Travel & Touring | Camping & Caravanning
By: John Bormolini
Four-wheel drive tagalong tours can be a great way to go offroad in safety, meet lots of other like-minded adventurers and see sights that you’re never going to see from a highway.
Remote four-wheel drive trips that take in the natural wonders of Western Australia’s vast and varied landscape are truly unforgettable experiences.
Our huge backyard presents amazing opportunities for this type of off-road exploring, whether you’re immersed in the South West forests, cruising along hundreds of kilometres of unspoilt coastline or driving deep into inland bushland and seemingly endless desert.
In spite of WA’s high rate of SUV and four-wheel drive ownership, only a minority ever venture off the highway, let alone to very remote parts of the country. Often four-wheel drive owners lack the skills and confidence to take on an offroad trip, especially with a family on board. Being unsure of the vehicle’s capability can also be an issue.
Like many things in life, being guided or accompanied as you gain firsthand experience is often the best (and safest) way to do things. That’s why four-wheel drive tagalong tours are a great option.
RELATED: A guide to taking your four-wheel drive off-road in WA »
The concept has proved popular over the years and still services growing numbers of camping-oriented off-roaders that are looking to maximise their road trip experience and learn along the way.
WA has numerous four-wheel drive tagalong tour operators, some that specialise in particular regions and others that offer extensive, longer-range tours to just about anywhere.
The benefits of tagalong tours
There are lots of plusses for paying to tagalong on a four-wheel drive trek with an experienced tour operator.
Those new to off-roading get to experience different and sometimes tricky terrain, with all the expert guidance needed to safely navigate it, along with vital local knowledge of the track.
Beyond the safety factor, let’s not forget there’s also a lot of fun to be had travelling and camping in the company of others and sharing the adventure.
Tagalong tours also reduce the stresses of covering every element of pre-trip planning. The tour operators will make sure you are well informed about the route and what you need to bring.
Ultimately, you’re paying for valuable prior experience and a great deal of off-road training along the way.
What you need to join a tagalong
A four-wheel drive vehicle that is in good condition and able to handle the terrain encountered during your tour is essential.
Typically, most tour operators don’t provide the vehicle. Some non-four-wheel drive owners may take on the expense of hiring one, but the greatest strength of this concept is drivers learning more about their own vehicle’s capabilities and their own driving ability. Your guide will determine if any pre-trip driver training is necessary but usually most of this is done during the trip itself.
Basic spare parts and a toolkit are essentials as are proper, rated vehicle recovery points on the front and rear of your vehicle. You’ll also need an in-built or handheld UHF radio for convoy communication and, if the tour is very remote, a second spare wheel in addition to a tyre repair kit.
You’ll need to bring your own camping gear, for sleeping, cooking and relaxing and your own personal First Aid kit, even though tour operators do also carry them.
Some companies will provide catering but usually only on short trips. Tagalong members generally need to cater for themselves, which means planning around keeping things cool or bringing portable refrigeration. Operators who understand the conditions well will provide good advice in regard to this, especially when you’re on an extended trip into a remote area.
An adventure to suit everyone
Nick Underwood, founder of WA’s long-running Western 4WDriver magazine, has run tagalong tours called Campfire Escapes for decades. Together with business partner Andrew Farden, they have guided off-road tagalongs in and across every corner of the state.
Apart from the typical long-range, remote camping tours, Nick and Andrew have hosted father and son groups along with photography and drone enthusiasts. They also do inland wildflower trips, tours that retrace early explorer routes and even some that follow the very first bush tracks and roads laid down in WA.
“Because you’re in a group, there’s definitely an element of safety,” Nick says.
“There’s no getting lost because you’re following other people and if you get into any trouble, someone’s there to help you out. Plus, of course, they’re a lot of fun and a great way to meet people and share the camping experience.”
Over the years that he and Andrew have been running Campfire Escapes, they’ve seen 85 per cent of people rebook for further tours, with some becoming ‘regulars’.
“Tagalong tours are definitely family-friendly and suitable for all ages and offer such an easy way to get started with off-road exploring and camping.”
Budgeting for your trip
There’s no shortage of options when it comes to this kind of touring in WA, with interstate operators also offering tours here.
So, if you have a destination or type of off-roading adventure in mind, shop around as you’ll often find comparable tours to the same destinations.
Tours usually range from shorter three to four-day getaways to places within reasonable proximity to the metropolitan area, through to week-long escapes, and longer 15 to 18-day tours into more remote parts of the state. Factoring in your fuel costs on these longer trips is an important consideration when working out your road trip budget.
If you’re heading to the Pilbara, Roebourne-based Ngurrangga Tours offers an easy one-day tagalong. The Aboriginal-owned company will take you to see some of the Pilbara’s incredible rock art and teach you about local bush tucker and bush medicines. You’ll also hear traditional stories along the way. The tour is around $250.
Get Lost Tours offer a range of smaller group tagalongs. Their four-day Anzac weekend trip to the Yeagarup Dunes and Warren River near Pemberton costs $560 per vehicle with two people on board. The eight-day Goldfields tagalong is $1950 and the 10-day Hyden, Israelite Bay, Esperance trip is around $2130 per vehicle.
The stipulations are no pets and no ‘soft roader’ or SUV type vehicles as they will not manage the long dune climbs, deep, soft sand and ground clearances required.
Explore WA Adventures has an extensive range of tagalong tours, including more extensive treks such as the Canning Stock Route for 15 days at around $4500 and the Kimberley Oombulgurri Track for 15 days costing $6500 (very challenging). Their epic Coast-to-Coast from Cocklebiddy in the Bight to 80 Mile Beach in the Pilbara, right across the middle of the state, is just under $3000.
These serious tagalongs do require well-equipped vehicles though. The Coast-to-Coast tour for example, requires a minimum 1000-kilometre fuel range.
Epic 4WD Tours and Global Gypsies are amongst
other groups to research.
For a great introduction to the tagalong tour concept, Pemberton Discovery Tours offer half-day tagalongs through the Yeagarup sand dunes near Pemberton. It's an ideal way to get comfortable with using a vehicle off-road for those new to four-wheel driving.
Reputable tagalong operators usually have various industry-related accreditations, including as a licensed commercial tour operator, certified four-wheel driver training, First Aid accreditation and as sustainable tourism operators. So check for relevant accreditations before you book.
There’s no doubt these tours offer enormous value to every kind off-road adventurer, with the learning experience being one of the biggest drawcards.
Seeing how other four-wheel drive vehicles and campers are set up and how others manage and pack their vehicle along with picking up (and also sharing) many handy tips and tricks is invaluable. You’ll have opportunities to observe and compare how different vehicles handle the conditions and their relative strengths or weaknesses.
It’s all good, practical experience in a real setting, which is very different to an exhibition stand at a four-wheel drive show. You’ll also get to experience some spectacular country. In the end, being out there is what it’s all about.
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