We rolled out early and headed for Deepwater National Park, just south of Agnes Water, where Theresa and Murray were waiting with their new pride and joy — an ISUZU Global Explorer. Calling it a vehicle feels wrong. It’s a desert‑crushing, track‑devouring beast that looks like it could drive across the Simpson, up Big Red, and then continue straight into orbit. Absolute unit.
The run up past Bundaberg was an easy, pleasant back‑roads cruise. We met at the causeway before the park entrance, then bumped our way along the old dirt track for the last 10 km. After a quick recon of the campground, we found a quiet corner near the toilets and the beach track. Straight away the place had that feel — peaceful, remote, and a little bit magic.
We’ve camped with Theresa and Murray before, but always with a crowd. Having four days with just them was brilliant. They taught us a stack of new cooking and cleaning tricks, and helped us christen our new ARCMATE fire pit. It was immediately named Brad — as in Brad Pitt — because apparently it’s too good‑looking to go unnamed. The girls insisted. Brad earned his keep and more, especially now that the Weber Q has been retired due to space.
Deepwater gets a solid 5 out of 5 from us.
The days were simple and perfect: long beach walks, a few fun 1–2 ft peelers on the 9’6”, and the kind of quiet you only get when there are four campsites occupied in the whole park. The weather was spot on with steady southerlies. The drop toilets were fine, and the Ulti shower got a proper workout — once we found the temperature sweet spot, it was mint.
The only downside was the rubbish washed up from recent flooding. Every walk turned into a cleanup mission. One morning I dragged back an entire plastic truck bumper like some sort of eco‑warrior pack mule.
Murray even tested our new washing machine. It passed. He’s now the official laundry technician.
He was keen to take the Global Explorer along the sand track from Deepwater to Agnes, but we decided to scout it first in the Trailblazer. Great drive, a few tight squeezes, and the upgrades handled it beautifully with tyres at 37. But the ISUZU? Too tall. We’d still be there trimming branches. Sensible call, even if Murray was itching to send it.
All up, it was the perfect start to our shakedown. Great mates, great campsite, great weather. Sad to roll out, but Agnes and 1770 were next on the list. Bring it on.
