2026 Half Lap of Australia with a dog - Four dog friendly months through VIC, SA, NT, QLD & NSW

In early 2026 my dog had surgery to remove a tennis ball size cancerous lump from her liver. When she thankfully made it through ok, given it can reoccur and she’s getting older, I decided that if I didn’t do the van trip with her I’d always dreamed about it may not happen at all!

So the planning began for Queen Dustys Grand Adventure on an east side half lap of Australia. If you are looking for ideas for a trip, here is a very long post with some of the highlights of doing that trip with your dog as well as links to my camping, walking tracks and regional destination articles and reviews. Happy Planning 🙂

**THIS IS A LIVE TRIP IM COMPLETING STILL IN JULY-OCTOBER 2026 AND WILL BE CONTINUALLY UPDATED AS I PROGRESS THROUGH THE TRIP**

Preparation Notes for travelling with a dog

First Aid & Dog Medicine: There is currently no vet between Port Augusta and Alice Springs so take First Aid and plenty of any medicine with you.
(I know this because we visited the wonderful vet at Redgum Vet in Port Augusta for antibiotics for her tooth surgery site)

Dog Food: There is no branded pet stores between Adelaide (there is a Pet Domain in Port Augusta) and Townsville or Darwin. The Alice Springs Pet Store is small but fine for basics like Black Hawk dog food (I grabbed a bag of the high meat while there) however I ended up getting dog food posted to the post office in Alice in advance and unfortunately while I love supporting local their SPD was twice the price as online so I was glad I did. If you have the space and have a more niche dog food brand take as much as you can or order ahead as standard postage takes a bit.

The same goes for dog beds, a travel mat for pup to sit on at cafes/pub etc, get it all before you leave as pet stores are not common.

If you normally feed some sort of food that needs referigeration but have limited fridge space I can highly suggest the SPD Slow Cooked food as camping friendly alternative. It is not budget priced but it has been so convenient. I only started using it by fluke as my dog had tooth surgery just before departure and needed soft food but in reality my whole fridge would have been dog food without it, the freezer to small to store much and when I ran out for a week this was exactly what happened with supermarket chicken and dog rolls taking up all the space! (chicken is the most affordable meat per container if cost is an issue for you like it is for me although some other meats you get more Kj’s to the container so they may be more affordable overall for a bigger dog!).

BUY SPD SLOW COOKED ON PET CIRCLE

Melbourne to South Australia

There are multiple ways to get up through to Outback SA & the NT. After starting the trip in Echuca Dusty damaged a tooth and I had to backtrack to Geelong for her to have surgery. After leaving a week later the decision was made to bee-line straight to areas not so easily visited on a long weekend from home.

Via Dimboola

This was the route of choice for this trip and an easy overnight stop to reach to finally get on the road.

Dimboola RV Freecamp

A nice little free camp a short walk from the Wimmera River (it was very muddy after rain though). It says no facilities (which there is not at the area you are allowed to camp) but there is actually a 24 hour public block a few hundred metres away behind the football club building.

The Dimboola Free dog friendly RV Camp & nearby river

Via Mount Gambier

If you go via Berrin/Mt Gambier there is plenty to do there with dogs. I have written a guide from a previous long weekend stay in the town.

Berrin Mount Gambier Dog Friendly Travel Guide & things to do – See Something New

I visited Berrin / Mount Gambier with my dog in mid February 2023 and was pleasantly surprised that there was plenty to do with a dog for a weekend away!

See Something New

South Australia

Jaki Ina – Worlds End Reserve at Burra Creek Gorge Dog Friendly

Jaki Ina – Burra Creek Gorge/Worlds End Reserve is a lovely free campsite run by the Regional Council of Goyder (a family member recommended it and I will go back and stay longer next time I visit SA).

It is a long narrow campground between a creek (dry at time of visit) and farming (sheep, so keep dogs on lead). I was able to find a site out from under the beautiful old river red gums where I felt safe to camp however I would image this site is full in school holidays and long weekends. There is a second section to it down a side road as indicated on the maps. Even if you don’t camp here its worthing walking to or visiting on your way out which we did as there is beautiful red cliffs, was a nice spot for coffee and bird watching in the early morning.

Wiki Camps Link

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Goyder Regional Council Offical Link

Jaki Ina – World's End Gorge (Burra Creek Gorge) – Visit Burra

Looking to truly switch off and unwind under the River Red Gums? Just 26km southeast of Burra, Jaki Ina – World's End Gorge (also known as Burra Creek Gorge Reserve) is a favourite spot for bush camping and day visits alike.

Visit Burra

The area adjacent (but not including so it should hopefully stay dog friendly) to the campground is also currently in the process of becoming a National Park.

Rawnsley Park Station

So far this is without a doubt my favourite Dog friendly destination in the whole of Australia! I am going to write a full guide which you can see on my Rawnsley Hub along with walking track notes.

Rawnsley Park Station – See Something New

See Something New

It has plenty of dog friendly walks to lookouts with spectacular views, bush camping close to ammenities or self contained dispersed over several km’s for plenty of space if you prefer (or powered in the caravan park for a traditional caravan park feel).

Sunset and sunrise from our campsite over the bluff was a highlight of every day and you can have campfires at all campsites as long as you BYO or purchase wood (no wood collection allowed – its habitat).

It is only a short drive from Wilpina Pound (which is not dog friendly) and Rawnsley offers dog minding for a fee (there is only 4 kennels so best to pre-book). The dogs are in a kennel type cage with shaded shelter area as well as access to ground to toilet and are supervised by reception staff (you need to walk & feed them before etc as they stay in this space for the duration that you leave them – it is a safe space for them to stay not a boarding facility).

There is a a small IGA Supermarket up the road at Discovery Resorts at Wilpena Pound which I was advised on calling can be shopped at as long as pup does not exit vehicle (obviously only do this with another person or early morning when the temperature is safe to do so). It was fairly stocked with shelf stables and ok for fresh food (highly dependent on the when the truck last came I would imagine).

Prairie Hotel Parachilna

A bit of an iconic food adventure the Prairie Hotel in Parachilna was a fun stop fully revolving around the pub.

There is limited powered camping through the pub or unpowered camping in the nearby gravel Parachilna Outback Campground on the old school site. A stones through to the pub and clean budget ammenities it was a convenient stay.

Wikicamps Link: