Albany 4WD Tracks; from mild to wild!
Albany has some of the best 4WD tracks around. From pristine, white beaches through to what’s known as ‘Western Australia’s toughest 4WD track’, there is something for everyone.
Whether you just want a nice place to relax away from the crowds, or you are looking for that perfect fishing location, or you want some technical driving you can be guaranteed to find something suitable on the Albany 4WD Tracks.
There’s also plenty of amazing places to pull up for a night, and lots to see in Albany itself. If you haven’t been to Albany before, add it to the list!
Where are the Albany 4WD Tracks?
Cheynes Beach
Starting furthest East (without being in Bremer Bay!), Cheynes Beach is one of the most beautiful, and easiest to access. You can start off on Hassell Beach Road, and follow the various tracks onto Cheynes Beach itself.
There can be some marshy sections getting in, or you can just go to the Caravan Park, and enter from there.
Cheynes Beach is huge, and can be easily travelled in both directions for a very long distance. It’s very popular for fishing, and on a busy weekend its not uncommon to see a hundred or more 4WD’s set up for the day.
With the right tyre pressures, there’s nothing too difficult here. This is one of the most popular 4WD beaches in Albany.
Waychinicup National Park
On the other side of Cheynes Beach Caravan Park is the Arpenteur Nature Reserve, or Waychinicup National Park. This has to be one of the most fun 4WD days we’ve had in a while, exploring the insane coastline, soft 4WD tracks and massive granite rocks.
There’s a couple of Albany beaches here, but know that a lot of this coastline is cliffs and can be seriously rough and dangerous even to fish from.
There are 4WD tracks throughout the park, but you can enter near the Caravan Park and make your way East, and then south, and then following the coastline all the way around until you have to go north onto the main road.
You’ll find some beautiful beaches, massive cliffs and spectacular views. The 4WD tracks are nothing super hardcore, but they are easily enough to keep you entertained for the day.
East Bay
Heading further around is a beautiful beach by the name of East Bay. Watch the tides here, but you can drive onto the beach and a fair chunk of the way around, giving you a great slice of paradise away from everyone else.
You might even be able to get all the way around to Two Peoples Bay, but when we visited it was full of seaweed, and you’d be mad to drive anywhere near that stuff!
If you want to camp, there are few places with better outlooks!
Parry Beach
One of the more popular camp sites on the south coast is Parry Beach, located just around the corner from the famous Greens Pool. Parry Beach is 4WD accessible too, and you can drive a fair distance along another beautiful beach.
If you are lucky, you might see the commercial fishermen catching salmon, like we did a few years back. 22 tonnes of salmon netted in one go is a pretty incredible effort.
Eagles Nest
Across from Parry Beach is a little beach by the name of Eagles Nest. We were told not to visit here, as you’d never get back out again. What we actually found was a fairly straightforward 4WD track with the right tyre pressures, and a beautiful beach at the end of it.
It can be steep going down onto the beach (and thus a bit of a challenge to get back up), so before you head down make sure you are going to be able to get back up again!
West Cape Howe
One of our favourite 4WD tracks around Albany is within the West Cape Howe National Park. The entry starts just off the road out to Shelley Beach (which is worth a look, especially if they are hangliding). You can head west, or south, and follow the coastline around via the inland tracks.
Eventually, you’ll get to Dunsky beach, which is one of the most picturesque, and quiet beaches in the area. There is a heap of insane coastline along here, with huge swell pumping in and some quieter sections that have some of the best fishing around.
If you are into catching big Blue Groper, this is where you’ll get them.
Bornholm
Bornholm beach has been coined by many as the toughest 4WD track in Western Australia, and if you can’t make it back up again you are up for a very, very expensive vehicle recovery.
The track starts off Shepherds Lagoon Road, and makes its way down a steep hill to the bottom, where you’ll find a beautiful beach. Getting down is easy, but getting back up has proven too much for a large number of people.
This is often due to the track getting chopped up badly, and not being able to maintain any decent level of momentum on the way back without abusing your 4WD too much.
Lockers are an advantage when the holes are offset, but it all comes down to tyre pressures. If you don’t make it up, drop them down further, and keep going down all the way to 8 PSI if you have to.
Boat Harbour
One of the most amazing beaches around is further West again, called Boat Harbour. Turn off the South Coast Highway onto Boat Harbour Road, and follow it to the end of the track.
You will need to let your tyres, down, and take your time going in, but you’ll get to an incredible beach with an even better one on the other side of the rocks.
Peaceful Bay and Rame Head
Further West again lies Peaceful Bay, which has a huge range of 4WD tracks. You can get onto the main beach from near the town, and head north towards the inlet.
Alternatively, drive West through town, and you’ll pop into Rame Head. There are more tracks through here than you can poke a stick at, with a heap of great beaches to enjoy, rocky headlands and spectacular fishing.
