A young couple has told of how they decided to quit their day jobs to hit the road full-time in their caravan.
Lil and Jake, both 29, from Hobart, have been on the road trip of a lifetime since October 2022 — after selling most of their belongings and swapping the daily grind for the “Big Lap” of Australia.
Along the way, they have swum through crystal-clear waters at the idyllic Karijini National Park, explored the mystical Redwood forest in Victoria and watched the sun set over stunning ocean in South Australia.
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“Before we met, I think we both had the idea to travel Australia, having hardly seen any of our own backyards,” Lil tells 7Life.
“But as everyone always says, ‘It was never the right time’.”
The couple have been enjoying a simpler life with a 4WD and caravan after downsizing their “home”.
Their living expenses have been much cheaper as they no longer have to worry about a mortgage or paying bills.
Prior to travelling, Lil was a school teacher specialising in health, physical and outdoor education, while Jake was a gasfitter.
When the couple met, three years ago, they quickly realised they wanted to travel together.
It wasn’t until Lil was changing schools in October 2021, they thought it was a good time to do so.
However, they couple wanted take 12 months to come up with funds for their trip.
Lil juggled two jobs while Jake worked overtime, so they could save as much money as possible.
The couple sold many of their possessions — including Lil’s car and Jake’s tractor — and “downsized in a major way”.
Jake was already a homeowner after he built his property in 2019.
They put the home up for rent, which was enough to cover the mortgage.
The pair hit the road in October 2022.
“After we decided to travel, it was nearly 12 months to the day, and we were on the ‘Spirit of Tasmania’ on our way to the mainland,” Lil says.
The couple have been financially sustaining their adventures by creating content for their social media platforms, including Instagram and YouTube.
The pair have already clocked more than 70,000km in just over 18 months.
Living on the road has changed their perspective on life.
“We often talk about the pressure there was on our lives at home to have the newest toys, trending clothes, and to be dining out on the regular,” Lil says.
“We do feel now that buying fewer things means less to stress about, particularly when we think about the money we used to spend on the non-essentials.
“We honestly have never been happier and we’ve got the simplest lives we’ve ever had.”
The couple don’t have to pay rent or stress about paying bills.
The only worries they have these days are where to stay and where to find food, fuel and water.
Four days out of five, the couple opt for free camping, with the fifth day being low-cost camping, only staying in a caravan park when there’s no other option.
“Being fully self-sufficient means the only major costs we have are food and fuel, even if it does mean sometimes, you’re paying $3 per litre,” Lil says.
The couple used to record every dollar they spent but they found that by doing this — but they noticed they were “missing out on really worthwhile experiences”.
Their living expenses vary every week — depending how much fuel they need.
“We spend an average between $1000 and $1250 per week with a few blow-out weeks,” she says.
“Having covered 2500km in the past four days, we’ve spent $900 on fuel alone.
“Luckily next week, our only expense will be food, and costs will even out.”
To keep costs down, they rely purely on solar and charging the batteries while driving.
In terms of their belongings, Lil and Jake try to keep material objects to a minimum; Jake’s tools are the couple’s biggest and heaviest items in their set up.
“Often being so remote there’s always the chance we might need any one of the tools to help us get out of trouble,” Jake says.
“Our camera gear and the surf boards are probably the two next big items.
“And, finally to feel more like home, (there’s) Lil’s blow dryer and straightener, which to be honest gets used less and less the more humid the weather gets.”
Life on the road inevitably doesn’t come without its challenges.
“I’m sure many people would say their biggest challenge is things like working out where to sleep for the night or worrying about having enough food or spare tyres if they blow,” she says.
“But we’d be lying if we didn’t say our biggest challenge would be navigating a relationship while spending every waking moment with each other.
“We live together, work together, drive all day together, do literally everything together.
“While we love 99 per cent of it, it has taken us a while to work out what to do during that one per cent when things aren’t going right — because we can guarantee you, they won’t always go right.”
The couple says it’s important to have some time apart which usually involves exercising separately, making time to call friends or Jake tinkering on the caravan while Lil reads a book inside.
The pair love catching the sunrise before exercising and driving to a new place to explore and then spend the day.
From there, they explore, film and spend the rest of the afternoon editing and posting on their travel page.
The evening then winds down with Lil cooking dinner and Jake editing the next video.
One of the couple’s favourite parts of living life on the road is the adventure.
“We love exploring new places, seeing different things, and going to remote places others wouldn’t usually be able to get to,” Lil says.
“We are always so grateful to be in a new location and are excited to see what the day brings.”
They prefer not to plan too much, and say they will just travel until they don’t want to anymore — but they say, “luckily that’s not looking like anytime soon”.
Jake and Lil are currently in the Northern Territory and are there for the annual off-road motorsport event called the Finke Desert Race, which happens over the first weekend of June.
Next, they are off to Darwin, and then they will head west and spend some time visiting friends in Broome.
But they say their plans change all the time on the road “so who really knows”.
Jake and Lil’s best advice to other Aussies wanting to travel or try life on the road is to “set a date and stick to it”.
“Save as much money as you can with whatever set up you’ve got,” Lil says.
“Don’t let money hold you back.
“There’s so much work wherever you go, and you can always stop for a few weeks here and there to save up and hit the road again.
“Often the happiest people we meet have the simplest set ups.”
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