Most people dream of putting their feet up in retirement. Not Damian Smith. After closing the book on 50 years as a pharmacist, he hit the road with his wife Lyn in their caravan and immediately ran into one of those frustrating problems that everyone knows all too well–the quest for a portable camping BBQ. 

“You love the taste of a good kettle BBQ,” laughs Damian, “but they’re a pain to deal with. Heavy as anything, take up half your storage space, and don’t get me started on lugging gas bottles around.” 

Sound familiar? If you’ve ever wrestled a traditional BBQ in and out of a caravan compartment, or cursed under your breath trying to find space for yet another gas bottle, you’ll appreciate what happened next. 

A portable camping BBQ, built with bushman’s DNA

Instead of just grumbling about it like the rest of us, Damian, who comes from a long line of practical bushmen, decided to do something about it. Four years and countless prototypes later, he’s created what might just be every traveller’s dream: a proper kettle portable camping BBQ that is also light and easy to stow.

“I couldn’t switch my brain off in retirement,” admits Damian. “Lyn and I were loving life on the road, but I kept thinking there had to be a better way to cook outdoors without all the hassle.” 

Compact Cooking

His Adventure-Q Kettle BBQ, which he dubs the “Rolls-Royce”, works exactly like the kettle BBQs we’ve always loved, with one crucial difference. The entire setup packs away into a compact bag that can be stored just about anywhere. 

“It’s not just smaller,” explains Damian. “You can use the Adventure-Q on a variety of heat sources – gas, induction, or electric hotplates – giving you flexibility whether you’re cooking outdoors or at home. It even works in your home oven, so it’s a versatile option you can rely on all year round.” 

The real test came during their travels around Australia. Using a cable-tied cooking pan as his first iteration, caravanners would stop by their campsite, curious about the unusual cooking setup. Word spread quickly, and you know how it is when someone finds a genuinely useful bit of kit.

The timing couldn’t be better. With more Australians than ever embracing the caravan lifestyle, especially retirees seeking adventure, the demand for smarter, more practical travel gear has never been higher. 

Bush Kettle – twig-powered tea!

What started as one man’s retirement project has become a thriving family business. Granddaughter Hayley, grandson-in-law Wilson, and daughter-in-law Aom have all joined the venture, turning Damian’s backyard tinkering into a genuine Aussie success story. 

“It’s been quite the journey,” reflects Damian. “From running pharmacies to designing BBQs, it’s not exactly what I expected retirement to look like, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” 

The Adventure-Q is just the beginning. Damian’s also developed a clever Bush Kettle that boils water over twigs and sticks (perfect for those who really want to get back to basics), or even indoors over a gas stove—plus a range of travel comfort products born from years of long-haul adventures. 

“We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel,” says Damian. “We’re just making travel a bit easier, a bit more comfortable, and a lot more enjoyable.” 

For a bloke who thought retirement meant slowing down, Damian Smith has never been busier, or happier. 

“Best thing about it is we get to test everything on our own adventures. It’s tough work, but someone’s got to do it.” 

The BBQ and the entire Adventure-Q range are available now through the Daymo website

Meet more Camping Inventors

• Caravan Mattress Topper designed by travellers for a better night’s sleep

Find more Camping Gear

• New Quiet Invertor for Off-Grid Caravanning
• Clean up off-grid with the Dirty Devil spare wheel garbage bag

For Dreamer RV, the genesis for the Wanderlux RV topper started as communal campfire banter and long conversations on the road in search of the collective campsite Nirvana: a good night’s sleep.

“Almost everyone we spoke to struggled with comfort,” says Tara Cameron-Smith for Dreamer RV.

“Domestic mattress toppers aren’t ideal, often they’re bulky and protrude into the floorplan. So many people had rigged something up. It was a common theme.”

Why This Caravan Mattress Topper Stands Out

Caravanners themselves, Dreamer RV understood the vital traveller limitations like space, shipping, storage and, of course, weather.

“It took 18 months of product sampling with multiple manufacturers to get the perfect fit. Latex was too heavy so we chose memory foam but we had to get the right grade.”

Their original Dreamer RV Queen Wanderlux Caravan Mattress Topper Queen, in fact, was the very first to feature a cooling gel, suits many vanners. However, caravan-, camper trailer- and campsite berths come in all kinds of dimensions–so they expanded their range.

“We carry a tape measure to collect data at each show, to keep up with what’s happening in the world of caravan beds,” Tara explains.

Where to Try the Caravan Mattress Topper in Person

Caravan shows provide travellers the ideal opportunity to inspect this tactile product and talk with the makers but the schedule is gruelling, so Dreamer RV have paired up with another small family business, Meander Wild, to “share the load”–to a huge success.

Now, Dreamer RV need only to haul in their setup every second show, flying in for the interim events: “It’s about working smarter and not harder,” Tara says.

Dreamer RV

New from Titan RV, the latest 12V-powered Black Jack – Mini caravan jack uses your van’s Anderson plug to electronically raise your trailer–no cranking needed. Weighing 8.5kg and rated to carry 1000kg, the Black Jack – Mini spotted here at eTime fits a 50mm single or double clamp.

Want more Jockey Wheel Options? Read our full article in the What’s Up Downunder eMagazine

Awnings are integral to camping life, sheltering holidaymakers from Australia’s weather extremes. But in facing these conditions front on they have their own fair share of vulnerabilities–particularly at the top edges, which can tear over time.

A Caravan awning tear repair that works!

Thankfully, Everything Caravans provide campers a permanent and unobtrusive solution to stop or even prevent those tears before they become problematic with an easy to fix and require no additional setup at camp: Awning Saver. Available in three colours, these handy emergency caravan awning tear repair kits can prevent tears of less than 75mm at the sail track from advancing.

Everything Caravans

Caravanners have an exciting new way to enjoy high power comforts consistently off-grid, now that agricultural and industry generator specialists Welling & Crossley have released a quiet range of inverter generators for the campsite and home.

Three new lightweight inverter generators for caravans

Three new inverter models including campsite hero, the WC-P3200Si, feature stable pure-sine wave power that’s perfect for sensitive devices–accessible at the unit or from within your RV with USB and 15A power points available on all models.
Indeed, rated at 3000W and with 3200W maximum power, the WC-P3200Si offers ample grunt not only for the very newest air-conditioners within modern RVs but also for many older and thirstier reverse cycle systems fitted to existing RVs Australia-wide.

Whisper quiet Operation

What’s more, the 3200W achieves it at a surprisingly quiet 64dBA @7m with advanced noise-busting tech and weighs just 23kg, delivering a generous steady supply of power without significant modifications to your existing camp.
Euro 5 emission compliant, WC-P3200Si and its stablemates the WC-P6000Si and WC-P9000Si well and truly meets Australia’s emissions standards for outdoor power equipment.

Welling & Crossley

Arizon Off-Grid has today launched a brand new lithium battery onto the Australia market helping caravanners, vanlifers, and motorhome owners stay off-grid longer.

The development of the new Arizon Off-Grid 12.8V 300Ah Super Compact lithium battery evolved from our customers wanting to save space and weight in their vehicles.

“Our customers are crucial in the development of our new products as their feedback allows us to better engineer and develop our industry leading products to meet the needs of not only our commercial partners but especially the end consumer who wants to spend more time off-grid,” Arizon Off-Grid Managing Director, Roy Ding said.

“The new Arizon Off-Grid Super Compact 300Ah delivers the safest Lithium iron battery technology available today with Arizon’s bespoke casing and advanced electronics, weighing only 25.9kg.

“Customers can now experience double the run time and almost half the weight compared to similar-sized lead-acid batteries, and our Arizon Off-Grid solution has been crafted to deliver high power and extended run-time, and comes with our industry leading 5 year warranty.”

With space and weight extremely crucial to caravanners, this new Super Compact 300Ah battery offers them the best of both worlds, delivering superior performance and a space and weight reduction, helping them store more essentials for their off-grid adventures.

The Arizon Off-Grid Super Compact 300Ah battery measures 360mm in length, 190mm width and 262mm in height (accounts for cable lugs), delivering a 100A max charge current and a max discharge current of 200A.