Decided to try living the dream....

Good on you both. As for a carpenter, We know one that went on a property to do some restoration work. Word got around the district and they ended up staying much longer than planned. You havnt mentioned if you have a van to live in imo that is a must. My little tip is to become a member here then folk can mm you privately.

Cheers

Look here ..... ThreadID: 81879

try this site www.graynomads.com.au i Have not myself but they say u can find work here.cheers

Good on ya guys its the best feeling in the world going where you want when you want.My wife and i did it for nearly 3 years before becoming stuck in Perth (good jobs and pay).I'm a boilermaker and my wife is in admin we never had any trouble finding work.Try looking for work in the next town/place before you get there,labour hire company's are worth a ring.

Hi Julie and Daren,
Congrats on making the best decision you will ever make. We did 3 years on the road and loved it. Wish we had never stopped. We found the best way to find work is to simply go into as many places as you can and hand out your resume. Ask the locals, caravan parks, pubs etc. Places like roxby downs and other mining towns we found it is best to look for work around town rather than the mines. Once you get working for someone word will get around if you are good and you get other offers. I started helping a guy do some work on his houses and ended up managing a landscaping business for 8 months in Roxby Downs. Getting into the mines is actually very hard and I was on really good money anyway ($35/hr plus company car and accomodation, power etc paid for). My tip is to always be looking for work and take it when it comes along, even if it's only for a short time. I did 1 days work for bunnings doing a stocktake. 6 months later they rang me and offered full time work. If I was in that area would have been handy.
Following is a link for an agency that does outback station employment. Worth having a look at.http://www.annabrownrecruitment.com/positions.php
Glad to hear your trip is open ended. There is so much to see out there. We have a website of our trip with some info and stats on fuel, accom etc. See here:http://www.kidsandall.webs.com/
Happy travelling.

Josh

Way to go. Eight weeks until we board the "Spirit" for a year on the road. Good to see two more people cross a dream off their list.

Hi Julie and Darren

It may not be your cup of tea, but I know that many many Aboriginal Communites are always looking for relief workers on the Administration side, and tradesmen are always welcome in communities (that is speaking as a tradey).

There are heaps of sites which have remote area work, and almost all roadhouses are looking for people, though the pay is probably more suited to backpackers on budget holidays, from what I have been told by a couple of backpackers working at Doon Doon in WA.

Google the word Remote and see what you can find, there are heaps of sites.

Cheers

started 10 years ago, now have 3 kids, from Gnowangerup, Tom Price, Cygnet Bay (nth Broome), Kakadu, Leeton (nsw), Darwin, Maningrida, Bickerton Island, Darwin, Yarralin (Vic River NT), "Nooka", Nyirripi (Tanimi) and now in Doomadgee QLD and not stopping now, no way.............
Register with "Seek" and a few of the other MAJOR job providers and simply use the name of the town/place you next want to go to as the search and you will get everything possible in that area, the word "remote" will get a lot of positions that are nursing, policing and all sorts of other stuff and will take hours to get through ..... sit back/travel and they will be e-mailed to you ....
"Early Fortys" and dont want backbreaking jobs, cumon you are still soooo young :-)

G'Day Julie & Darren,

Pretty good advise all round here but I will add my bit.

My wife & I +2 kids sold up & hit the road for 2 years. We had no plans on working but when I was camped on a station in the Kimberley I did some repairs on a station owners wife's car while her husband was out for a few days. When he came back they offered me a job as an all round fix it man. I am a Fitter & Machinist/Toolmaker by trade by the way. Word got around & I reckon I could have stayed for much longer in the Kimberley than the 2 months we spent on the station if we wanted. Since Darren is a tradie he will have no problems getting work.

"We are in our early 40's so back breaking jobs are not really our thing"
Sorry but if you want to work on a station it is hard work with little pay BUT the opportunity is great particularly because you will get to meet all the locals too. I am in my 50's & I still do lots of physical work on my property in the Mallee. Keeps you feeling young even if your not!

Lastly remember to be VERY flexible with your travel plans. Don't turn the trip in to a marathon & be a TRAVELLER not a TOURIST & you will have the trip of a lifetime.

Cheers
Stu

Get some business cards printed with your details on the front and what type of work you are looking for on the rear. Think about it well what you put on the back so you don't limit yourself to much. You can always refuse when they phone or e-mail. We are in constant demand and go back to places we worked previously. We get paid to travel back they are so keen we come back. Hand the cards out everywhere when looking for work.

Hi Julie and Darren

We too are heading off to live the dream as well.... same age group as you guys, and can't wait. Another website I have found with work is www.thejobshop.com.au check it out!!!

Good luck on your travels!

just as an "example" ...........((((((( NOTE# we did work for them but no longer do and have NO connection to them, we enjoyed our time but we had kids and some of the locations did NOT suit us with kids so we resigned..... ))))))
A company called "Outbackstores" is based in Darwin and manages community Stores all over the NT and some in WA, they pay "around" $50,000 pa each for a couple ($100,000 for both) ...... you "may" get free power and accomodation whilst working on the communitys, you will get to see some awsome places and meet some wonderful community people and get to see places that you will NEVER get to see as a tourist, you need to be "tough" and prepaired to work hard at times (even if you are over 40) and need to be able to fit in with the locals and accept things that may not be of acceptance to you in you "sheltered life" but is common practise out bush ...... they are on the net and the "conditions" i have quoted were in place when we worked for them, you would have to check but i would assume that they have made changes and most probally for the better ...........
At the end of the day .... go hard or go home..... :-)

Hi Julie and Darren

It is my plan to do the same thing in about 3 years time and as such I found this old thread really interesting (interesting enough that I saved it in my 'Retirement' folder so I could read it again when the time gets closer)


Archived ThreadID: 77715 link


Scroll down to the part where "Onthe run' talks about the ATO - very interesting reading

Hope it hepls

Cheers KA

Check out Workabout Australia.

Greg

What a great project! I am sure you will have a wonderful few years!
I would also suggest you take you own accomodation, even if you don't use it all the time. A small van or camper trailer would give you much more flexibility in jobs and locations. You would also have the comfort and convenience of having your own bed and gear. It would save you from high rent costs up north and make it easier to save a lot by preparing your own meals. Also it would mean that you don't always have to be joined at the hip. Sometimes you may be offered separate good jobs in different locations near a town. If one of you takes the vehicle, either to work or anywhere else, then the other would have no access to the camp. If you have your own van, one can stay in camp comfortably with access to possessions while the other travels further to work.
Remember also that the weather will not always be good.
There is quite a difference between being a tourist on a camping holiday and a full time working traveller. Good luck!Lynne