4WDing and camping go hand-in-hand, for some its an adventure in itself, for others it’s a place to rest your head so you don’t have to drive home after the first day on the tracks.

Whatever you prefer, you’ll all know there’s a right way and a wrong way to go about keeping those around you in good spirits.

Now we’re not going to take the moral high ground and start telling you what you should and shouldn’t be doing when you’re out living in up in the scrub, but there is no shortage of people who will.

With new online booking systems coming into affect in many areas, especially in Western Australia (Wedge to be exact). We’ve heard a 100 stories of people who have to rise at the crack of dawn to wait in line just for the ranger to rock up who then decides who gets the ocean views and who doesn’t.

Try not to become bitter about your camping experience, as that defeats the whole purpose of doing it in the first place. The only solution to this is planning.

The more you plan the more opportunities you have to adapt to a changing situation. Therefore you’re not doing battle with the camper trailer family next to you about whose awning ropes are imposing in your turf.

While the free-spirited camping experience is not what it once was when you could load up the FJ40 with a tarp, a blanket, a case of beer and three cans of chunky soup. It now seems more regulated, more organised and civilised. But that’s not to say there aren’t still some hidden gems tucked away.

Our advice to you, keep exploring. If one camp site books out, live a little and keep heading along the track until you find a spot no one’s been to in days.