Tom Price

Rural

Tom Price sits on the doorstep of one of Australia’s most awe-inspiring adventure playgrounds – Karijini National Park. Here, you can climb, swim or gaze into the depths of 100 metre chasms, revealing four billion years of the Earth’s history and some of the oldest rocks on the planet.

A two hour flight from Perth to Paraburdoo puts you one and a half hour’s drive or coach ride from Tom Price. Driving south from Port Hedland will take you just over five hours or, allow three days if you’re doing the road trip from Perth.

Tom Price is nestled in the Hamersley Ranges, at the foot of Mount Nameless, a 40 minute drive from Karijini. That makes it a popular base for those seeking an alternative to camping in the national park, and there are guided tours departing Tom Price that will show you its thrills and iconic landscapes.

The real beauty of Karijini is that its treasures are within easy reach. Pull into a car park, walk 50 metres and see waterfalls rushing down canyons into rock pools. Fortescue Falls cascades all year round at Dales Gorge, where a cooling dip awaits you at the end of a walk to Fern Pool and Circular Pool. Nearby, Weano Gorge invites the more adventurous into its winding narrow gorges to ‘The Centre of the Earth’.

Standing 1,128 metres above sea level, Mount Nameless is the highest mountain you can access by vehicle (four wheel drive only) in Western Australia and rewards you with spectacular views of Tom Price and the iron ore mine site. There are two walking trails if you’d rather take it in one step at a time.

Those keen to get a closer look at the mammoth mine site and its monster machinery can join a daily one and a half hour tour from town (minimum six people).

A motel, lodge, self-contained chalets and camping accommodation are available in town, and if you book to stay between July to October you may get to see the outback in full bloom, with displays of Ashburton and Sturt Desert Pea.