YOU WANT TO GET ADVENTUROUS
LOOKING FOR NEW WAYS TO BE ACTIVE IN THE GREAT OUTDOORS? THESE CLOSE-TO-HOME EXPERIENCES SHOULD GET THE BLOOD PUMPING, WRITES ALEXANDRA CARLTON.
Tasmania Cycle the trails in comfort MODERATE
Tasmania is already known as Australia’s “walking state” but its network of mountain-bike trails is fast establishing it as a leading destination for cycling enthusiasts. The three-day guided Blue Derby Pods Ride (bluederbypodsride.com.au) winds through designated routes in the dense rainforest of the north-east, with gourmet meals and overnight stays in comfortable, architecturally designed eco pods.
Queensland Dig for dinosaurs EASY
Outback Queensland contains some of the most significant dinosaur and megafauna sites in the world and since 2017 the Eromanga Natural History Museum (enhm.com.au) in the state’s south-west has offered a tour like no other. For two weeks in May, groups of just six people can join a professional dinosaur dig, where they’ll help a palaeontologist and geologist unearth dinosaur bones at one of the area’s 70-plus confirmed sites. “What makes this experience exceptional is that people aren’t just watching from the sidelines – they’re counted as really valued team members,” says the museum’s general manager, Robyn Mackenzie. Visitors stay at the local shearers’ quarters, with linen and other amenities provided, and evenings are spent around the campfire, enjoying the sunset and meals under the stars. “Not only is it a way to see these extraordinary sites, which have never been open to the public before,” says Mackenzie of the remote locations – they are far out of mobile range – “but it’s also an opportunity for a real digital detox. We think of it as a way to escape the new world and truly immerse yourself in the ancient one.”
Victoria Walk and indulge in high-end dining MODERATE
If you like the sound of a walking holiday but eating and drinking well holds just as much appeal, this new three-day, pack-free Mornington Peninsula trip by Life’s an Adventure (lifes anadventure.com.au) provides the ideal balance. Each day involves a 13- to 15-kilometre hike exploring national parks, coastline and wineries before you retire for the evening to the luxury surroundings of Jackalope to refuel at one of the hotel’s two restaurants, Rare Hare or Doot Doot Doot.
Northern Territory Sail along ancient songlines EASY
Scheduled to run for the first time in 2019, Crooked Compass’s (crooked-compass.com) eightday yachting experience puts modern maps aside and “follows the songlines” of the Yolngu people of East Arnhem Land. Fish for barramundi and squid, spot crocodiles, hunt for mud crabs and learn about traditional culture in remote bays and on secluded islands.
Western Australia Snorkel with the oldest life forms EASY
Ever wondered what the planet looked like 3.5 billion years ago? This six-hour helicopter and snorkelling tour run by Coral Coast Helicopter Services (coralcoasthelicopters.com. au) can answer that question. Taking off from either Denham or Carnarvon, guests are flown in a private chopper over the opal-blue waters of the Shark Bay Marine Park to Hamelin Pool, which contains the world’s oldest marine stromatolites or living fossils. The tour, which has been operating for just over a year, is the only one on which guests are officially permitted to enter the water with snorkels and see these ancient life forms up close.
South Australia Saddle up and sip in the Barossa Valley MODERATE
The only multi-day horseriding trek in the Barossa Valley, The Grape Horse Adventure from tour group Globetrotting (globe trotting.com.au) is a once-ina-lifetime thrill. Experienced guides lead you along forestry routes and stock trails and through charming countryside, with regular stops at wineries, restaurants and homesteads. Highlights include a four-course dégustation dinner at St Hugo’s The Restaurant and a visit to Maggie Beer’s Farm Shop.
South Australia Camp beside a rosy lake EASY
Aerial shots of the pristine pink salt flats of Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre are an Instagram staple but not everyone knows you can also camp beside it, which many have likened to sleeping on a sand dune – or even the moon. Halligan Bay Point (environment.sa.gov.au/parks) is the only designated camping ground on its shores and there are strict rules attached to its use: access is only via 4WD, the camp is closed every summer (1 December to 15 March) and visitors should be experienced remote outback campers. Bonus points if you time your trip for one of the rare occasions when the lake floods and teems with birds and other wildlife.
Tasmania
Go full throttle in the wilderness HARDCORE
Thirty-nine days, five modes of transport and just one departure date a year make the Great Tasmanian Traverse (greattasmaniantraverse.com) one of the most epic adventures you can have on Australian soil. The tour departs in February 2019. It begins on foot in the north-west with treks along the Coast to Cradle trail and Overland and Frenchmans Cap tracks. Then hiking boots
are traded for life jackets, with an eight-day rafting trip along the Franklin River before the group boards a yacht to Strahan. Next, a light aircraft tour gives participants an aerial view of the Southwest National Park. The journey ends with a trek to Cockle Creek, the island’s southernmost town, with the guests saying their fond farewells on a bus to Hobart. Full hearts, sore feet – can’t lose.
South Australia Photograph camels in the desert MODERATE
When Karen Ellis and her crew of cameleers from Camel Treks Australia (cameltreksaustralia. com.au) started leading groups through the desert, they found that guests who wanted to focus on photographing their camel companions felt hamstrung by the impact it had on others on the trip. So Ellis and her husband and co-owner, Paul, decided to run an annual fourday trek, led by a professional photographer, to give advanced and novice snappers a chance to hone their skills without worry. In May 2019, the trek will be led by photographer and cameleer Sophie Matterson, who got the “camel bug” after working in a Queensland camel dairy. “It’s a photographer’s dream,” Matterson says of the stark desert. “It’s all about the colour in the mornings and evenings – the red dunes, the space. And the camels in that landscape are so picturesque.” She will tutor her 12 human charges as they traverse Lake Torrens, Australia’s second-largest salt lake.
NSW Ski off-piste MODERATETOHARDCORE
Back-country skiing has long been considered something of an extreme sport in Australia – the preserve of snow diehards and specialised groups – but this year, Thredbo (thredbo. com.au) launched guided tours of the Main Range mountains, with routes to suit adventurers from intermediate to expert. The tours will run again in the 2019 snow season, with skiers, snowboarders and snowshoers all catered for.