BBC Article

Round Australia trip the hard way

The trio started off in bin bags on the streets of Brisbane
A Gwynedd man is taking an unusual approach to travelling around Australia to raise money for charity.

Along with two friends, Gareth Owen, from Groeslon near Caernarfon, started off with nothing - not even the clothes on his back.

The trio plan to work for all the goods and services they will need on the journey as they raise funds for Bookaid International.

The 15000 km round trip will end in Brisbane on 26 January next year.


Read more on the BBC website. "We've been planning the trip, which we've called 'as cheeky as you can't', for three years and we began by giving everything we had away," Mr Owen, 31, told BBC Radio Cymru's Hywel a Nia programme.

"The rules state that no cash can be earned and we will be working for food and everything else we will need along the way," said.

We have thought hard about what the possible problems might be, and how we might overcome them

Gareth Owen, 'Cheeky' traveller

The friends - the others are Anne Race from Tyne and Wear and Phil Carr from the Isle of Man - started off by giving all their clothes away and wearing bin bags on the streets of Brisbane.

"One man took off his flip-flops and others gave us bits of clothing," said Mr Owen.

"We're trying to get as many people involved as possible, and we've already got a van, tents and all our camping equipment.

"Someone even came to the door last week with a box of 12 bottles of wine," he added.

The trio hope their trip will be sufficiently different to attract enough publicity to raise £10,000 for child literacy charity Bookaid International.

"We are hoping that by doing the trip this way (depending on other people to donate everything) we can highlight the problems faced by people who have no money," he said.

Travellers tale

As Australia is such a vast country Mr Owen said they were hoping advance publicity would mean that communities along the way would be expecting them.

There is also an online blog of the traveller's tales.

"We have thought hard about what the possible problems might be, and how we might overcome them," he said.

"But so far we're doing really well, and we've had promises of food and places to stay," he added.

At the family's home at Groeslon near Caernarfon Mr Owen's mother, Mandy, said she thought the trip was a fantastic way to raise awareness of the Bookaid charity.

"I have been out today to send a parcel, as they are leaving forwarding addressed, but I'm not sure of their route," she said.

"At some point they are bound to go into the bush though, so I am hoping for their safety.

"They are extremely good friends though, and are in this together," she added. Return to Cheeky As You Can't home