6 OUTBACK WAY
OVERLANDERS WAY
The Outback Way is Australia’s longest shortcut and the world’s longest geocache trail linking Perth to Cairns, crossing through the Red Centre. The Outback Way is an adventure of the greatest kind, passing through remote regions with unsealed roads that are best travelled in high-clearance four-wheel drives. The route can be challenging, but the landscapes, colours and night skies are legendary.
Mount up and prepare to experience the incredible cattle country of Outback Australia. Traversing the Barkly Tablelands from Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory to Townsville on the Queensland coast, this iconic drive takes in the vast horizons of the Barkly and Flinders Highways.
In the NT, the Outback Way comes in west of Kata Tjuta/The Olgas, entering Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and from the Queensland border just east of Tobermorey on the Plenty Highway. The drive is an alternative route around central Australia, taking in Uluru/Ayers Rock and Mt Conner and passing through Alice Springs before turning off onto the Plenty Highway where you can enjoy fossicking at Gemtree. Here it links with the Binns Track and Sandover Highway. Stop at Atitjere/ Harts Range community, and marvel at the landscape as you travel east to the Queensland border.
Journeying into the Barkly Tablelands is a great way to comprehend the vastness and beauty of the Australian Outback. This mighty grazing region is still considered the heart of the Northern Territory’s cattle country, with some cattle stations the size of small European countries. This part of the world presents a canvas of changing colours and never-ending horizons and is the driving opportunity of a lifetime. Drink ‘billy tea’ by the roadside and wave to passing road trains as you slowly unwind and immerse yourself in the land of the stockmen. The Overlanders Way follows a sealed highway and covers 1550 km. Note: the Barkly Homestead is one of few fuel outlets on the drive and high winds may dramatically affect fuel consumption.
CHECKLIST It is essential your vehicle is mechanically sound. Ensure you know how to check your vehicle over and how to use the equipment. VEHICLE
Recovery kit including long handle shovel, snatch strap (properly rated for the vehicle) with load-rated shackles and preferably a winch
Two spare tyres with wheel brace, jack including jack plate etc
Tyre repair kit with spare tyre valves and caps
Recovery treds / tracks
Air compressor including air pressure gauge Tool kit Spare parts (hoses, belts, fuses etc) Fire extinguisher Comprehensive ‘remote area’ first-aid kit (Do an accredited first aid course prior to travelling)
Electric or hand-operated winch Bull bar Driving lights Dual battery system Long-range fuel tank/jerry cans Water tank / containers
