Here’s our list of great hikes, taking from half a day to a week.
MULTIDAY TREKS
1. Overland Track, Tasmania
Survey the scenery at Mount Ossa.
Courtesy brewbooks/Creative Commons/Flickr
Walkers can trek independently but must book with the Parks & Wildlife Service, or use one of the many guided-walk operators.
Highlights include Marion’s Lookout with (if the weather’s good) great views of Cradle Mountain; Barn Bluff towering over an exposed alpine plateau; and the beautiful D’Alton and Ferguson Falls. Worth the challenge, weather permitting, is the five-hour side trip climbing Mount Ossa.
Our guide points out two rocky towers, nicknamed The Gates of Mordor, after that dire place in “The Lord of the Rings.” And up we go.
2. Larapinta Trail, Northern Territory
Trek through rugged landscapes on the Larapinta Trail.
Courtesy Andrew Dolman/Creative Commons/Flickr
The Larapinta Trail winds through a rugged and ancient landscape in the Northern Territory.
Being remote, this trail is best tackled on a group tour.
3. Great Ocean Walk, Victoria
The Twelve Apostles are a highlight of the Great Ocean Walk.
Julian Finney/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
4. Six Foot Track, New South Wales
The Jenolan Caves are some of the world’s most spectacular cave formations.
Courtesy russellstreet/Creative Commons/Flickr
Taking three days and two nights, the 44-kilometer track starts at the Explorers’ Tree, drops into Megalong Valley and crosses Coxs River by the Bowtells Swing Suspension Bridge. Challenging climbs take walkers to the Black Range ridge before heading for the caves.
5. Cape to Cape Walk, Western Australia
Cape Leeuwin is a lighthouse located on the most south-westerly point of Western Australia.
Courtesy Amanda Slater/Creative Commons/Flickr
The track mostly follows the coast, sometimes along cliff-top paths, at other times crossing beautiful beaches. Several inland loops traverse sections of karri forest, while staff at the spectacular lighthouses at both ends run guided tours.
ONE-DAY TREKS
6. Kosciuszko Walk, New South Wales
Lake Cootapatamba is a post-glacial lake.
Courtesy Andrea Schaffer/Creative Commons/Flickr
The landscape features rocky granite outcrops, wildflowers and glacially carved Lake Cootapatamba.
Many walkers seem oblivious to the stream near the trail, but we pause to see the beginning of a waterway that became a legend thanks to Banjo Paterson’s poem “The Man from Snowy River.”
Passing the sign at Rawson Pass, it’s not much further before there’s a carnival atmosphere among hikers who have made it to the top of Australia. The route’s easy to do independently but guided walks are an option.
7. Kings Canyon Rim Walk, Northern Territory
The reasonably fit should not be deterred by the 500-step climb to the top because it’s then quite flat. This walk of six kilometers (four hours) follows the rim of Kings Canyon in a horseshoe fashion.
There’s a sense of awe at this ancient land with 100-meter-high sheer cliff walls, weathered dome-like structures called the Lost City and the Garden of Eden with its permanent waterholes. It’s enough to make one feel humbled.
Stay the night before being sure to start early to avoid hiking in the midday heat.
8. Dove Lake Circuit, Cradle Mountain National Park
Cradle Mountain is a mountain in the Central Highlands.
Courtesy Atsushi Kase/Creative Commons/Flickr
Highlights include the much-photographed boat shed, built in 1940 by the first Ranger at Cradle Mountain, Glacier Rock, which bears the marks made by Ice Age glaciers and the peaceful cool temperate rainforest known as the Ballroom Forest.
Towering above it all is Cradle Mountain. Look several times to see its mood change from bright to brooding with the weather.
9. Binna Burra to Green Mountains (O’Reilly’s), Queensland
The Gwangorool Pool, Binna Burra.
Courtesy gailhampshire/Creative Commons/Flickr
The Border Track passes through stands of Atlantic Beech forest, subtropical and cool-temperate rainforests and along the rim of the Tweed Valley volcanic erosion caldera. From Wanungara Lookout views extend over Limpwood Valley, Mount Warning and sometimes as far south as Byron Bay.
10. Manly to the Spit Bridge
Walk along the beautiful expanse of Forty Baskets Beach.
Cameron Spencer/Getty Images AsiaPac/Getty Images
Hiking in the middle of the city? Absolutely. Walks through Sydney Harbor National Park provide a peaceful perspective.
Catch the ferry from Circular Quay, alight at Manly Wharf and head west along the foreshore.
Having crossed the picturesque and oddly named Forty Baskets Beach, the track heads up through a reserve with spectacular lookouts. Quiet beaches like Castle Rock give the walker reason to pause, before everything becomes busier approaching the Spit Bridge, which we see open for a ferry to pass.
Bruce Holmes is an Australian freelance travel writer and photographer who lives in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales.
Editor’s note: This article was previously published in 2012. It was reformatted and republished in 2017.
