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The most beautiful salt flats are hidden just outside an outback town of 120 people

Credit: C J Maddock

Kassia Byrnes Kassia Byrnes
All the colours of the outback impress as the sun rises over this little-known town in Western Australia’s mid-west.

As the sun rises over the small town of Yalgoo, a seven-hour drive northeast of Perth, a uniquely outback canvas comes to life. Just one hour out of town, the Yalgoo salt flats glow with swirls of red, pink and white dancing under the new day’s sunbeams. It’s a truly magical sight, and one that most Australians don’t know exists.

Visiting the Yalgoo Salt Flats

Sunrise over Yalgoo Salt Flats, WA
The Yalgoo Salt Flats painted a dreamy swirl of purple and pink at sunrise. (Credit: C J Maddock)

Leave Yalgoo and follow the historic Miners’ Pathway self-drive trail for about an hour until you hit Salt River. You’ll see the colours around you changing, making a stark contrast to the surrounding farmland. While you can visit at any time, for the most dramatic colours you’ll want to arrive for sunrise (it’ll be worth the early start).

Yalgoo’s fascinating history

Visitors at the sign marking Yalgoo town
The tiny outback town is full of gold-rush era treasures to be found. (Credit: Tourism Western Australia)

Yalgoo may feel like a long way to drive for a view, even one as beautiful as these salt flats. Luckily, there’s plenty to explore closer to town as well.

Steeped in gold rush history, this tiny settlement on the road from Geraldton to Mount Magnet was settled by pastoralists (along with their sheep and cattle) in the 1870s. Then, gold fever hit after rumours of Yalgoo’s rich gold supplies spread around the world. Prospectors and investors arrived in droves during the early 1890s.

Like many towns across Australia that experienced a gold rush boom, Yalgoo now has a very modest population of around 120 people, with 400 people living throughout the entire Yalgoo Shire. While you won’t find crowds of people, you will find turn-of-the-century buildings and plenty of fascinating history to follow up your sunrise visit to the incredible salt flats.

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Beyond the salt flats

Dominican Chapel of St Hyacinth is another turn-of-the-century building, created by priest-architect Monsignor John Hawes in 1919.
Dominican Chapel of St Hyacinth, built in 1919. (Credit: Tourism Western Australia)

Start at Yalgoo Courthouse Museum , where photos and artefacts from the early-1900s gold rush era are on display. The beautiful Dominican Chapel of St Hyacinth is another turn-of-the-century building, created by priest-architect Monsignor John Hawes in 1919.

Visit the 100-metre-long Joker’s Tunnel. Hand-carved by early gold prospectors in 1896 to allow trains to pass through the mining caves, it’s a fascinating site. There are other old mine sites to be spotted around town, as well.

You can even see the only working gold battery in WA – a 19th-century industrial machine using heavy stamps to crush gold-bearing quartz rock – at Paynes Find Gold Battery, just off the Great Northern Highway. Keen to strike gold on your own? Punters still gather for prospecting, usually in the cooler months.

Elsewhere, find roaming wildlife – from emus and kangaroos to native lizards. Arrive in the spring (July to September) to see the land transformed by pretty wildflowers. Think bright orange wild pomegranates, bright pink native foxgloves, a rainbow of orchid species, the striking red of grevilleas, the vibrant yellow of acacias, purple flashes of darwinia and dampiera, and so much more.

A women inside the Joker's Tunnel in Yalgoo.
Explore the Joker’s Tunnel. (Credit: Tourism Western Australia)

The details

More information: Discover more about the town and its attractions at yalgoo.wa.gov.au .
Where to stay: Find Yalgoo Caravan Park in town, as well as many station stays dotted around the shire.

Kassia Byrnes
Kassia Byrnes is the Native Content Editor for Australian Traveller and International Traveller. She's come a long way since writing in her diary about family trips to Grandma's. After graduating a BA of Communication from University of Technology Sydney, she has been writing about her travels (and more) professionally for over 10 years for titles like AWOL, News.com.au, Pedestrian.TV, Body + Soul and Punkee. She's addicted to travel but has a terrible sense of direction, so you can usually find her getting lost somewhere new around the world. Luckily, she loves to explore and have new adventures – whether that’s exploring the backstreets, bungee jumping off a bridge or hiking for days. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @probably_kassia.
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6 reasons the best way to experience the Kimberley is by cruise

    Kate Bettes Kate Bettes
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    This remote corner of Australia is one of the world’s last frontiers. This is how to see it properly.

    Vast, rugged and deeply spiritual, the Kimberley coast in Australia’s North West feels a world away from everyday Australia – and there are countless ways to explore it. But if you want to reach ancient rock art, hidden gorges and lonely waterfalls, it has to be by boat. Whether you’re aboard a nimble expedition vessel or a luxury yacht with all the trimmings, exploring by the water brings exclusive experiences, shows unique views and makes travel easier than any other mode. And that’s just the beginning of Australia’s North West cruises.

    The True North Adventure Cruise in between sandstone cliffs.
    Adventure starts where the road ends.

    1. Discover Broome, and beyond

    Explore your launchpad before you set sail: Broome. Here camels and their riders stride along the 22 kilometres of powdery Cable Beach at sunset. That’s just the start.

    At Gantheaume Point, red pindan cliffs plunge into the turquoise sea, whose low tide uncovers fossilised dinosaur footprints. Broome’s pearling history runs deep. Japanese, Chinese, Malay and Aboriginal divers once worked these waters, and their legacy lives on in boutiques where South Sea pearls still shine.

    If the moon’s right, you may catch the Staircase to the Moon over Roebuck Bay. Or simply kick back with a cold beverage and a film under the stars at Sun Pictures , screening since 1916.

    Ride a camel along Cable Beach as the sun sinks into the Indian Ocean, casting golden light across the sand and sea.
    Ride a camel along Cable Beach. (Image: Nick Dunn)

    2. Unmatched access to The Kimberley

    Once you’re onboard, expect a backstage pass to some of the most isolated places on Earth. No roads. No ports. No phone reception.

    At Horizontal Falls/ Garaanngaddim, 10-metre tides surge through twin gorges like a natural waterpark ride that’ll make your palms sweat. Then there’s Montgomery Reef/ Yowjab: a giant living platform of coral and seagrass, where the sea pulls back to reveal waterfalls, sea turtles and ospreys.

    Up north, King George Falls/ Oomari rage 80 metres down red cliffs. Zodiac boats often nudge in closer so you can feel the spray on your sun-warmed cheeks. You might even fly in to reach Mitchell Falls/ Punamii-unpuu, a four-tiered cascade where you can swim in freshwater pools above the drop.

    Come spring, some itineraries veer west to Rowley Shoals: an atoll chain of white sand and reef walls. Then it’s up the winding Prince Regent River to King Cascade/ Maamboolbadda, tumbling over rock terraces, and into a Zodiac to view the Gwion Gwion rock art, whose slender, ochre-painted figures are older than the pyramids.

    A cruise drifts beneath King George Falls, where sheer sandstone cliffs frame the thunderous plunge into turquoise waters.
    Get closer to the Kimberley than ever before.

    3. Taste the Kimberley with onboard hospitality

    You might spend your days clambering over slippery rocks or charging past waterfalls. But when you’re back on the water, it’s a different story. Meals are chef-prepared and regionally inspired: grilled barramundi, pearl meat sashimi, mango tarts, and bush tomato chutney. One night it’s barefoot beach barbecues with your shipmates; the next, alfresco dining on the ship.

    Small expedition ships each have their own personality, but many carry just 12 to 36 guests, making being out on the water a whole other experience. You might sink into a spa on the foredeck or sip coffee in a lounge while watching crocodiles cruise by. It’s choose-your-own-relaxation, Kimberley style.

    4. Expert-led excursions through the Kimberley

    These voyages are led by people who know the Kimberley like the back of their sunburnt hand. Attenborough-esque naturalists might gently tap your shoulder to point out rare birds or tell the story beneath a slab of rock. Historians can explain exactly how that rusted World War II relic came to rest here.

    If your ship has a helipad, you might chopper straight to a waterfall-fed swimming hole. If not, you’ll still be hopping ashore for that wet landing at a secret creek.

    Then come the evenings: songlines shared by Traditional Owners under the stars, or astronomy sessions that link what’s overhead with what’s underfoot and what’s within.

    A small group glides through Kimberley’s rugged coastline by boat, passing ancient cliffs.
    Explore with naturalists and historians by your side.

    5. Relax in luxurious lodgings

    Just because you’re off-grid doesn’t mean you have to rough it. These Kimberley vessels are small in size, but mighty in luxury. True North’s ships come with their own helicopters and a no-sea-days policy, so you’re always in the thick of it. Try the luxurious offerings from Ocean Dream Charters for exploration in style. Kimberley Quest offers a fast boat for easy, off-ship adventures. On the larger end of the scale, Coral Expeditions has open-deck bars and curated wine cellars. And then there’s Ponant’s luxury yachts – sleek and incredibly stylish French sailing yachts.

    A helicopter soars above the sea, with a sleek cruise ship gliding in the distance.
    See the Kimberley from sky to shore.

    6. The adventure continues with pre- and post-cruise experiences

    You’ve already come this far – so, why not go further? Broome makes it easy to ease in before you board, or wind down when your voyage ends, and there is no reason to stop there.

    Head an hour and a half south to Eco Beach to stay off-grid and off the clock. Join a Yawuru guide for a mangrove walk or ocean forage. Dive even deeper into Broome’s pearling past at Willie Creek or Cygnet Bay, where divers and craftspeople still pull the seawater-slicked gems from the deep.

    If you’re still craving adventure, it’s time to go further. Soar over the Buccaneer Archipelago, or detour inland with a 4WD trip along the Gibb River Road. Book a scenic flight over the Bungle Bungles. Or – because you never know when you’ll be back – do all three.

    aerial of people walking on eco beach in the kimberley western australia
    Stay off grid at Eco Beach. (Image: Tourism WA)

    Find out more about your trip to Australia’s North West at australiasnorthwest.com .