Augmented Reality Trail (ARted)
For something completely different, and to engage the whole family, tap into Coolgardie’s arts scene. Start in the Coolgardie Visitor Centre to pick up a brochure on the ARted trail, and scan the QR code on the brochure with your smart phone. This will guide you to download the App called EyeJack, which is required for this interactive trail.
With the App installed, simply follow the trail as marked on the brochure and with your volume turned up, scan the artworks as you come to them. On your smart phone, view images from the museum archives, and listen to various narrators bring stories of Coolgardie’s past to life.
Explore the nine stops on the trail, most of which are easy walking distance from the Coolgardie Visitor Centre. Lastly, take a longer walk or drive out to Coolgardie Cemetery for the final video presentation near the entrance gates.
Coolgardie Bluff Cultural and Heritage Trail
The Coolgardie Bluff Cultural and Heritage Walk Trail is a dog-friendly trail located on the north-east of the Coolgardie townsite.
It offers a scenic walk with iron sculptures and lookout points. The trail features heritage signage that explains the cultural significance of the area to the local Indigenous people. Visitors can enjoy panoramic views and take breaks at seating areas along the way. The trail is open all year round, but it's recommended to visit during the cooler months. To get there, follow the Great Eastern Highway and turn onto Bayley Street, then onto Black Flag Road. Parking is available near the start of the trail.
Golden Quest Discovery Trail
The 965 km Golden Quest Discovery Trail is suitable for 2WD vehicles and runs through Western Australia’s Goldfields from Coolgardie through to Laverton. This true adventure drive explores the 1890’s goldrush region to witness classic pubs, remnants of vibrant communities, deserted and reinvigorated mining spots, hotels that were once the centre of thriving populations and interesting natural landscapes. Click here to view a map of the trail itinerary.
Red Hill Lookout & Walk Trail
Kambalda’s best attraction is the Red Hill Lookout. Accessed via Gordon Adams Road, Red Hill will give travellers a spectacular view of Lake Lefroy, part of an ancient river system in the
Goldfields region of Western Australia.
Green Trail
Once you’ve explored the town on foot, it’s time to head further afield by car. Pick up a map from the Coolgardie Visitor Centre and head south to drive a section of the Green Trail, which showcases the Great Western Woodlands. Make a stop at the Red Hill Lookout & Walk Trail in East Kambalda, to overlook the surreal sight of the ephemeral and salty Lake Lefroy, then continue to Cave Hill in Goldfields Woodlands National Park. With its yawning cave, it’s a place of importance to the Kalaamaya people. With a four-wheel-drive, continue north to the huge granite dome of Burra Rock Convservation Park (may also be accessed in a two-wheel-drive on an unsealed road from Coolgardie). Both Cave Hill and Burra Rock were used as water catchments during the 1920s and 30s. The water was needed to drive the steam trains on the narrow-gauge woodline trains that transported timber from here to the goldfields.
Mystery Road: Origin
Fans of the ABC television series Mystery Road Origin, will enjoy tracing scenes from the series around Coolgardie. Pick up a map of filming locations from the Coolgardie Visitor Centre, and incorporate some of these stops into your walks.
Glory Days Heritage Trail
Between the gold rush years of 1892 and 1895, Coolgardie’s European population swelled from zero to 15,000, catapulting it into the title of Western Australia’s third largest town. After the boom came the inevitable bust, and although Coolgardie is still a tight-knit community today, there are countless stories to be told of its rollicking heyday. The grand architecture in town, much of it well preserved, is testament to the wealth of those early days.
It’s perhaps easiest to explore this history on foot. Drop into the Coolgardie Visitor Centre to pick up a copy of the self-guided Glory Days Trail and explore at a leisurely pace.
The roughly circular route, mostly through Bayley and Sylvester Streets, includes markers and interpretive signage on points of interest. Picture Bayley Street bustling with miners, splashing their cash in 26 hotels, on two stock exchanges, and reading the news from seven newspapers. Highlights will include the warden’s court building (now the Coolgardie Visitor Centre and Goldfields Exhibition Museum), the Coolgardie Historic Railway Station, Coolgardie Post Office, and the façade of the Marvel Bar.