Haven't done a review for a while so thought I would add the information from our latest excursion. Murphy's Creek Bush resort is located at the base of the Toowoomba Range around 2 hours from Brisbane Australia. Heading Off.... Weather a bit ordinary but anyway With our very excited friends and their new (second hand) van And then DISASTER....... As they enter the Freeway our friends 4x4's motor blows......so they get towed home but my mate wont be defeated. he gets onto the Stradbroke Island Barge (We live adjacent to some beautiful islands) and picks up his island vehicle, A Landrover Discovery returns home fits a new plug, after which he sideswipes a car in the van whilst getting the plug fitted, hooks up and then.........DISASTER...... They get as far as a milr from the freeway when the Disco overheats and blows the Radiator. I KID YOU NOT.......Both cars blow motors with a small van crash in between.
We sadly made our way up by ourselves to the Campground. The arrival road is nothing short of spectacular with the sheer cliff face very very engaging. The park is tree filled and quite lovely. The focus is on the activities for adults and kids alike with Mountain Bike tracks, abseiling, a high rope course and plenty of places to just wonder around. For my money the pick sites are the Canyon toppers that we weren't able to use due to booking issues. They view from the Canyon sites is as follows; We had one of the Spoke sites that can accommodate up to 9 families in a group. The sites are level and, if you don't have an Offroad caravan and a 4x4 they could be a little interesting to get onto. There is room through the trees to set up Solar The group site includes a large group firepit and wood is delivered to your site
Our site was located next to the High ropes course which made for some excellent afternoon viewing. The park has a number of areas that include normal van sites, tent and open areas, the aforementioned group areas and also Army tents which are quite a different idea. These have wooden floors and will be dry constantly. There are open areas just to park the van or RV with some grass and as the photo below shows they actually, have a Dog off leash area. Dogs cost $2.50 a night ours had a ball. Although technically this may be some form of either Child or Dog abuse........I swear Aidan crawled in with ANZAC and the gate shut behind them......... I didn't do it....I swear......but I must admit I considered leaving him in there..........He can be very special....but I love him. Here is a much nicer moment with my sons....They are growing up way to fast I sometimes wish I could slow time! Back to the review...... Down from this area is the "Beach" this was the swimming hole prior to the 2011 floods which devastated the park. There is only exploring now, no swimming, so the park is probably not a great summer location. As an indicator in the below photo the flood mark at peak was 12 to 14 feet ABOVE the top of this cliff. My son shows scale in the bottom right of the photo.
Summary is that we had a nice time.......would I return?......... Probably not I would check out other locations as alternatives or similar venues The venue was about $55 USD a night for the five of us with you having to pay a dime for a 2 minute hot shower and also it cost us around $30 USD for them to do the ropes course. Back to reality! Thanks for viewing!
Love your pics. They add so much to your review. Kids and (grand kids) do grow up too fast but it's good to see you are spending the time to enjoy them while you can. Keep your reviews coming. Darrell
Hey down there Mr. Gooding - Great pics as always and some really good stories with them. IMHO your trip pics are the best on this forum and are enjoyed by many as you can see. All the best to you and your family. It's wonderful that you all are able to get out and enjoy the RV lifestyle as you do. I know your boys will remember these adventures for the rest of their lives. And ANZAC looks pretty happy too........ Regards, BankShot...............(aka Terry)
Well Guys I am happy to announce that the Goodwins will be coming to the USA at this stage in September 2017. The trip is being paid for by happy Grandparents who want to spend some of the inheritance by taking their Kids and Grandkids to Disneyland. We plan to extend by hiring an RV out of Los Angeles. Here is the current plan; Los Angeles to San Francisco Highway 101? up the Oregon coast to Portland (have a mate there who cant wait to catch up) Again follow the coast to Seattle doing Seattle stuff (Boeing, MoF etc) Through to Yosemite and then across the mountains to lake Tahoe? Across to las vegas and then return to LA. Plan the trip to take 3 weeks (after a week in Disneyland) I am really looking for input, ideas, parks, routes from the forum to help with the planning, obviously with the fact that I have 3 young kids in tow, plus anyone who is in the area at the time would love to catch up. I have found that one of our favourite things is to experience these trips by meeting others. The route LA to Seattle via San Francisco and Portland including 101 is locked in always wanted to do the Pacific coast Olympic national park etc. But have no idea where to stop, see and stay! I am really seeking the input of my experienced USA mates. Over to you guys, in particular @BankShot @NYDutch @BC Wanderer and any of your friends that can assist. I recently found the Hitchin Post in Las Vegas for example that looks interesting but its input from the people here that will sway me. We would like to be close enough at our destinations to use public transport whilst being safe with young kids. Thanks in advance team!
Wow. Good for you and your family. We have traveled that route a couple of times. Not thinking too hard about what to see but what really stood out for us was the Aquarium in Monterey http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/, the whole drive from Morro Bay to Monterey is spectacular. Big Sur http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/ I don't have a lot of time for input right now but there is a lot to see and experience along the Pacific Coast. You will start your travel from a the very populated metropolis of LA to the Olympics where the wilderness is big and the population sparse. On your way to Vegas you will pass close to Death Valley https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Valley_National_Park September may be a little too early to visit there though. It's a little on the hot side. I will give your trip some more thought when I have time and add some tips. This area is closer to BankShots territory. I'm sure he will have some good input for you. Darrell
I'll let the West Coasters that have far more experience in that area than I do weigh in on this one. I'll just say "Welcome to the USA" in advance, and I hope you have the trip of a lifetime!
I am "fairly familiar" with the Pacific coast after living on or near it since 1952 so I think I can give you a few pointers on your planned trip. First off to travel up Hwy 101 from the LA area is great other than if you stay on 101 you will miss a lot of actual ocean and coastline that is seen from Hwy 1, or as we call it PCH. North of LA on the 101 you can cut off onto Hwy 1 and take it all the way up the coast to the San Francisco bay area and continue on north from there to the Oregon border and on north into Seattle. It is beautiful but there is one drawback. It is much slower going than the 101 and has a lot of tight curves and high drop offs. You will need to allow a tad more time to get from where you get on it until you reach Oregon. Also depending on what size/type/class RV you rent will determine how slow you will have to go in order to negotiate all those tight twisty curves, etc. Take out a good west coast map of the US and check it out and you will see what I mean here. Google Earth and the "street view" option is great also Next thing is the time you are allotting to see everything you are hoping to see. You indicated 3 weeks which is going to make it tough to travel all that distance and see everything without having it flash by your eyes or being able to stop and perhaps spend a night or two in the areas you like most. Next thing is you mention going to Yosemite and Las Vegas and Lake Tahoe. I take it you mean on the way back from the Seattle area, correct? I say that because if you are considering going to just those three areas you are definitely going to need more than 3 weeks to get them all in. Picture this if you will. Leaving Melbourne (LA) and driving up the coast to Townsville (Seattle) and in between visiting the following areas/cities as they would be in roughly the same spots and driving times, etc. LA = Melbourne Las Vegas = Coober Pedy Yosemite = Canberra Lake Tahoe = Katoomba/Blue Mountains San Francisco = Sydney Calif./Oregon Border = Gold Coast/Brisbane Portland = Cairns Seattle = Townsville Not exact but similar to what you'd be driving in just three weeks and on some slow going roads to boot. You can of course take the 101/Hwy 1 route north to Seattle and then take I-5 back from Seattle to Sacramento, continue on down to Hwy 120, take it over to Yosemite, go out the east entrance of Yosemite and get on Hwy 395 north to go to Lake Tahoe. From there you would need to do a bit of backtracking to get to Las Vegas via Hwy 395 and connect to Hwy 95 south into Vegas, and the straight back to LA via Hwy 15. Again you will need some good maps to go over these directions and my rough layout of what I would consider to be a good way to take everything in that you want to see in a limited amount of time. Our big thing in California especially, is the heavy traffic that is common around the bigger cities of LA, SF, and Sacramento, etc. Also the Portland and Seattle areas are heavily congested during those times.You want to try not to be in those areas around the morning and evening commute times, roughly from 4 pm to 7 pm as one small traffic accident can tie things up for hours. Good thing is tha tyou have some time to put all this together so it will work out smoothly for you. Look all this over and ask questions of me anytime you have one. I am more than happy to open my maps and assist wherever I can. Once again, think about the time you are allotting to see everything you mentioned as you may want to take out one or two areas so you can have the time to really enjoy the others, etc. If by some chance you get close to the area I live (between Sacramenot and Lake Tahoe just off I-80) by all means let me know where you will be at what day and time and perhaps we can meet for a handshake and a cold one. I need to end this here for now as It's beginning to become a book and I doubt the forum admins want me to be typing a book on all this Keep us posted in the upcoming months on how the trip plans are coming together for you....................... Regards, BankShot.............(aka Terry)
Correction in my above post. Where I compared US cities to Aussie ones I mistakenly used Cairns as a comparison to Portland. I had been looking at Australia and remembering back to my days down there and for some reason Cairns was on my mind, hence the error. I was intending on using Rockhampton as a comparison to Portland. Pardon the error............ Terry
Knew I could rely on you Guys! Awesome terry I will keep you posted and pick your brain on a regular basis. The same with you BC thanks to both for taking the time! Do you think its worth starting a thread guys so I can put info in including RV choice etc?
Anytime Jason. We've driven from border to border in Calif., Oregon and Washington and know most all of the routes that are the quickest, the prettiest and the ugliest so I'll be sure to keep you away from the latter of the three. You know where to find me so if you have a question about some road or some area, just ask. Hopefully someday perhaps I'll get back down under and do what you are doing up here. What a neat trip that would be for us...................... As to starting a thread about RV choices, etc. I don't see why not. So many types and sizes available to rent but IMHO perhaps a decent sized Class C would serve you well. Much more maneuverable than a Class A and it would be easier to get around in also. Many smaller cities and towns are tough in a Class A but not so much in Class C. You are of course a lot more familiar towing a trailer but that would involve renting both the trailer and a car or small truck to tow it and that can get expensive. Whatever you do you will for sure be making a trip of a lifetime with your family and the memories will be with all of you forever................. Regards, Terry
Hey Jason! love your Piks... you certainly don't see campgrounds like that in Connecticut. Coming from the east coast I too can't offer much help other than wishing you a fantastic adventure!! Looking forward to hearing about your upcoming west coast trip! Mike
I don't live on the west coast and have never driven the route Jason is proposing, but that doesn't stop me from giving my opinion. Anyone is welcome to correct me if I'm wrong, but I have always heard that you should drive from north to south on the coastal highways so that you are on the ocean side of the road because that is the side where the scenic turnouts are. This makes it easier to pull off and then get back on the highway especially if you are in a large RV. With that in mind you might consider reversing your route: Leave out of LA, heading up to Las Vegas on I-15. Take Hwy 95 north out of Vegas. If you really want to see Death Valley, there are several roads that you can take west from Hwy 95 through Death Valley winding up on Hwy 395 back in California. Hwy 395 will take you very close to Yosemite, and if you get on 395 at the southern end you will also be near Sequoia NP. (Think BIG trees.) After Yosemite get back on Hwy 395 and go up to Tahoe. From Tahoe I would suggest going west to get on I-5 to the north. You can do that by taking I-80 just north of Tahoe and backtracking just a bit over to Sacramento. Or there are several smaller highways north of Tahoe that will take you over to I-5. I-5 will take you up to Portland and on into Seattle. Coming back south you can take Hwy 101 out of Seattle down to California where Hwy 1 begins. Just after you cross into California you will go by Redwood National Park, another interesting place to visit. (More BIG trees.) The scenery along Hwy 1 is supposed to be spectacular, but some sections are probably better than others. I'm sure Bankshot can give you some advice in that area. If the road is too tight and curvy, there will be many roads that will take you a few miles east to Hwy 1. Either Hwy 1 or 101 will take you down through San Francisco and into LA. If you really want to go up to Seattle before Las Vegas, I would suggest reversing this route as I feel it keeps you going forward rather than backtracking to see the sights you've mentioned. This is a lot of distance to cover in the time you have, and there are numerous variations of routes, so do some homework with a map. It will be a great trip.
Jason, in September the weather can get pretty hot in California and Nevada. With 3 kids and grandparents you need to keep them cool. Death Valley may be bit much, as temps there go up to 115 F./45 C. Even on the California coast it can get hot when the Santa Ana winds are blowing. Keep that in mind when you book your RV rental. A functioning air conditioner is worth its weight in gold! As far as your route goes, it will be over 3000 miles at least if you want to go to all the places you mentioned. Figure out what route you can comfortably handle in your time and then check out Trip Advisor for the top attractions, RVPR for the campgrounds, State Highway Depts. for road conditions and traffic, and various websites for the attractions. Lot of research, but it will pay off in the end. I've done all the places you want to visit many times over the years. With only 3 weeks, it means you won't really get much time at any particular place. Here is a sample map route of most of the places you mentioned. The half moons mean a stop at the end of each day of aprox. 500 miles. That's okay on the freeway, but can be a long day when in the mountains. You will probably do a lot less than that most days. The numbers are only way points I input for the route. Hwy 120 out of Yosemite back to 395 enroute to Death Valley is a steep sucker, so beware. Happy trails, Jason.
Okay Jason. The weekend is here and I have had time to give your trip a little more consideration. I am in agreement with OMT and Tex. You have chosen to cover a lot of territory in three weeks. My advise it to hire a car and spend a day in Vegas during the first week of your stay. You may need a break from Disneyland anyway. There is not much in Vegas for kids that I'm aware of (but I've only been there twice and both times on business. I’m not a bright lights person). You will then have a full three weeks to see and do more than just drive. Texasrvers suggestion to travel the PCH from north to south is a good one IMO. I've done it both ways a number of times and being on the correct (I was going to say "right side") side of the road is much better. I would take I 5 (North/South Interstate highway) all the way to Fresno then head to Yosemite. From Yosemite to Sacramento back to the I 5 and on to Seattle. Seattle and area is very nice but good RV Parks in the city don’t exist. The closest to the city from the south is Seattle/Tacoma KOA. It is a very old park with small sites and is way over priced IMO but it works as a base to the area. You have a friend that lives there so I won’t get into where to go or what to see except http://www.museumofflight.org/ . I would not travel any farther north than Seattle. The Olympics are nice but you will see similar territory along the Oregon Coast. I would head to the water just south of Tacoma at Olympia. Take highway 8 to Aberdeen and pick up 101 from there. Along the way there is plenty to see and do. This is the land of tall trees, rugged coast and some very nice beaches. Some highlights: Long Beach Washington....... Beautiful (the water is cold though), The bridge to Astoria. (Once you are in Astoria you are in the state of Oregon.) Check out Oregon Dunes. There are alos plenty of old light houses etc, good fresh fish and places to eat. The scenery can be breath taking. There are plenty of small towns and bigger centres along the way to pick up supplies. There are many very nice state parks and lots of commercial parks with full hook ups. (We prefer State parks as we like to be a little closer to nature.) You arrive in California just south of Brookings. The coast line south is now less rugged and you arrive in the land of “Taller Trees” The Redwood National and State Parks start here. You must take a drive down “Avenue of the Giants”. At Leggett you need to switch from highway 101 to highway 1 in order to stay close to the coast. I am unfamiliar with this section as I have always headed to Napa from Leggatt. If you like wine you might want to do the same From San Francisco south you will be on Highway 1. Again, a less rugged coast but now the beaches get better, the weather gets warmer far fewer trees but still beautiful scenery IMO. I’m sure you will get plenty of advice on what to see and do from other users of RVPR. I never tire of doing this trip. You will need to take your time and be mindful of the roads. They can be narrow and winding. Darrell
I'm not a West coaster, but have visited a few times with our kids. Here are a couple of suggestions: You said you would be spending 5 days at Disneyland, may I suggest you take a couple of days from this plan, and visit Universal Studios as well. Your kids will love the Wizardring World Of Harry Potter, and you will be amazed by the sets and special effects. The studio tour and many of the other rides are not to be missed. This is all dependant on your budget. The park is pricey! Another person mentioned that the time you will be visiting, it might be hot. We also visited California at the same time and they were having a bad heat wave. Along the way, we stopped in Morrow Bay, which was a beautiful and cool respit from the heat. Temps there were about 15 degrees cooler than the rest of the state (when we were there). I also agree with the previous comment, that a large "Class C" motorhome would probably be your best choice. The Class A's can be larger, but they are usually designed for retired couples, and many time sleep less than the class c's. My 2 cents, Chris g.
