Itchy Feet
By theprofessionalhobo ~ January 16th, 2010. Filed under: Australia.
Okay folks, just a quick post and request for reader feedback:
I am going to travel in 2010! My feet are entirely too itchy to stay in one place for another year. So….while Kelly holds the fort down, I’m planning to do a little exploring.
Although the world is my oyster, I’m currently focused on two avenues:
1) Australia. As a whole. (No really!)
I recently discovered the Austrail pass, which gives me six months of unlimited travel on Australia’s train systems (and some bus systems too). This means I can take the Overland across the Nullabor to Western Australia, I can ride the Ghan through Alice Springs and all the way up to Darwin, and I can even check out Sydney for good measure.
Australian Friends and Readers: Now is your time to help your country shine! Has anybody taken any of these epic train journeys, and do you have recommendations?
How about your home town? What should I see when I’m in your neck of the woods? And is anybody interested in meeting up?
2) New Zealand. (Duh!)
As the next closest land mass – and one that the world promises I’ll love – it only makes sense since New Zealand is a proverbial hop across the water (in the grander scheme of things). I haven’t looked into train travel – or much at all to be honest – in terms of where to go and what to do there, so my agenda is entirely open.
New Zealand Friends and Readers: I pose the same set of questions. Where should I go? What should I see? And is there anybody out there interested in meeting up?
Related posts:
January 16th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
I’ve taken the Indian Pacific from Perth to Sydney and the Ghan from Alice Springs to Adelaide (and was just looking at booking the Ghan Darwin-Alice Springs). I loved both train rides, but I was also in Gold Class so I wasn’t roughing it. I have also driven across the Nullarbor, and I preferred the perspective from the train.
I recently did a winning write up about my home town, Adelaide, for a contest and you can read all about it at http://mayarn.blogspot.com/2009/11/adelaide-my-home-town.html
You can also find write ups about part of my train journeys on my blog.
Let me know when you are in our neck of the woods.
January 16th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
There are so many great places in Australia that it’s hard to name just one or two, and I guess it depends what you like doing…
My favourite place would have to be the Kimberley region (Western Australia). It’s four-wheel-drive country up there, especially if you go via the Gibb River Road. I did a backpacker tour, which included lots of hiking to remote gorges where there are lush forests and waterholes at the foot of spectacular waterfalls. Close second is the Pilbara region (also in Western Australia) – you wouldn’t believe the gorges to be found there, right in the heart of the most barren dusty red landscape.
I’m from Victoria – my favourite places there are Wilsons Promontory, the Grampians, and the Great Ocean Road. Tasmania has great bushwalking, especially around Cradle Mountain. NSW has Sydney & the Blue Mountains. Queensland has some of the most beautiful beaches and islands in the world. Northern Territory has Kakadu, the outback and Ulurua, while South Australia has the Flinders Ranges and Kangaroo Island.
Good luck seeing it all in 6 months. Karen
January 16th, 2010 at 4:34 pm
I’m an Aussie, currently living in the USA but my neck of the woods used to consist of a little country town in South Australia so I am completely biased about SA. If you get a chance to go to Kangaroo Island I can’t recommend it highly enough, though the trains don’t go there there are coaches from Adelaide to KI and good cheap accommodation is easy to find. If you like bushwalking you have to give the Flinders Ranges a try. There is everything from Ancient Aboriginal art to even more ancient fossils. I also don’t think I have ever seen the sky look so blue or so big as it did at the top of Wilpena Pound. You can take the Ghan up the centre from Adelaide to Darwin and I’ve heard from friends its a great trip, having driven from Adelaide to Darwin a couple of times I can imagine being able to sit and watch the countryside go by in comfort would most definitely be the way to see it.
New Zealand is so beautiful too, I’ve visited there a couple of times, it was the first country I ever went to outside of Australia and it is so completely different from Australia, it blew my mind with its beauty.
January 17th, 2010 at 12:22 am
If you’ll be in New Zealand any time between mid-February and mid-June, I’ll be around and would love to meet up! Thinking I’ll spend the first half of my trip in Wellington and the second RVing-it around the South Island.
Let me know what you’ve got planned!
PS: I’ll also be in Australia for a week or two before I head over to NZ. If you’re around there, meetups will also be possible!
January 17th, 2010 at 12:11 pm
Train travel around NZ is only good for longer distances (eg Auckland to Wellington) but bus travel is better for going between shorter distances. However, the South Island has a great train experience between the East and West coast. When are you going to be in NZ?
January 18th, 2010 at 1:03 am
Hi, regarding the North Island I would suggest:
1. the bubbling and smelling evidence of the earth’s powerful forces in Rotorua
2:the thunderous Waikato River and its Huka falls another proof of the unstoppable power of the nature
3:climb the giant dunes at Te Paki stream at 90 Mile beach and “surf” our way down for what it was supposed to be a high-speed ride to the bottom.
4:dig for your own natural hot pool in Hot Water beach.
January 18th, 2010 at 9:01 am
@Maya – Thanks for the tips, and your article on things to do in Adelaide is terrific! I’ll let you know when I’m in your neck of the woods – for sure! Maybe you can help me practice up on mi espanol too!
@Karen – Great locations! Good thing I’ve been in Victoria for a while now….I’ve covered off The Prom, The Gramps, GOW, and more. Big things on my list are Flinders Ranges, the Kimberlys, and I think a backpacker tour up the west coast from Perth will be the best way to see that remote part of Australia that is reputedly magical. And I haven’t seen Tassie yet, but that’s on my list too.
January 18th, 2010 at 9:07 am
@Samantha M – Kangaroo Island and Wilpena Pound it is! Looking forward to the vast expanse of ocean view from SA…not dissimilar to the view I had in Hawaii….
@Colin – Okay, let’s see if we can meet up. Where in Australia will you be when you’re here? I’m in Victoria…a few hours from Melbourne…
@Solange – Thanks for the train tips. Not sure when I’ll be in NZ yet…it depends on impulse and seat sales! I’d like to get there before winter sets in though (or conversely, after the spring thaw). I’m not a fan of the cold!
@Chris – Awesome North Island suggestions! I’ve noted them down, and added them to my checklist!
January 18th, 2010 at 10:31 am
Excellent topic! Train travel in NZ is about the same price as flying, sometimes even a bit more expensive, but gosh! The scenery! It is so so beautiful. I think you wrote a post a few months ago about train travel in Asia and how it allows you to see so much more of the country, well, I think the same applies in New Zealand. Have a look at http://www.tranzscenic.co.nz
Other than that, I’m not sure what else I would recommend. It’s hard to be objective about the place you are from. Do you like wine? There are some really lovely wine growing regions around the Wairarapa (1 hour + $15 train ride from Wellington) and Marlborough (1 hour + $ranges from 50ish to 100ish flight to Nelson from Wellington). A good website for flights is http://www.houseoftravel.co.nz
I haven’t spent nearly enough time in the South Island but Christchurch and Dunedin are both lovely. I’m starting to think I should be spending my annual leave seeing more of my own country rather than going to Australia…
In general though, I think I should point out that New Zealand isn’t really known for its energetic, exciting cities. Pretty scenery, farmland, quirky characters etc it has in spades.
Naturally, if you are in Wellington do feel free to email me
January 18th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
@Evealyn – Thanks for the resources! I’ve bookmarked them, and taken your suggestions to heart. I love country scenery and characters (that’s probably why I live in the countryside right now!), and am interested in places to hike, and otherwise experience the nature and adventure that New Zealand seems to abound with. I’m also interested in the Maori culture and its presence and practices.
And I’ll be in touch if and when I make it to Wellington! Cheers!
January 19th, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Hi Nora
I live in perth and can definitely say it is one of the nicest places in Australia. The beaches are awesome and uncrowded, life moves at a slower pace than in the east and WA has some of the most diverse environments on earth – from arid desert to lush forests, we are pretty lucky really. I would recommend spending a week in our southern wine region, especially Margaret River, and visiting the many great cafes, restaurants and pubs dotted along the Perth coast. Fremantle harbour is great too!
I’d love to meet up as well so let me know if/when you’re in perth and I’ll show you some sights!
January 20th, 2010 at 9:08 am
@Jessica – Awesome! I’m super excited for my trip to WA….which I figure I’ll do in April/May. From my reading, it seems to be the best time to experience a lot of what WA has to offer….
I have friends who used to live in Margaret River, and I’m hoping see do a lot of what’s in the region south of Perth, as well as up north.
And I’ve made a note of your email address….I’ll let you know when I’m coming, and let’s connect! Cheers.
January 20th, 2010 at 9:34 am
Sounds great, and how exciting for you to be planning this huge trip! All the best
January 21st, 2010 at 7:26 am
Last summer I journeyed from Sydney to Istanbul – overland (okay there was one plane flight). Australia by train included a Countrylink service from Sydney (my hometown) to Melbourne. The Overlander day train from Melbourne to Adelaide where I caught the epic Ghan to Darwin (via Alice Springs and Katherine). I also did the Indian Pacific from Sydney to Perth in 2008.
I think pass on the Overlander train. The scenery through Victoria isn’t that variable so its not the most scenic train journey on the planet. The Countrylink day services through New South wales are just some pastoral scenes really.
Ohh but the Indian Pacific and the Ghan are legend: Red deserts and the rock strewn wastes of the Nullabor!
On both trans-continental trips I was in Red Kangaroo day seater class. Two nights in a reclining chair sounds rough buts its not really. One you settle in for the trip it can be very comfortable. There are showers at both ends of carriage and an adjoining dinning car – the chow is nothing as flashy as what the baby-boomers are snacking on up front in Gold and Platinum Service – but its okay.
You could do Red Kangaroo sleeper service for about twice the price of a seater but the compartments are about the size of cryogenic freezers so if you’re a little claustrophobic pass on those.
Red Kangaroo seater service was just great for meeting people – other travelers and some quirky but always friendly Australians.
I booked my tickets here: http://www.gsr.com.au
Enjoy the Outback – its huge!
January 21st, 2010 at 10:16 am
@Craig – AWESOME advice – thanks! I was wondering what the Red day-nighter seats were like…I’ve done the sleeping in a seat thing before on the train, and as long as the train isn’t too crowded it’s doable. I also understand that you can upgrade certain segments of the journey to a berth if you wish….I’ll have to see how much it costs and how desperate I am to get horizontal for the night.
Sydney to Istanbul, huh? What a journey! I love overland travel.
January 27th, 2010 at 5:01 pm
If you end up in NZ the south island is an absolute must do. The scenery is incredible and diverse. Try the trip up Farewell Spit at the top of the South Island in a bedford (Takaka is one of my favourite places in NZ), Kayaking part of the Abel Tasman track http://www.sealswim.com(the Queen Charlotte is awesome scenery wise too and you can do some of it by mountain bike during some of the year too), the beautiful wild and rugged coast of Kaikoura http://www.kaikoura.co.nz(even if you dont stop for the whale watching), walk Franz Joseph glacier before it melts away http://www.franzjosefglacier.com . Drive into beautiful Central Otago (or at least hire a car for a day)so you get the full effect of wild lupins growing on the side of the road near glacial fed Lake Tekapo http://www.laketekapountouched.co.nz/, Lake Wanaka, Cromwell/ Alex and Clyde (still hoping to cycle the RailTrail someday)and of course Queenstown, Lake Hayes and Arrowtown. Glenorchy (not far from Queenstown) is incredible if you have a car- the dart river sits right underneath the southern alps. Not many get all the way down to Stewart Island (Im a kiwi and its still on my list) but I hear there plenty there too.
Hope you make it.
January 28th, 2010 at 8:32 am
@Tanya – WOW! Thanks for the perfect guide to the South Island! I’m certainly excited about the beautiful mountains and awesome scenery of the South Island….now I know where to go and what to do as well! Cheers…
January 29th, 2010 at 11:35 pm
Sounds like some exciting travelling ahead! I’m Irish but did two amazing years in Australia. Kangaroo Island definitly – another world experience! The Northern Territory is beautiful – I only did a little around Darwin and can’t wait to go back. Down in NSW – the Royal National Park is well worth a few days, the Blue Mountains are really blue! The trails all start in very touristy places but if you keep walking you get out into kangaroo country
And some beautiful ferry rides: from Sydney Harbour up the river to Parramatta or (my favourite!) the Riverboat Postman leaves from Brooklyn and delivers mail all up the Hawkesbury River. You meet some great people on this one!
January 30th, 2010 at 10:58 am
@Niamh – Thanks for the awesome suggestions! Just had a peek at your blog, and you’re doing all sorts of great things! Cheers.