Small-group 4WD day tour · Coober Pedy, Saturdays
This 10-hour 4WD day leaves Coober Pedy every Saturday for the Moon Plain, the Kempe Road and the coloured Arckaringa Hills of the Painted Desert, with a picnic lunch out in the hills. With four guests at most, it is the most personal way to see the country north of town without driving the dirt tracks yourself.
The Painted Desert is a range of eroded mesas and hills near Arckaringa Station, striped in reds, ochres and white. It sits about 148 km from Coober Pedy on gravel and stony tracks, with no fuel or supplies between town and Oodnadatta, according to ExplorOz trek notes. This tour, run by Outback Mail Run South Australia, takes you there in an air-conditioned 4WD with a guide who knows the roads. The listing describes it as joining the outback mail man for the day, and the one written review names the guide as Bruce.
The route heads north on the Kempe Road across the Moon Plain, the flat gibber country used in films such as Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and Priscilla, then through pastoral country to the Arckaringa Hills. There you get out and walk, with stops for photos, and sit down to a picnic lunch among the hills. On the way back the tour passes through the Breakaways country, the broken mesas north of town. Water refills and a snack pack are part of the deal.
The tour runs only on Saturdays and takes four people at most, and the listing flags it as likely to sell out. It is a rough-road day of about 10 hours, and the listing rules out children under 5, people over 70, pregnant women and anyone with back or heart problems. It has few reviews so far, 4.4 from 5, and free cancellation up to 24 hours before, which makes it easy to hold a Saturday while you finalise the rest of your Coober Pedy stay.
The 4WD heads out of town on a Saturday. Your exact meeting point and start time are confirmed when you book.
North on the Kempe Road across the Moon Plain, a flat sweep of polished gibber stones, then into open pastoral country.
The coloured mesas of the Painted Desert, with short walks on foot and stops for photos at points of interest.
A picnic lunch and refreshments out among the hills, with time to take in the colours.
The drive back runs through the Breakaways country north of Coober Pedy before you return to town, about 10 hours after setting out.
★★★★★Bruce was great! Thanks!
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Saturdays only. The listing says the tour leaves from Coober Pedy every Saturday, with four guests at most per trip.
About 148 km by the usual route, on gravel and stony tracks, per ExplorOz trek notes. The tour drives north on the Kempe Road over the Moon Plain, then through pastoral country to the Arckaringa Hills.
Yes. The listing includes a picnic lunch and refreshments in the hills, a snack pack and drinking water refills along the track.
The listing says it is not suitable for children under 5, people over 70, pregnant women, wheelchair users, or people with back problems, heart problems or limited mobility. It is a long day on rough outback roads.
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A Saturday 4WD day from Coober Pedy to the Moon Plain and the coloured hills of the Painted Desert, with a picnic lunch, for four guests at most.
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