WINE & OUTBACK
14 Day Australian Adventure

Day One - Thorn Park Country House
Upon arrival at Adelaide airport, Clare Valley wine maker Leigh Eldredge will meet and greet you and take you on a tour into the Clare Valley. This area has been described as "the most unblemished wine region in Australia". Here you will enjoy private tastings at local vineyards. Leigh offers guests the opportunity to be privy to many of the Valley's finest wine makers and their secrets. This evening your accommodation is at Thorn Park. Thorn Park is set amid gently rolling hills and stately gum trees in the heart of the valley. Your hosts are David Hay and Michael Speers and they offer guests an opportunity to relax and be pampered with warm hospitality and fine food and wines. Relax, unwind and admire the peaceful gardens.
Leigh Eldredge tours (L) Thorn Park Country House (D)

Day Two - Thorn Park Country House
Today Leigh will continue guiding you through the Clare Valley. Visit the tiny Polish Township of Sevenhills, the oldest winery in the Clare Valley, the historic Sevenhill Cellars. Meet the people behind the wine production and see the vineyards where the fruit ripens to produce such an inspiring taste. Lunch will be at Eldredge Vineyards. The Restaurant is in a restored 1920's stone cottage set amongst huge gums and a lovely dam. Enjoy superb food and wine with Leigh before continuing through the valley. This evening return to Thorn Park.
Leigh Eldredge tours (L) Thorn Park Country House (B,D)

Day Three - Bruce Railway Station
This morning we will transfer you by road to Bruce - a unique restoration and conversion of an old Railway Station, which sleeps only 8 people, and home hosted by the owners - Tony and Maggie Gwynn-Jones. Their cuisine is superb, and nothing has been overlooked in their attention to detail. The highlights during your visit may include taking a run along the line in their railway inspection car while kangaroos and sheep scatter ahead, and singing along with their antique Pianola!
Thorn Park Country House (B) Bruce Railway Station (L,D)

Day Four - Bruce Railway Station
Following a leisurely breakfast, Tony will guide you in his 4WD vehicle on a personalised visit of the most intriguing spots of the Southern Flinders Ranges. Enjoy a picnic lunch nestled amongst the Australian bush land. Meet the local inhabitants - kangaroos, wallabies and other native animals. On your return to the station, a train ride on the original Railway line in the Stations own carriage is a must. Another mouth-watering dinner awaits you this evening. Perhaps a nightcap on the veranda before resting your head - on a clear night the stars stretch from horizon to horizon and can be seen with absolute clarity.
Bruce Railway Station (B,L,D)

Day Five - Arkaba Station
This morning we will charter fly you from Bruce Railway Station to Wilpena. From here you will transfer to Arkaba Station in the southern Flinders Ranges. Nestled next to the ancient formation of Wilpena Pound and Elder Range, Arkaba is a heritage-listed sheep station dating back to 1851. Your hosts are Dean and Lizzie Rasheed. Learn of the Rasheed's pioneering successes in the area and how Lizzie made her way from an English estate to the Australian bush. This afternoon take in the awesome scenery and experience the workings of a sheep station in four-wheel drive comfort. Discover the secrets of this ancient land and how the pioneering spirit brought prosperity and enterprise to the region in the form of wool. Your accommodation is in the original Rasheed Homestead nestled alongside the Arkaba Creek.
Bruce Railway Station (B) Arkaba Station (L,D)

Day Six - Arkaba Station
Awake early for a stunning sunrise. After breakfast perhaps experience a scenic flight over the property and surrounding Ranges. Go for a hike high into the unexplored Elder Range with Dean, where you will be one of the first non-aboriginal people to tread, and search for undiscovered aboriginal rock art. This afternoon keen riders may choose to go horse riding or you may join a 4WD adventure or perhaps even a sheep muster. Return to your accommodation for a home-cooked Aussie feast and enjoy the subdued colours as the sunsets over the range.
Arkaba Station (B,L,D)

Day Seven - Arkaba Station
Today there are many walking trails to explore. Search for some of the nearly 100 bird species located at your doorstep along the Arkaba creek. In spring witness the transformation of the bush into a profusion of wildflowers, you will be in awe at the variety of colours and species. Learn about the fauna and flora and gain an insight into local Aboriginal bush tucker and medicinal uses of these seasonal plants. At the end of the day put your feet up for one last special Arkaba sunset and meal.
Arkaba Station (B,L,D)

Day Eight - Deep Well Station
After breakfast we will air charter you to Adelaide to meet your scheduled flight to Alice Springs, before transferring you deeper into the Outback at Deep Well - a large Central Australian cattle station. Meet your hosts Bill and Jan Hayes, who operate Deep Well Station. The property has been in their family for six generations. Covering 450 000 acres, it is situated between the MacDonnell Ranges and the Simpson desert, boasting magnificent red sand hills, weathered rocky outcrops and an abundance of plant and wildlife. This afternoon view and explore the ancient landscapes and trace the endeavours of early gold mining and pastoral settlers.

Your hosts know all the best spots for adventure and sightseeing. End the day with delights from the camp oven as millions of stars light up the inky black sky. Your accommodation is in comfortable bush huts - an authentic place to rest after a day in the Outback.
Arkaba Station (B) Deep Well Station (L,D)

Day Nine - Deep Well Station
Following breakfast, take your private charter to the famed Ayers Rock (Uluru). This will be a full day tour including the well-known Kings Canyon. Or head south through shimmering Ghost Gums in the dry riverbeds of Deep Well Station into the Simpson Desert where the blood red dunes are interspersed with twisted and gnarly Desert Oaks. This will be a full day of adventure into the real 'never never' of this timeless land, a photographer's paradise! Witness the colours of the aptly named Rainbow Valley and travel further into the deep interior, traversing towering sand dunes to arrive at the nature's pinnacle - Chambers Pillar. See where the Hayes ancestors inscribed their names (in the late 1800's) as they passed by the pillar during construction of the overland telegraph line. Lunch will be en-route. Return to the homestead for a well-earned beer and freshly baked damper under a symphony of stars.
Deep Well Station (B,L,D)

Day Ten - Deep Well Station
The day is yours to do as much or as little as you please. Take a casual 4WD tour and gain insight into the workings of a huge central Australian cattle station. There are many activities for you to participate in either by foot or even on horseback. Riding through this rugged beauty is an experience not to be missed, even for the novice. If you are lucky you may be involved in the thrill of a cattle muster or watch the chopper pilots bring in the mob. Experience the adrenaline and skill of the ringers and the chopper pilots as they orchestrate this massive operation. This evening take a nocturnal tour and have the magic of the outback revealed to you, or listen in fascination to the countless tales these Outback characters can recite.
Deep Well Station (B,L,D)

Day Eleven - Davidson's Arnhemland Safaris
This morning you depart Deep Well Station, via a scheduled from Alice Springs to Adelaide to Darwin. Your Arnhemland experience begins here with a sixty-minute charter flight to Mount Borradaile. You will fly over the spectacular World Heritage wetlands of Kakadu National Park. Mount Borradaile is an exclusive and remote safari camp nestled in a sub-tropical wilderness of rugged ranges fringed by lily-covered billabongs. Your hosts are Max and Philippa Davidson. This area of Arnhemland is a veritable treasure house of flora and fauna; many of its species are found nowhere else on earth. The Arnhemland area features several different ecosystems. This afternoon adapt to your surrounds. Take a swim in one of the rock pools or waterfalls. These enchanting crystal clear pools - often covered with flowering water lilies - are high up in the escarpments and are a constant source of delight and wonder. This evening take a sunset cruise on the billabong, where delicious wine and nibbles are provided to compliment this idyllic setting. An unforgettable experience!
Deep Well Station (B) Davidson's Arnhemland Safaris (L,D)

Day Twelve - Davidson's Arnhmeland Safaris
Today let your guide share with you some of the treasures of one of the richest and most powerful Aboriginal cultural sites in Australia. Mount Borradaile and the surrounding sandstone hills are honeycombed with caves and shelters once occupied by Aboriginals for over 50 000 years. Thousands of rock paintings chronicle both the spiritual dimensions as well as substance of everyday life. They leave behind the legacy of the Dreamtime and Aboriginal Mythology. Return to camp. Your tents are gathered around a central area, which includes an insect-screened kitchen, dining, library and meeting area.
Davidson's Arnhemland Safaris (B,L,D)

Day Thirteen - Davidson's Arnhemland Safaris
If catching barramundi is your passion, then this is the place to do it. The absolute solitude of Cooper Creek surrounded by paperbark trees, pandanus palms and the unique wildlife, isolates you from the rest of the world. Catching a barramundi is a bonus, something you will never forget. Combine your fishing adventure with an exhilarating trip on the airboat. You will be taken to places on the flood plain where no European has ever set foot. This is the home of the Jabiru and the whistling duck and the ever-present salt-water crocodile. Return to camp and look, listen and wonder.
Davidson's Arnhemland Safaris (B,L,D)

Day Fourteen
Homeward This morning you will be flown by a private charter flight back to Darwin to meet your scheduled flight homewards.