Top Three Outback Adventure Spots in Western Australia

For wild adventure lovers, Australian outback adventure doesn’t come much wilder than this. Western Australia’s outback landscape provides a dramatic backdrop for an unforgettable wilderness adventure. Vast and rugged, its wide open spaces, fresh clean air and roads that seem to extend forever beyond the horizon.

Check out Western Australia’s three best adventure  spots to learn more about where you can immerse yourself in the great outdoors, explore, soak up the fresh air and truly experience the peace and quiet of the outback.

Canning Stock Route

Canning Stock Route

The Canning Stock Route was originally created by Albert Canning in 1908 for Kimberley cattlemen to take their stock to the southern markets. Covering some 51 wells and stretching 2,013 kilometres from Halls Creek to Wiluna, the Canning Stock Route now forms one of the most remote and challenging four-wheel drive tracks in the world.
 
Those wishing to tackle the route should be extremely well prepared before setting out. Outback travel experience is required in conjunction with a very reliable and capable vehicle that has been specifically prepared for remote, long distance desert travel. Your vehicle will need to be extensively prepared for remote area travel, with all fuel, water, food, vehicle repair equipment and spare parts.

The route can be traversed either way from June to September, but access is totally weather dependant.

All vehicles, whether private or in commercial tours, are required to hold permits for travelling on the Canning Stock Route. Travellers should note that even with a permit, access is restricted to several sites, some located within the Canning Stock Route reserve.

Permits are available through the Western Desert Lands Aboriginal Corporation and the Australian National Four Wheel Drive Council (ANFWDC).

Gibb Road River

Gibb River Road Top Trail

The legendary Gibb River Road Top Trail is an icon of outback adventure through the heart of the Kimberley in Western Australia’s North West. The moderate 660 kilometre dirt track passes through remote station country with magnificent scenery and plenty of opportunities to get out of your vehicle to discover one of the many fresh water gorges.

The Gibb, as it is affectionately known, was built for droving cattle from Wyndham to Derby. Today it caters for a steady stream of four-wheel-drives.

Trail signage varies as the area remains privately owned by cattle stations and Aboriginal communities. Every station has a range of beautiful rivers and gorges including: El Questro Station – Chamberlain and Emma Gorges, Mount Barnett Station – Manning Gorge Waterfall Walk, King Leopold Conservation Park – Bell Gorge, Gibb River Station – Barnett River Gorge and Mornington Wilderness Park – Diamond Gorge.

Beware of the fresh and salt water crocodiles. The estuarine crocs inhabit the rivers that meet the sea such as the Durack and Pentecost, whilst the fresh water variety inhabit the likes of the Manning and Barnett.

Nullarbor Plain

Nullarbor Plain

For a true taste of the Western Australian outback head east to the Nullarbor Plain. This massive stretch of land is home to the Eyre Highway, one of the country’s self-drive best road trips, as well as the transcontinental railway line, used by the Indian Pacific train.

The Nullarbor Plain stretches between Norseman in Western Australia and Ceduna in South Australia – at its widest point its about 1,200 kilometres. Tackling the Nullarbor is an odyssey of self-discovery and a challenge to be met – you can even buy the car sticker proclaiming “I crossed the Nullarbor”.

This great treeless plain includes the amazing sea cliffs of the Great Australian Bight accessible by a short detour from the highway.  From some areas of the cliff tops you can go fishing or see migrating whales offshore.

Wildlife is plentiful – keep an eye out for kangaroos, emus, dingoes and wedge-tailed eagles. There are also many caves scattered through the area, some contained fossils dating back thousands of years.

You can stay at one of the roadhouses or motels along the Eyre Highway, or camp.
The Nullarbor Plain starts in Western Australia in Norseman which is a two hour drive south of Kalgoorlie.