The OutFit Quit Their Jobs to Overland Australia

At what point did you decide to leave your life in Sydney to pursue life on the road?

We lived in Sydney together for two and a half years and were going camping almost every weekend to escape the hustle and bustle in the city. Sometimes we drove up to 10 hours in a single weekend, but it just wasn’t enough to satisfy our adventure cravings.

We wanted more than the 9-5 grind with only two days exploring the great outdoors, so we started to plan a much bigger adventure. We bought the Jeep and spent six months completing the build while saving money before quitting our jobs at the end of December 2019. Hitting the road full time is one of the best decision we’ve ever made!

Why did you choose a Jeep JKU Rubicon as your weapon of choice?

We chose it because we think it’s the most capable vehicle in the world for offroading. It’s also a platform that can be easily modified and we love that it stands out wherever we go. It’s pretty cool to be out and about and have people recognise us just from our Jeep.

How has coronavirus affected your trip?

We were in the Grampians when the coronavirus started to escalate in Australia back in March. When states announced that they would shut their borders, we decided to dash over to Western Australia so we wouldn’t be stuck in Victoria for the winter. It was a rough 28 hours of driving (2,700kms) but we made it!

Unfortunately, we didn’t anticipate that Western Australia would also put intra-state border restrictions in place. This meant we ended up in Albany for lockdown for nearly 7 weeks. It’s an incredible place but we started to get very cold and wet, sitting outside every day. We were counting down the days until we were able to drive north to much warmer weather.

Read more: Stay Home is the Order, but what if you’re a Nomad?

What’s the meaning behind your name: The OutFit?

It basically stands for the Outdoors & Fitness. When we started our overland journey, we wanted a name that represented our passions and we wanted to show that fitness doesn’t have to take a back-seat when it comes to long-term adventuring.

Do you think a 4WD is essential to travel around Australia?

Australia’s an incredible country to drive around. The roads are mostly great and many people do the ‘Big Lap’ in all sorts of vehicles. But if, like us, you want to explore off the beaten path, drive on insane beaches and camp in remote locations –  a capable 4WD is a must.

We’ve noticed this necessity the most in Western Australia; a huge majority of the most beautiful places are only accessible by 4WD.

Dirk Hartog Island

I see you guys have dived and spearfished in some amazing places. What’s the best catch and cook you’ve done on the road?

Spearfishing has been such a great practice to pick up while we have been on the road. Not only does it provide food for the table, but it’s a sustainable hunting method that’s opened our eyes to the wonders of the ocean. It’s also really nice to learn a new skill and great exercise at the same time! Our favourite catch and cook has been in Exmouth Gulf, where we cooked a mouth-watering coral trout over the fire.

Do you have any tips for others travelling on the road that are passionate about keeping fit as they travel?

If you’re like us and used to training in a gym environment, then it’s going to be a big change. It requires a lot of adaptation, but with a few select pieces of equipment, you can smash some really good workouts.

We carry two kettlebells, one 12kg and one 16kg. As well as a set of gymnastic rings, a fillable sand-bag and some resistance bands. Obviously, weight and space in the vehicle is the limiting factor here.

We find that even just a few small workouts a week are enough to keep us feeling fit and healthy. Staying pain-free and relatively flexible from all the driving and sitting is super important too. 

We also encourage you to go swimming, hiking and get in the occasional beach run. If you’re full-time on the road like us then you have the time to keep up your health and fitness! It’s not glamorous, but it’s essential to maintaining your health, energy and vitality.

It’s been almost a year since the start of your overland journey, what’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt about living on the road for prolonged periods of time?

If you’re considering overlanding with your partner, you’ll probably have to make efforts in order to not kill each other [laughs].

Living 24/7 next to each other in limited space can be quite taxing on relationships, so it is important to find hobbies or activities that you can do on your own and give each other a bit of space.

What’s an underrated piece of gear that you always have with you on the road and why?

A spare wheel trash bag is definitely a must if you want to travel remote as we do!

Not only does it carry our trash, but we can also collect other people’s rubbish we find on remote beaches or in the bush and leave this beautiful country cleaner than we found it.

Where’s the best spot you’ve parked up for the night and why?

There have been so many memorable ones that it’s so hard to choose just one! But, if we have to choose one, we found an incredible spot underneath a huge boab tree while exploring the Gibb River Road It was one of the best nights of sleep we’ve ever had! Waking up with the sound of all the different Kimberley birds was just incredible.

Where are your dream overlanding destinations and where are you heading next after Australia?

Our big dream overlanding destination is the Pan-American Highway that stretches from the top of Alaska, all the way down to the very bottom of Argentina. It was our original plan instead of driving around Australia, but we’re glad we didn’t pull the trigger on it as our Jeep would have most likely been stuck in a shipping container somewhere on the ocean during the pandemic! We have so many big plans but the world is in a very uncertain place right now. We would love to tour Europe and Africa but we think New Zealand, will be first on our list.

Ride shotgun with The OutFit on their adventures.