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Adventure Holidays in Australia

Beginners Welcome

Thanks to a range of new adventure sports, it is now possible to enjoy white-knuckle thrills without sacrificing your essential creature comforts. Australia, the world’s most outdoorsy country, is finally getting serious about outdoor adventure.

Seemingly mild-mannered people now have little fear about hurling themselves off mountains, jumping out of planes or kayaking down wild rivers.

Collectively known as “soft adventure”, these activities do not discriminate on the basis of age, fitness or even previous experience. Indeed, many of the adventure companies have been specifically set up to cater for the weekend warrior – the desk-bound novice who fancies having a go at abseiling, canyoning, surfing or mountain biking.

“Our most popular year-round activity is definitely abseiling,” said Sarah Addis, a guide at High‘n’Wild in the Blue Mountains. “And yet the first thing most people say is that they are frightened of heights.” Like other adventure professionals, Sarah believes many people are looking for both a physical challenge and a new way of engaging with the natural environment.
This impulse may explain the large number of Learn to Surf Schools sprouting up around the country. With lessons starting from as little as $25 climbing on a board has never been easier.
Quality instruction is the key to many successful eco-adventures. Canoe Barrington, for instance, combines a superb location on the banks of the Barrington River with an impressive track record in the industry.

How this new range of adrenaline-inducing sports came to be known as “soft adventure” remains something of a mystery. To the outsider, there is nothing soft about careering down a steep hill on a mountain bike – certainly not the landing if you come off. On the other hand, a rafting trip on Victoria’s King River eating gourmet food and consuming premium wines sounds decidedly soft.

Adrenalin Whitewater’s King River Indulgence Package offers 40 challenging rapids, plus “five courses and 12 wines”. If you’re looking for adventure on dry land, Island Cycle Tours operates a range of “gourmand getaways” around Tasmania. The tours, which are rated from “wild to mild”, are designed to relieve urban stress, while introducing participants to the glories of the Tasmanian countryside. “I wanted to show visitors that there are better ways to explore than just by sitting behind the windscreen of a car,” said founder Sam Denmead.

Similar up-market bicycle adventures, including the enticingly-named Gourmet Bicycle Tour through North Eastern Victoria, are now available around Australia.

Serious mountain bikers, however, should not miss the annual Wildside MTB event – a four-day race from Cradle Mountain to Strahan, across some of the most challenging terrain in Tasmania. Not only is this 200km course the toughest in Australia, the event is superbly organised and attracts riders from around the world. Numbers are limited, so book now to avoid disappointment.

Tasmania is also home to the granddaddy of Australian soft adventure experiences – the six-day Overland Track from Cradle Mountain to Lake St Clair. This pioneering guided walk, which offers cabin-style accommodation, hot showers and freshly-prepared meals, is as popular today as it was when it was first launched. The Cradle Mountain Huts company has now added the shorter, but equally thrilling Bay of Fires Walk along the rarely-visited north-east coast of Tasmania. Both journeys offer a wonderful introduction to the Tasmanian wilderness for those who might be slightly unsure about their own fitness or lack of survival skills.

Short of time? Many eco-adventures can be squeezed into a morning or spare evening.
Freycinet & Strahan Adventures, one of Tasmania’s most respected sea kayaking companies, offers a range of paddling trips at both Freycinet and Strahan, including the Twilight Paddle at Coles Bay and the more demanding Gordon Franklin River trip. New South Wales and Victoria have plenty to attract the weekend warrior. Both states are endowed with great national parks, reserves and wilderness areas – many within easy reach of their capital cities.
Mornington Peninsula National Park, for instance, offers a wide range of walking trails, cycling routes and beach picnic spots within two hours of central Melbourne, while the Grampians is a mecca for canoeists, walkers, mountain bikers and rock climbers.

Those who enjoy a more structured experience should contact the award-winning Eco-Adventure Tours which conducts guided nature tours in the Yarra Valley and Dandenongs.
New South Wales, meanwhile, has a national park to suit just about every taste – from the surfside delights of the Royal National Park to the more robust pleasures of the Blue Mountains, Barrington Tops and Dorrigo national parks.

Of course, extreme sports are not for everyone. Plunging down an icy-river on an air mattress is a great buzz, but is not the most relaxing experience. Those who are looking to chill out, rather than freak out, should consider something aquatic such as whale/dolphin watching, scuba diving or sea kayaking.

In recent years, dive centres have popped up just about everywhere along the Eastern Seaboard – although many of the best dives are to be found along Victoria’s Shipwreck Coast, Great Ocean Road and Wilsons Promontory.

Whale watching (between September and November each year) is another eco-experience guaranteed to lift the spirits. There are a number of experienced operators around Eden and the Sapphire Coast. Most offer fishing charters at other times of the year. For the ultimate dolphin encounter, however, Byron Bay Sea Kayaks combines great surf action and a chance to see dolphins in their natural habitat.

Those looking for an even bigger adrenaline hit should try quad biking, the latest adventure craze to hit Australia. Sand Safaris at Port Stephens operate two-hour quad biking adventures in the magnificent Stockton Bight Dunes, plus range of other wilderness experiences.

With so many adventure options, the Great Outdoors has never looked quite this good. Now it’s your turn.

Contact details:

New South Wales
*Central Coast Surf School. Lessons available at Avoca and Umina beaches. Tel: 02 4382 1020 or 0417 673 277.
*High‘n’Wild, Katoomba (www.high-n-wild.com.au). Teaches abseiling, canyoning, river rafting, bushwalking and bush skills. Tel: 02 4782 6224.
*Byron Bay Sea Kayaks. Offers half and full-day sea kayak trips. Tel: 02 6685 4161.
*Canoe Barrington, near Gloucester (www.canoebarrington.co.au). Guided or solo canoe adventure. Tel: 02 6558 4316.
*Sand Safaris, Port Stephens (www.sandsafaris.com.au) Quad biking adventure on sand dunes. Tel: 02 4965 0215.

Victoria
*Adrenalin Whitewater, King and Mitta Mitta rivers (www.whitewaterrafting.com.au). White-water rafting, river sledding and indulgence packages. Tel: 03 5729 8288.
*Eco-Adventure Tours, Healesville. Offers popular night walks in the Yarra Valley. (www.hotkey.net.au/~ecoadven). Tel: 03 5962 5115.
*Mornington Peninsula National Park (www.parkweb.vic.gov.au). Tel: Parks Victoria 13 1963.
*Gourmet Bicycle Tour, Melbourne (www.ecotrek.com.au). A five-day cycling tour to Milawa, Beechworth and Rutherglen. Tel: 08 8383 7198.

Tasmania
*Wildside MTB (www.wildsidemtb.com). Tel: 03 6428 2270.
*Freycinet & Strahan Adventures (www.adventuretasmania.com). Sea kayaking, long and short. Tel: 03 6257 0500.
*Cradle Mountain Huts, Launceston (www.cradlehuts.com.au). Fully escorted walks in Tasmania. Tel: 03 633 12006.
*Island Cycle Tours, Hobart (www.islandcycletours.com). Tel: 1300 880 334.