Cape Trib looked magical with the clouds and the mist. Nice to see it looking different to the usual blue sky and sea 😊

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Hi. Yes it was a very heavy tropical day and some rain. So made the Bloomfield a bit slippery in places but gave us those mysterious mountains in the cloud shots. Thanks for watching again.

I have enjoyed your videos. Very informative and entertaining, good on you both. Good choice not to take your. Some 5 or 6 years ago we left our van at Wongo Beach and went to drive north from Cape Tribe along the Bloomfield track. We arrived at the first uphill steep gradiant which is concrete with ridges across the road to assist with grip. At the base of that gradient as we approached it was a car stopped at the side of the road, they waved us down and asked for assistance. They had found a small truck (light truck) cab over peak style, I am unsure how old it was but definitely not a recent model, it had come down that gradient, lost brakes and at the bottom gone straight ahead through the scrub and crashed into a rock face. The driver was dead and his partner not badly injured. On the tray of the truck was a slide-on camper, this on impact had come loose and pushed into and over the cab, it was also towing a tinny boat which had jack-knifed on impact. Very sad to see someone's holiday come to an end like this. As you have said many times in your series equip your vehicle appropriately, know your vehicles capabilities and drive to the conditions.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Wow, that’s an awful accident. Thanks for watching and the share as it adds another example that shows that while the Bloomfield track mostly looks benign and beautiful, those long, winding and very steep grades so have some considerable risk. Thanks for the feedback also and thanks for helping us send a few dollars to charity as we share. All the best.

I towed my 17ft tandem up Bloomfield to LD. Called ahead on the descents/climbs, low range 2nd / 1st. Didn’t ‘push the car’ and chose a day when it wasn’t raining. Only the two hills that required thought- though we did just after covid - so maybe was quieter than normal. a spectacular drive. I wouldn’t attempt in the wet though. Loved lions den - 2nd favourite pub in Aus👍. We camped near the river behind the pub.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts and experience. Its a lovely area and the Lion’s den is certainly iconic. We are a bit iffy about the gear and old underwear etc hanging from the ceiling in some of these places, so it quirky for sure but… ?? A number of people think towing on the Bloomfield is fine. The challenge with all the cautions etc about different tracks including this one is balancing the risks. Many rigs would be capable of doing it, but as the poor sods who came off the steep section ahead of ourselves show, one minute its all good, next it isnt. We saw a couple of other larger rigs the day we were there and as the video shows we were able to safely pass one after it had crawled down one of the grades. Its a hotly contested topic though. I’m trying to find the post but I thought i saw on one site one person asked their insurer who said that towing on the Bloomfield would invalidate their insurance. But certainly the day we did the Bloomfield it would have been unwise to tow given the conditions meant the road was a bit slick in places.

We've towed our camper up the Bloomfield track - just, in 4WD low range - but I wouldn't attempt it with our current caravan. It's just not worth the risk.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Hi - Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts. That was our thought also.

Thanks again for your videos - fabulous.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks again for watching. Much appreciated

Great video David & Paula. Sadly, because most people are clueless / irresponsible & NFI They are not familiar with vehicle / caravan / recovery gear - if they have any / or how to recover etc NFI about Low Range or Terrain Response modes, etc, if their vehicle has this. And They make NO effort to learn the above, or to be suitably prepared etc ( case in point is the idiots who were stuck on the BT, with caravan having slid off the left edge of the road ) FFS They weren’t in Low Range etc ! They obviously ignored the info / advice / warnings / on various road signs ! Was their Caravan hooked up properly ? Did these people know how to use “ brake adjustment “ for steep descents ? This is why the BT is clearly signposted as “ no caravans “ Idiots like that get into strife & put others at risk. Seems as though unprepared people get into strife on the BT, very regularly. Hence It’s signposted as “ no caravans “ For good reason… 🤷🏻‍♂️ I can understand that an experienced driver / tower, would manage that “ track “ ok But Vast majority of people aren’t like this. The BT looks very windy & narrow etc So, anyone towing, is creating an unnecessary hazard & difficulty for other motorists… On the basis that most motorists are clueless etc, this situation then creates a dangerous environment for all users of the BT. Like you, I would have helped this stuck motorist, but, once they were out of trouble, and turned around etc, I would have very strongly given them a piece of my mind ! Hopefully They won’t do such a stupid thing again… 🤷🏻‍♂️

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks again for watching and sorry for the delayed response. We just don’t think the risks are worth the gain when you can easily have a great drive down and back as a day trip and not risk blocking other users. The road itself is generally fine, but those steep long grades have issues. But even beside the Bloomfield Track if you’re touring habe your max trax and some basic recovery gear. Those people were lovely and embarrassed and had a fright. But they drove away i text after a couple of us got them out of trouble. Regrettably somebody else had a much more serious accident the week before. There is a huge difference between assuming your car and skills are good enough ( they might be) and the impact of the risk you might take that affects others. We took our rig 7km up the OTT to Eliot Falls. It was a slow and steady and the grades into and out of scrubby creek while steep were only 30 meters long. The rutted track did need high clearance and there were some spots where others could pass. At a shove we could get recovered. Even then, we said nah to the Bloomfield. Not be user it’s technical difficult, but because the extra strain and increased risks weren’t worth it - And the official advice is don’t do it. insurers etc are much more prone to say no automatically and let you prove otherwise these days.

Great episode again guys. Thank you 🙏

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks again for watching. 🙏🙏. We had a great stay in that area. cheers

Great episode guys, brings back memories, thankyou

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks again Neil. It’s a great part of the country and is another example of why we do what we do. All the best.

Great video. We did that trip 10 years ago in a Land Rover TDI 1992 . Never missed a beat

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. The Defender did this part easy (it did all parts easy) but we decided not to tow the van on the Bloomfield for all the reasons in the vid. We are heading back inland after this one so it didn’t make sense to take the van down and back up anyway. But unhitched the Defender cruised it - it’s not that hard a 4WD road, but very pretty in there.

I have ridden the track and don't think it is all that bad. I would take our Zone if there was no oncoming traffic, which of course there is.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

The actual road itself is generally good. Seasonal of course. It was a bit slippery in places the day we went. The issue is the impact on the rigs of the long steep inclines and the risk that an issue then blocks the track. As you say “if” there was oncoming traffic and there is . It would not be an ideal recovery for a tilt bed on one or two of those particularly steep bits. But interesting that of the roads we’ve been on the authorities say this one isn’t suitable for towing. The issue that couple had on our day shows it’s fine - until it goes wrong. There has been a van roll on it the week before as well. I believe our rig could have done it noting 90% of the track is actually quite easy and fine even for 2wd cars taken carefully. But dragging a 6.4 tonne rig up a 30% grade is a strain at the best of times especially when it’s a long grade.

Hi how great is the Bloomfield Track. You did a great representation of the track. I am curious as to what towing mirrors you are using? If you wouldn't mind letting me kniw what they are as they look pretty neat and dont vibrate.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and the comment. It’s a terrific drive. We use Milenco mirrors and arms but not the milenco clamps because they don’t grip the Defender side Mirrors. Instead we have a 3D printed bracket that fits around the Defender side mirror arms. If you drive a Defender here is the link defender3d.co.uk/products/ols/products/tow-mirror-mounting-solution

Hema is now owned by an American company

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching. We didn’t know that. I don’t think thats why we have an American accent voice on the directions. It didn’t when we first bought it, and we did reset it, but not sure why it has reverted to this voice. We will go through the settings again. Cheers

Another great video! Quick question if you dont mind, you seem to enjoy staying in free camps but have you ever been concerned with the safety/security of them at all?

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Hi, thanks as always for watching. Great question. We wondered the same thing when we first started out. Our rule of thumb is if we feel uncomfortable for whatever reason, we move on. But overall no we haven’t been concerned at any we’ve stayed at and only looked and moved on from a small handful. TBH we’ve felt less secure in some large parks near major centres - and some communities have well publisized issues. Firstly, often there are one or two other users nearby in many of the free camps so we often pull up, have a look around and go and say hello and most people are very friendly etc. In those cases it’s nice to have space but know that there are a few others around if needed (more likely to be somebody getting bogged or flat battery or similar rather than security). We’ve had some places where there isn’t another soul around seemingly for miles - on the Savannah way for example, the Piccaninny Plains location on the resent Cape York part 3 vid and even in Lamberts Centre of Australia. We have loved those situations. If we are near a major road and by ourselves we tend to tuck ourselves back in the bush out of immediate sight just to avoid anything opportunistic (we’ve never had anything like that but it’s an old habit) We often stay hitched up because it’s easier and old Army habit but I always have the rig pointed toward the best exit just in case we have to leave quickly - and again that’s more likely to be something like bush fire or similar than human. So in short no, but as I say, if intuitively we don’t like a place we don’t stay there - and the indicators for me are things like lots of rubbish or dumped gear/ cars etc and also you do find some places where some filthy peoples personal hygiene and toileting habits make a place unpleasant. Regrettably people dumping their rubbish and not being able to dig a decent hole for a toilet away from where people might camp is more common than we would like. Again we’ve moved on from one or two of those sorts of places as well. If you are new to this, take baby steps, get used to off grid camping in things like national park sites, then do overnight stays in 24 hr roadside rest areas and become accustomed to it. Finally, you don’t have to be one or the other. We use some van parks - more often when there are few choices or for respite from extreme weather, we have had some great national park stays and many free camps as well. Great question. I have wondered if it’s worth a segment of a vid, but felt it was better to just drop the odd comment and example here and there.

@PeterRowe-ip7ow

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for the reply Dave. I am very much a ‘trust your gut type person’ so if it doesn’t feel right it probably isn't.

Another great video. I did the reverse on the Bloomfield Track back in July with my Defender and definitely without the caravan. How do you find your bulbar, as I'm getting one like that put on next week. I prefer that look to the huge one.

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching and the comment 👍. The Bloomfield is a lovely drive without the van isn’t it? The bar has been good. There was a bit of fitment issues early especially with the light bar that had to be modified until they can replace it with a new lightbar when we get home. But overall great and unfortunately we’ve got two roos (or they hit us) and the bar saved us from any major damage in those cases. So it’s paid for itself. There was a photo on the New Defender facebook page the other day that had hit a roo and took out the auxiliary coolers that are down low near the OEM bumper - and that was a mess . Big wait for them for repairs now 😔

@fourbysolo

8 ай бұрын

@@nextleveloz thanks for your reply and comments on the bulbar. I'm not having the lightbar fitted, as I couldn't justify the extra spend. That's good to hear that the bar protected you from the roos, that's the main reason for fitting it as any damage to the front will be a bit of a wait for parts and repairs as you mentioned. Love watching your travels and your honest assessment of the car and places visited. Cheers.

Can you tell us who sings the song "I take the high road every time " ?

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

Hi. Thanks for watching. It's a great track isn't it! We got it from Epidemic Sound that we subscribe to for copyright (and ensure the artist gets their royalty). It's called "The High Road" by an artist called Big Girl. Here is a KZread link. I think it's on Spotify as well as Epidemic.kzread.info/dash/bejne/lHykt66EoNO1eZM.html

@brucewiggins2731

8 ай бұрын

Thanks for the information on the song , it really suits your video . I think that you have the best travel channel for finding out the real facts about the different areas , most other channels make up crap to get clicks. My wife and I are about your age so we are grateful to see travelling from our age group , keep up the good work thanks,@@nextleveloz

@nextleveloz

8 ай бұрын

@@brucewiggins2731 Thanks so much. Paula and I love sharing it as we see it and do it, which means it isn’t always slick and we aren’t selling anything. While we love getting the view time so we can send some money off to charity, we don’t need to do click bait.