Starting our adventure in Sydney we head north following the Pacific Highway, travelling through Sydney's northern suburbs and skirting the Hunter Valley before arriving at the pretty coastal town of Port Macquarie. Next is Coffs Harbour where banana plantations cling to the undulating hillsides and you are far enough north to notice a difference in climate.

After a day exploring this popular surf town we keep to the coast before next visiting one of the prettiest places along the North Coast, Byron Bay. Filled with crafts, galleries, vegetarian cafes and folk music, it’s easy to see why Byron Bay is so popular, particularly when you consider that humpback whales can be watched from the nearby Cape Byron at certain times of the year.

Entering the sunshine state of Queensland we visit the world famous Surfers Paradise before spending a few days checking out Queensland’s laid back capital city, Brisbane. Passing through the Sunshine Coast we head for Hervey Bay, famously known as the whale watching capital of the world, it’s from this beautiful spot we board our ferry for Fraser Island.

World Heritage listed Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world and one of the most unique ecological masterpieces of Australia. A bush walker's paradise with over 120 kilometres of beaches, pure fresh water lakes and lush ancient rainforests, the island also offers a multitude of wildlife. Dingos on Fraser are the most commonly thought of when referring to the wildlife on the island, but there are many birds, lizards, turtles and fresh water fish also to be found. Why not take a four wheel drive for a cruise along the beach!

Back on the mainland, crossing the Tropic of Capricorn, we visit Rockhampton before heading for Airlie Beach. Situated at the heart of the Great Barrier Reef, Airlie Beach is the gateway to the Whitsundays, a colourful, cosmopolitan and inviting holiday town lying on the shores of a palm fringed beach and overlooking the calm waters of Pioneer Bay. Airlie offers you great opportunities to explore the reef with diving and snorkelling opportunities found all along this beautiful coast.

The Whitsundays comprise a group of 74 tropical islands, only 8 which are inhabited; these stunning islands offer pristine white sand beaches, stunning views and sheltered tropical rich blue waters.

These magnificent islands are cloaked in rich forest with high mountains offering spectacular views over the tropical seas and other nearby islands.

 

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Striking north again, we pass giant banana plantations en-route to Townsville, Australia's largest tropical city. From here there is the option of White Water Rafting on the Tully River which is Australia's most well known Rafting River.

Situated in Queensland’s far north, the popular town of Cairns occupies a stunning setting located at the top of the barrier reef and is surrounded by lush green rainforest covered mountains. It's from here that you can find almost any kind of adventure with hang gliding, white water rafting, bungee jumping and hot air balloon rides among the many options available. Cairns also offers amazing hiking, including the nearby stunning Atherton Tablelands rain forest.

Leaving Cairns we strike east and doing so move away from the lush coast and start heading in to the foreboding Outback. This is a harsh land of mining towns and rough pubs. The landscape is blindingly hot and the creeks and riverbeds are inhabited by crocodiles.

You wouldn't believe it by looking at it but Mount Isa is the world's biggest city, well - in square miles that is. The city border of this mining town actually extends for 700 square miles although only has a population of about 22,000. In August, Mt Isa is host to Australia's largest Rodeo as well.

Further still in to the outback we now enter the Northern Territory. This is now very much "Crocodile Dundee" country. The Territory is 6 times the size of Great Britain with only a population of 200,000!

Tennant Creek was the site of an old telegraph relay station in the 1870s, whilst in the 1930s it was the focus of Australia’s last gold rush. It's here we join the legendary Stuart Highway where we turn south and before long reach the natural phenomena that are the Devils Marbles. These giant boulders are traditionally believed by Aborigines to be the Rainbow Serpent’s eggs.

Alice Springs is an oasis town in the heart of the dramatic McDonnell ranges. You are now in Australia’s Red Centre, and are starting to feel you have come a long way. Alice (as it is locally known) is an interesting town at the hub of a lot of Outback attractions.

Heading 200km southwest, we arrive at one of the world's best known landmarks, the magnificent Uluru (Ayers Rock). This haunting monolith, one of the world's largest, rising almost 1,150 feet (350m) from the flat scrub, is a remarkable spectacle. Understandably, Aborigines consider this a holy site.

A short drive further west and we reach Kata Tjuta or the Olga’s. This collection of sandstone monoliths form an eerie, hole in the wall maze, and though they are not as well known as their world - famous neighbour, many visitors find them much more intriguing.

Until recently Watarrka National Park (formally Kings Canyon) has been virtually inaccessible to reach. This desert canyon contains the deepest and most spectacular gorge in central Australia, with rocky pools, palms, and beehive-shaped outcrops. The park has some superb walking trails, both around the rim of the canyon and up the gorge.

 

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Heading north back along the Stuart Highway passing the Tanami Desert we visit the historic Daly Waters pub en-route to the area locally known as “the top end’.

Katherine Gorge is a chain of 13 individual gorges carved out of the surrounding sandstone plateau by the mighty Katherine River during the past 25 million years or so. The whole chain now forms Nitmiluk National Park. In addition to the towering orange cliffs, there are spectacular Aboriginal rock-art galleries in the shelters tucked in the gorges.

Kakadu is a wetland marvel, famous as the wilderness backdrop to "Crocodile Dundee". It stretches across 8,000 square miles (20,700 sq km) of remote tropical wilderness.

This magnificent national park (Australia’s largest) encloses the entire drainage basin of the alligator river – so named by Capt. Philip King, an early explorer who confused the area's many crocodiles with alligators when he surveyed the area in 1818.

After a few days exploring we head to the very top of the country and the prosperous modern city of Darwin. Refreshed from our stay we get back off the beaten track heading west now to Timber Creek and through the Gregory National Park as we head to the Kimberley.

Generally regarded as Australia’s last frontier, the Kimberley is an ancient plateau dissected by deep gorges. The climate up here can be savage, with violent storms during the summer monsoons; this along with the area's extreme isolation makes it no surprise that only 25,000 people live here permanently in an area larger than California.

The Purnululu (Bungle Bungle) National Park consists of a series of spectacular sandstone ranges that were virtually unknown to non-Aboriginal Australians until the 1980s, when a film maker shot some aerial footage of them at dusk. These haunting images seized the public’s imagination, and Purnululu’s striped formations are now a symbol of the Kimberley.

Further west still and we eventually arrive at Broome and the Indian Ocean. This fascinating old pearling town on Western Australia’s remote northwest coast has to be one of the classiest Outback towns you’ll find anywhere. Its chief attraction is Cable Beach, regarded by many as one of the world’s most beautiful beaches .It would be hard to argue against that. Imagine a 20 mile (32km) stretch of golden sand almost half a mile wide at low tide, offset against a shimmering turquoise sea so warm it's almost a bath.

Traversing the Great Northern Highway we travel south with the Indian Ocean to the west and the Great Sandy Desert to the east. The next place of note is Port Headland then to Onslow and finally Ningaloo Marine Park on the rugged Northwest Cape.

This spectacular reef is much shorter than the Great Barrier Reef but it is no less impressive. Unlike its better known cousin, Ningaloo reef is accessible from the shore-never more than 2 miles (3km) out and in some places only a couple of hundred yards out, within swimming range. Among the sea life to be found among the coral are humpback whales, manta rays, greenback turtles and whale sharks (the largest fish in the sea) which can be observed certain times of the year.

Continuing south through the coastal town of Carnarvon we hit the world heritage site Shark Bay. It’s in these clear waters that humans can swim with the bottlenose dolphins that frequent these shallows at Monkey Mia.

Still heading south, you’ll be fascinated by the landscape through the Nambung National Park, where we come across the intriguing Pinnacles Desert.

 

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The futuristic city of Perth makes for a pleasant break. This attractive city overlooking the Swan River enjoys a relaxing Mediterranean lifestyle. Often described as the loneliest city in the world. Adelaide, the nearest comparable city, is almost 1500 miles (2,400 km) away.

As we make our way out of Perth heading inland we pass through market gardens and vineyards to the John Forrest National park. Visiting the town Southern Cross and then the rugged mining town of Coolgardie before reaching the Eyre highway we then embark on one of the worlds epic road journeys across the Nullarbor Plain.

The Eyre Highway along the edge of the Nullarbor Plain is the classic Outback road trip – almost 1,500 miles (2,400 km) from Perth to Adelaide and most of it empty desert highway. Yet for all the barrenness of the landscape, you can enjoy remarkable views that bring home the awesome size of this continent.

The most desolate stretch of the trip starts when you drive through the town of Norseman, past the red warning sign that little or no water will be available for the next 800 miles. Here the temperatures can soar to 120F and strong winds can make it hard work for the vehicle.

There are no real towns on the Nullarbor, what you will find are lonely roadhouses generally set between 80 & 120 miles apart. The further we head in to the Nullarbor the more remote everything becomes, massive sand dunes now account for much of the landscape. The views though are simply breathtaking and slam home the empty vastness of the country.

By the time we reach the town of Ceduna the sand starts to give way to lightly forested country; Ceduna is the first town of consequence (population 2,750) after Norseman.

The Eyre Highway ends at Port Augusta. Adelaide is now only 200 miles (320 km) south, through wheat and wine country.

Adelaide, South Australia’s capital, is also known as ‘the city of churches’. This charming city sits along the Murray River in a pretty valley tucked between the sea and the hills.

Laid out in a grid system by Col. William Light in 1836, Adelaide has continued to grow and prosper and is these days an attractive city with a nice blend of old and new buildings, surrounded by beautiful parklands.

Leaving Adelaide refreshed from our stay, our first stop is the wine making district of the Barossa Valley.

Australia’s premier wine district produces a quarter of the nation's wine output and accounts for 70% of its wine exports. The valley was originally settled by Prussian and Silesian Lutherans who were seeking religious freedom. It was their winemaking skills that started the valley's long tradition of winemaking. There is still a strong German feel to the valley’s Old Lutheran churches which still dot the countryside and German bakeries can still be found among the villages.

As we enter Victoria the landscape starts to become much greener. It's here we pick up one of the worlds finest coastal drives, the Great Ocean Road.

This incredibly beautiful road hugs the shipwreck coastline and contains a magnificent mix of scenery. With hauntingly long sandy beaches and miles of rugged cliffs, set against a backdrop of the steep, rain forested Otway Ranges. It's here we find one of the areas most famous landmarks, the Twelve Apostles, as well as the surfer’s dream, Bells beach.

Often voted as one of the world's most liveable cities, Melbourne is the country’s centre for arts, culture and sports. Even though Melbourne is home to 4 million people it is still a very easy City to explore on foot. The Central Business district is a pleasing mix of futuristic skyscrapers and Victorian-era sandstone facades.

Heading east through vineyards and lush farmland the scenery starts to take on a more Alpine feel, as we approach the New South Wales border. It's here the Snowy Mountains begin. These mountains make up part of the Great Dividing Range and are the highest in Australia. Whilst modest by world standards, the overall area makes for a huge alpine wilderness with snowfields larger than Switzerland.

Fittingly, our final stop before Sydney is the country’s capital, Canberra. This smart, sporty city is generally much more engaging than you might expect .Set out around Lake Burley Griffin, Canberra houses all the buildings expected to be found in a capital city including Parliament House, the National Gallery of Australia and the Australian War Memorial, however, not many capital cities can boast a setting fringed by mountains and stunning bush land.

From here it’s a short drive through the southern highlands where we end our expedition where we begun 8 weeks earlier, in the stunning city of Sydney.

 

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