Heading west after Australia’s Longest Shortcut leaves the red dust behind, to take you through the Wheatbelt on the way to Perth. For the traveller, the Wheatbelt offers more than just it’s main economic contributor of cereal crops and mining. Westonia is a must see stop. Like a real life movie set, the main street is lined with business shop fronts. But it’s all a facade… check out the video below. Further inland of the ...…[read more]
Blog Posts
It was a bit weird. We were on the outskirts of Laverton in Western Australia and had just finished the last stretch of gravel road on The Outback Way, Australia’s Longest Shortcut. With the bitumen now ahead of us, there was a sense of disappointment our adventure had come to an end. It’s probably better described as a slow adventure. This section of the shortcut from Yulara, just east of Alice Springs to well into ...…[read more]
One of the features of Australia’s Longest Shortcut is it takes you right through to the very heart of Australia. The Red Centre. Part of the shortcut is the Plenty Highway. The signs warned of the need for four wheel drive with high clearance. Maybe they hadn’t got around to updating the sign as apart from a few rough sections, the many now sealed parts make it an excellent shorter trip to Alice Springs. It ...…[read more]
What a great idea. A pub that also does haircuts … where you can actually come out looking smarter than when you went in!! Which is what we found at the Wellshot Pub at Ilfacombe on the Capricorn Highway. A Father’s Day Parmi and a pint for lunch, and a clean up at the same time! Further along the highway at Longreach The Stockman’s Hall of Fame, showcases the real heart of the Australian pioneering ...…[read more]
There’s so much to explore in outback Queensland and beyond…. so join us on our journey as we head across Australia’s outback from east to west. Starting from the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, back to Western Australia. Must be something to do with this La Nina effect the third year running, but unfortunately the Sunshine Coast just wasn’t living up to its warmer reputation. With more rain forecast, heading west into the outback surely must ...…[read more]
The choice of a campsite, even just for one night can have a lasting impact. There’s the friends you meet. Staying in sites where there’s an adjoining pub or restaurant are a great way to meet people and make new friends. Like we did on the Savannah Way. We later caught up with Doug and Janet in Gympie and had the privilege of experiencing Doug’s famous home brew beer, a beer that doesn’t even taste ...…[read more]
“It’s the busiest I’ve ever seen it”, a caravan park owner just north of Cairns was telling me. “If you thought this is busy, you should have been here last year”, was the comment from a park ranger in Cape York, as I noted the constant flow of vehicles heading up and down the track. “It was absolute mayham here”, he went on. Perhaps it’s because Queensland is more than just being the sunshine state, ...…[read more]
Wow what a difference a week makes. Just last week there was dust, mud, sand, barren wastelands, river crossings. A sense of being on a real adventure. How awesome is nature. Now to this week. Immersed and surrounded by dense tropical rain forests with its vivid fresh green colours. Opening up to picture perfect beaches sprawling along the forest edge as far as the eye can see. A feeling of tranquility. Such is the experience ...…[read more]
Dear Mr Bicycle Rider, We were hoping to cross paths before we left to say we appreciated your advice to head up to the Cape. We’re glad we did it. The road up to the very tip of Australia was quite a highlight….the lush green canopy forest cover over the red dirt track. To then be welcomed by this magnificent turquoise coloured bay against a backdrop of islands in the near distance. Lining up to ...…[read more]
He had the look of a homeless character with his meagre possessions by his side. As if to shield himself from the unseasonal cold snap, he huddled himself in the corner of the roadside tourist information shelter, quietly stirring his breakfast porridge. On second look and as our conversation grew from a courteous greeting, it soon became obvious this was a guy on huge adventure. He was solo cycling his way up Cape York Peninsular, ...…[read more]