Every year the Simpson’s 176,500 km² desert stage is set at the foot of the legendary dune, Big Red, for the world’s most remote music festival, featuring an all-star line up of Australian rock royalty.
If you’re heading to Big Red to sample the acoustics of the Simpson, make the most of the 1800km road trip (from Sydney or Brisbane) by extending your visit to discover Birdsville and beyond.
Here are eight things to tick off your to-do list in Birdsville and finish off your Big Red Bash with a bang.
1. Try a curried camel pie
Image source: Tourism & Events Queensland
The iconic Birdsville Bakery serves up all manner of savoury and sweet treats from its downtown Birdsville base. Rated by TripAdvisor as one of the best pies in Queensland, make sure to save room after the food trucks at the Big Red Bash to try one of the Bakery’s famous pies. Their signature pastry parcel is the ‘curried camel pie’, but for those with less adventurous taste buds, classics like steak and pepper and kangaroo and claret are also available. Read more: www.birdsvillebakery.com
2. Visit the Pippagitta Waterhole
If you thought Birdsville was just red dirt, think again. Experience the Pippagitta Waterhole, a natural oasis in the Diamantina Shire, by joining Adventure Australia Treks and Tours for exclusive access to the outback’s answer to Wet’n’Wild. Pack your swimmers and dive into this crystal clear waterhole, where your only company will be the prolific birdlife that discovered the waterhole long before we did. Aside from swimming, this day tour explores the natural, cultural and historical aspects of the areas north of Birdsville, including Cuttaburra Crossing, Bedourie and the Carcory Homestead Ruins. Read more: http://www.aatt.com.au/tours
3. Knock back a coldie on an icon
Image source: Tourism & Events Queensland
Nothing says Queensland like a Milton Mango on the veranda of the iconic Birdsville Hotel . This pub’s weatherboards have seen more than their fair share of visitors, laying claim to the title of Queensland’s most western pub since 1884. There’s no such thing as small talk here – it’s all about how long it took you to drive or fly here (did we mention you can park your plane out the front?) and how long you plan to stay and play in this western pocket of Queensland. By the time you finish your beer, you’re promised to come away with at least three new outback mates. Read more: www.theoutback.com.au/birdsville-hotel
4. Join The Hard Road Cafe for dinner
The words ‘spoilt for choice’ aren’t usually associated with Birdsville, which is a one bistro-dinner kind of town. However, the town’s dining options double over the tourist season, as the Birdsville Bakery throws opens its doors at night to The Hard Road Cafe. Guests can expect a modern Australian bistro fare, prepared by French-born chef Sebastian Badey. With agriculture the primary industry for Outback Queensland, it’s no surprise that the Hard Road Cafe’s steak frites is the menu’s signature meal. Read more: www.birdsvillebakery.com
5. Extend your visit with a tag-a-long offroad trip
You didn’t just drive thousands of kilometres to Birdsville to stop there, did you? While you’re on the border of three states, you might as well visit them. ‘When in Birdsville’, right? Join Adventure Australia Treks and Tours for their Central Australia Explorer off-road adventure, travelling Birdsville to Coober Pedy, Coober Pedy to Alice Springs and Alice Springs back to Birdsville and extend your holiday into a central Australia off-road odyssey. Choose to tag along in your own vehicle, or kick back as a passenger, as AATT’s experienced guides take you off the beaten track. Read more: www.aatt.com.au
6. Visit The Dig Tree
Image source: Tourism & Events Queensland
For a town so far from the coastline or any major cities, it’s sometimes hard to fathom why two famous explorers, Burke and Wills, ended up between four deserts, south of Birdsville. Sadly, the biography of Burke and Wills ends just outside of town, marked by The Dig Tree and both Burke and Wills’ graves. Both sites are a self-drive day tour from Birdsville. However, if you’re looking for interpretation for these historical sites, jump on board with Adventure Australia Treks and Tours who pack more information than the history channel onto this tour. Read more: www.aatt.com.au
7. Fly like a bird over Birdsville with an aerial flight
Image source: Tourism & Events Queensland
For an aerial perspective of why the Diamantina Shire is called Channel Country, join Central Eagle Aviation for a scenic flight over Birdsville’s incredibly diverse landscape. You’ll pass over Big Red, cattle stations and the iconic Birdsville track, opening a new perspective to a landscape that you’d otherwise dismissed as deadpan flat. Read more: www.centraleagleaviation.com.au
8. Try traditional camp oven cooking and spend a night at Poeppel Corner
A trip to Poeppel Corner might just be the cheapest way to see three states in a day. In fact, Poeppel Corner is named after the explorer who found the exact location of the border of Queensland, Northern Territory and South Australia. Join Adventure Australia Treks and Tours for an overnight trip to this iconic spot, followed by a night of stargazing in the Simpson Desert at a fully prepared campsite. Swap campfire stories over a camp oven dinner, and enjoy the serenity of being one of a few people in the fourth largest Australian desert. Read more: www.aatt.com.au
Want to know more? Drop us a line and we’ll get back to you!
