5THINGS TO SEE AND DO

01 GAWLER RANGES NATIONAL PARK

It may be accessible by high-clearance 2WDS, but Gawler Ranges National Park is best explored by 4WD. The park is one of Australia’s newest and protects rare and threatened plants and animals, including crimson mallee and the yellowfooted rock-wallaby, and is famous for its Organ Pipes rock formations.

02 LAKE GAIRDNER

Mount Ive Station offers a $75 pass for access to all the tracks on the property, plus a gate key to reach the shores of Lake Gairdner, Australia’s third largest salt lake. The pure white salt lake is over 150km long, up to 48km across, with the salt up to 1.2m thick in places.

03 DRY LAKE RACERS

Lake Gairdner is also the venue for Dry Lake Racers Australia’s annual Speed Week, held next from March 20 to 24, 2023. As one of a few places on the planet where you can go as fast as you want, Speed Week attracts an eclectic mix of cars, motorcycles and trucks testing their limits.

04 PARK STAY

Gawler Ranges NP has several campgrounds with Chillunie, Kolay Hut and Mattera accessed by 4WD only, while Scrubby Peak, Waganny and Yandinga campgrounds suit 2WDS and caravans. The NP’S restored Pondanna Outstation is also available for group accommodation, with six main rooms.

05 MOUNT IVE STATION

Mount Ive is a family owned sheep station situated in the heart of the Gawler Ranges and is a great place to enjoy the best of the South Australian outback. Accommodation here spans powered and unpowered campsites, en suite dongas, the restored Little Stone Hut, self-contained huts, and the Shearers’ Quarters and Stone Rooms sharing communal kitchen and bathroom facilities.