The VinCats

06/09/2026

What a stunner of a morning! ☀️

Up and about with Shadow this fine morning, getting ready to hit the road again.

We spent the night at Goldwire 24 Spot, which was a great place to stop and relax for the night. But today there was no time to dilly-dally… we habe a 4-hour drive ahead of us.

So we packed up, said goodbye to Goldwire and got ourselves back on the road. 🚐🐾

A few hours later we pulled into Sandfire Roadhouse to fuel up. We'd stopped here on the way up about 4–5 months ago, so it was another familiar stop and a good chance to stretch the legs for the VINCATS team.

Then it was back to it.

Finally arrived at De Grey River, just for an overnighter this time.

There were a few people already here when we arrived, so we picked out our spot for the night, settled in and sat back to enjoy the sunset. 🌅

Now here's where we really showed our travelling expertise… 😂

We were at De Grey River and somehow missed the biggest clue ever that there might be a river nearby! 🤦‍♂️😂

Turns out we weren't far from it at all. If we'd gone just a little further back, we probably could have parked ourselves right next to the river.

Then, just to rub a bit of salt into the wound, others turned up after us, went that little bit further… and found the better spots! 😂

Sometimes you just have to go that little bit further.

Oh well… lesson learned, and the river spot is definitely going on the list for next time.

04/09/2026

Pentecost River – Freecamp Review

Pentecost River is one of those bucket-list campsites that people talk about when they talk about the Gibb River Road. For us, there was one last thing to do before we could camp there, and that was cross the Pentecost River itself. It is a free camp with no facilities whatsoever, so you need to be fully self-contained. The drawcard is the location, the river, and the view, not amenities....

Read our honest Pentecost River free camp review on the Gibb River Road. Learn about the river crossing, camping, sunset views, and what to expect.

02/09/2026

Well... we ended up staying 2 nights at Willare Roadhouse. 😊

One full day to do the chores of everyday life. ✅

You know, all those jobs that have to be done when you're living on the road.

We had passed these huge Boab trees on the way here and decided to go back and check them out properly.

They are massive!

One on each side of the road.

How cool are they? 🌳

Time to continue heading South.

Packed up and off we went to our next stop for a couple of days.

This area is pretty big and breaks off into different sections.

There were quite a few people here when we arrived, so we found a spot where we could.

We ended up looking right down the path back towards the road.

Shadow went on lots of walks and is just loving this travelling life.

And us?

Time to sit back and relax.

I caught up on some reading while Vinnie played around on his computer doing all sorts of projects.

What exactly?

Who knows! 😂

Picos mean anything to you?

Vinnie has made himself a weather station display.

He's even colour coded the wind gusts depending on how high they are.

And yes, it even tells us it's Winter. 😂

Clever fella is my man. ❤️

Sometimes this is what life on the road is all about.

Not always exploring somewhere new.

Sometimes it's just finding a nice spot, getting the jobs done, taking Shadow for a walk and doing your own thing.

And we are pretty happy with that. 😊

29/08/2026

Ellenbrae Station – Review

Ellenbrae Station is a working pastoral station on the Gibb River Road. It is one of the best-known station stops along the route, famous for its homemade scones. Ellenbrae offers two separate campgrounds, Jackaroo and Ringers. When we checked in, we were given the choice of either campground and decided on Jackaroo. This is a genuine working cattle station offering a true outback camping experience....

Read our honest Ellenbrae Station review on the Gibb River Road. Find out about the campgrounds, famous scones, facilities, swimming hole and what to expect.

29/08/2026

Mary Pool - what a beautiful place to wake up to. 😊

A bit of a drive today, about 4 hours, so we'd better stop looking at the amazing view and start packing up.

Everything tucked up in the car...

Oh... we need more gas.

Better stop at Fitzroy Crossing.

This is another area that has been having issues with youth crime. We'd heard stories about rocks being thrown at truckies travelling through at night, smashing windscreens and side windows.

You can see in the pics that the fuel pumps have cages around them.

Thankfully, all was well when we went through.

A little further down the road we called it a day and stopped at Willare Bridge Roadhouse for the night.

The campground is ok, with decent amenities and a pool.

You back your van into the site, although there isn't a huge amount of room to put your awning out and you are pretty close to your neighbours.

The middle section is nice and grassy and just about everyone seemed to be sitting out the back of their vans looking towards the grass.

Shadow certainly enjoyed it this time.

No burrs.

No prickles.

Happy Shadow! 😊

It's a great little stopover for the night.

And it's one of those places where you make the most of being plugged into power and get all those chores done.

You know...

The jobs that seem to magically appear when you're living in a caravan! 😂

Washing ✔️
Charging ✔️
Cleaning ✔️
Everything else ✔️

All ready now to head off grid again...

Yay! 😊

27/08/2026

July 2026 – Travel Expenses

July turned out to be an okay month financially, even though it started off a little rocky. Getting the car back from the workshop after our breakdown was a big relief. We had originally planned to visit Darwin and a few places along the way. However, after the start date for our volunteering position in Carnarvon was brought forward, we decided to change our plans and head straight back....

Our July 2026 travel expenses included car repairs, 2,400 km of fuel and savings from free camping while returning to Carnarvon.

27/08/2026

A very big drive day today... a whole 85 KMs down the road and round the corner! 😂

We were up early, taking Shadow for a walk before packing everything up.

Rather than hang around, we decided to set off and beat the crowds, so to speak.

We arrived at Ngumban Cliff Rest Area around 9am.

Wow... that's real early for us! 😅

We drove up to have a look and see where we could position ourselves overlooking the "cliffs".

To be honest, we were a tad too early.

We parked up and went for a wander around while we waited.

Then we realised a caravan and a rooftop car were getting ready to leave and they had the best spot.

Well... we zoomed in there as soon as they pulled out! 😂

What a cool place this is.

I walked down a little way and spotted an area that I was sure I could get to.

So, of course, I gave it a go.

I found my way down and ended up with a great view looking back over the road.

A few caravans went past and I managed to capture one towing a boat with a bike following behind.

What a great view!

It's just a shame the camera never quite picks things up the way you see them with your own eyes.

A quick little wave and off I went.

Most of the people who'd stayed the night before had left and new ones started arriving.

Some stopped for a break and carried on, while others decided to stay.

And what was Vinnie doing?

Well... he climbed up even higher to get a different perspective looking back the way we'd come.

Of course he did! 😂

Shadow and I went a little further and tried to cut across.

In the end, I had to pick him up.

Me thinks he wasn't too keen on going through all the prickly stuff. 😅

Check out the corrugations along this stretch of road.

Luckily they're not too deep and thankfully this section isn't very long.

It was windy as during the afternoon, which made sitting outside a bit unpleasant.

But once the sun started setting, the wind calmed right down.

Perfect timing.

Rather than do another time-lapse pointing straight at the sun, we thought we'd try something different.

So we set up to capture the changing colours across the cliffs and the skyline instead.

Something a little different.

Sometimes it's nice to just stop, sit back and watch the day change.

23/08/2026

After yesterday's excitement... onto the next one! 😊

After the huge fright and excitement of yesterday, surprisingly I slept really well.

Nothing like some morning cuddles with Shadow to make things better. ❤️

Not a big drive today, however we were passing through Halls Creek and needed to stop for fuel.

Now, Halls Creek has a pretty bad reputation.

We've been told all sorts of things...

"Drive through and don't stop."

"If you need fuel, one stays in the car with the doors locked while the other fills up and pays."

It has a difficult reputation due to severe socioeconomic disadvantage, high rates of violent and youth crime, and ongoing infrastructure challenges.

So, as you can imagine, we arrived with our beady eyes wide open, looking around for anything that might indicate trouble.

And what did we see?

Not a lot really.

We saw a couple of Indigenous people going about their normal day and nothing like what we'd been warned about.

Maybe we struck it lucky on the day, or perhaps things have improved since others were here.

Either way, we didn't feel threatened or see anything going on that shouldn't have been going on.

We didn't see any police either, although the police station is just across the road from the service station.

So out we came the other side, fuel tank topped up and on our way again.

We pulled up at another free camp at Mary Pool Campground.

Loads of people were already here, so we had to drive in further to find a spot.

This place is huge, with plenty of room, and we found a nice spot in a cleared area.

Hopefully no snakes sneaking up to visit us this time! 🐍😂

After yesterday, I'm definitely keeping an eye on the ground.

There were a few burrs and other little things around too, so the boots went on Shadow.

His paws were still recovering from all his vet visits in Kununurra, so precautions were needed.

He doesn't like those boots at all and tries his bestest to shake them off.

Good luck with that, Shadow! 😂

Have you travelled through Halls Creek?

What was your experience like?

21/08/2026

Manning Gorge Campground – Review

Manning Gorge Campground is the campground associated with Mt Barnett Roadhouse, located roughly halfway along the Gibb River Road. The drive from Imintji campground took us around two hours, with most of the journey on unsealed road. It made an excellent base for exploring some of the Gibb River Road's best attractions. Manning Gorge is accessed directly from the campground, while Galvans Gorge and Adcock Gorge are both within easy driving distance....

Read our honest Manning Gorge Campground review at Mt Barnett Roadhouse on the Gibb River Road. Learn about the facilities, camping, and what to expect.

17/08/2026

A nice relaxing day today... or so I thought! 🐍

Loads of people were up and away early to see the Bungle Bungles, so the camp was lovely and quiet.

One family near us also stayed back. They had young kids in tow and were having a sleep.

So what does one do on a nice quiet morning?

Oh, I know... I'll get my knitting out and give it a go.

Knitting, you say? Me knitting? Me?!

Yep... I'm giving it a go! 😂

When we were in Port Hedland on the Seafarers tour, they gave us a beanie pattern and asked if we could knit some and send them back.

They all go into parcels at Christmas time and are given to the guys on the ships. Some of them haven't been on land for months.

So here I am, sitting outside in the warmth, concentrating very, very hard on my knitting.

Vinnie and Shadow were inside the caravan with the screen door closed.

All nice and peaceful.

Until...

A van pulled in and an older couple got out and started setting up.

Ok... back to the knitting.

I'm concentrating soooo hard when, out of the corner of my eye, I see something coming from underneath our caravan.

A snake.

My brain registered what it was and...

BOOM!

I screamed so loudly and ran so fast that my ball of wool was dragging behind me! 🐍😱🤣🧶

The snake must have thought, "WTF?!?"

It raised itself up, turned around and slithered back underneath the caravan and into the long grass.

I was shaking like a leaf.

The dad from next door came rushing over with his two-year-old in his arms to see what the hell was going on and if I was alright.

He took one look at me and gave me a big hug to help calm me down.

All I could tell him was:

"It was a snake... and it was brown."

Don't ask me for any other details because I wouldn't have a clue! 😂

Meanwhile, Vinnie was watching me through the caravan door.

He wasn't coming out.

But once the other guy came over, Vinnie decided he probably should man up. 😜

The two of them went looking for it, but it had disappeared.

The older couple eventually came back from their walk along the river and said they'd heard me screaming too.

Yep... the whole campsite was now aware that I'd seen a snake.

I decided to try sitting outside again, but this time I moved my chair further out into the open and faced the caravan.

No sneaky snakes coming from behind me thanks very much!

I was so glad Shadow was inside with the door closed when it happened. I would have hated anything to happen to him.

Later, as people started coming back from the Bungle Bungles, I took Shadow for his walk and got chatting to a lady from the UK who was travelling with friends.

I told her what had happened earlier.

She already knew.

Someone further down had told her.

Yep...

That was me.

The one who screamed her bloody head off. 😂

Didn't take long for everyone to know about it.

And apparently snakes aren't supposed to be around in winter.

Well... can you really call it winter when the daytime temperature is around 32 degrees?

I'm hoping I don't have nightmares tonight!

Have you ever had a snake experience when you least expected it?

Tell us about it in the comments... 🐍