Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
or swim with wild dolphins Down
Under. At Bunbury, south of
Perth, you can swim with them or
join cruises to see them (they
come right up to the boat). If you
want an almost guaranteed dol-
phin sighting, head to Tanga-
looma Wild Dolphin Resort on
Moreton Island, off Brisbane,
where you can hand-feed them, or
to Monkey Mia on the lonely
Outback coast, where they cruise
past your legs. Even better is a
cruise on the
Shotover
catamaran
to see some of the area's 10,000
dugongs (manatees), plus turtles,
sea snakes, sharks—and more. See
chapters 5 and 9.
•
Kangaroo Island
(SA): You're
sure to see more native animals
here—including koalas, wallabies,
birds, echidnas, reptiles, seals, and
sea lions—than anywhere else in
the country, apart from a wildlife
park. Another plus: The distances
between major points of interest
are not great, so you won't spend
half the day just getting from
place to place. See “Kangaroo
Island” in chapter 10.
4 The Best Places to Experience the Outback
•
Broken Hill
(NSW): There's no
better place to experience real
Outback life than in Broken Hill.
There's the city itself, with its
thriving art scene and the Royal
Flying Doctor service; a historic
ghost town on its outskirts; a
national park with Aboriginal wall
paintings; an opal mining town
nearby; and plenty of kangaroos,
emus, and giant wedge-tailed
eagles. See “Outback New South
Wales” in chapter 4.
•
Lightning Ridge
(NSW): This
opal-mining town is as rough and
ready as the stones they pull out of
the ground. Meet amazing charac-
ters, share in the eccentricity of
the place, and visit opal-rush areas
with molehill scenery made by the
old sun-bleached mine tailings.
See “Outback New South Wales”
in chapter 4.
•
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
(Ayers Rock, NT): Sure, Ayers
Rock will enthrall you with its
eerie beauty; but the nearby Olgas
are more soothing, more interest-
ing, and taller than the Rock, so
make the time to wander through
them, too. Hike the Rock's base,
burn around it on a Harley-
Davidson, saunter up to it on a
camel, climb it if you must. Don't
go home until you've felt the pow-
erful heartbeat of the desert. See
“Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
(Ayers Rock/The Olgas)” in chap-
ter 7.
•
The MacDonnell Ranges
(NT):
The Aborigines say these red rocky
hills were formed by the Aborigi-
nal “Caterpillar Dreaming” that
wriggled from the earth here. To
the west of Alice Springs are dra-
matic gorges, idyllic (and bloody
cold) waterholes, and cute walla-
bies. To the east are Aboriginal
rock carvings, and the Ross River
Homestead, where you can crack a
cattle whip, throw a boomerang,
feast on damper and billy tea, and
ride a horse or camel in the bush.
See “Road Trips from Alice
Springs” in chapter 7.
•
Kings Canyon
(NT): Anyone
who saw the cult flick
The Adven-
tures of Priscilla, Queen of the
Desert
will remember the scene
where the transvestites climb a
soaring orange cliff and survey the
desert floor. That was Kings
Canyon, about 320km (198
miles) from Alice Springs in one
direction and Ayers Rock in the
other. Trek the dramatic rim or
