Australia's Top Outback Adventures
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| The Australian Outback1 |
A lone desert tree stands surrounded by a flat, dry expanse of dusty soil and blood red rocks, an environment that is at once barren and isolated, yet home to an amazing number of feisty plants and animals. This is the Outback of Australia, rough around the edges, wild and scorching. Its very idea challenges all who set foot Down Under to explore it, breathe it, get under its skin.
A visit to one or more of the country’s notable cities is almost perfunctory but the Australia of imagination and intrigue is beyond Sydney’s gleaming harbour and opera house or Melbourne’s cafes and cosmopolitan street scene. The real Australia is literally out back. Luckily for visitors, exploring its wild bush country or its jungle-like rainforests is not only easy to do but encouraged, and what better way to feel its pulse than by meeting its challenge and embarking on a multi-day excursion of high adventure.
Following are some of the country’s top adventures, many of which involve designated World Heritage Sites. Each has been chosen for an inclusion of Australia’s must-see sights, but also for adding something more. Not all are in the Outback, not all require an intrepid spirit or a night in a swag but most are miles from urban populations and are as much about the journeys as the destinations.
4WD TOUR TO ULURU
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| A Jeep Tour through the Pinnacles near Perth2 |
Australia, however, is a country of almost five million sq km (3,000,000 sq mi), so this attraction in the centre of the country is nowhere near any of the country’s bustling cities. Because of this, many tourists fly or take a coach to Alice Springs and then join a day tour of Uluru, but ultimately miss out on fully experiencing the Outback. Instead, adventurous visitors can opt for a multi-day, safari-style, 4WD tour that leaves from the country’s major cities and traverses the heart of the Outback before touring Uluru, the Olgas and Kings Canyon. Such trips range from six to 20 days and some include wilderness camping—spending the night in a swag beneath the southern night sky—while others use country inns. One option is from Perth, where tours pass through the Pinnacles in Western Australia en route to Uluru, but trips can also be arranged from Adelaide and Darwin or in reverse from Alice Springs.
Operators: AAT Kings | Way Out Back | Western Xposure | More
TOP END SAFARI OF KAKADU NATIONAL PARK
Imagine a national park almost half the size of Switzerland. Now add dramatic rugged landscapes, 20,000-year old rock art, stunning waterfalls and an astonishing array of flora and fauna—this is Kakadu National Park in Australia’s “Top End.” Like Uluru, Kakadu has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is easily the country’s most well known park. Together with Darwin and the surrounding area, the Top End embodies much of the continent itself, containing pretty beaches, kangaroos, water buffalo, Eucalyptus trees and mangroves. Its environment is arid and rugged during the dry season but turns to a steaming tropical world of water during the monsoonal period.
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| Kakadu National Park3 |
Operators: Adventure Tours Australia | Lord's Kakadu | Sacred Earth Safaris | more
OVERNIGHTING ON THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
The Great Barrier Reef needs little introduction nor much, if any, extra persuasion to visit it. One of the seven natural wonders of the world, the reef is celebrated for its stunning coral, diversity of sea life and immense size (it can be seen from outer space.)
Most who visit Queensland’s coastline inevitably see the reef through a snorkelling or diving excursion but some adventures trade swags and 4WDs for yachts and the open ocean. Divers of all levels can partake and some dive companies offer packages which include PADI certification in Airlie Beach or Cairns followed by three days and nights on an ocean yacht—diving the planet’s greatest showcase of aquatic wonders and sailing the dazzling water of the South Pacific.
Operators: Oceania Dive | Pro Dive | The Tour Specialists | more
DRIVING THE SAND DUNES OF FRASER ISLAND
On Fraser Island, the revered sandbox of childhood is reincarnated, but this time on a global scale. Situated off the east coast of central Australia, Fraser Island is the world’s largest sand island and beckons visitors to come and dig in, be it with toes, sandboards, jeeps or all three. Self-driven jeep excursions in particular are a popular way to experience the island and are usually arranged on the mainland at Hervey Bay. All that is required is an enthusiasm for fun, a bit of 4WD know-how and a willingness to rough it for a couple of days and nights.
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| 75 Mile Beach on Fraser Island4 |
Rental and Operators: Aussie Trax | Bay 4WD | Fraser Explorer Tours | more
CAPE TRIBULATION JUNGLE TOUR
Queensland has even more to offer than Fraser Island and the Great Barrier Reef. Cape Tribulation, a headland north of Cairns, is home to the world’s oldest living rainforest and its rivers and lush forests are both literally and figuratively miles away from the windswept plains of the Outback. Part of the Daintree National Park, the cape also borders the Great Barrier Reef, meaning that snorkelling, kayaking and deserted beaches are part of the package.
Getting to Cape Tribulation entails one of the country’s most scenic drives so a tour of the area is hardly a difficult choice to make. From Cairns, modern transport takes visitors as far as the Daintree River, where many tours cruise the water searching for saltwater crocodiles. North of the river and the Cape Tribulation township, the Bloomfield Track winds deeper into the forest, requiring 4WDs to negotiate coastal creeks and steep gullies. Here, visitors can expect to glimpse the colourful but elusive cassowaries—flightless birds native to Australia and second in size only to the ostrich. Tours can be chosen to accommodate varied lodging tastes but many involve stays in jungle lodges that add to the whole experience.
Operators: Down Under Tours | Masons Tours | Wilderness Challenge | more
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| A Freshwater Crocodile in the Kimberley5 |
Western Australia is less accessible and less visited than Queensland’s busy east coast but is no less spectacular and the Kimberley region is widely considered Australia’s last frontier. Whereas much of the continent is a never-ending plain, the Kimberley boasts ancient desert mountains, dramatic gorges and the extraordinary rock formations of the Bungle Bungles.
Its remote location and rough terrain mean that much of the region is difficult to reach without a 4WD and a local guide. But with treats such as Boab and gumtrees, freshwater crocodiles and wallabies, sleeping beneath the stars and bush tucker around a campfire, the Kimberley bestows an opportunity for genuine adventure. Several companies operate in Broome, the region’s chief city, and visitors can opt for expeditions that primarily explore the region or those which also include travel to and from Darwin.
Operators: Kimberley Safaris | Kimberley Wild Expeditions | Kimberley Tag Along Tours | more
TASMANIA'S OVERLAND TRACK
Tasmania is a bit like Timbuktu—everyone has heard of it but many can’t say where it is. As it happens, Tasmania is a large island off Australia’s southern coast and is one of its eight states and territories. It’s also the location of the Overland Track, Australia’s greatest wilderness bushwalk. Travelling 65 km (40 mi) from Cradle Mountain to Lake St. Clair, this long-distance hiking track passes through glacier-carved mountains and alpine terrain whilst allowing walkers to witness wild rivers, gushing waterfalls and even friendly wallabies.
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| Mountain Terrain of the Overland Track6 |
Operators: Craclair Tours | Tasman Bush Tours | Tasmania Expeditions | more
A STATION STAY
For some, the Outback isn’t about the place as much as it is the lives of those living in such a harsh environment—namely the residents of Australia’s vast ranches, called stations down under. All are large but some measure more than 500,000 ha (1,000,000 acres) in size and are over 250 km (150 mi) from their nearest neighbour or post office, making them an alien yet idyllic concept for much of the outside world.
Many such stations open their doors to visitors these days as a way to supplement their cattle and sheep operations. Some simply extend rooms or campsites for accommodation but others proffer up the opportunity to stay in authentic shearer’s quarters or take part in mustering livestock. The experience may not be for everyone but for those who taste this exceptional life, it will surely be remembered as a one-of-a-kind adventure.
Stations: Fraser Range Station | Kings Creek Station | Merluna Station | Wooleen Station
THE BEST FIT
What Type of Tour
Many of Australia’s tours are geared towards a range of visitors and no matter the age, budget or level of fitness, there is an adventure for everyone. Some operators use classifications such as soft adventure, adventure and premium to describe expeditions. Adventure tours usually involve 4WD travel, bush camping and moderate hiking, and are especially popular with backpackers and intrepid souls. Soft adventure trips differ in that they typically include accommodation in permanent camp structures or even country inns, making them ideal for families or those wishing for a bit less grit and a bit more comfort. And for visitors who don’t want to miss all that the Outback or rainforest have to offer but wish to be pampered along the way, premium excursions feature deluxe facilities and services.
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Some Lingo Down Under |
Due to Australia’s size and variation of climates, the timing of a trip may dictate what adventure is possible. The best time of year to hike the Overland Track in Tasmania is the least desirable time to see the rainforest of Cape Tribulation. Generally speaking, the central inland areas of the country are semi-arid, sunny and warm throughout the year but become especially dry and hot from October to March. In the northern tropical areas of Darwin, Cape Tribulation and the Kimberley, November to April is considered the wet season resulting in heavy rainfall and violent flooding, which makes for intense humidity and many impassable roads. The coastlines, on the other hand, enjoy warm, temperate climates and are easily visited year round.
What To Take
Most adventure tours provide all necessary gear for the excursion, including transport, camping equipment and food but excluding personal items such as clothing, footwear and sunscreen. The exception to this is self-guided tours, like those commonly arranged for Fraser Island, in which tourists are responsible for providing their own camping or cooking equipment, food and supplies. In this case, however, any essential gear can usually be rented.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF:
- The Australian Outback; Alice Springs, Northern Territories, Australia
- A Jeep Tour through the Pinnacles; Perth, Western Australia, Australia
- Kakadu National Park; Darwin, Northern Territories, Australia
- 75 Mile Beach; Fraser Island, Queensland, Australia
- A Freshwater Crocodile in the Kimberley; Broome, Western Australia, Australia
- Mountain Terrain of the Overland Track; Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park, Tasmania, Australia
