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Australia has fantastic places to ride a motorbike with
some of the best motorcycle routes in the world... Sydney
has the Blue Mountains, Hunter Valley, Waterfall Way and
Snowy Mountains... Melbourne has the Great Ocean Road, Alpine
National Park and the Grampians... Western Australia has
a stunning unspoiled coast, the Kimberleys and the golden
Outback... In Queensland you'll head for Cape York.
Motorbikes, especially large-capacity trail bikes, are perfect
for the Australian climate and an inexpensive compromise
between conventional vehicles and 4WD's, although long distances
place a premium on their comfort and fuel range... and if
you are doing a longer tour or want to see some of the more
out of the way places then an enduro bike like the BMW 1150GS
(a great Aussie tourer), BMW 650GS or even XT600e are ideal...
If a cruiser's more your style then check out the range of
Harleys...
You're going to need a helmet and, especially if you're heading
off-road, plenty of water-carrying capacity. It's also essential
that you know what you're doing; the Outback is not somewhere
you can afford to have things go wrong. Travelling alone
can be risky, and night-riding is plain dangerous, with poor
surfaces hard to judge and kangaroos liable to bounce out
of nowhere.
Wild pigs and roos are the biggest animal hazard and while
they can pop up anywhere anytime, there are a few points
you can consider to reduce the chance of a collision. They're
most active around dawn and dusk, so slow down when riding
at these times, and keep an eye out on both sides of the
track. Most of the time they travel in twos or more so if
you see one. brake hard and watch out for his mates.
They love to sleep in the shade during the day, so if you
are cruising, veer away from bushed on the edge of the track,
especially around vermin fences... try to avoid travelling
parallel to vermin fences because animals of all sorts can
fetch up against them in big numbers.
Watch out for stock signs... being aware of the type of
animals in the area and keeping your eyes open are the best
ways of avoiding animal-based accidents. Treat stock with
the respect they deserve. Farmers make their living from
their animals so slow down and idle through, or if you come
on a mob on the road, pull over and stop while it goes past
or if its going your way, take a wide line.
Motorbike rental... usually
available only in the cities - can be expensive: at least
the same price as a car. A better alternative is a motorbike
tour; these take various forms, from ones where you provide
the bike and the tour consists of an itinerary, company on
the road and a support vehicle.
Motorcycle tours... Choose
from Self Guided or Guided Tours. Self guided tours include
the bike, accommodation and an itinerary crammed with information
about the route, distances, things to see on the way and
interesting background information
Alternatively join an organised tour, meet great people,
have expert support and see places most tourists never get
to go. There are tours from all major cities. They pass every
type of scenery - rainforests, coral reefs, deserts, mountains
and everything between including Ayers Rock!... to check
out the tours available go to our web section Motorcycle
tours. 
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