CAPE YORK PENINSULA
“The last of the great wild places on earth”
(The Wilderness Society)
Cape York Peninsula is one of the last great wild places on earth. Covering an area nearly as big as the state of Victoria, it has characteristics and features that are of global, regional and national significance in respect of all eight natural heritage criteria, making it one of the last “untouched” tropical wildernesses in the world.
Cape York Peninsula is as important and rare as the Serengeti, the Congo and the Amazon. The vast natural woodlands, tropical rainforests, pristine rivers, uninhabited beaches, and coral reefs and cays are of global and national significance.
For the motorcyclist, Cape York offers every type of terrain you could find in Australia, (with the exception of snow and ice), and presents the rider with an unforgettable Australian remote wilderness adventure. Crocodiles, kangaroos, wild bush pigs, dingoes and native birdlife are all part of the Cape York experience; it really is “Australia in 8 days”!
As a certified Eco Tourism operator, Cape York Motorcycle Adventures has demonstrated that it is committed to maintaining ecologically sustainable tourism; its primary focus is on experiencing the wilderness areas of Cape York Peninsula and fostering environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation and conservation.
A World Heritage Tropical Wilderness
With an area of around 13.5 million ha, the Cape York Peninsula has, in effect, a continuous cover of tropical, native vegetation ecosystems. This is important for biodiversity conservation.
The Cape York Peninsula contains three globally significant bioclimatic domains, and a wide range of ecosystems that are well represented and relatively undisturbed by modern technology.
The area also contains many outstanding examples of bio-evolution, the record of life. Fossil locations documented throughout the Peninsula hold important evidence of Australia’s Gondwanic heritage.
The pristine streams and rivers of Cape York have been minimally disturbed by the works of human activity and contain a diversity of freshwater fish species which compares internationally with tropical catchments of similar size. The northern rivers have excellent Barramundi, providing both the experience and novice angler with a unique fishing experience.
The Traditional Owners of Cape York hold unique connections to Country and have a depth of ecological knowledge and management expertise vital to its protection. The region exhibits a long and intimate relationship between the Indigenous people and their environment.
The Cape York Peninsula is now a recognized landscape entity of global significance that provides a well defined and valued visitor experience revolving around the ‘wild’ natural landscape.