Meet my astro-van, a 2022 LWB 2.8L automatic five door Toyota Hiace ICV (Internal Combustion Vehicle), that I bought specifically for my Inland Astro-Trail (IAT) adventures. It’s a pandemic baby. I ordered it in May 2022 after spending months alone at home during the Covid lockdowns researching sites of astronomical significance in Southeastern Australia and plotting them onto a Google map as possible destinations for our extended IAT.
Every site I found to add to the map revealed yet more of Australia’s extraordinary astronomical heritage, and I wanted to visit every site. I wanted to explore them, write about them and share their stories. Which would mean driving thousands of kilometres on a very limited budget, often to very remote places and with all the challenges my aging body presents! So how could I do it? It seemed unreasonably impossible!
Ah, but if I had a camper van! Something suitable for a non-mechanically minded 70-plus-year-old female with crook knees ….
And so, after a lot of googling about vans and brands, I visited my local Toyota dealer.
My brand new van arrived six months after Forbes Toyota Sales Consultant Brendon Turner took my deposit, all factory fresh and gleaming, and with just three kilometres on the dash. Great to drive, but it needed a lot of civilising before it could be considered a safe and comfortable workspace/home-away-from-home for this aging scribe.
DESIGN PHASE
I knew what I wanted inside this empty steel can though. I’d even drawn up a design brief. It included:
- an unobstructed central corridor the full length of the van for easy movement between driver’s seat and rear exit (a key safety feature), with ‘kitchen’ on one side, and bedroom/office/storage space on the other
- lots of insulation on internal surfaces
- a solar panel mounted on a roof rack
- lithium batteries, inverter, 12v and shore power options, with several strategically placed power outlets
- large storage box with lift-up lid and spaces for clothes, electricals (lithium batteries, inverter, wiring etc) and other stuff
- sustainably sourced timber construction, marine ply cladding and tung oil finish
- mattress on top of the storage box
- maximum possible bench space and cupboards
- a swivel on the passenger seat so I can turn it around and use it as a lounge chair in the back
- big 12 volt fridge/freezer
- deep stainless steel sink, simple plumbing and easily accessible water tanks
- induction hot plates (no gas)
- portaloo, fan, and miscellaneous other mod cons
- adjustable workstation/lagun folding table for writing
- fold-up camping chairs and table
- insulated window covers
- external awning
- strategically placed hand rails to help me get in and out with ease
- small folding step ladder for back door
- and me as the project manager/client
THE DELAYS
Although I knew a bit about project management I had few of the skills required for the actual fit-out, which meant I had to depend on local tradies to do the job for me. At the time, however, anyone with any practical skills in Forbes and neighboring communities was fully employed repairing the damage caused by the extreme flash-flood event, or ‘tsunami’ in nearby Eugowra, and/or by the covid-era building boom created by city folk deciding to move to the country for a better quality of life.
AND THEN THE GALARI-LACHLAN RIVER FLOODED! TWICE! Most of Forbes’ Central Business District, including the Toyota dealership and dozens of low-lying homes, were inundated in these floods. My own house was above flood level but, even so, I was ordered to evacuate. ‘For my own safety’, the SES man told me. Many other people were not so lucky. Their homes and business premises were flooded, some of them damaged beyond repair. Every tradie was working overtime. My van job had to wait.
THE BUILD
But eventually, it was my turn! First, the all-important insulation. Then the cabinetry, solar panels, batteries and electricals, a few refinements, such as the fridge/freezer, and the floor covering. And, finally, the fun bit: the proof-of-concept road-testing.
1. INSULATION
After lots of googling and many discussions about insulation, I ordered a ‘van pack’ from Car Builders in Melbourne. The pack included three types of insulation to cover most of the van’s interior; a vibration dampening and acoustic treatment, a heat insulation layer, and a layer of Havelock wool, pure New Zealand sheep’s wool, which, according to the promotion, would not only insulate the van, but filter the air, absorb humidity and sound, supress mould and mildrew, resists fire, had no harmful chemicals, and was a renewable, biodegradable natural fibre. (Of course, it would be even better if it were grown and processed in Australia!)
I wanted to retain and re-use the existing grey lining fabric as part of my commitment to making my fossil-fuelled steel can as ecologically benign as possible, and the lads from Parkes Toyota respected my wishes. They removed the original fabric, covered the metal surfaces with layers of insulation, then carefully replaced the lining. They also fitted the swivel under the passenger seat and removed the centre console to allow the seat to turn, and me to move around the van easily and safely.
2. CABINETRY
I discussed the design brief with my builders of choice, Peter McMaster and his staff at BDN Kitchens and Joinery in Parkes, and offered them the job of installing the cabinetry etc. Pete had never converted a van before, but I was confident that he and his staff would do a great job. ‘Something different!’ Pete joked at the time.
I chose BDN Kitchens and Joinery for both practical and sentimental reasons. Sentimental because Pete’s family owns the farm next to the farm my parents owned on Gunningbland Creek, in the far western reaches of Parkes Shire. Indeed, I’d bought the van with money I received from the sale of our family farm after my mother passed away in 2020. And there were other family connections too. I went to our village primary school with several of Pete’s older relatives, for example, and in 2016, Pete’s company did our kitchen renovations in Forbes. So it felt very right that he and his wife Trudy and their staff should convert my steel can into something comfortably unique for the next phase of my life. It was a privilege and joy working with them.
Pete and his team, especially ‘Spud’, BDN’s very shy but highly skilled cabinet maker, went well beyond my expectations for this build. Spud confessed that he regretted that, with all the automated machinery at BDN, his skills were very under-utilised. To him, my van project was ‘proper cabinetry,’ he said. He loved working with ‘proper’ timber and could make anything fit anywhere. His innovations and craftmanship are evident throughout the van.
3. ELECTRICALS
Grant Howell, of Grant Howell Auto Electricals in Forbes, fitted my solar panel, batteries, inverter, wiring, lights, switches, shore-power and USB charging inlets and whatever else he thought necessary to keep the power on in my van, and to keep me comfortable and safe. I bought a Complete Lithium 4WD/Caravan Kit from the West Australian company, iTech World, and Grant provided the solar panel through his own supplier.
Everything worked perfectly with the solar system until I visited the historic Tebbutt’s Observatory at Windsor on the Nepean River in March 2024. I was stealth-camping in parking lots at the time, and for three days the sun failed to shine. No solar lights at night, no induction stove, no fridge/freezer, and all that rain! So – one of the first things I did when I got home was order an iTech World power station. Now, with this new bit of kit, I’ll at least be able to make myself a cuppa and switch a light on at night next time I’m caught in a similar predicament.
4. FRIDGE/FREEZER & AWNING
Given that I’ll be heading into remote and very arid country at some stage, possibly for weeks at a time, I figured that a big fridge/freezer and an awning would be useful. Fortuitously, Forbes Automotive Services was the local agent for ARB, an Australian company specialising in 4×4 accessories, so I had no problem buying the fridge and awning locally. The young ARB team, all of them keen campers and off-roaders themselves, couldn’t have been more supportive and generous with their advice and time.
5. FLOOR COVERING
And last but not least, a commercial grade lino from C&D Floor Coverings in Forbes. Thank you Gus for doing such a great job.
6. PROOF-OF-CONCEPT
Even before the camper-van was completed I did a couple of test runs to make sure everything worked. I spent 10 days visiting old and new friends on the Central and North Coast of NSW to find out how safe free-camping in urban areas was, for example. I also visited the community astronomers at the new Tamworth Astronomy and Space Centre to discuss the feasibility of the IAT concept and seek their advice. (See interview with the Northern Leader here>>)
The most critical lessons I learned on this trip had nothing to do with safety or the project’s feasibility though! They were more to do with comfort!. My foam mattress gave me a terrible back ache, and the storage system for my clothes sucked! My old school friend Margot, from the Central Coast, helped me solve the back problem with a simple mattress topper from Clark Rubber (Thanks Margot); and, later, at Byron Bay, I found some woven cotten baskets to put in the big box beneath the mattress for my clothes. Problems solved.
And now, two years after the van’s arriva in Forbes, I’m ready to start the next leg of my journey! My thanks to the dozens of people who have helped me along the way. Let’s see what happens next!
Page published 3 September 2024. Last updated 16 February 2025.