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The best spots for wild swimming on K’gari (Fraser Island)

Those of you who watch Pat Callinan's 4x4 Adventures will know that Pat often finds fantastic locations for a spot of wild swimming and the last episode of season 14 where he headed to K’gari (Fraser Island) was no exception. On this particular trip, Pat hit up a few great wild swimming spots however, there are quite a few more on K’gari and we’re going to share the best of them with you.
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Species Spotlight: Tasmanian Devil

Devil by Name, Not by Nature. Shelly Lord takes a look at one of Australia’s most misunderstood and endangered marsupials. The Tasmanian Devil is possibly one of our more misunderstood native animals. Early European settlers named them “The Devil” after hearing screeches and growl’s coming from the bush at night. Then later being portrayed as a ferocious, spinning cartoon character called “Taz” that would eat anything in his path. There seem to be many people out there who are fearful of the Tassie Devil, believing it is an aggressive and evil animal. Tassie Devils have the most powerful bite for the weight of any animal, strong enough to crush bones. However, these nocturnal carnivorous marsupials are shy and prefer to run away.  Tasmanian Devils have coarse black fur, and most have a white stripe on their chest. Some devils have white markings on their rump, with no two markings on a devil being the same. They are pretty small, stocky animals, with the males being larger than the females. A healthy male devil can weigh between 8-and 14kg while the female will weigh between 5-and 9kg. Although not a very big animal, standing up to 30cm at the shoulders, a Tassie Devil can eat up to 40% of its body weight in one day. Tassie Devils are not fussy eaters,…

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K’Gari: Your 4X4 Paradise Awaits

K’gari or Fraser Island is a paradise indeed, but you may benefit from some ‘Mr 4X4’ tips to ensure your journey goes to plan. You might think I’d be getting sick of it after venturing to K’Gari Fraser Island for the past 20 years. But being the largest sand island in the world has its advantages. There’s always a different route to take and something new to experience. This latest journey was blessed with great weather, incredible sunsets, and great rejuvenation. After the wildfires of a few years back, the island has bounced back with vigour. It’s genuinely looking better than ever.  Inskip Point (just north of Rainbow Beach) was my start point this time around. This stretch of sand is undoubtedly one of the most changeable. One day, the sand spit stretches far and wide. The next? It’s a slender two-lane sliver of sand out to the barge. And let’s not forget about the sinkholes that randomly appear up here, swallowing whole caravans in the process. My advice with Inskip Point is to never take it lightly. Always air down before hitting the sand, and engage low range if you have it. Not only will you give your 4X4 the best chance of success, but you’ll also be saving yourself an embarrassing recovery in a high traffic area. Our…

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Bundjalung NP – Beware of RAAF planes bearing gifts…!

Protecting an area of coastal plains, heathlands and pristine beaches, Bundjalung national park also includes an exclusion zone used by the RAAF as an active bombing range….! But don’ty let that stop you visiting this amazing location. The North Coast of NSW has many diverse and unique areas all linking back to when the east coast volcanoes erupted 30-60 million years ago. If it wasn’t for the major upheaval, we wouldn’t have the Great Diving Range holding rainforest pockets, rich soil farmlands and wilderness areas. Luckily, along the north coast region, we can access most of these areas in some way.   One of these areas is Bundjalung NP, just 90 minutes south of the NSW/QLD border. On paper, the park has a wide variety of things to do and I remember from 20 years ago I thought I’d head back in for a few days. Parks state that it covers 21,000 hectares with a variety of different environments including wetlands, coastal, rainforest and much more. One significant feature is the Esk River system which apparently is the longest natural coastal river ecosystem on the north coast, say that 10 times!   My plan was to start at the southern end of the park at the coastal community of Iluka and 4WD through the park to the main camping area of Black…

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Bold Ben Hall – Bushranger

From humble farmer to the most brutal takedown in Australia’s history. The story of Ben Hall – legendary Australian bushranger. The notion of a good man turned bad through the harassment by law enforcement agencies is nothing new in early Australian history, but in most cases, it is a notion based on romanticised fiction, rather than fact. Perhaps the most famous tale along these lines is that of old Ned Kelly, however, the harsh truth is that Ned was always a bad apple, right from the start.  Enter Bold Ben Hall, who fell in with the wrong crowd and was targeted by the local Police Chief until the bitter, and brutal end! Ben Hall was said to be born in 1837 in either Breeza or Maitland in NSW to convict parents, Ben Snr and Eliza. They settled in the northern NSW town of Murrurundi and Ben Snr even opened a store selling freshly butchered meat, alongside fruit and vegetables. However, it was around the end of 1850 that Ben Snr packed up the kids and headed off for a fresh start on the Lachlan River, where young Ben would spend his formative years developing his skills as a stockman and bushman – skills would serve him well later in life. Ben Snr eventually returned to Murrurundi, but young Ben stayed behind,…

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Tasmania: North-East Explore

By Kevin Smith  Tasmania is full of stunning scenery, has an array of history and some bloody great 4WDing to boot. I wanted to try and get to the North-East corner on this trip from Hobart totally off-road, and with a few snippets of local info, I did just that. My main starting point was Sorell just out of Hobart where there are plenty of decent supply shops for food and fuel. I was given a tip that if I headed 20 km up the Tasman Highway and found Woodsdale Road that’s where I could hit the dirt and stay there to the cape. An easy and scenic run up to the bitumen to the turning point and this got me into the groove for the trip. Woodsdale Rd is a well-used dirt road to farms, a few wineries and into the forest, nether the less I was on the dirt for the journey. Passing alongside Prossers Ridgeline and turning across towards Mount Hobbs it was typical bush I was used to on the mainland with great views and the anticipation of what was in store for the next few days.   A local told me about the Swanston Track and where it followed the northern side of the Buckland Military training area. It’s an easy track to find at the…

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Litchfield: Waterholes, Big Buffs & New Camps

Pat hooks into the tracks and surrounds of Litchfield National Park – and comes up trumps   ADELAIDE RIVER – COOMALIE AIR STRIP – SNAKE CREEK – TIN MINE – THE LOST CITY – LITCHFIELD – REYNOLDS RIVER TRACK – CENTRAL VALLEY – PINE CREEK – BUFFALO CATCHING  Story by Pat Callinan  Images by Tommy Salmon  Cities on the remote extremities of our nation are oft outward-looking. I’m talking about places like Perth and Darwin. They masquerade as cities but walk through their city streets on a Sunday, and the streets are dead, save for a few touristy pubs. The good people are doing what good people do. Either going to church or exploring god’s church – the Australian bush.   Now with a city like Darwin, 4X4s are some type of religion; so when you plant an extraordinary national park just a few hours south, with incomparable swimming holes, then it’s bound to get busy. Some might say too busy. So, the attempt with this adventure is to show you where to go, what to do, and how to avoid the crowds. Sound good? Well let’s get started, shall we?!  ADELAIDE RIVER & SURROUNDS  Moment captured – the final plane prepares to land at Coomalie airstrip after the war is declared as won  An almighty big buffalo called ‘Charlie’ presides over…

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Tasmania – Be Tempted

That was the slogan for promoting travel to the Apple Isle back in 1987. 35 years on and Tasmania is still a top 4WD destination. Tasmania is full of stunning scenery, has an array of history and some bloody great 4WDing to boot. I wanted to try and get to the North-East corner on this trip from Hobart totally off-road, and with a few snippets of local info, I did just that. My main starting point was Sorell just out of Hobart where there are plenty of decent supply shops for food and fuel. I was given a tip that if I headed 20 km up the Tasman Highway and found Woodsdale Road that’s where I could hit the dirt and stay there to the cape. An easy and scenic run-up to the bitumen to the turning point got me into the groove for the trip. Woodsdale Rd is a well-used dirt road to farms, a few wineries and into the forest, nether the less I was on the dirt for the journey. Passing alongside Prossers Ridgeline and turning across towards Mount Hobbs it was typical bush I was used to on the mainland with great views and the anticipation of what was in store for the next few days.   A local told me about the Swanston Track and where…

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Secrets of the Kimberley

Pat heads up to WA’s iconic Kimberley region and discovers there’s more to it than the Gibb River Road. Read on to find out. The Kimberley township of Kununurra can get quite warm. Just ask our cameraman Bernie Kavanagh, who, at 9 am in October, was ferried off to hospital in an ambulance with heatstroke. Yes, you read that right, at nine o’clock in the morning. It was 42 degrees Celcius and Bernie was lugging a big video camera and bigger sticks (code for tripod) in the sweltering heat. I’m sure it had little to do with the eleventeen poolside ales he had consumed the day before…  You wouldn’t typically plan to be travelling around the Kimberley in October during the build-up to the wet season, but Covid restrictions had pushed our run late. Was it worth it? Well, you tell me after dialling your focus into these Tommy Salmon images within.   Your regular Kimberley 4X4 journey starts at Kununurra and finishes at Broome, running north to Mitchell Falls. But this time around would be different. Producer Paul Waterhouse had sniffed out promising-sounding locations that would keep us within a 100-mile radius of Kununurra. It was a gamble, but one that paid off handsomely.  OLD KURUNJIE TRACK  The most photographed part of the Kimberley, is undoubtedly the Pentecost River crossing,…

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