The Holland Way
November 5, 2024
Join us on a 6 day, fully accommodated tour from Perth, tracing the original prospectors’ footsteps from Albany to the Kalgoorlie and Coolgardie Goldfields.
We travel along much of the original Holland Track, explore the Granite Waterholes and focus on C.Y. O’Connor’s famous pipeline scheme.
Tour Cost
$3190 per person, twin share.
Single supplement $620
Includes all meals, accommodation and attractions.
Tagalong option
Have you got a 4wd that you would like to put through its paces?
We will give you peace of mind travelling in a convoy of vehicles with competent guides, who are great bush mechanics. Learn about your vehicle’s capabilities, absorb some get-out-of-trouble tricks and pick up some great hints for touring meals and campfire cooking.
Tour price upon application. Per vehicle, for 2 people. Cost includes all meals and motel accommodation.
Itinerary
DAY 1
Departing Perth, we travel to Albany, the port where most of the gold prospectors arrived. We visit the Albany museum for some historical perspective.
Overnight Albany
Inclusions: Lunch and Dinner, motel accommodation
DAY 2
From Albany we travel to Broomehill and the start of the Holland Track. This is where John Holland departed from, on his epic adventure and we take in Nowernalup Tank, one of John Holland’s first stops and walk in to view the commemorative plaque.
We lunch somewhere on the road and stop at spots of significance, such as Holland Rock, Silver Wattle Hill and Dragon Rocks, tracing Holland’s steps and examining the water sources he found. Some of the gnamma holes might still have their original capping on them.
Our overnight stop is at Hyden.
Inclusions: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, motel accommodation
DAY 3
Leaving Hyden, we explore the Holland Track as far as Mount Holland. Notable stops are Emu Rocks and the amazing view from the top of Mt Holland. Agnes gnamma Hole, Diamond and Thursday Rocks, and Pigeon Hole are all potential sites that we will try and explore, depending on time/accessibility.
Picnic lunch on the road and BBQ dinner under the stars before returning to Hyden overnight.
Inclusions: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, motel accommodation
DAY 4
Leaving the original Holland Track, we take the Holland Way and travel onto Coolgardie.
Victoria Rock is a magnificent example of the rockholes of the Holland Track and we visit Gnarlbine Rock which was one of the principal water sources for the original Coolgardie goldrush at Bailey’s Find.
We visit the pioneer graveyard at Coolgardie and search for the graves of John Holland and his wife Agnes.
Time permitting, we travel out to Burra Rocks/Cave Hill Reserve and take in more examples of the significance of the granite gnamma rockholes and their importance in opening up this area to explorers, prospectors and farmers.
We overnight at Coolgardie.
Inclusions: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, motel accommodation
DAY 5
After a relaxed breakfast, it’s onto Kalgoorlie and the Golden reason for John Holland’s epic effort in opening the route from Albany to the Goldfields. A bit of free time in town, a visit to Mt Charlotte, the water reservoir at the end of the at the end of the Golden Pipeline… we start to look at modern water schemes
It’s back to Coolgardie for our last overnight.
Inclusions: Breakfast and Dinner
DAY 6
Back to Perth, stopping at the various pumping stations of CY O’Connor’s Water Pipeline scheme. We visit Mundaring Weir on our way home, and marvel at this engineering feat that consolidated on Holland’s opening up a water route to the mineral wealth of WA.
Inclusions: Breakfast and Lunch
INCLUDED IN YOUR TOUR PACK
Water Bottle and Fly Veil
You’ll be grateful for both of these!
Keep Coffee Cup
A reusable coffee cup for those on-the-road brews
Sectional Map
Trace the route as you travel along. One per passenger or one per car, if doing the trip as a tagalong.