Perth to Brisbane road trip: Best stops, distance & drive time
Perth to Brisbane road trip: Bourke
From Cobar, head up the Kidman Way towards Bourke, another classic outback town. On the way, Gundabooka National Park offers several walks and is known for its Aboriginal rock art.
If just passing by, the key site – Yapa (Mulgowan) – is accessed via a pretty steep 1.4km walk. But you can also pitch a tent at the Dry Tank Campground and then take on the 4.8km Little Mountain walking track. Expect wildflowers, emus and kangaroos.
In Bourke, the star attraction is the Back O’ Bourke Exhibition Centre. This uses interactive technology to tell tales of outback life and the bushrangers. You can also get tickets for Darling River cruises here. The hour-long cruises are aboard the PV Jandra.
Bourke accommodation options include the perfectly decent Darling River Motel, the pool-centric Sunshine Gardens Bourke Resort and the gardens-surrounded Bourke Riverside Motel.
Road trip stops in Brewarrina and Walgett
It’s another 445km from Bourke to Moree, with Brewarrina and Walgett being the main stops along the way.
The Brewarrina fish traps, an arrangement of stone walls stretching along the Barwon River, are thought to be amongst the oldest human constructions anywhere in the world.
They’re best visited as part of a tour arranged by the Brewarrina Aboriginal Cultural Museum. The museum itself goes some way to explaining the back story.
You can also find out more about Aboriginal life around Walgett at the Dharriwaa Elders Group Cultural Exhibition Centre.
Other Walgett attractions include the giant mural of Aboriginal country singer Jimmy Little on the water tower, and the Norman Tracker Walford Walkway. Stretching 1.5km along the Namoi River, this walk has interpretive signs explaining the role of Aboriginal trackers.
For many, however, the main reason to stop in Walgett is going for a dip in the Artesian Bore Baths.
Walgett accommodation is patchy, with the Pink House the best option.
Click through for the next section: Moree and Goondiwindi.