I Edited a Book About Australia’s Best Multi-Day Walks… I’m Doing These Ones Next!

Explorer Wendy had a pretty brilliant time editing a book about the 50 (!) best multi-day walks in Australia, so much so that she had to share a few faves.

If ever there was a job that combined work and passion it’d be when I was asked to pull together a book of Australia’s 50 best multi-day walks.

The brief was to figure out what the best walks were, find people to write them up, and put it all together in a consistent, readable format for hiking enthusiasts to delve into as they planned their next adventures.

My only question was why this didn’t exist already; it’s a book I’d buy in a heartbeat.

Want a copy? Read to the end for a discount code!

While Australia certainly has its share of incredible and diverse multi-day adventures for hikers, the information has always seemed oddly hard to track down. Google ‘Multi-day hikes New Zealand’ and the official tourism site gives you a neat list with all the key details.

Google the same for Australia and – while there’s plenty of inspiration to be found amongst the hodgepodge of ads for guided walks, articles on sites like We Are Explorers, and blogs that come up – it’s harder to navigate than any real life bushwalking trail.

Sometimes finding info on a hike is harder than the hike itself | Photo John and Monica Chapman

The idea of figuring out the country’s greatest multi-day hikes to create the book I’d long wished existed was a dream come true.

I spoke to some of Australia’s best guidebook writers, including the renowned John and Monica Chapman, who have more than 40 years experience producing walking guides. I also reached out to some trusty We Are Explorers contributors, including Saphira Bloom-Quinn, who stepped in to write up the Carnarvon Gorge Great Walk on a deadline, and Lisa Ikin, Mark Pybus, and Dan Slater, whose hikes all feature in this article, and a bunch more!

As stories and photos of Australia’s greatest long-distance walks poured in, I have to confess I spent more than a few hours at my desk daydreaming about which hikes I’d do next.

These are the five multi-day walks that have shot to the top of my ‘must do’ list:

1.Tabletop Track

Location: Litchfield National Park
State: Northern Territory
Distance: 39km
Days: 3 to 5 days

@louisedentonphotography

I walked a section of the Tabletop Track about 15 years ago and reading Louise Denton’s write up of the full trail made me wonder why I never went back.

‘The national park is famous for its tropical, spring-fed waterfalls that tumble from an ancient sandstone escarpment. The trail loops around the top of this plateau, high above the plunge pools day-trippers frequent. Despite being an established trail, most of your trek will be in complete isolation, aside from perhaps the howl of dingos at night, the plentiful birdlife and darting lizards’, Louise writes.

‘Heading mostly through Litchfield’s savanna woodland – an endless open forest of eucalypts dotted with sand palms and cycads – the trail follows and crosses creek lines (both dry and wet). Occasionally a break from the heat is given by shady, monsoon forest. There’s plenty of rock, whether loose underfoot, towering pillars, or giant mounds of boulders. The trail’s plateau-top position offers unexpected views across the open landscape and opportunities for swimming as the pristine waterways fall to the escarpment edge.’

Yep, gotta get back there!

2. Murchison River Gorge Walk

Location: Kalbarri National Park
State: Western Australia
Distance: 38.5km
Days: 3 to 5 days

@lisabenjess

This one had me dreaming of a serious adventure. The Murchison River Gorge walk begins a six-hour drive from Perth, requires a food/water drop, and contributor Lisa Ikin warns that the going can be challenging.

‘Trails are only marked in some sections, there are river crossings, slippery ground, steep cliffs, and rocks,’ she writes.

@lisabenjess

However, her description as you make your way down the gorge over the days, paints an enticing picture.

‘The conveniently stepped sandstone rocks on either side are easy to manage. However, there are times when you need to shimmy along narrow overhangs or clamber over boulders. Sometimes it’s easier to wade through the water’, Lisa writes. ‘River crossings are necessary once it becomes too difficult to traverse the vertical cliffs. The water is eerily green and surprisingly cold most of the year.’

3. Cape to Cape Track

Location: Cape Leeuwin to Cape Naturaliste
State: Western Australia
Distance: 130km
Days: 6 to 8 days

@thelife0fpy

For a more accessible WA walk – I mean, while you’re there, why not? – Cape to Cape is a coastal classic.

Contributor and guidebook writer Mark Pybus describes the trail as covering a ‘geologically and botanically rich part of Western Australia, passing through a number of coastal towns famous for surf breaks, wineries, and laidback lifestyle’.

‘The first day sees you walk along a compacted single trail through the wildflower-filled coastal scrub to the surf town of Yallingup’, he writes. ‘Day two is one of the best days of the hike, with varied landmarks and terrain. Highlights include Smiths Beach, Canal Rocks, Injidup Natural Spa, Quinninup Falls, and the wildflowers around Moses Rock Campsite’, he writes.

For a well-marked trail with a few towns along the way to stock up on creature comforts, this looks like a winner.

4. The Scenic Rim

Location: Main Range National Park
State: Queensland
Distance: 47km
Days: 4 days

@thisisnotaholiday

Author Dan Slater describes the Scenic Rim trail as taking you through ‘a vivid green concatenation of old growth forest, moss dripping vines, impenetrable cloud, and often considerable precipitation [in] one of the last remaining pockets of subtropical rainforest left over from Gondwanaland – the sprawling supercontinent that existed 120 million years ago and contained half the world’s land mass’.

If that otherworldly description wasn’t enough, the promise of a truly remarkable wildflower is enticing.

‘The path down to Cunninghams Gap is where you’ll see the most spectacular examples of the Giant Spear lily loitering beside the track. The metres-long cascade of blossoms, covering every shade of red from scarlet to vermillion, is truly a sight to behold, even if you’re not an anthophile at heart’, he writes.

5. Western Arthurs Traverse

Location: Southwest National Park
State: Tasmania
Distance: 50km
Days: 6 to 9 days

Photo by John and Monica Chapman

Okay, I’ll be honest, this was already on my list. Another bold adventure, this time in remote Tasmania, with more than 3,600 metres of ascent as you scramble up and down the peaks. It’s not for the fainthearted, and it might be one to build up to, but it’s definitely a bucket-list walk.

‘For many, to traverse the Western Arthurs is the ultimate wilderness hike in Australia. It is not only difficult, it is a scenic range containing numerous peaks and lakes in its 18km length’, the Chapmans write. ‘These features are the result of recent glaciation which also created extremely steep ridges and gullies.’

With expansive views (unless obscured by the frequent rain), alpine lakes, and steep, difficult terrain, it’s a hike for those with experience and confidence who are ready to take the next step… Maybe I should clock up a few more of the other walks detailed in the book before I take it on.

Learn more: 9 Things You Oughta Know Before Walking Tasmania’s Western Arthurs Range

I’m sold, where can I get this book?!

For more detail on these walks – and 45 more – you’ll need to read the book.

Inspired to grab a copy? Have a 15% discount code: WAE15

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Feature image thanks to John and Monica Chapman