Australia Encompassed (trip)

Australia Encompassed

  • Darwin Airport, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
  • Active & Adventure
Australia, Australia and Pacific

from $2,990* per person19 DaysSeptember
Comfort accommodations Exertion level: 3
Operator: Compass Expeditions 12 people max
Australia is a vast ancient land, a land of wide open skies and dramatic landscapes. There are few places left on earth that are truly remote, however, this is one of them. This extraordinary ride will take us from the topical north of Darwin to the cultural and sporting capital of Australia, Melbourne. In between we will visit ancient gorges, fantastic rock formations, world famous national parks and epic desert landscapes. We can sample Emu Mignon, Kangaroo steaks and Camel sausages and stay at historic, world renowned and highly awarded “outback” pubs. Century old wineries, historic paddle steamers and world famous coastal rides all feature in this all encompassing ride from top to bottom.

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Locations visited/nearby

Australia, Australia and Pacific

0 testimonials about this trip.

2 testimonials about the provider, Compass Expeditions:

  • Reviewer: James, located in Australia
    I wanted to send a quite note to all the Compass Team to say thanks. I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and sincerely appreciate the efforts of Leo, Tarvo and Andy. These guys really went the extra step in ensuring that everything went smoothly on the trip. Thanks also to all those who assisted in organising the tour, it really was as good as I hoped it would be.
    I hope to able to do another tour with Compass in the future but will need some time for funds and annual leave to recuperate!

    Thanks again
  • Reviewer: Chris and Glynis, located in Australia
    What an amazing tour. Given that neither of us have done more than farm track and car park gravel before, to say it was hard work was an understatement, but with leo's guidance, a real learning experience. Leo, was awesome. Lots of knowledge, very friendly, always smiling, great sense of humour, first class person. Tavo could not do enough to please everyone, what a great guy. Andy, tried so hard to please, very friendly guy a real asset to the team. As for the Compass organisation - wow. Nothing was not thought of, every little detail was covered. The support & backup were first class & I doubt could not be bettered. As for the locations & scenery! Patagonia was always somewhere as a young rock climber I always wanted to come to but never got the chance, now I have seen the best of it with Compass, it has gone way beyond my expectations, a wonderful & enchanting place.

    This trip has inspired us to do more. We will be riding with you again for sure, now we have coped with some tough terrain.

    Thankyou again for one, if not THE best experience of a life time

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Itinerary

Week one
We begin this ride with a day in Darwin getting to know the bikes and the city and a Darwin harbour cruise and meal at sunset. We spend two nights at the world heritage listed, Kakadu National Park, home to an amazing array of flora and fauna as well as Australia's greatest collection of Indigenous rock art. Further south we ride a vast area of rivers, escarpments and gorges, where we shall visit the 20 million year old Nitmiluk Gorge near Katherine where we can swim, cruise or canoe between the sheer cliffs and sandy beaches. Continuing south we shall pass the amazing Devils Marbles, a huge collection of granite boulders that is an iconic sight of the Australian Outback. The first week shall be seen out at the thriving outback town of Alice Springs that rises out of the vast red dirt and rugged ranges that surround this incredibly remote place.

Week two
Leaving the Alice we will ride through a landscape of spectacular landforms, shimmering deserts and huge blue skies as we reach one of the world’s most recognisable sights, the incredible Uluru (Ayres Rock). Witnessing Sunrise and Sunset, and watching as the rock changes colour before you is one of life's great pleasures. The ride continues south along the legendary Stuart Highway into South Australia before reaching the dirt of the famous Oodnadatta Track. This remote track, steeped in outback history, follows a succession of mound springs and passes through the endless Gibber Plains that are dotted with palm fringed oasis. This historic ride passes old telegraph stations, water tanks, rail sidings and fettler’s cottages with glimpse of the incredible Lake Eyre. Back on paved road at Marree we finish the week off at Wilpena Pound, a vast natural amphitheatre ringed with sheer cliffs and jagged rocks that are constantly changing colour. Two nights are spent at the renowned Prairie Hotel at Parachilna, internationally recognised as some of the best outback accommodation and one of only two restaurants in Australia to be recognised by “Hip” magazine as serving the best “bush tucker” available in Australia. A day will be spent exploring the gorges and canyon lands of the incredible Wilpena Pound.

Week Three
This week will see us enter Australia’s best known wine region, the Barossa Valley. Home to 60 wineries, some of which have been operating for 160 years, riding amongst the valleys rolling vine-covered landscape is a biker’s delight. We continue on to the Adelaide Hills a biker’s paradise of winding twisting roads before visiting the wonderful Mannum, renown for its paddle steamer heritage on Australia’s greatest river, the Murray. Last stop in South Australia is the stunning Coorong National Park, where we can organise a beach fishing trip with the chance to catch Mullet, Shark and Salmon to name but a few. We leave South Australia as we cross into Victoria and enter a world of forests, fern gullies, creeks, lakes and swampland as we enter the 400 million year old Grampians National Park, that rises from the surrounding farmland. We finish this spectacular tour riding one of the world’s finest coastal rides, the Great Ocean Road. Two days are spent meandering along this epic coastal landscape of towering cliffs, fantastic limestone formations and pounding surf beaches before arriving in Australia’s second largest city of Melbourne, another world away from the remoteness of what we have just experienced.

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