About

- ITINERARY -

Broome *1 Night

Our first morning will be spent getting to know each other over breakfast in beautiful Broome, before making our way down to the Broome Bird Observatory. This unique area plays host to an amazing range of shore birds, including, on occasion, some extreme rarities! We will have to keep our eyes peeled, as Narrow-headed Whipsnakes are also a common sight around this area in the late afternoon, as are massive Yellow-spotted Monitors and swift Sand Monitors. Come night-time, we will have the choice of heading out for some spotlighting or treating ourselves to a nice dinner and some drinks in preparation for some full-on days to come!

Port Hedland *1 Night

We’ll kick off day 2 by making the trip down to the mining town of Port Hedland. This town might not be much to look at but it can be a brilliant area to search for reptiles and even some rarely seen mammals. We’ll spend the evening cruising the roads from Port Hedland down towards our overnight campground. We can expect to come across an amazing range of species, including Desert Death Adders, Desert Banded Snakes, Black-headed Pythons and some very unique (and cute!) mammal species including Mulgara, Kaluta and Hopping Mice!

Millstream National Park *1 Night

Day 3 will see us up early and on the lookout for the highly sought after and charismatic Striated Grasswren, as well as Spiny-tailed Monitors and Spiny-tailed Skinks. After filling our bellies, it will be time to move onto the spectacular Millstream National Park. We will take our time to explore some of the impressive escarpments before taking a swim in the famous Python Pool. Come night it will be time to don the head-torches and see what we can turn up. This particular area is fantastic for gecko lovers with many beautiful species found in the park, including the stunning Jewelled Gecko!

Pannawonica *2 Nights

The morning of day 4 will be all about finding one of Australia’s best looking Goannas, the Pilbara Rock Monitor! These elegant lizards are at home in the rocky outcrops surrounding Python Pool and if we time it right we should be able to spot a couple making their way in and out of the cracking boulders. After a morning swim and some midday relaxation, it will be time to pack up camp and move onto our next location… Pannawonica. This small town is famous in the reptile community and for very good reason, the reptile density in this area is almost unbelievable. Some of the species you can expect to see here are Pilbara Death Adders, Rufous Whip Snakes, Pygmy Pythons, Banded Knob-tailed Geckos, Rosen’s Snakes, Stimson’s Pythons, Western Brown Snakes and even Australia’s largest Goanna, the Perentie, which can reach well over 2m in length!

Day 5 will be all about relaxing and resting up for another big night of Pannawonica spotlighting. On dusk we will set out and cruise the roads, keeping our eye out for snakes and geckos making their way out to bask. If we decide to look around some of the roadside escarpments, we are in with a chance to see some very rare mammal species, including the endangered Northern Quoll and the prized Rothschild’s Rock Wallaby!

Karijini National Park *2 Nights

Day 6 will see us pack up camp and move onto quite possibly my favourite national park in the country, Karijini. This National Park is truly an oasis in the desert, with some of the best swimming opportunities of the trip. If you have never been fortunate enough to see this national park, I can guarantee that you will never forget it. Our targets for this park include giant Pilbara Olive Pythons, Southern Pilbara Rock Monitors, Pilbara Barking Geckos and the beautiful Painted Finch! Whilst we are traversing the Pilbara, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for one of Australia’s rarest birds, the Grey Falcon.

Day 7 will be another day in paradise, sleep in, swim and explore; the day is yours to do as much or as little as you please.

Sandfire *1 Night

Day 8 will mean waving goodbye to the beautiful Karijini National Park and heading north up the coastline towards the Sandfire Roadhouse. Here we will treat ourselves to a well-cooked meal before trying our luck in some coastal dune country. We’ll have the chance to find stunning Northern Spiny-tailed Geckos, along with some very rare species including the Woma Python and Bilby!

Fitzroy River *1 Night

Day 9 is a day of travel. The 600km journey out of the Pilbara will lead us into the southern Kimberley. There we will check ourselves into the Fitzroy River Lodge and take care of some much-needed laundry. We will be sure to keep our eyes peeled around camp, as this area is a great spot for many bird species, including the beautiful Crimson Finch!

Purnululu National Park *1 Night

Day 10 is an early start as we rise with the sun and drive into the awe-inspiring Geikie Gorge. This river system plays host to some of the largest Freshwater Crocodiles in the country. After we are content with our croc spotting, it will be onto the next national park on our list. Purnululu National Park is home to the world-renowned Bungle Bungles. The Bungle Bungle Range is a landscape photographers paradise, with unbelievable rock formations, chasms and gorges that most only dream of seeing. The stunningly beautiful Kimberley Rock Monitor inhabits this area, as does the spinifex-dwelling Robinson’s Striped Gecko. These geckos are so rare that it has only been recorded a handful of times. Hopefully luck is on our side and we can add another record to the list!

Timber Creek *1 Night

Day 11 is all about the birds. The morning will be spent packing up our gear and making our way to our first stop of the day. Kununnura is a birders dream, with more species of finch here than any other part of the country. We will be on the hunt for several species including Yellow-rumped Mannikins, Pictorella Mannikins, Star Finches and Masked Finches. Come afternoon, it will be time to make our way onto Timber Creek where we will finish the day searching for one of the best-looking birds in the country, the Purple-crowned Fairy-wren!

Edith Falls *1 Night

After packing up camp at Timber Creek we will push on to our next destination, Edith Falls. With crystal clear water and stunning waterfalls, this will be the perfect place for us to cool down during the midday heat. But this area is more than just a swimming opportunity. Rock Ringtail Possums also frequent the trees surrounding the waterhole and the road in and out of Edith Falls is great for snakes. If we are lucky, we should be able to tick off our third Death Adder species of the trip, the Top End Death Adder!

Three Ways *1 Night

Day 13 will be full on. We’ll start off the morning by hunting for one of Australia’s rarest and most beautiful birds, the endangered Gouldian Finch. After the birding, we will kick off the 690km journey south to the start of the Barkley Highway. This area is home to one of the most beautiful and cryptic snake species in the country, the Shine’s Whipsnake. Seldom seen alive, these snakes are active in the early mornings and late afternoons so if we time it right we will be in with a chance to turn one up.

Lawn Hill National Park *2 Nights

Day 14 means another long drive, but trust me, it will be worth it. The drive will take us across the vast Barkley Tableland. This drive is great for spotting a wide range of species, including Thorny Devils, Spencer’s Monitors, Speckled Brown Snakes, Crack-dwelling Whipsnakes, Red-backed Kingfishers and Flock Bronzewings. By nightfall we will have made it to one of the best and least visited national parks in Queensland, Lawn Hill! This oasis of gorges and permanent water attracts a huge variety of birds right into the campground and is a great spot to swim or kayak along the escarpment.

After two days of back-to-back long drives, it is time to reap the rewards by relaxing in the breathtaking Lawn Hill National Park. These two days are yours to do with what you please. This national park is also home to one of the biggest targets of the trip, the Carpentarian Whipsnake. This Whipsnake is certainly one of the most sought after reptiles in Australia, and for good reason (you will find out when you see one!). The region also boasts a number of other rare species including Grey Falcons, Red Goshawks, Purple-necked Rock Wallabies and Gulf Velvet Geckos.

Cloncurry *1 Night

Day 17 will bring an end to our time in Lawn Hill as we pack up camp and make our way towards the east coast. This journey will see the landscape change dramatically from the rocky outcrops of Lawn Hill and Mount Isa, to the black-soil plains of Julia Creek and Cloncurry. It is here where we will try our luck at finding one of Australia most cryptic and beautiful snakes, the Collett’s Black Snake! 

Charters Towers *1 Night

Day 18 will mark our last day in the outback and we will spend it having a drink on the edge of the Burdekin River to the east of Charters Towers, but before we get to that point we will try our hand at finding one of the smallest Goanna species Australia has to offer, the Storr’s Monitor.

Eungella National Park *2 Nights

Day 19 will mean another dramatic change of scenery, this time from the black-soil plains to the rainforests of the beautiful Eungella National Park. This national park is absolutely filled with unique wildlife, including several species that are found absolutely nowhere else in the world, including the Eungella Honeyeater, Mount Ossa leaf-tailed Gecko, Eungella Broad-tailed Gecko and the Eungella Day Frog. I think it safe to say we wont be running out of things to look for in this park!

Day 20 will be another day in paradise as we wake up on the edge of the Broken River, probably the best place on mainland Australia to see Platypus in the wild. At nightfall it will be time to make our way up into the rainforest in search of Owls. We can expect to see number of new species on this night, including Masked Owls, Lesser Sooty Owls and a plethora of snake species that are found nowhere other than Australia’s east coast!

Bulburin National Park *1 Night

Day 21 will be our last full day together as we leave beautiful Eungella behind and make our way south to our last destination of the trip. Bulburin State Forest is a beautiful and very quiet spot to camp, as not many people actually know of its existence. This particular state forest is also the only place in the country where you can find the cryptic Ringed Thin-tailed Gecko. These unique little geckos can be found on the inside of ancient hollowed out Strangler Figs! We also have a chance to find one of Australia’s largest Geckos here, the Rough-throated Leaf-tailed Gecko.

Brisbane

Day 22 will mean packing up camp in Bulburin and heading back to our finishing destination, Brisbane. After almost 10,000 kilometres over three states, I think its safe to say that we will all be leaving with a greater understanding and appreciation for the country that we call home and hopefully some amazing stories and photos to go with it!!!