The big decision…one year on…
I knew it had to happen sometime, and when I finally made the decision to upgrade my vehicle, things happened really quickly! When my dream car showed up the very next day, I made my second decision - just say Yes! - and I signed on that dotted line two days later, picking it up a couple of weeks after that.
It’s a year ago already! A year and a five days, but who’s counting? (Clearly me)
If you’re into numerology or even just observant of the synchronicity of recurring numbers showing up in your life, the date I picked up the new vehicle was on track with that :)
But I digress… It was an enormous decision to part with my beloved Jeep, and an awe-inspiring decision - for me - to buy a Troopy, let alone a brand new one. It was definitely on a par with deciding to purchase a land and house package and build a house.
Looking back over a year of first’s:
Troopy Jack’s first rodeo, and my first ‘official volunteer’ role as a rodeo photographer at the Coolgardie Outback Festival 2025, an intense action-packed couple of days, followed by a couple of weeks trying to speedily edit all the photos and deliver them to the organiser.
Our first camping trip together where I just slept on some outdoor cushions on the floor in the back, and the back was illuminated by fairy lights - still my favourite way to light the inside, unless I’m trying to find something I’ve dropped or mis-placed.
Our first time taking someone out on a drone photography tour, towing Jilly my off-road camper along as accommodation for my tour guest. We had a fantastic time and it felt really safe and invincible taking my guest along in such a built for purpose highly capable vehicle.
My first time ever installing sound-deadening in a vehicle - to be honest I didn’t even know it was a thing. My blood and skin are dripped and dropped throughout the back quarter panels, but its quiet and it’s gonna be warm on those cold nights when I’m somewhere out there in the middle of wherever.
So what have we done and where have we been? I feel like I’ve not done as much travelling as usual, having a few other demands on my time and brain this year, but incredibly we’ve done over 30,000kms!!
From Shark Bay to Gladstone Bay in the north, to Coolgardie in the east, south through to Busselton and through to the stunning Southern Forests to Pemberton, as as far west as… well as far as my place I guess. Living right on the coast is as west as I can get.
That’s not too bad really, when I think about it. There’s been a lot of time and cost in bringing my pretty basic Troopy up to a level of relative comfort, and yet I’ve barely scratched the surface.
Can’t wait to see what happens in this next year!