Golden Outback - Western Australia

This is the largest of Western Australia’s regions, incorporating much of the vast interior of the State, as well as the dazzling southern coastline along the Great Australian Bight.

Kalgoorlie & the Goldfields To gain a taste for the gold rush history of the area, visit Kalgoorlie-Boulder and see the Prospectors and Miners Hall of Fame and experience life in an old mine shaft, watch a gold pour and learn about life in the golden days. To understand the sheer scale of modern day mining, visit the Super Pit. Situated on what is reputed to be the richest square mile of gold bearing earth in the world, it is currently 3.2km in length, 1.3km wide and 330m deep and still growing! Following the Golden Quest DiscoveryTrail, visitors see the intriguing Antony Gormley Statues as well as the past in the historic towns of Menzies, Kookynie and Gwalia as well as the current mining towns of Leonora and Laverton.

The Esperance area contains some of Western Australia’s most spectacular coastal scenery, beaches, islands and magnificent national parks, including Cape Le Grand National Park and Fitzgerald River National Park. The coastal town of Esperance has sparkling beaches, a pink lake and temperate year-round climate. Spectacular wildflowers and an abundance of natural fauna including kangaroos, emus, plus many unique Australian species are found in the area.

The Wheatbelt is a patchwork of golden fields, rustic farm stays, historic pubs, pioneering adventures, festivals and self drive experiences. It is also home to Wave Rock which stretches 100m and stands 15m tall. Between August and November, the Wheatbelt comes to life with an explosion of wildflowers throughout the area.

The Gascoyne-Murchison Everything is big here. The giant Mt Augustus is twice the size of Uluru (Ayers Rock) and is the world’s largest monocline. Many of the vast cattle and sheep stations welcome guests for station stays and a chance to experience the outback lifestyle. During the wildflower season (July – September) the region is full of colour for as far as the eye can see.

Highlights

Miners Hall of Fame

Visit the Prospectors and Miners Hall of Fame and learn about life in the golden days. Explore Kalgoorlie’s first gold mine. Travel 36 metres underground, with a retired miner. Let our guides lead you through the tunnels where once the sounds of picks, shovels and wheelbarrows formed the heartbeat of the mine. Back on the surface, you can witness a gold pour demonstration and try your hand at gold panning.

	Esperance
	Walk or cruise and admire the pure white beaches of Esperance as the sand ‘squeaks’ under your feet. Visit Lucky Bay near Esperance, Roll up your jeans and feel the snow-white sand squeaky clean between your toes. You may choose to take a boat cruise to the nearby Recherche Archipelago or maybe you’ll want to set out in four wheel drive along the beach?

	Wave Rock
	See for yourself, the gravity-defying granite formation of Wave Rock. Rising 15 metres from the ground and more than 100 metres long, Wave Rock looks like a giant surf wave of multicoloured granite about to crash onto the bush below.

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