Flinders Ranges and Outback Towns
A unique experience
Visit the Flinders Ranges and outback towns, they’re remote, unique and provide welcome refuge for travellers and adventurers.
Some people say the country around Coober Pedy is as close as you’ll get to the moon without space travel. The stone-covered plains and miner’s mounds stretch to the horizon. Miners live underground and for them, life is about the search for opals.
Just three hours from Adelaide
Drive three hours from Adelaide to Port Pirie or Melrose. These are the region’s oldest towns and are great launching pads for your Flinders Ranges adventure. If you love mountain biking, then add Melrose to your list of places to go.
Port Augusta is the gateway to the outback. It’s about an hour away from Port Pirie. Learn what lies ahead of you at the Wadlata Outback Centre. Jamestown, Hawker, William Creek and Oodnadatta enjoy a shared history as towns on the old Ghan Railway.
History and heritage
Hawker has some fabulous Aboriginal cave art. Famous stockman RM Williams was born near Jamestown. Catch flights to Lake Eyre from Oodnadatta, a handy stopover on your way to the Painted Desert and Simpson Desert.
The people of Marree, the southern starting point for the Oodnadatta Track and Birdsville Track, call their town “the corrugated iron town with corrugated iron air”. There’s a sense of being on the edge of the world.
Off the beaten track
Mungerannie is roughly halfway along the Birdsville Track. This is a bird watching haven and a great place to stop for a hot bath in the artesian pools.
At the end of the Strzelecki Track, Innamincka is a lively township, due to four wheel drive (4WD) touring and the Cooper Basin gas fields.
Two outback towns tell tales of South Australia’s past and future. Woomera, once a key defence and space industry facility, is a living museum with fascinating collections of old missiles, rockets and planes.
Thriving communities
In contrast, Roxby Downs is thriving as workers flock there to work at the ever expanding Olympic Dam mine.
Things to do
Here are some great ideas for you to try while you’re in the area.
What's on
There are plenty of events on in the Flinders Ranges. Here are some ideas you might like.
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