After both Kerrie-Anne and Josh experienced health scares some time ago, they took some much needed time to re-evaluate their life, their health and their goals. Fast forward to now, and they are committed to travelling around Australia in a van with their toddler, and new born baby boy Zephaniah as much as they can. You may know them as Frontier Tribe – they share their journey on their blog, instagram and are an inspiring family who is so generous with their knowledge about making family travel easier. You can check out their blog posts and family guides on line here. We are so thrilled to have them apart of the Heartfelt Traveller Series.
Welcome Heartfelt Traveller – Kerrie-Anne from Frontier Tribe
1. Tell us a little bit about you and your family
We are a family of three, with one on the way! Josh, Kez and Zion River (2yrs). We live on the Sunshine Coast QLD and have a Toyota Hiace Van which we escape in as much as we can.
{edit: Congratulations on the birth of your second child guys!!}
2. Travel is a big part of both your lives and now for your son, can you share that journey for your love of travel?
Yes! We are big lovers of travel. Josh and I have done a lot of overseas travel together and when we came back home from our year travelling around the world we decided to really explore our home soil. Australia is so vast and beautiful and there are so many places we haven’t had the chance to explore yet. When we had Zion we wanted to bring him along on the journey with us and for him to experience life in a special way. The best way we thought of doing this was through van life.
3. Here at OFT we celebrate the Heartfelt Traveller and at Frontier you seem to embody a lot of that spirit with your slow van life. What’s it like?
Yeah totally, we are really trying to live a slow and meaningful life. We don’t always get it right, but it’s always on our minds to take things slow and to be in the moment with whoever we’re with and wherever we are. Being on the road so much we really want to show Zion how to love and protect the earth we are so blessed to live on.
4. You used to make a magazine and now you make guides. Is your love of travel also a love of sharing and inspiring travel in others?
Yes totally! We are really passionate about travel and doing what you love, especially as families. There are so many people that have reached out and find it too hard to travel with kids and we want to make it easier for them and to encourage them to get out there and have beautiful experiences with their families as much as they can. When we think back to our childhoods and the trips we went on – the anticipation, the car trip, the set up, the early frosty mornings, long days in the sun, waterhole exploring, dinner under the stars, chats over the fire – these are the memories that are still special to us and we are getting the chance to re-create them with our family. We want to inspire families to take time out of their busy lives for their families. We are more about trying to foster the continual weekend escapes or day trips than the one-off holiday you might plan once a year.
5. Tell us about some of your most incredible or memorable travel moments
I think the first time we took Zion camping was the best. He was around 6 months old, and we were a little hesitant to do it but we just planned a trip to Cairns, got an awesome car with a roof top tent and had the best trip, Zion just loved it. We were exploring somewhere new, just the three of us. We had no plans and just relied on chatting to locals to find the good spots to go to. And of course in Cairns, you really can’t go wrong, but we went to epic waterfalls and waterholes, camped right on the sand and by the rivers, we would go to sleep listening to either the waves crashing on the shore or streams running over rocks. It really was a magic trip. Now we won’t leave it so long to go camping when we have our next baby we’re already setting up the van so it will be ready to fit our new little bundle in straight away!
6. What you would say to parents who are considering a travel experience like yours? What might help them make that leap?
Just do a small trip first and don’t bring too much stuff with you! We see so many families with trailer loads of gear and taking hours to set up their massive campsite. You don’t need much when you go away and we’ve found that the simpler your set up is, the more often you will go away – because it’s less stressful and easier to jump in the car! Also, don’t have too high expectations – it is a lot different going camping just as a couple compared to going with your kids in tow – so be kind to yourself, each time will get easier as you get into your own natural flow.
