The Nullarbor Plain and the Eyre Highway

The Treeless Limestone Plain Crossed By The Eyre Highway Between South Australia And Western Australia, Including The Longest Straight Stretch Of Road In The Country And The Sheer Bunda Cliffs Dropping Straight Into The Southern Ocean Along Its Southern Edge · Ceduna, South Australia

The Nullarbor Plain is a vast, treeless limestone expanse crossed by the Eyre Highway between South Australia and Western Australia, starting near Ceduna and running for well over one thousand kilometres to Norseman. Its name, taken from Latin for 'no trees', is close to literal across much of the crossing, where low saltbush scrub replaces forest to the horizon in every direction. The highway includes the longest straight stretch of road in the country, a ruler-flat run of roughly one hundred and fifty kilometres with no bend at all, genuinely tedious for the driver and a point of pride for anyone who has done it. Along the plain's southern edge the Bunda Cliffs drop sheer into the Southern Ocean, with several signed lookouts giving a dramatic contrast to the flat interior. A string of roadhouses, often a hundred kilometres or more apart, provide the only fuel, food and fatigue breaks along the route, and the crossing remains one of the classic Australian road trips precisely because of its scale and isolation.

The Eyre Highway crossing between South Australia and Western Australia, starting near Ceduna, Ceduna, South Australia, Australia

The Eyre Highway itself is open around the clock with no gate or closure under normal conditions, though night driving is strongly discouraged because of wildlife on the road. Roadhouses along the route, including Nundroo, Nullarbor, Border Village, Eucla, Mundrabilla and Caiguna, keep varied hours for fuel, food and accommodation, and some close their kitchens or fuel bowsers overnight, so timing a late crossing against an open roadhouse matters. The Head of Bight whale-watching platform, a common side stop, keeps its own daytime hours and charges a separate entry fee, closing well before dark. Bushfire or flooding occasionally closes sections of the highway without warning, and this is the only sealed route across, so a closure can mean a very long detour.

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