The Feel Good Family: Introduction

Five years ago, the Feel Good Family packed their lives into a caravan and never looked back. Incredibly, Paul and Katie had never even owned a tent when they threw in their corporate careers, sold everything they owned and decided they were going to live full time in a caravan travelling Australia.

175,000km later, they have zig zagged their way across every state and territory and are thrilled to be sharing their travels and inspiring others to plan a road trip and immerse themselves in what they consider to be the world’s best backyard, through their weekly Television show, YouTube episodes, and Podcast.

We caught up with Katie and Paul to get all the details on their 4WD build, caravan and lifestyle.

paul, jasper and katie from the feel good family

Q. So, how did you get into camping & touring?

Haha, by default really! It is sad but true that prior to hitting the road in 2019 with our 23ft caravan in tow, we had never even owned a tent! We were definitely not campers, and our love of travelling generally took us overseas to explore other countries and cultures.

When our day arrived to hit the road, for what was meant to be our 2 year lap of Australia, we were as green as they come! Total novices with all the gear and absolutely no idea of what we were getting ourselves into and the impact this experience would have on our lives.

Q. What inspired you to take the leap to live this lifestyle full time?

After a 4 year IVF journey to create our family and long hours spent working our corporate roles, we started to wonder if there was a better way of life. After Jasper was born our perception of what really mattered changed, and we realised our most precious commodity was time. We wanted to create more time together as a family and spend our days sharing experiences and making memories to last a lifetime.

So, what seemed like a crazy idea at the time set in motion a 2 year plan to pack up our lives, downsize our ‘stuff’ and explore this great country of ours.

It was the best decision we ever made, and now over 5 years later we are addicted to this nomadic lifestyle and love living in our tiny home on wheels.

Q. What's your favourite destination to date?

That is such a hard question to answer and we don’t think we could ever narrow the answer down to just one, as Australia is so incredible! Tasmania as an entire state is just sensational for touring, with so much beauty everywhere! The Northern Territory is so unique and like no other place around the country, and as Queenslander’s we just couldn’t go past our home state.

These days we love nothing more than getting off the beaten track, on to the dirt, and into the most remote parts of the country. This last year we’ve toured the Flinders Ranges and Oodnadatta Track, towed to the Tip of Cape York, tackled the infamous Mereenie Loop and Plenty Highway, and our ‘yet to visit’ list just keeps getting longer!

palm valley northern territory feel good family off road adventure

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Q. Do you have any destinations left on your bucket list?

We can’t wait to explore the South West Coast of Western Australia! As a region its somewhere we’ve never been, and the incredible reels we see on Instagram from other travellers have us itching to go!

Q. How did you settle on a Landcruiser and Zone RV Caravan?

We’ve been travelling Australia in the LC79 and our Zone RV for the last 2.5 years, after upgrading from our first vehicle and van set up. After a few years of being on the road full time we realised we wanted to get a little more adventurous, get off the bitumen, and explore some of those remote places our original set up couldn’t take us.

We’ve certainly put the 79 and our Zone RV to the test these last couple of years and they haven’t missed a beat!

Q. What other vehicles did you consider at the time?

We were tossing up between an LC300 and the trusty 79. Fortunately, our 79 became available at the perfect time, which really helped to make our decision. We purchased the 79 second hand off an owner who had made an amazing number of modifications to the vehicle already. While the 79 interior is not nearly as luxurious as the LC300, the reliability of the V8 engine together with all the modifications, made this the perfect vehicle for touring Australia.

Q. Can you list off all your modifications - including what your favourite is?

The 79 has been kitted out with a long list of modifications inside and out, and everything we need for off grid and off road touring! The interior has received a full Department of the Interior upgrade including floor and roof consoles, facia and door pockets, Kenwood head upgrade, Apple car play, ARB Linx system and GME Connect X Hardwired UHF Radio. Car Builders sound deadening in the doors also helps to keep the road noise out and One Stone armrests give us a little extra comfort.

The external modifications include a GVM & GCM upgrade, ARB suspension, bulbar, siderails, steps, dual compressor and long range full tank.

The vehicle is decked out with MSA 4x4 Accessories towing mirrors, and Aussie made Lightforce performance lighting including the Beast driving lights, Viper lightbar, amber side lightbars and Rok utility lights.

Our favourite mod is the MODE 4x4 Accessories canopy that has been fitted out with MSA 4x4 Accessories drawers, fridge barrier, fridge power slide, and power panel. We’ve added an ARB 60L Zero fridge, Redarc 2000w inverter, McCormacks 4WD 220 Power Up lithium battery system, The Bush Company 180 Awning, spare wheel brace, ladder and jerry can holder, a 70L water tank with dedicated pump, Redarc 180w solar panel and Offroad Animal roof rack. And ROH Vulcan wheels and Mickey Thompson Baja Boss tyres keep us safe on and off the road.

mode 4x4 canopy build

Q. Is there anything unique about your set up compared to others that you love?

We love that both the van and canopy are made from lightweight yet super strong composite materials, using an innovative dust free design. There’s nothing better than pulling up into camp after hours on the corrugations and bull dust, to find dust free interiors on both the MODE canopy and Zone RV and all our gear clean and tidy.

Q. How long it took you to set it up from start to finish

Is a 4WD set up ever complete? Paul keeps coming up with lots of ideas for new mods and upgrades to the 79! Seriously though, we were so fortunate to purchase a second hand vehicle that came with such an extensive list of upgrades, which was an incredible foundation for us to build upon.

We loved the build process of our MODE 4x4 Accessories canopy and fit out by the team at McCormacks 4WD in Sandgate, Queensland. These guys are legends in the industry and their family owned values really resonated with us when deciding who to trust our ‘baby’ with.