165 years ago an intrepid exploration team set off from Melbourne Victoria tasked with the mission of uncovering “Terra Incognita”. In 2025 maschine set out to retrace their steps. Like our pioneering forefathers we were thwarted by the ihospitible terrain – namely widespread flooding in the otuback.
In 2027 we will attempt to complete the story to the Dig Tree and beyond.
The Promise
In August 2025, we set out to retrace the Burke and Wills Expedition—following the footsteps of Australia’s most famous explorers into the heart of the outback. We made it four days. Then flooding cut us off at Innamincka — the pivotal place where their story came to an end. We had to take another path. But we promised every rider on that trip: we’d return and finish what we started.
Explorers Way is that promise kept.
The Journey
Nine days through some of Australia’s most remote country. We start in Orange and loop through the outback Corner Country — Cobar, Tibooburra, Cameron Corner — before reaching Innamincka, the heart of the story. From there, we head north back up to Birdsville and loop through southern Queensland before returning home via western NSW.
The roads are big. The country is inspiring. The silence is real. And standing where explorers once stood, you’ll understand why they kept pushed this far into the unknown. There is a magnetic attraction in the Australian outback that propels you ever forward to explore more. This isn’t about a little run to the corner shop. It’s about the riding, the landscape, and the feeling of being genuinely remote.
It’s about completing a journey that history left unfinished.
4,400 km | 9 days | 40 riders
Orange, NSW
Orange, NSW
Saturday 4 September 2027
Monday 13 September 2027
Option for pre-night accommodation
Arrive in Orange by 4pm for our expedition to begin.
We will kick official proceedings off with our rider briefing and dinner.
Leave the tablelands and descend into the inland plains. Cobar marks your first real taste of outback country—wide landscapes and remote horizons.
Enter the Darling River country. The roads change colour, the landscape opens, and the outback feels genuinely remote now.
Gateway to Corner Country. Historic mining town at the edge of everything, surrounded by red earth and vast silence broken only by a cockatoos screech.
Take the day to head to a significant point on the map where NSW, QLD, and SA meet. A symbolic crossing into true frontier country — you’re now in one of Australia’s most sparsely populated regions.
The emotional anchor of the journey. This is where Burke and Wills’ story came to an end at the Dig Tree. You’ll stand where they stood, and understand why this place matters.
Queensland’s outback heart. Endless red dirt tracks, iconic stations, and the feeling of being at the edge of the map.
A long but constantly evolving stretch that will surprise. In a landscape that is seemingly so vast and full of nothing, gradually that nothing becomes something spell binding.
Opal country. The landscape shifts—you’re back in NSW, heading toward greener country, but still genuinely remote.
Eclectic characters seem to thrive out in this country. It can be harsh, brutal but people are drawn here to find riches in the opal country.
The final push home through Warrumbungle country. You’ll ride back into the highlands having crossed an entire continent and completed the story.
One final highlight will be riding Bridle Track at Hill End before finishing the ride back in Orange.
After breakfast you are free to check out and make your way home, whether that be riding home by yourself or perhaps tag along with riding buddies as we head back to civilisation.
This ride is classed as – Grade 3 – 4: Medium – Difficult
Key elements that give this grading are:
See our Track Grading System for more detailed information to help you decide if this ride is right for you.
We like to make our tours suitable for “an average rider on a big-bore adventure bike”.
So we expect riders to have at least some off-road riding experience – ideally two years.
The main Adventure routes are usually suitable for big adventure bikes, like a Ducati Multistrada or BMW R1250GS with off-road knobby tyres fitted.
For sure less experienced riders can, and have, joined our tours and they find them to be an incredible learning experience. You can learn so much just being around other riders. We suggest this is not the ride for you if you are just starting out.
If you have any questions or concerns just give us a call and we are happy to have a chat about your personal situation.
This ride is capped at 50 riders.
If this sounds like a lot to you then bear in mind that we have experience in managing motorcycle tour events with over 250 riders! We have the systems and knowledgable staff in place to effectively manage these larger group sizes.
A group size of 50 is great because it means we can get beds for most everyone most nights of the ride. The group makes you feel part of a big event but then you get a chance to meet and talk to everyone during the ride and make some new friends.
Yes absolutely, we always recommend riders have knobby tyres on their bikes to maximise your safety and enjoyment.
Our recommended tyres in most situations are Motoz Tractionator Adventure or Motoz Tractionator Rallz (Nick’s favourite!) for their predictable off-road grip and outstanding durability.
For sure other tyres like Continental TKC80 or Pirelli Scorpion Rally are OK too.
We don’t advise riders to use 80/20 tyres like Hidenau K60 Scout or Continental TKC70. These styles of tyre just simply don’t offer enough traction in many off-road situations, particularly when conditions get wet.
No, typically rental bikes are not available for our Australian tours. That said we may have some options we can look into for you on this tour. Please email us with your enquiry.
Yes. This ride is primarily for riders on their own adventure bikes.
For those of you that have the luxury of more than one adventure bike to choose to ride we would give this information:
Yes, this ride is suitable for Enduro bikes providing you have a minimum fuel range of 300km
We provide the pre-planned routes as a .GPX file you can load into your GPS or Smartphone navigation app. This will allow you to follow our planned route at your own pace and arrive safely at the overnight stop.
For each event we also provide printed daily route sheets which include an overview map and address details of fuel, food, overnight accommodation stops etc.
At some events we will also have route marking arrow stickers that are put up by our lead riders on trees, posts etc. as a physical marker.
No, for our off-road adventure tours we provide a luggage support van. You will drop your bag at the van each morning and the van will carry your bag to the overnight stop where it will be waiting for you to collect at the end of the day.
For our international road tours we typically don’t provide a luggage support vehicle so you will have to carry your own luggage. Usually our rental bikes come equipped with panniers and/or top box. Please confirm your required luggage options at time of booking.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
No. Large gear bags, wheelie suitcases are not permitted in our luggage van. We have strict capacity limits.
Hard pannier cases are not recommended as your luggage because we can’t guarantee they won’t get scratched or damaged in transit therefore we recommend soft bags only.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
No, for safety reasons we do not allow riders to ride with hard (aluminium or plastic) panniers or top box on their bikes for our off-road adventure tours. We have seen too many injuries caused by hard boxes hitting riders.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
Read our Adventure Riders Prep Guide for tips on what and how to pack.
If you are an Australian resident you should not require a visa for the countries we are visiting. Please check the Smart Traveller website for travel requirements based on your situation.
You can read our full booking Terms & Conditions here.
