Life on the road can be simple. Creature comforts of the real world are often left behind in favour for travelling lighter and lifting the weight of day to day living off your shoulders as you venture into the wild. This is part of the adventure we love.

Rooftop living means that the your accommodation, pillows and bedding is stored away up top out of the way whenever you need it, leaving the inside of the truck for necessities (and toys) to enjoy along the way. Two of these necessities (and if you talk to Beth - by far the most important) are good clothing, and good coffee. So when our local buddies Kokako Organic Coffee Roasters and Sitka Clothing suggested a trip together, well, you can imagine the response.

We had spent the last few months creating something special with the Kokako team. A one-off custom tent, completely fitted out for the ultimate coffee lover. So the goal for this trip? To find the ultimate wake up spot to share a freshly brewed cup of Kokako of course.

Being the first trip of summer, the sky was blue but the air was still crisp as we pointed the truck south. Beth and myself had been dreaming of a particular camp spot for some time now, and what better excuse to try make it happen. The stars would really have to align to make it all possible, so we headed out into the unknown hoping for the best. Ah well, at least we were dressed warm and well stocked with some of the country's best beans.

The surf outlook this particular week was looking grim (read: flat), so we decided to head inland for a completely different type of adventure. Maps were scoured, pins were dropped and we soon realised we’d have to make it all up as we went. You see, the adventure we had been dreaming of still relied hugely on mother nature and the weather. Wind was the main beast we were trying to avoid as crystal clear water was the aim. After a few potential spots turned out to not hold all the keys to our dream, we continued to search and enjoy the sights along the way. I mean, it really was feeling like the first day of summer and we were out exploring. You can’t complain about that.

There was one spot left on the list, but being surrounded by thick native bush, we decided to leave it as our last resort. Like we often find ourselves doing, we got as close to it as possibly accessible by small gravel roads, then proceeded on foot to see what we could find. Greeted by a fairly rutted and tight mud track, it’s a good thing we were on foot as we scoped out the best way to navigate the truck down. From first glance the track looked dicey, but if there was gold at the end of the track, we couldn’t leave without giving it a crack. Well this particular spot had better been worth it as we slowly navigated the truck down the steeply angled and well worn track. Leaning the body against the side bank and Beth leading the way with the spade spotting as we went, the 5 minute walk soon turned into a 30 minute tedious drive.

We’d made it through, the truck was unscathed (bar a few clay scrapes) and we wouldn’t have to worry about getting back up the track till later. Time to see if this spot was as good as it looked on the map…

As we emerged from the bush we were greeted by a small stretch of empty white pumice beach and the clearest, crystal blue lake you’d ever imagine. Sheltered from the breeze too. We couldn’t believe our eyes. As we found a nice corner to start cooking lunch, boil the kettle and make good use of the brew gear we had stashed away in our new tent pocket, we had our eyes glued on the lake.

You see, while this stretch of white lakeside we were sitting on was amazing, we had other idea’s on where to unfold camp.

Words: Joel Hedges - Feldon Shelter

Photos: Josh Griggs