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Explore off the beaten track with Hema Tours
Words Julija Zivanovic and Justin Gill Pics Adrenalin Offroad Centre and Justin Gill
Do you love the idea of travelling to remote locations but don’t want to go it alone? Would you rather explore the open unknown than stay at caravan parks? Our tag-along Hema Tours powered by the Adrenalin Offroad Centre are perfect for you. Read on for more.
(Credit: Adrenalin Offroad Centre)
Intrigued by our four-wheel drive tag-along tours powered by the Adrenalin Offroad Centre? We’d love for you to join us on the next adventure. Whether you’re interested in touring the Simpson Desert, Victorian High Country, Cape York, Aussie outback pubs, the famous Gibb River Road or any number of incredible Australian destinations, we’ve got you covered with Hema Tours!
As 2025 shapes up to be another incredible year of touring, we just love bringing you the opportunity to tick iconic Aussie locations off the bucket list. Plus, these tours are a unique opportunity to make lifelong friends, with more than half of all bookings made from repeat customers. The camaraderie that you feel with your tour group when you’re in the middle of nowhere is second to none, and that’s why our customers keep coming back.
Keep reading as we recount our recent day tour in the Vic High Country, led by Hema Maps National Product Manager Justin Gill, and provide some information on upcoming desert and buggy tours running in untouched parts of the Simpson Desert with only a couple of spots left … plus our friends at Adrenalin are running an information session next month so you can decide if a Hema Tour is right for you.
Day tour in the Vic High Country with Justin Gill
(Credit: Justin Gill)
We had to get the scoop from Hema Maps National Product Manager Justin Gill on this incredible day at Mount Terrible in the Victorian High Country. He shared with us the following:
At Hema Maps there is nothing we enjoy more than engaging new explorers with the awesome experiences and rewards of offroad driving. With the array of technical 4WD features in today’s modern offroad-capable vehicles, it doesn’t take long for a relatively inexperienced driver to feel confident to tackle more difficult terrain types. While this tour doesn’t take the place of accredited 4WD training, the constant feedback we receive is the enormous benefit of having experienced leaders support drivers through difficult obstacles and terrain types. The tours are real-world experiences, with the reward of some of the most spectacular views the High Country has to offer.
We were lucky with the weather for both tours, with the tracks relatively dry. The Mount Terrible Track itself offers several difficulty levels which are terrific to help build driver confidence. Each track segment offers different views, one side towards Mount Buller and the other overlooking the Eildon Valley from 1400m. Huts of all types were built through the High Country from the mid-1800s to support mountain cattlemen, miners, loggers and in the case of the Mount Terrible hut — fire spotters. In recent times, huts are more recreationally based, frequented by campers, bushwalkers and 4WDers. Exploring the Mount Terrible hut, which was rebuilt in 2016, offers a respite from the often-rough climb in and a terrific place to have morning tea. The highlight is the iconic photo next to the Mount Terrible sign — one tick on the bucket list!
(Credit: Justin Gill)
Our trip continued along the remainder of the Mount Terrible Track, offering a number of amazing locations to pull off the track to take several photos from the top of the many ridgelines. The Mount Terrible Track turns into the Ryan Spur Track, and we recommend a lunch stop at Ryan Spur or Bullocks Hut. Bullocks Hut was originally built in the ‘70s, used primarily as a refuge for timber cutters. This hut was brought back to life in 2017 by the Victorian High Country Huts Association and a few passionate supporters from the Melbourne Jeep Owners Club and Geelong 4WD Club.
The tour ends on Big River Road via one of the old logging trails and we get to explore some of the amazing camping locations along this idyllic stream. A few of our tour participants stayed for the night along one of these campsites while the remaining group headed back to Marysville, about an hour’s drive away. The drive along the Big River Road gave us a chance to enjoy the valley drive before we hit the bitumen, airing up for the final 20km into Marysville for a quick debrief.
Upcoming desert & buggy tours
(Credit: Adrenalin Offroad Centre)
As the dry season kicks off, so too do our desert tours through the Simpson Desert, Hay River, Madigan Line and more. These are always popular as they take you through the famous guts of our country, giving you the opportunity to see some incredible scenery and visit some bucket-list destinations.
We’ve added a few new tours in August and September 2025 and are working with conditions to ensure our early desert tours are still going ahead.
Follow the corresponding links for more information on any of these upcoming tours (and to book):
- Simpson Desert 8-Day 4WD Tag-Along Tour
- Hay River Track 8-Day 4WD Tag-Along Tour
- Simpson Desert Madigan Line 7-Day 4WD Tag-Along Tour
- SxS Buggy Tour — Simpson Desert 6-Day Adventure
Info session & more
Our friends at the Adrenalin Offroad Centre are also conducting an online tour information night on Thursday, 29 May, at 6pm AEST.
If you would like to join the information session, head here:
(Credit: Adrenalin Offroad Centre)
Need more convincing? No worries, just head to Adrenalin Offroad Centre’s website here to learn all about what they do and why their tag-along tours take you further off the beaten track than most.
Prefer to speak with a human? You can reach Adrenalin Offroad by telephone on 02 4648 2085 or 0400 357 484. Owners Ben and Hayley are more than happy to answer any of your touring questions!
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