Goldfields Wildflower Trail
Blaze through the goldfields on a magic carpet ride of wildflowers. On this seven-day, 1,765-kilometre adventure, you’ll experience technicolour blooms of everlastings, goldrush history and monumental modern mines, as well as an other worldly outdoor gallery on a remote salt lake.
Kiss Perth goodbye and head towards the sunrise. Follow the Golden Pipeline Heritage Trail to the endearing wildflower-friendly town of Merredin, past towering grain silos offering a colourful depiction of this farming community. Breathe in the sweet scent of wildflowers as they erupt from Merredin’s roadsides and nature reserves between September and November.
Follow eucalypt-lined roads to Kalgoorlie, the beating heart of the outback. Kalgoorlie’s lavish architecture and wide streets set the scene to explore a glittering gold rush past. In neighbouring Boulder, the jaw-dropping Super Pit is one of the world’s biggest open-cut mines. At 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and 600 metres deep, it astounds with its sheer size and scale.
South of Kalgoorlie lies the wildflower-laced Great Western Woodlands – supporting 20 per cent of Australia’s plant species, it’s also the earth’s largest and healthiest intact temperate forest and an area of great beauty and biodiversity. Seek solitude on the walking trails among the wildflowers, mallee and heath, rocky outcrops and salt lakes, with only birds and shy wildlife as company.
Track deep through historic Menzies to remote Lake Ballard. Here, the blindingly beautiful salt pans change colour throughout the day and are a stark yet stunning backdrop to Inside Australia, a striking and surreal installation of 51 black-steel sculptures by visionary British artist Sir Antony Gormley.
The living ghost town of Kookynie and heritage-listed Niagara Dam – another wildflower hotspot – crop up en route to Leonora, where quirky Australian outback pubs, native birds and an excursion to ghostly Gwalia delight.
Follow eucalypt-lined roads to Kalgoorlie, the beating heart of the outback. Kalgoorlie’s lavish architecture and wide streets set the scene to explore a glittering gold rush past. In neighbouring Boulder, the jaw-dropping Super Pit is one of the world’s biggest open-cut mines. At 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and 600 metres deep, it astounds with its sheer size and scale.
South of Kalgoorlie lies the wildflower-laced Great Western Woodlands – supporting 20 per cent of Australia’s plant species, it’s also the earth’s largest and healthiest intact temperate forest and an area of great beauty and biodiversity. Seek solitude on the walking trails among the wildflowers, mallee and heath, rocky outcrops and salt lakes, with only birds and shy wildlife as company.
Track deep through historic Menzies to remote Lake Ballard. Here, the blindingly beautiful salt pans change colour throughout the day and are a stark yet stunning backdrop to Inside Australia, a striking and surreal installation of 51 black-steel sculptures by visionary British artist Sir Antony Gormley.
The living ghost town of Kookynie and heritage-listed Niagara Dam – another wildflower hotspot – crop up en route to Leonora, where quirky Australian outback pubs, native birds and an excursion to ghostly Gwalia delight.
