Margie and Tim

Margie and Tim We travel Australia with our 2 kids, and document some of the amazing places along the way and how we troubleshoot and improve our caravan.
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Margie & Tim | Travel & Adventure! 🇦🇺
🚐 All things Caravanning & finding awesome adventures.
🌏 Nat Geo Contributors
🔜 Expedition:
👇 Join the adventure Hello :)

We are Margie Pumpa and Tim, adventurers, environmental journalists, and almost full-time nomads dedicated to finding the most awesome adventures in Australia. As contributors to National Geographic, we specialize in "D

eep Time" reportage, embedding in remote landscapes to share stories of ecological wonder and survival. Current Project: Deep Time Australia (Launching July 2026). A six-month adventure transecting the continent from the Snowy Mountains to the Shark Bay coast, tracking the collision of ancient history and modern climate.

There is no worksheet for this.But there is the computer and starlink! If you have school aged kids, and are thinking of...
30/08/2026

There is no worksheet for this.

But there is the computer and starlink!
If you have school aged kids, and are thinking of travelling long term, there are plenty of options. We do something called 'unschooling' which is pretty much child lead, but lots of behind the scenes planning.

I research the curriculum, then plan out what needs to be learnt, then put it into a week each (I've got copies on my Skool page plan.save.travel if you're interested) anyway, we then go with what the kids are interested in, then change it into some sneaky learning - covering the topics for the week.

other options are:

- Talk to your local school if they have any options, especially if you're going for only a few weeks.
- Homeschooling and get a packaged program. We've found some of these to be really worksheet heavy, and with no printer or kids intersted in worksheets, it was a bit too much for them.
- Online courses that specialise in homeschooling.

A good place to start are homeschooling groups on FB, they have heaps of info and you can find something that suits you and your kids.

Let's do a rethink...What do you want to do? Have the fancy house or travel in a way that's sustainable? PS there isn't ...
29/08/2026

Let's do a rethink...

What do you want to do? Have the fancy house or travel in a way that's sustainable?

PS there isn't a right or wrong answer - but if you like the idea of travel, follow our page :)

And to help you sleep, get those numbers out of your head and onto paper - or a spreadsheet. Comment EXPLORE if you want...
29/08/2026

And to help you sleep, get those numbers out of your head and onto paper - or a spreadsheet.

Comment EXPLORE if you want our free departure date calculator to help with the numbers for when do you leave ;)

Caravan Tip of the Day 🔧Most people check their tow vehicle's maximum towing capacity before they buy a caravan. Fewer p...
29/08/2026

Caravan Tip of the Day 🔧

Most people check their tow vehicle's maximum towing capacity before they buy a caravan. Fewer people know what Gross Combination Mass is — and it's actually the number that matters most.

GCM is the maximum weight of your loaded tow vehicle plus your loaded caravan, combined. Not just the van on its own. All of it together.

You can be under your towing capacity and still be over your GCM. Both limits apply at the same time.

- GCM is on your tow vehicle's compliance plate or in the owner's manual. Look it up.
- Add your loaded vehicle weight to your loaded caravan weight and check it against that number.
- Don't forget that GVM — your vehicle's maximum loaded weight — also applies independently. Fuel, passengers, gear, and tow ball downforce all count toward it.

These aren't arbitrary numbers. They're what the vehicle was engineered to handle safely.

Check all of them before you load up and head off.

Comment VANFIX below and I'll send you our free DIY caravan maintenance guide.

Why do you want to travel Australia? For us, it's spending time as a family, exploring, working things out. But its' mor...
29/08/2026

Why do you want to travel Australia?

For us, it's spending time as a family, exploring, working things out.

But its' more than that - for us, school wasn't working for the kids, we didn't want to keep spending time doing the same thing day after day either.

So, that was our reason why we decided to give travelling a go.

One surprising side effect was the need to have a big house and fancy stuff completely disappeared. When you live in your van, you have everything you need attached to the car - no big mortgage, which meant no big long working hours.

It's very intentional - less money that goes out means less that needs to come in, and we benefit in time.

Didn't mean for that to be a d&M conversation, haha, but it's what made us choose our departure date.

What is your reason?

BTW, comment EXPLORE below to check out my new departure date calculator for free :)

We still use caravan parks. Just not out of habit anymore.Early on we'd book one without really thinking about it. Now w...
29/08/2026

We still use caravan parks. Just not out of habit anymore.

Early on we'd book one without really thinking about it. Now we use them deliberately, for a battery recharge, a water top-up, and a proper shower. One powered night every five to seven days is usually enough if your solar setup is doing its job.

The rest of the time, we're free camping or at a low-cost site instead.

- Check caravan park websites directly for midweek deals
- Look at smaller, out-of-the-way parks over big-name resorts
- Use parks for a specific purpose, not just because it's night time

Tag someone planning their own trip who needs this.

Caravan Tip of the Day 🔧Before you buy an awning wall, there are three numbers you need. Most people go shopping without...
29/08/2026

Caravan Tip of the Day 🔧

Before you buy an awning wall, there are three numbers you need. Most people go shopping without any of them and end up with something that doesn't fit.

- Width: usually the same as your awning width. Too long and you'll have excess material flapping around that can't be tied down effectively.
- Height: decide whether you want the wall flush with the ground or a gap underneath. Neither is wrong — it just depends what you prefer.
- Sail-track size: tracks come in 6mm or 4mm. Measure yours before you buy. Some walls come in both sizes, some don't.

Most cassette-type awnings have the sail-track built into the outer edge frame. Roll-out awnings have it built into the outer roll, which becomes visible once the awning is fully extended.

Get those three measurements before you go shopping and you'll save yourself a return trip.

Comment VANFIX below and I'll send you our free DIY caravan maintenance guide.

29/08/2026

Could this be the difference between going on that road trip or not?

Yes, a year would be awesome, but if you can only do a weekend or a week, that's also fantastic.

The point is, just get out and enjoy, do the big lap in stages if needed. That's better than not going at all.

Follow us for road trip planning tips.

Comment BUDGETPLAN if you would like to see what we created and use to plan the budget side of our longer road trips :)

Every time we think we've got a read on this country, it does something that stops us completely.We have been travelling...
29/08/2026

Every time we think we've got a read on this country, it does something that stops us completely.

We have been travelling it for months and we have not scratched the surface.

Get out there.

comment EXPLORE if you want to try my new free departure date calculator :)

We've all been there... midnight planning. It's all worth it. Welcome to our page on road trip, big lap planning
28/08/2026

We've all been there... midnight planning.

It's all worth it.

Welcome to our page on road trip, big lap planning

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Adelaide, SA

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