Off-Grid Earth | Solar energy services
Off-Grid Earth
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25.01.2022 Nutsak the turkey pretty much spends his whole day like this trying to impress the missus. He has developed into a fine specimen though dont you think? A couple of young males from last years brood look like they will be perfect for Christmas dinner this year. . .... . #offgridearth #farmlife #turkey #nutsak #gobbler #finespecimen #offgrid #selfsufficient #poultry #christmasdinner #farmtoplate See more
25.01.2022 Our first honey harvest of the new season and its still winter! The hives were chcoabloc full of capped honey after a huge winter blossoming of the spotted gum and other eucalypts. We know from previous experience that letting full hives run into warmer weather is risky as the hives will swarm and half the bees take half the honey and fly off to find a new home, leaving a depleted hive that takes time to rebuild strength. We got in early this year to beat the swarm and we ha...ve 60 odd kilos of honey to show for it. The honey is super rich and flavorful. A beautiful clean product produced by the flora of the Watagans mountains and the wing power of our little bee friends. . . . . #offgridearth #honey #bees #honeycomb #honeybees #honey #beekeeping #backyardbeekeeping #chocabloc #swarm #blossom #rich #flavourful #clean #sweet #wingpower @ Watagan Mountains See more
24.01.2022 A solid days work. The list of farm chores is endless! This firewood is from a standing dead ironbark and is the best firewood possible. The trailer load might last 3 to 4 weeks at the depths of winter. . . . #offgridearth #firewood #chores #farm #offgrid #offgridliving #timber #ironbark #hardwood #australianhardwood #stihl #hitachi #winter #endless #dayswork
24.01.2022 Aquaponics with a view.... Bello style! There are many great garden and property projects happening on our friends magic property in this beautiful part of the world. So far the aquaculture has both koi and perch to experiment with and the tomatoes are loving it. This has been a long time goal at our farm and with our off-grid system upgrade imminent we will be able to explore this further in the next year or two. Its great to see it all in action.... An awesome property to call home (even for just a night or two in the van) . . . . #offgridearth #aquaponics #aquaculture #experiment #bellingen #midnorthcoast #magic #property #views #garden #foodproduction #smallfarm #selfsufficient #koi #fish #perch
24.01.2022 We are finally getting around to digging the veggie gardens out from under more than a year of weed growth. Nikkita has taken the lead and bugged dad to help get a veggie garden growing. She drew up a planting map and requested all of the seeds out of the seeds store. Orion was pretty keen to get his hands on the rotary hoe but ultimately dad had to take the lead on getting the soil nice and fluffy for the spring planting.... Because we used to grow and sell organic produce, we have extensive garden areas that will be reestablished at some stage. Tricky when travel plans are still lurking! The kids taking more of an interest in the garden makes a happy dad The last photo is the before shot. . . . . #offgridearth #gardening #gardeningaustralia #garden #gardeningkids #veggiepatch #organic #organicproduce #organickids #springiscoming #travelplans #lurking
22.01.2022 Lately, bass are literally jumping out of the main dam while feeding on stormy afternoons. We have been using surface baits for explosive top water action. The dams are full of water, the trees and air are full of insects and this spring season has brought so much life and abundance. . . .... #offgridearth #bass #australianbass #fishing #fish #catchandrelease #freshwaterfishing #freshwaterfishingaustralia #homegrown #fishin #bassfishing #explosive #stormy #spring #abundance #surfacefishing
21.01.2022 We maxed out our 500 places wiki camps travel log not long before we came home. We started a new little trip....and look how many gaps there are to fill in this vast country! (wiki camps you need a higher place count). Those thick red lines dont really tell the full story of though because when zoomed in they squiggle all over the place and there were plenty of nooks and crannies visited that didnt get onto the wikicamp map. The car odometer was on 39600km when landing back... on the farm and we recon it would need to be around double that to be properly convinced we have done the big lap. We used an average of 19.2itres of diesel per 100km and did 924 hours of driving so far. We are really happy that we were able to get NT and WA under the wheels in a relatively satisfying way in a world "before" the virus. There are still gaps in SA, Victoria, all of Tassie and all of QLD. We are flat out with work and farm life currently and we will share some of those activities soon, before hopefully hitting the road when the QLD government lose the high court challenge on keeping the border closed. . . . . #offgridearth #biglap #australia #lapofaustralia #wikicamps #wikicampsaustralia #trip #travelling #australianroadtrip #caravaningaustralia #travellingfamilies #traveling #maxedout #max #satisfied #justanotherdayinwa #seeyouinthent #seesouthaustralia #vanlife @ Australia
21.01.2022 Might run a little series of recent installs over the next week or so.....
21.01.2022 cutting firewood feels a little alien after being on the road for so long. We are recalibrating our life a bit and we have been a bit quiet of late not because there is nothing to share but because there is so much to share! Its all a bit overwhelming. Needless to say our coming months will be a mix of exciting farm projects and little travels before picking up our big lap plans again. We have to be adaptable in these extra terrestrial times! ... . . . . #offgridearth #alien #et #extraterrestrial #timber #firewood #ontheroad #excitingprojects #biglap #outperforms #farm #overwhelming #adaptable See more
20.01.2022 Beautiful off-grid cabins completed! We did a case study on these 6 cabins being run on a large off grid system 18 months or so ago (can be found in FB videos or Youtube). We dropped in to find them finished and fully booked out! The gardens and landscape already look amazing and the owners have done a top job with all aspects of this project @colinroden. The feature in the 2nd picture is a waste water reed bed system which uses plants to extract nutrients such as phosphoru...s before the waste water moves into distribution trenches. We may do a video update on this case study when we are next in the area. Truly an exemplar for similar projects.... . . . #offgridearth #offgrid #offgridlife #offgridcabin #offgridaccomodation #byronbay #lennoxhead #beautiful #gardens #landscaping #exemplar #cabinlife #solar #renewableenergy
20.01.2022 lotsa farm jobs! We are trying to get a bunch of fairly significant jobs done so we are free to hit the road again. We have solar upgrades and a new shed build coming up + garden upgrades and the usual farm chores. Theres not enough time on the weekends and the days are too short to have time after work for all this! Needless to say Im happy we are past the solstice and the days will slowly give me more light... I managed to keep this log balanced for over 120m to the log pi...le without hitting anything or dropping it! This tree was one of our favorites and we were very sad to have to remove it to make way for the shed. The timber is turpentine and this type of timber is used on wharfs as the logs resist rot when immersed in water. . . . #offgridearth #farm #jobs #flatout #bigprojects #timber #turpentine #tree #excavator #shortdays #notenoughtime #solstice #lotsa See more
19.01.2022 A little freshen up and a few minor repairs for the van. A new set of decals and door + a new hitch and she is almost brand new again. Thanks to Cuan, Ed, Alex and Julia at East coast caravans for organising everything. Our next adventure will be chasing gold nuggets in a couple weeks time. . .... . . #offgridearth #freshenup #caravan #repairs #brandnew #thanks #adventure See more
19.01.2022 The pears are a little discombobulated this year. After such an intense drought, when it finally rained late in Summer, the pear trees, along with every plant on the property, went beserk. So with such a late burst of flowers the nashi pear fruit has run out of time to mature and the mini pear fruit are overlapping the autumn colours of its Beurre Bosc and Corella neighbours. You could say things have gone a bit pear shaped.... . . . . . #offgridearth #orchard #espalier #espalierfruittrees #pears #pearshaped #drought #burst #flowers #gardener #gardening #gardeningaustralia #beurrebosc #nashipear #autumn #colour #discombobulated #bezerk #weird #intense See more
19.01.2022 Its easy to catch ourselves wondering what we were doing a year ago....and for the next year or so every day would be a flashback to something awesome. We havent done much searching over the last month for what we were doing this time last year because we have been so busy, but birthdays are easy reminders....So..... About exactly this time 1 year ago we were cruising along the billabongs in Kakadu looking at abundant wildlife and huge crocs and we managed to get the boat captain to surprise Orion with a happy birthday song. What a contrast to the pouring rain, freezing day of relative nothingness we had today at home.
19.01.2022 11 months on the road and 39600kms under the wheels and we are back home to the farm! We could have stayed travelling through the balance of the last couple weeks of virus shut down but we have decided to organise a few things at home before either throwing in the towel or pushing on with the 2nd half of our trip. We still have Tassie and QLD to do plus most of Victoria. Tassie and QLD have closed borders so it changes plans quite a bit.... There is so many jobs to do at home also, so the longer we stay the less likely we are to leave. Either way there is a lot of great travel, farm and off grid adventures to come and we look forward to sharing events when we find the time and appetite for social media again. Its a beautiful country but there is no place like home, especially when it looks like this! . . . . #offridearth #home #homesweethome #travellingfamily #travelaustralia #beautifulcountry #farm #offgrid #ourfarm #timeout
19.01.2022 We were tagged on Insta by some travelling buddies to #showusyourwave and we remembered we did our own video on this phenomena a year or so back and didnt post it. Im sure our traveller followers can relate to this....so feel free to throw in comments on your own travelling wave experiences. Be sure to use the hastag if you are posting on instagram.
17.01.2022 Our Off-Grid Earth A new dawn after five years of drought. Blessed ... . . . #offgridearth #home #offgrid #offgridlife #gratitude #beautiful #water #lifegiving #australianbush #droughtbroken #rain #dawn #newdawn #blessed #fulldam #solar See more
17.01.2022 The #espalier orchard is coming alive starting with the beautiful pink flowering nectarines. After a long horrible drought and us being away for a year travelling, all the gardens have been impacted in negative ways including the espalier. We lost a number of trees and many branches died back and the starving kangaroos ring barked some in search of food. Its endless work to get them back on track, but the garden is a great pleasure no matter how much work it needs. ... #offgridearth #orchard #garden #gardening #nectarine #flowering #flowers #pink #pleasure #espalierfruittrees #alive #endless #springtime
16.01.2022 Happy birthday to my mum, AKA Musi, and Happy Fathers day to my, Dad AKA Grapa. Every year these days land on or thereabouts each other, and this year we managed a full weekend of amazing food and family company to celebrate both events on successive days. They are much loved and and are always ready and available for us and the kids. They go long spells without acknowledgement of their contribution to my life, but they have shaped in key ways both by design and accident the... man I have become. Its not easy being a parent....you cant just take a sabbatical and pick it up again when you feel like it, its a life long commitment. These special human beings, with all their shortcomings and positives, have never stopped putting in, turning up and providing unconditional love. They have always found ways to adapt and evolve and be woke as the world shifts around them. Having a stable, safe and loving family cannot be underestimated in this crazy moment in time (called a life) and Im grateful for it, and empathise with those not so fortunate. Both Charly and I had loving family environments for our childhoods and now our children also get to have the same. The perseverance of my mum and dad and indeed all mums and dads who tough out the challenges and sacrifice a huge part of themselves to pay life and love forward for their children and grandchildren is amazing. Thanks for being there you two. We love you. @younggriffo @ucolourmyworld . . . . #offgridearth #mum #dad #mumanddad #fathersday #happybirthday #family #contribution #unconditionallove #amazing #life
15.01.2022 A couple of days with the lads in central NSW paid up some beautiful gold. There is nothing like the feeling of seeing a gold nugget glint in your hand amongst the dirt. Every one them is unique and is being seen for the very first time. Being with good company is gold, being out in wide open spaces is gold and finding gold is gold!! ... 400-500 holes were dug, with as many associated pieces of junk to find this amount of colour, but it's still worth it...not for it's $ value as much as the special experience which really is as rare as the gold itself. . . . . #offgridearth #gold #goldprospecting #prospecting #nsw #metaldetecting #metaldetectorist #metaldetectingaustralia #minelab #minelab #gpz7000 #glintofgold #freshair #unique #goldnuggets #rare #experience #goodcompany
15.01.2022 The first concrete pour of the new shed build missed the rain by mere seconds! Well it started raining just as the concrete was hard enough not to get rain "pit" marks and it has rained all night since. We cut that fine. No doubt this heavy rain will delay the completing of the blockwork and slabs but it shouldnt delay the completion of the shed by late August. The kids love watching all the work especially the concrete trucks arriving and dropping their loads. ... Dad watches the same thing and ponders how fascinating concrete is as a material and how it has contributed to human civilisation. It arrives as slop and a few hours later can be walked on and is likely to be part of the landscape for hundreds if not thousands of years. Imagine archeologists digging up our current civilisation in 50,000 years. We leave a lot of evidence we are here, especially in substances like concrete. I wonder whether I should leave a time capsule in the next pour? Do you reckon a CD or SD card with digital information would last that long if sealed? Maybe I need to leave a message in a piece of pottery instead.... p.s. Happy 9th birthday to Orion. Little legend growing up fast... . . . . . #offgridearth #new #shed #concrete #concretelife #concreteconstruction #fascinating #civilisation #archeology #timecapsule #slab #slabcity #human #orion #happybirthday
15.01.2022 Last year Dolphins and Dugongs, this year Meerkats and Lorikeets with her life long bestie. Happy legs 11 to our gorgeous animal loving Nikkita. An auspicious double number year of adventures ahead!! . .... . . #offgridearth #meerkats #lorikeets #happybirthday #auspicious #legseleven #eleven #adventure #adventurekids See more
15.01.2022 Canola field and thunderstorm or canola field and wind farm....couldnt decide which was better. Central NSW looks incredible at the moment with lush fields as far as the eye can see. Many happy farmers Im sure. . . .... . #offgridearth #canola #canolafields #windfarm #windenergy #thunderstorm #visitnsw #nsw #lush #green #yellow #roadtrip #travelaustralia #incredible #happyfarmers See more
14.01.2022 This is the biggest scented candle we have ever seen in a shop....so we put this 36kg beast in the boot. Nimbin is still a trippy little place to explore with lots of organic earthy handmade type products to peruse. p.s. This giant candle is formed when the smaller triangle candles are ironed to make the sides smooth. Thousands of layers and dozens of scents are built up ready to surprise...... . . . . #offgridearth #candles #biggest #biggestcandle #scentedcandle #nimbin #trippy #organic #earthy #handmade #giant #thousands #beast #rainbow
13.01.2022 Observing the observatory observing the observer. A beautiful finale to our time in the Warrumbungles.... . . .... . #offgridearth #observing #observer #observatory #sidingspringobservatory #moon #moonphotography #warrambungles #sunset_pics #sunset #sunsetshots #finale #travelling #end #visitnsw See more
11.01.2022 This gorgeous cactus flower unfolded its full display for only a few hours before retracting into the flowerbud the same way it emerged; all within about 48 hours. The most beautiful frangipani like fragrance accompanied the high speed appearance. Blooming awesome!! . . .... #offgridearth #cactus #cactusflower #cactusofinstagram #flowerstagram #flower #spike #spine #fragrance #gardening #green #blooming #highspeed #awesome See more
11.01.2022 We bought a racehorse! Our Western Australian experience dominated our stage 1 lap and extended into early this year. Whilst we managed to share many of the highlights, there is so much that didnt make headlines! A fascinating chance meeting and subsequent chain of events in Wyndham WA (western Australias northern most town) led us to develop a great friendship with an awesome horse trainer and cool chick @natburkeracing. ... Months later In Southern WA we spent a number of weeks experiencing the region from various bases linked to Nats racing connections and we had a great time. So to cut a long story short, Nat had her eye on a horse she wanted and because she is a legend and we trusted her instinct we became part owners of our first race horse. This was a way to keep an active connection to Nat and Western Australia and learn more about this industry. Just some fun, nothing too serious. Jenabel did not have the start we would have liked but Nat reads her horses beautifully and works hard. It turned out Jenabel needed a lot of work to expel toxins out of her shoulders which were not allowing her to race at the level we knew she could. So much built up toxin came out during the treatment phase that the hair on her shoulders turned white! It is the northern racing season in WA and instead of races being all over the north, the virus impacts have forced all races into Carnarvon. Jenabel and her buddies are living and training on the beach in Exmouth and travelling to Carnarvon to race (we are a bit jealous of this Ningaloo racing team!) so.... 3 races ago, Jenabel was running 60 to 1 odds and came 3rd. 1 week ago she started at 9 to 1 and came 2nd and yesterday she started as favourite and won!! After months of incremental improvements all the work has paid off and she is in top form and winning again! Congratulations Jenabel and Nat Burke!! You deserve the win. . . . . #offgridearth #horseracing #horse #racing #racinglife #horsesofinstagram #westernaustralia #justanotherdayinwa #racehorse #jenabel #exmouth #ningaloo #carnarvon
10.01.2022 These folk could finally turn the generator off! They are very happy Off-gridders....
10.01.2022 "The landing" Before and after....just happened to be wearing the same dags. Thought I was pretty clever. Needless to say its been a busy few months and we have a much needed and amazing new shed. . .... . . #offgridearth #shed #shedlife #beforeandafter #landing #stairs #framed #steel #shedbuilt #muchneeded #amazing #dags #clever See more
09.01.2022 Just recalibrating our bushwalking and gelato eating skills. We are still in fine form on both! Its nice to be exploring again... Our border crossing into QLD took only about 10 minutes, but the traffic behind the checkpoint has been kilometres long at times! . .... . . #offgridearth #gelato #bushwalk #bushwalking #recalibrating #exploring #exploringaustralia #queensland #mttamborine #skills #travellingkids #travellingaustraliawithkids See more
09.01.2022 Our dams are full for the first time in 63 months and we are very happy. This video covers how the water on our property moves from each dam into the next. We manage to see in real time how the dams create amazing ecosystems as I stubble across a yabbie migration. With 120mm in the last 36 hours, the land has been fully recharged.... This video is POV and not the most refined filimng and edit, but it allows the viewer to understand the water cycle on our place and join in some of the excitement of having a drought "break". (This for us is when the dams are full!)
09.01.2022 A quick trip to the Daintree rainforest....how awesome! oops jokes. ..this waterfall is down in our very own forest gorge at home after 6 inches of rain. There are big fig trees, rock orchids, staghorns, Grasstrees and multiple caves over about 25 acres to explore. You can even climb up into the cave behind the waterfall. Hopefully with a wet summer we can spend some more time exploring and swimming in the rock pools. Its a bit nippy for a swim right now! @inthe_mouth_ofthe..._wolf . . . . #offgridearth #waterfall #daintree #rainforest #jokes #bushwalk #exploring #ourbackyard #home #awesome #huntervalley #watagans #caves #figtree #orchid #staghornfern #rockpools #quicktrip #nippy See more
08.01.2022 Check out our latest video covering Off-grid living, Emu farming, Yurt construction and Astronomy. Its a long one, but there is plenty to cover and plenty to learn. Emus are awesome!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7_XnCU_Cjg
08.01.2022 This afternoons effort was a bit special.... . . . .... #offgridearth #sunset_pics #sunsethunter #sunset #sunsetshots #sunsetphotography #solar #solarsystem #offgrid #offgridlife #offgridliving #special_shots #effort #cloudscape #cloud #cloudporn See more
05.01.2022 Around the Farm- Honey Harvesting action in Winter! A little video adendum to our picture post yesterday of taking frames out of our hives ready for harvest. These frames are a great example of fully capped full frames of honey and just how productive bees can be in a good season even in the colder months of winter. We needed to take honey off, as all the hives were totally full of honey and the bees will swarm as soon as it gets warmer and take half the bees and honey in the... hive with them, (if the hive is full generally) Basic vid, but gets you up close and personal to the bees and one of the hives. See more
04.01.2022 A quick last stop at Jupiter before landing back at our Off-grid Earth..... Happy sad day. . . . .... #offgridearth #jupiter #planet #laststop #happysad #travellers #travelaustralia #almosthome See more
03.01.2022 Views of the Grand High tops and the breadknife. The Grand High Tops walk is ranked in the top ten in Australia and it one that everyone should do before their knees get too creaky! The walk is 12.5kms, so its a fair trek, and you need a reasonable level of fitness, but the track is very well constructed and even paved in sections (certainly no Wilpena Pound). Our Tiahmi continues to push her boundaries and completed the mission once again. At not even 5.5 years of age her... little legs have done some tough treks already. The last 6 photos are all different views of the "breadknife" but the other surrounding rock formations are equally amazing and majestic. The siding Springs observatory can be seen in the distance. . . . . #offgridearth #trek #fitness #mountainclimb #mountain #views #grandhightops #sidingspringobservatory #breadknifeandgrandhightopswalk #exercise #travel #travellingfamily #littlelegs #landscapephotography #landscape_lovers #visitnsw @ Grand High Tops Walk - Warrumbungle National Park
02.01.2022 We are cleaning up more and more nooks and crannies on the farm and with 100 acres its never ending. We built this stone and timber toilet and shower block a few years ago to service any friends coming to camp but it has been neglected and unused for a while and the bush took it over. We cut back all the scrub and cleaned out the inside and she is now turd and shower ready again....mind you, the hot water runs on a heat exchanger and requires a really hot fire and boiling wa...ter to keep the water hot for a 10 minute shower, so you have to put in some solid leg work to get clean in this shower block. Thats what off grid camping is all about though right...the challenge Who else has a heat exchanger hot water system run from timber on their property? p.s the big spotted gum is pushing against the rock wall and its raising and cracking the rocks and mortar, so the bush might win in the end. . . . . #offgridearth #offgrid #offgridliving #offgridcamping #camping #farm #hotwater #fire #heat #campout #neglected #outdoorlife #offgridlife #challenge
02.01.2022 A large dam that was constructed a few years ago in the drought finally started to put in some water volume in the last few months. Unfortunately the dam wall settled about 1m in the middle as the water soaked in and needed to be repaired and re- levelled. There was a risk that water could flow over the centre of the wall rather then the overflow in a heavy rain event and it was not a job that could be delayed. Soil was harvested from the corners of the dam and areas where t...here was excess material and moved to the middle off the wall and compacted. A couple of solid days on the excavator and the result isnt too bad. This is a deep dam and will be between 6 and 7 metres when full. The kids will finally be able to jump off the jetty this summer! The last two pictures are before shots. Can you see the difference? . . . #offgridearth #water #watersupply #farm #farmjobs #dam #big #levelup #risk #deepwater #neat #home #oasis
01.01.2022 More awesome Off-grid vibes......
01.01.2022 More great work and happy customers....
01.01.2022 Prospecting paradise.... We get to go fishing on the way to our metal detecting spots. What more can we ask for! (A fist sized gold nugget I suppose) .... . . . . #offgridearth #prospecting #prospectingaustralia #prospectorlife #gold #fishing #paradise #goldprospecting #minelab #goldnugget #metaldetecting #metaldetectorist #metaldetectingaustralia #metaldetecting See more
