I don’t mind admitting that the older I get, the more I crave a few creature comforts. So, my eyes lit up when I spotted a hiking holiday with comfortable and luxurious lodge accommodation, gourmet food and some of the world’s best wines on offer. A

A challenging three-day hike across two mountain plateaus and two national parks, the 54k Gold Coast Hinterland Great Walk is an enchanting journey of waterfalls, Antarctic beech trees, caldera views and the occasional cantankerous cow… I have no ide

WITH her arms outstretched against the pale blue sky, the golden Madonna seemed to be urging me on when really she was looking over my shoulder to the splendour of the north face of Mt Rosa, Europe’s second highest peak, sitting like a giant Buddha,

IT’S been seven years since my family and I were on Lord Howe and I have many great memories of that trip so when our good friends at Pinetrees Lodge invited us back we jumped at the chance. I was excited to return as my kids Matilda (14) and Billy (

The 2-3 day/28km Lake Rhona Trail is located within Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park. Nestled in the midst of the Denison Ranges, the lake’s beautiful white quartzite sands starkly contrast with the dominant ridges surrounding it, making it

MATTHEW WINS A YETI YONDER 1L BOTTLE WORTH $45.95! Matthew: “An early start for a solo hike through the darkness to catch a stunning sunrise. Though I didn’t feel alone, the chorus of birds accompanied me as the sun crept over the distant cloud cover

UNLESS you’re into cold soaking or – eek! – using a crotch pot, you’re going to be carrying a stove of some sort on your overnight adventures (some experts suggest that even if you don’t plan to cook, one should be carried as a safety measure in case

MANY Australians may not know much about Timor-Leste (East Timor), other than its history of struggle and independence, but having spent the best part of a year exploring the country, I can confidently say that the hiking here is some of the best in

What's your earliest bushwalking memory? As a 10-year-old I went out with my dad and brother, rabbit hunting. We were camped on the edge of a small running creek and used this as our base. Through the day we would walk the hills, carrying everything

OVER the decades I’ve introduced several new folks to the outdoors. Sometimes a new dedicated hiker is created … and sometimes not. Some people readily ‘click’ with the outdoors, while others are repelled. The overarching hurdle, and there is no gett

AS another year comes to a close, another hunt for “what’s new” begins. A human instinct is to look ahead, to look forward, and look forward to. That’s what keeps us ticking. At Great Walks, new walks keep us going, along with coffee and chocolate. A

IN the wild colonial days of the 1860s, the bushrangers who roamed central NSW used the rugged mountainous regions for refuge. 21st century travellers also use these places for refuge, not from the law but for an escape from the pressures of modern l

IN out last issue (Great Walks 2024 Annual) we featured a story on the Sandakan Death Marches in Borneo and on pg 46 in this issue we have a cracking story on the Trails to Freedom Walk in Italy. There two walks are part of a great collection of war

DURING the 11km from Kelly’s Beach/the Basin to Burnet Heads you will encounter the eponymous sea creature more than once. But not necessarily in ways you may imagine. Black rocks, spewed millions of years ago by the Hummock volcano are a feature of

IT is not at all surprising that Robert O’Hara Burke and William John Wills starved to death on their return journey to the Gulf of Carpentaria. There is nothing on the banks of the Cooper Creek but dirt, rocks and Coolabah trees. Robert O’Hara Burke

WALKING around a bend, we came across the source of the music that had been increasingly invading our serenity. It began not long after we set off on the first leg of our hike in an area of Germany known as Saxon Switzerland. Blaring from a large lou

What’s your earliest bushwalking memory? Following a man called ‘Rangi’ into the NZ bush as a young boy. My eight-year-old buddies and I walked for hours on his heels, found a clearing, put up a tent, and made a fire. Got taught the importance of set

IT’S not every day you get to write about a trail you hike almost daily! Yet here I am, living at the southern end of the Hume & Hovell Track in Albury, lucky enough to have a slice of this historic path right in my own backyard. Stretching a whoppin

I’m planning on doing some walks in South America’s Andes mountains next season. When it comes to camp stoves what do I have to consider when using one at high altitudes? Graham Williams, Manly, NSW Graham, fuel type and quality are going to dictate

Due to launch in summer 2024, this 56km/4-day walk will deliver an exceptional hiking experience across the alpine roof of Australia in Kosciuszko NP on Monero Ngarigo Country. The walk will link Guthega, Charlotte Pass, Perisher and Bullocks Flat wi

THE 655km Australian Alps Walking Track is one of Australia’s toughest walks. The track goes through the alpine areas of Victoria, New South Wales and the ACT. It starts at Walhalla, Victoria, and runs through to Tharwa, near Canberra weaving through

THEY puffed up the hill towards me, straining under their huge packs. After a 20km day, the effort clearly showed on their faces and in their gait. I’d encountered these siblings almost every day of my walk so far, and every day I’d tease them by cas

I dunked the Tim Tam into my steaming brew of tea thinking, “I’ve made it. I did it!” We had finally made it to the summit of Mount Sonder. Phew! With my gloved hands warming around my tin mug, I felt both exhausted and exhilarated. The taste of that

ROLLING sets of waves crash into the rugged coastline of long beaches and high cliffs. The trail winds along the edge of the cliff and down to the beach where the sand is squeaky white. It’s cooler down here in general, so great hiking weather. In sp

TERRA Roam (52) doesn’t do things in halves. Amongst other things she’s solo trekked the Australian Alpine Walking Track three times (see pg 68 if you fancy doing this walk – Ed), lead a snowshoe expedition 610km across the Australian Alps, been a Se