) and packed up the gas lamp and chair. I jumped in the car and thankfully hadn’t gotten too wet. I pulled up the computer and continued writing.

By the time I’d finished the rain had stopped again. As I sat in quiet contemplation, I got a subtle whiff of what I thought was gas. Uh oh, the first thing to go through my mind was that the gas bottle was leaking. I stepped out of the car and opened the back up to check. I pulled the bottle out and checked the tap. It was fully closed. I had a sniff all around but couldn’t smell anything. The bottle definitely didn’t appear to be leaking. I must have imagined it... I hope!

I put the bottle away and shut the back up again. Above me the sky had totally cleared up, revealing the most amazing night sky. I took out the chair, wrapped myself up in one of the doonas and got comfy. As my eyes adjusted to the dark, the sky got even brighter. It was truly a spectacular sight and one I wished I could photograph. I guess this moment was just for me and not to be shared.

Suddenly something caught my attention. A bright light moving across the sky. I hoped it was a satellite flying over. Unlike the faint, barely visible satellites I’ve seen in the past, this was the brightest object in the sky. Of course my mind wandered to aliens and UFO’s which then turned my attention the the wildlife sounds rustling in the darkness of the suddenly menacing trees.

I figured it was time to try and get some sleep... In the car... With the windows shut and the doors locked...

Regardless of whatever was “out there”, this was the moment I’d been avoiding. Could I actually sleep in the car or am I going to be heading home tomorrow? I had tried several weeks before, only to give up an hour later and return to the comfort of my bed. That, clearly, was not a choice this time. I moved everything off the passenger seat and laid the back down. I set up the bedding, one doona on the bottom and one on top.

It’s funny the things that go through the mind. As I stood brushing my teeth, I started wondering where I should spit. I’d never brushed my teeth outside before and never given it much thought. Is toothpaste harmful to the environment? Will I be damaging some ecosystem by spitting on the grass? Then it began to rain again and the grass copped it.

I clambered into the car between the doonas and snuggled up nice and warm. After all the movement of getting ready and the cold of getting rained on, I was awake again which was somewhat annoying. Some people take books along with them when they’re on holiday. Me? I brought a portable DVD player and the entire series of Stargate SG1. Yes, all ten seasons and two movies... Whatever you’re thinking, I don’t want to hear it, I’m sure I’ve already heard it from myself... I figured I’d watch an episode to tire myself out again.

I opened it up and began playing the disc. The first thing I’ll point out is that there just isn’t any position to get comfortable while trying to watch a DVD in the car. The second thing is “What the hell am I doing?”

I’m in the middle of nowhere surrounded by nature, with one of the most spectacular night skies I’d ever seen and I’m sitting in the car watching Stargate. As much as I love Stargate, the absurdity of the moment hit me and I realised how stupid I was being. I packed up the DVD player and put it away.

The rain was starting to come down a little harder and the rhythmic pattering as it hit the car was starting to weave its magic. I lay back and soon drifted off into the oblivion of sleep, dreaming of what tomorrow may bring.

As it approached midday I thought I’d look for some lunch. I was building an appetite, seeing as I got up so early and I’m not really big on breakfast. I turned off and headed toward San Remo. I thought about heading to Philip Island but as I approached and saw the bridge, I figured I’d been there a bunch of times already and could always come back for a day trip once I return.

There wasn’t a whole lot in San Remo. I stopped at the local servo and grabbed a snack to keep me going til I found somewhere decent. It was really starting to rain down quite heavy. I pulled into a car park looking out over the ocean toward Philip Island. It was quite a dramatic scene with the wind swept white tips of the waves set against the stormy sky. I tried to get some photos of it but it was just too wet and hazy.

A lot of people hate this sort of weather but I love it. There’s so much energy and passion in a storm. These are the times the Earth feels most alive. Parked up high, with no protection, the wind battered the rain against the car, while I was warm and cozy inside.

After some time of admiring the storm and taking in its energy, I hit the road again. As I approached the small town of Kilcunda, the rain had eased again and patches of blue sky were visible. This was turning into a real schizophrenic weather day. I thought it’d be a good idea to take advantage of the break in the rain and explore some of the beach areas.

Click Here To Purchase Image For such a small town, I was surprised to find that there were at least three different beaches. One of them even had a huge trestle bridge crossing it. A remnant from the old train days. However, it was the distant wind-farm that grabbed my attention. Giant, majestic windmills towering above the horizon, so tall and powerful. These massive, yet elegant, manmade constructions seemed totally alien against the rugged landscape. Yet somehow, at the same time, it felt like they were in perfect harmony, almost as if one could not exist without the other.

After a good hour of exploring, I got back on the road. It was getting on for two o’clock and I was really getting hungry. I made another pit-stop, this time in the popular tourist town of Inverloch and grabbed a burger from one of the local Fish n’ Chip shops. While waiting for the food to cook I downloaded the photos I’d taken so far, onto the laptop.

There were some OK shots but nothing really special. The gloomy overcast weather was really taking the life out of them, making it all appear flat and dull. I was a little disappointed for all of about thirty seconds, then the burger arrived. I packed the computer away and focused on enjoying the food, forgetting about the shots.

Once lunch was finished I decided not to stick around in Inverloch as again, I felt I could come back any time for a day trip. It wasn’t long before I hit the beginning of the long country roads with not much to do but drive. This is one of the reasons I wanted to do a road-trip, long roads where it’s just me, the car and my thoughts. I turned on the CD player and started to sing along loosing myself in the moment.

The day moved on and the Sun was getting lower in the sky. I really wanted to get a Sunset shot. In the early days of thinking about this trip, I had wanted to get a Sunrise and Sunset shot everyday. Considering this was my first day and I already missed out on capturing the Sunrise, I figured it probably wasn’t going to happen. I did want to get this Sunset though. The sky had cleared up quite a bit but there were still enough clouds to make it interesting. All I had to do was find an area free from the trees that had been obscuring my view for the last hour.

I could feel the adrenalin rising as I raced against the clock. The sky was starting to turn orange, signaling that time was nearly up. I raced along the road, scanning the area for a clearing. Suddenly, a driveway to a crop field. I slammed on the breaks and swung the car onto the track, stopping just short of the gate. I jumped out of the car with the camera and grabbed the tripod from the back. I clambered over the fence and ran into the field in order to clear the tree-line. I quickly setup the shot, fumbling to adjust the focus and exposure, then CLICK...

Click Here To Purchase Image A second later and it appeared on the LCD preview screen. I got it. The Sun itself wasn’t actually visible as it was covered by clouds. However there were some magnificent golden rays of light shining from behind it and reaching up to the heavens. I fired off a few more shots at various exposures just to make sure I got it, then just stood and watched, enjoying the moment, as this spectacular display slowly faded into darkness.

Of course, this marked the beginning of my new dilemma. Where was I going to spend the night?

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At last I was on the road and heading... Shit... Where’s my phone?...

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At last I was on the road and heading... somewhere... Anywhere? I can’t believe I hadn’t actually picked a direction to go yet. First things first though, I needed to fill the car up. I had a plan to keep track of a number of things while traveling. Statistics like distances travelled and distances between places, fuel prices and consumption, mobile phone and internet coverage and so on. I figured it would be interesting to know and could be helpful to others that are planning similar trips. Either that or I’m way too anal retentive for my own good.

You can find all of these statistics and information on my “Stuff” page. (or at least you will be able to once I figure out a good way of converting spreadsheets to web browsers)

I filled the car with petrol, topped up the tyres with air, made my notes and sat in the car ready to go. But go where? It was time to make the decision that would sculpt the rest of the trip. Do I go North, East or West? Inland or Coastal? Eeny meeny miny moe...

I thought coastal may be more interesting so that narrowed it down to East or West. I would like to say I chose East because of some noble or adventurous reason. But it wasn’t. If I turned West I’d get to see the Great Ocean Road which would be good, but that would mean driving through the heart of Melbourne and then Geelong. To be perfectly honest, I just wanted to get as far away from the city possible, as quickly as I could. Decision made. The east coast of Australia is where I’m heading.

You may be starting to notice that there really wasn’t a whole lot of planning going into this trip and you’re right. The planning stopped at things I thought I might need. Everything else, I wanted to leave to chance, spontaneity and spur of the moment decisions. I wanted to experience freedom. For the next month at least, I didn’t have to be anywhere or do anything that I didn’t want to do. I would just go where each day would take me.

I set off East, towards the rising Sun... that had already risen. A million thoughts were rushing through my mind. Questions and ideas, daydreams of what adventures lay ahead on this road before me. In my excitement I suddenly realised I was driving about twenty kilometers an hour over the speed limit. I just wanted to get somewhere I hadn’t been before. I eased off the accelerator and mentally slapped myself. Getting a speeding fine would not be a good start. Besides, there was no need to rush. All would come and everything would happen at the right time. I just needed to allow myself to take everything in.

As if my subconscious was rewarding the moment of enlightenment, I looked out to my right and saw a small sailing boat parked next to an old rustic wooden pier, in a nearly dried up river. I pulled the car around and parked next to the bridge that was crossing over the ironically named “Deep Creek”. This could make a good photo and my first for the trip.

Click Here To Purchase Print I wrapped a plastic bag around the camera to protect it from the rain and jumped out of the car to grab a few shots. Thankfully the rain had eased quite a bit but I didn’t want to take any chances. I walked up the highway a little bit to find a good angle and snapped off a couple of shots. I also got a few shots looking out over the grassy wetlands, which seemed endless from my perspective.

I got back to the car, anxious to keep moving. A quick U-turn and I was on the road again. Half an hour down the road and suddenly a hundred memories and emotions came flooding back to me. I was in the tiny town of Grantville.

Way back in 1999 I shot my first film here, an action, science fiction, extravaganza called “Lost:Black Earth”. I cringe now whenever I look at it but for the sake of some self humiliation, here it is anyway.

The beach here was one of the key locations. I had to have a look. I turned off the highway and followed the narrow dirt road to the car park. It really hadn’t changed much at all in the ten years since we filmed. In fact as I write this, I’m realising that it is almost ten years to the day. This location marked the first day of shooting and a major change in my life. Now it marks the first day in another major change. Creepy... Wonder if I’ll be back in another ten years, starting something new?

It’s funny how last time I was here, I had aliens running down the beach firing laser guns and space ships shooting down photon cannons, while the heros ran for cover from the explosions. This time, I’m appreciating the quiet peacefulness of the place even though it still has an apocalyptic and other worldly feel to it.

After my trip down memory lane, I continued down the road. I think the break did me good. I could feel myself slipping into a much more relaxed state. The anxiety was being left behind and for the first time I began to feel that I had made the right choice by taking this trip.

The day had finally arrived. Well almost anyway. It was 5:30am. Yes you read that right, AM. As in early. It was even too early for the Sun. I had planned on leaving around nineish but couldn’t sleep. Not so much from excitement but in trepidation. My mind was constantly racing; had I thought of everything? Was everything packed? Was there something I hadn’t even thought of? and if there was, how would I even know to think of it now? Surely I was forgetting something... Oh yeah and the predominant contemplation; What the hell am I doing?

As I stood in the shower, my thoughts drifted back to the moment I conceived this crazy idea of a solo road-trip. I was watching a documentary on television about Mountains in England by Griff Rhys Jones. It was fantastic and got me thinking. I wondered why I’d never been to any of these amazing places. Why, in the thirteen years that I’d grown up there, the extent of my travels had been between my hometown of Olney in Buckinghamshire and our holiday house in Great Yarmouth in Norfolk.

I did visit Tenby in Wales on a school trip once, where I managed to climb up to the top of a giant rock on the beach. I say “climb up” cause once there, I couldn’t get back down again. My glory of being the only kid that made it to the top was quickly overshadowed by the humiliation of having to get one of the teachers to help me back down. But I digress.

Thirteen years and my parents never saw fit to show me the real England. The magnificent scenery and countryside that was on offer. In their defense, I would probably have been bored out of my mind at that age. Not to mention I was not a good traveller. I remember on one extended drive while on the motor-way, I had asked my dad to stop the car as I felt sick. In his wisdom, he told me to hold on as there was a road house up ahead. Some people just gotta learn the hard way... He wore it, along with his work colleague who was sitting in the front passenger seat.

My how things have changed. Now I love driving and have not once felt ill while behind the wheel. Except for that time I ate a seven layer cheeseburger from McDonalds. I kinda feel however, that had nothing to do with the car. I find while on the open road I am at my most peaceful. I can’t really explain it, especially considering I like to think of myself as a bit of an environmentalist. I think to me, the car, my car, represents freedom and a sense of the unknown adventures that lay ahead.

Anyway, this mountain documentary had affected me deeply. It was then I realised I had done exactly the same thing here in Australia. We had settled here in the outer south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, way back in the bicentennial year of 1988 and apart from a couple of holidays in Queensland and some business trips to Sydney, I really didn’t know much about this place and how amazing it really is. In a flash my mind was set. I was going to explore this great land, my adopted home, Australia.

I think for a while everyone thought I wasn’t serious. That it was just another crazy idea I’d had and would get over it soon enough. That was until I started buying all the stuff I figured I’d need. Fold up chair, cooking facilities, gas bottle, spare parts for the car, hunting knife, new shoes... Ok so the knife was my ‘Rambo’ moment and I actually had no idea what I’d use it for... But it looked cool.

The one thing that stood in my way was work. I was in the middle of editing a series of commercials. When I signed on for the job, it had originally only meant to be for a few months. It was now reaching the one year mark and it seemed the clients kept wanting more ads. I know most people would kill for this type on ongoing work, especially in the film industry, but for me, it was soul destroying. Both morally and creatively.

The ads were to promote the dredging of Port Philip Bay. Something I morally opposed. It irritated me that when the job had come along, I was nearly broke and in desperate need of work. At the time, pretty much all of my friends told me to just take the job, that it didn’t matter. “Someone is going to do it no matter what, it may as well be you making the money from it”. All of my life I had declined jobs that I was morally against, even some really high paying ones. I was really feeling the pressure to “grow up and just do the work” as another friend put it.

So I did and I can tell you now that I never will again. Not only did the job go against what I believed was right, it was creatively vacant. It was affecting everyone. The producers tried exhaustively to spice it up and make it interesting but they were constantly being shot down by the client. There’s only so much of this I could take before it was reflected in my health. I was done. I set my date and let everyone know. If the project wasn’t finished by then, they would need a new editor.

It sounds harsh but I did give them two months notice. It’s not my fault they thought I was joking, then when they realised I wasn’t, that they thought they could coerce me into staying through various techniques. I would like to say I stood strong but out of a sense of loyalty I stayed on for a few extra weeks, until they were comfortable with a new guy. After pulling one last long weekend, I said my goodbyes and left the studio for the last time. I gotta say, it felt so good.

The next two days were filled with preparations, getting everything together and testing stuff out. I even made a check-list.

On the Saturday night I thought it may be a good idea to try sleeping in the car, just to see how it would be. I lasted an hour before returning to my bed in the house. I quickly blocked the event from my mind and replaced it with thoughts of “yeah, it’ll be right on the day”, meaning “when I’m in the middle of nowhere and I’ve got no choice but to sleep in the car, I’ll just deal with it.” It’s amazing how strong my will power is when it comes to denial.

I finished up in the bathroom, got ready and went out side to do some last minute checks on the car. This is when I realised I’d left the Sunroof open all night... Idiot! Thankfully it hadn’t rained and all was ok. I couldn’t help but think though, that maybe one of those eight legged, demonic creatures from the pits of Hell, had maybe taken up refuge somewhere inside. Visions shot through my mind of the nightly news showing my car wrapped around a tree because a spider fell in my lap while I was driving.

As I finished up with last minute oil and tyre pressure checks the Sun was rising, turning the sky purple, red, orange, then grey. What is it they say, “Red sky in the morning, shepherds warning!” Hummmm. For now, I thought, it all seemed good. That’s about the moment it started to rain. I shut all the doors and windows, including the Sunroof and was ready.

Finally, the moment of truth had arrived. I have to admit, there was a good percentage of me that wanted to cancel the whole thing. Thankfully stubbornness rules with me. I said my goodbyes to the family, got in the car and made my way off into the Sunset... Oops Sunrise... Ok, ok, dull grey never never.

So I thought it’d be a good idea to start this blog of with an explanation to everyone who followed my adventure (while it was happening) why it is I’m starting it all again. But first, for any new readers, a bit of back story about this blog.

The History

It all began one hot summers night back in... No wait a minute. It was a cold, wet and ridiculously early in the morning in April when I set off on this adventure. I had been planning the trip for a few months and a couple of days before I left my job editing TV commercials to prepare. The idea was pretty open, no set destination and no set length. Just travel and explore while taking photos and writing about the adventures.

And that’s what I did for the next three months. I tried to write every day (when I wasn’t too busy having fun or getting in trouble) and I posted hundreds of photos along the way. Mostly of amazing Australian landscapes. Since returning though, I’ve always had that niggling thought in the back of my mind that it could be better.

You see, at the time, I didn’t know a whole lot about the internet and web design and the easiest approach was to use Apples iWeb to create the blog. It worked well and my web site was published with little difficulty. The problem, I would eventually discover, with iWeb, is that it has very little controls to be more advanced. For instance I could not have any way of selling my photography through the site and there was no way of optimising the site for search engines (or SEO as I’ve come to learn).

Basically this means that the only people who would ever get to see what I’d done, was people I actually gave the web address to as it would not appear in the likes of Google or Yahoo.

Learning New Skills

Over the last year since I’ve returned home, I’ve set about learning this internet stuff. Let me tell you, I’ve lost some serious amounts of hair in the process. But thankfully I can be quite obsessive about things and have stuck with it and have learned an enormous amount. In fact, I could probably get work as a web designer if I tried.

So here it is. The new look, totally optimised JCDaydream web site. It’s now listed on the search engines and I’m getting new visitors daily (I hope they actually return when there is some content here...) In the gallery section there is also the option to purchase almost all of the photographs from cards to posters to framed prints. Even mugs and t-shirts. There isn’t much here yet but within a few weeks this site will be bursting with content.

To Those That Came Before

So why would you want to relive the adventure if you followed along in the first place? Good question. And the answer is Time! I now have the time to put a great deal more effort into the photos and writing. Plus there are now stories I can tell that I didn’t want to at the time.

While I was on the trip, I knew my family was keeping up to date with all that was going on. Being the considerate guy I am, I didn’t want the to really know the stuff that may worry them. Like getting lost in a rain-forest, nearly getting blown off the edge of a cliff in the Blue Mountains and so on. But they know I made it home safely now, so all can be revealed.

The Photography

Any photographer will know that you don’t just get that great photo, there’s a lot of work involved. First you have to get all the stuff in camera right, find a good subject, discover the perfect angle and composition, make sure the lighting is right, etc. But then there is the post-processing like colour correction, cropping and more advanced photoshopping techniques (If you have a problem with Photoshopped images read my other blog post on The Great Photoshop Debate).

This can all be very time consuming and, well, at the time, I just wanted to live the adventure and not be stuck behind a computer. So I gave myself a time limit of 30 seconds to process each shot. At the most I allowed a minute. Although almost everyone commented on how good the photos were, I knew they could be a lot better. It’s probably easier if I just show you.

The original RAW file straight out of the camera

This first image is straight out of the camera. Because there is so much data in an image file when you shoot with Camera RAW, quite often the image can appear washed out and lifeless. I remember the first time I saw this, I was so disappointed until I realised that you still need to develop digital photos in a similar way to ones shot on film.

Processed while on the road

This second image is after processing the photo while I was on the road. It’s better but it still wasn’t up to how I saw it when I took the photo.

Processed with time and care

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So this brings us to this final version. With a lot more time on my hands, I’ve now been able to get the image looking how I wanted it to all along. I haven’t really changed the image at all, I’ve just bought out what was already there.

Back To The Beginning

So now I’ve explained all of this, hopefully you’ll understand why I’m doing it. Hopefully you’ll want to join me for this adventure a second time. Think of it as the Special Edition version. And to anyone who is just joining for the first time, I welcome you and hope you enjoy my stories in pictures and words.

Oh yeah... I almost forgot. For any of you that subscribed to the old RSS Feed, you’ll have to update your bookmarks to this NEW RSS FEED as the old one will no longer work. If you’re unsure what RSS is and why you would want to use it, read this informative post: What is RSS?