Great Victoria Desert
"8 days, guided adventure!"

I recently got back from the Great Victoria Desert and thought I’d share with you this latest adventure.
There was one passenger in my car and two people following in their own vehicle, a sort of mini tag-along. We left Perth and drove to Kalgoorlie to spend our first night. This makes an easy drive for the first day and we can all relax in front of a beer and a good meal at one the multiple restaurants “Kal” has to offer. Kalgoorlie is a great place to visit; it is, I believe, a “must have” experience. The city that never sleeps offers plenty of great restaurants and fine food. Even though we arrived on Good Friday we still managed to find a very lively and welcoming place to have wood oven pizza and a beer! We stayed at the Palace hotel, which was built just one hundred years ago, yes it is its hundredth birthday!. This hotel has great character and the rooms are exceptionally well presented and maintained, with very reasonable rates. The restaurant on the balcony has superb fine food and offers a great view over the lively streets of the town.
After a quick detour to the Super pit lookout, which is always so impressive, we went to spend the rest of the morning at the Hall of fame located just outside of the town. From gold panning to underground tour of an authentic mine, this place has so much to offer. The museum has a fantastic art display and great history of the gold rush can be learned here.
We drove after lunch to Menzies and Lake Ballard to set up camp on the edge of the salt lake. A unique display of 51 statues made by artist Antony Gormley offers astonishing and surreal sights. Just imagine a dark figure in the shimmering light of the sun setting just behind! Great campsite.
The next day was a bit of a driving one but we comfortably made it to our next camp near Empress Spring. The Spring was named by Explorer David Carnegie during his 1896 expedition. This water saved his life and the one of his traveling companions. While standing there, you feel very humble knowing than a hundred years ago a group of courageous explorers were drinking for their life.
Only a short drive in the morning to Tjukayirla (pronounced: chookrla) roadhouse for a good shower and last fuel. We headed then up the Great Central Road and turned right onto a small shortcut to Connie Sue hwy. 40km down the little track, we found a large section of the landscape ahead of us under deep water. After assessing it could not be crossed, we decided to engage south of the lake and around it. After a little bush bashing we discovered the terrain was still too soft and got bogged over and over again! Despite the work involved in each recovery, there a feeling of satisfaction and achievement, this nicely adds up to the adventure. The sun was too low for us to continue so we decided to set up camp just where we were! It turned out to be a great night with lots of laughter.
Even though the other side of the temporary lake and the track were in sight we opted to backtrack and drive the Great central road to Warburton. The northern section of the Connie Sue hwy is very picturesque with lovely landscapes covered with green grass (from the rains) divided by small easy crossing sand dunes. We spent the afternoon and night near a gorge and enjoyed a well deserved swim in a beautiful rock pool filled with refreshing clear water. The best time to have a little walk in the gorge is in the late afternoon when the sun is low and the red ochre walls come to life with magnificent contrasts.
The rest of the trip took us along on more beautiful sceneries. Wildlife such as camels, kangaroos, dingoes seemed so at home.
The track itself does not any necessary 4wd skills but caution is always a must. We only came across one vehicle traveling in the opposite direction.
After a wonderful desert crossing and a few punctures, we made it back to Kalgoorlie for a last night before returning to Perth in the morning.

The Great Victoria desert is a wonderful trip for those wishing to experience the “great outback”. The Middle of nowhere in just a few days, a memorable adventure!

The Great Victoria Desert is available all year, depending on weather and road conditions.