30 things a traveller must do on a round trip of Australia

After starting our Trooprock Aussies blog about traversing around Australia, I thought it would be awesome to make a mini bucket list of things a traveller should achieve whilst traversing this awesome country!
So here's a list of 30 things a traveller must do whilst doing a round trip of Australia. They are vaguely sorted as if starting in QLD and travelling anti clockwise:

1. Experience the origin of QANTAS at the Longreach museum - Longreach is the birthplace of QANTAS, Australia's largest commercial domestic and international airline and there lies the QANTAS museum

2. Scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef - 1 of the 7 natural wonders of the world. Aussies love the water and anyone traveling here will benefit greatly for a love of the water too. Australia has some amazing locations to swim, snorkel and dive and this would have to be one of the greatest places to have a crack. 

3. Go 4 wheel driving - Australia is full of harsh terrain and can be quite the playground for those equipped! The vehicle we purchased to conquer this country is up for the challenge. I dare say our definition of going 4 wheeling will change dramatically over the next year!

10/06/13 - Stanage Bay - I guess the definition of 4WD differs from person to person. We haven't needed to winch out or build tracks as of yet, however we have hit some rough roads, on our trip out to Stanage Bay and up the big hill at Beverly Hills there.

Not sure how tough the roads we'll hit in the future, but we have driven roads the pulsar would've lost it's guts on, so it's a start!
- Cameron

4. Adventure as far north as you can and reach Cape York - North of Cairns things get more hot and humid all year round, making it up the peninsula and enjoying this quiet part of Australia is a must!

5. Murder a cane toad - Cane toads are a pest that was introduced into Australia in the 1930's to wipe out the cane beetle, sadly they ate a lot more than just that, they are competition for native frogs and lizards and they have no natural predators in Australia, they are a lot smarter than our local critters and they breed incredibly fast. They are also hard to kill. I'm against senseless murder, however removing canetoads from the environment is good for our native animals. I personally have spent a few years of my childhood in QLD and have played my fair share of canetoad Golf, however Jeni is yet to experience this sport.

6. Work on an island - With so many islands around the Aussie coast, especially QLD, the allure of working on an island is another great experience to enjoy!

7. Gain employment in the Tourism/Outdoor Recreation industry - This can be replicated for something you have personally studied. Last year I obtained my Diploma in Tourism, and Jeni her Diploma in Outdoor Recreation, however we are both yet to work in our chosen industry!

8. Quest through a Renaissance Fair - I guess you don't have to be in Australia for this, sure there are far more intense Renaissance Fairs in other countries, but this is something Jeni and I wish to experience!

9. Sleep in the desert - Australia is a huge country and most of it is made up of vast desert. Might as well experience this while your here!

10. Rest in a hammock - Hammocks are awesome.

04/06/13 - Stanage Bay - Whilst camping in Stanage Bay, Jeni set up her hammock. I'm not sure who spent the most time lazing about in it, but it was indeed awesome!
Nothing beats swinging between 2 trees on a sunny day reading a book with a beer in hand!
- Cameron

11. Become a Ukulele rockstar - Again this could be replicated with learning another new instrument. We have a Ukulele in our vehicle as it is compact and easily stored, another great instrument to learn could be the harmonica, kazoo or even the humble acoustic guitar!

07/06/13 - Stanage Bay - Whilst yet to get my first gig, I have learnt a few chords and have strummed away an annoying pattern for a few hours on a couple of occaisons.
At least it's a nicer sound than a 3rd grade recorder session!
- Cameron

12. Hike through Katherine Gorge - Nitmiluk as the indigenous call it is a beautiful area in the Northern Territory filled with beautiful red cliffs, clear freshwater rivers and great walks, just don't go feeding the crocodiles!

13. Play for keeps with the Devils Marbles - The Devils marbles are a collection of unusual round boulders in various formations in the Northern Territory. Probably can't play them like the old school yard but thought it was a good introduction.

14. Ride a horse - A lot of the Aussie outback is filled with farms and plenty of people using horses, might as well join them!

15. Approach and admire Uluru - Ayres rock, that big red rock in the centre of our big red land. Extremely iconic, a must!

16. Appreciate indigenous culture through Arnhem Land - Arnhem Land is an Aboriginal reserve over an area of 97,000 km² you require special permission to access the land.

17. Test your stomach by consuming witchetty grubs and bush tucker - The traditional Aboriginal Australians believe in living off the land, while in their territory, why not give it a go?

18. Meet a wild dingo - Probably best not to include your baby in this venture! Dingos are awesome native dogs of Australia (Don't touch or feed)

19. Go for a swim on an Australian west coast beach - You should do the east coast too, however we have clocked up plenty of hours on the east, Gotta experience those Indian waters!

20. Swim alongside the Whale sharks - Have you ever seen a video of someone swimming with one of these beasts, if you have you will want to swim alongside one of these majestic giants of the ocean.

21. Splash around with Dolphins - Not sure if there is a place where dolphins actively hang out with humans, but since I saw Flipper as a kid, this has been mega important on any kind of bucket list that can involve dolphins!

22. Chase a quokka - Quokka's are a small funny looking marsupial that live  on the southern coast of Western Australia, they are rare on the mainland, however they have a succesful colony on Rottnest Island.

23. Traverse across the Nullabor Plain - Nullabor literally means "no tree" in Latin. At 200,000 km²  it is the largest single chunk of limestone on the planet. Half the people I've spoken to who have crossed it say it was amazing and cannot wait to do it again, the other half say it is as entertaining as driving straight across a very long straight road with no trees or defining features. Either way make your own decision and we can't wait to make ours either!

24. Gain my wings and fly a plane - Probably a bit of a stretch, especially since I've looked up the cost into doing this and it really doesn't fit in with the frugality of a traveller  but we all have to have dreams and must look for the opportune moment to achieve these crazy dreams!

25. Grow my other wings back and go skydiving again - Some travellers have done it, some have not, but jumping out of a plane can be one of the most free feelings you will ever experience (Whether more or less than flying a plane I do not know!) If you have not done so yet, Australia can be an expensive country to leap from a plane, however it also offers amazing views! For me personally before I jump again I want to drop 15 kg (Which is also an awesome goal while you are travelling .. if you can avoid all the interesting food and beer!). For Jeni, the first time she went was the day after we met, so it holds significance for her too.

26. Grab a bite along the Great Australian Bight - C'mon, gotta say you got a bite at the Bight! Yet to review the takeaway/cafes/restaurants along the road, but we'll keep you posted!

27. Go nocturnal at Coober Pedy - Coober Pedy is a small opal mining town in South Australia. Why is it so important to visit this place? Because the township is underground.

28. Take in the view and breeze at the 12 appostles - A bunch of spires created from the harsh Southern Ocean, The 12 Apostles dot the Great Ocean Road in Victoria.

29. Go to an AFL game and learn how the game works - Without a doubt you should get to an NRL game, but as we both grew up in Newcastle our dad's made sure we've already gone to our fair share. AFL though, no idea what it's about, never been to a game, however I do know if a guy akwardly points forward, someone has scored points! All NRL/AFL jokes aside, we are keen to check out a game and learn to appreciate more of our great countries sports!

30. Write a novel - During your travels you will have down time, whether you're sick, the weather gods are being jerks or you are out of cash, working a job, have some time off but that pay-cheque is yet to clear! Of course writing to your loved ones or a blog like this could be a great use of said down time. However I started a novel just before setting off on our trip and personally would love to work on it while I rest during my travels!

Sure we overlooked some of the must do's we have already done, but as we knock these events out of the bucket for ourselves, Jeni or I shall lay down a little blog informing you readers all about it. 

Do you think there is something else awesome we didn't lay down? Have you powered through most of the list already? Let us know in the comments below!

- Cameron