For over 20 years, Bullo River Station has welcomed guests wanting to experience a special part of Australian outback life. Photo / Neil Porten
For over 20 years, Bullo River Station has welcomed guests wanting to experience a special part of Australian outback life. Photo / Neil Porten
Neil Porten arrives at a remote cattle farm in Australia’s Northern Territory for a luxurious stay in the rugged Outback
Name: Bullo River Station
Location: In the northwest of the Northern Territory, not far from the border with Western Australia. It’s about an 800km drive from Darwin, so the most common way to get there is by charter flight. Flying time by small plane is 90 minutes from Darwin Airport.
Style: A working cattle station running around 3000 Brahmin-cross on 162,000 hectares. Only about 15 per cent of the property is used for raising livestock. The rest is a diverse landscape of sandstone escarpments and rocky gorges, floodplains, savannah woodlands, wetlands, waterfalls and waterholes. For over 20 years, the station has welcomed guests who experience a special part of Australian outback life.
Perfect for: The adventurous and curious who don’t mind getting dust on their boots but who appreciate comfort and luxury at the end of a long, hot day.
First impressions: The flight over the spectacular Top End terrain is a buzz. The final approach is across the chocolate-coloured curves of the Victoria River. Our plane lands in the late afternoon on the grass airstrip beside the lawn in front of the homestead. A buggy arrives and our luggage is taken to the guest wing, a single-storey, 12-room building looking like an oasis amongst a grove of coconut palms. We are escorted across the lawn and offered cold hand towels and cool drinks under the verandah of the homestead.
A drink at sunset at the tiki hut by the Bullo River at Bullo River Station. Photo / Neil Porten
In the neighbourhood: The station is the neighbourhood and there are plenty of cattle-related activities and sightseeing opportunities. There’s a viewing platform over the cattle yards giving a bird’s-eye perspective on the livestock wrangling and daily calf feeding, and a guide can take you out in a four-wheel-drive to see what’s going on in the paddocks. Guests are invited to take the Keeping the Lights On tour to see the kitchen garden, workshop, water tanks and solar array.
If the arrival by plane has whetted your appetite, a scenic helicopter flight through winding gorges and over remote waterfalls can be arranged. A short drive from the homestead is Marlee’s Bath, a safe waterhole, with tin changing rooms and a barbecue site for a picnic lunch. Take a boat cruise on the Bullo River through the gorge and try some fishing. There are opportunities for birdwatching at the homestead billabong, stargazing, visits to Aboriginal rock art sites, and a day-long cultural experience on Djarrany-Djarrany Country with local guides.
Rooms: Guest rooms have either twin or king beds and each room opens onto the verandah and lawn. The colour palette is inspired by the landscape of the station - rocks and earth, leaves, seeds, feathers and insects. The floors are cool grey tiles, the walls a lime wash. The bedstead is black metal and the bedding is a variety of textures in off-white and dark grey colours. My room had a tan leather easy chair and a cowhide rug. There are pool towels, extra blankets and a hideaway box for your phone to encourage a disconnected holiday. A ceiling fan and air-con ensured a comfortable temperature in the tropical climate.
The guest quarters at Bullo River Station. Photo / Neil Porten
Bathrooms: Copper, bronze and fluted glass detail the bathroom. The shower has a heavy canvas curtain and a simple overhead rose. A round mirror is framed in thick tan leather. The hand soap is made by Wola/Gija woman Bec Sampi from all-natural Australian ingredients. Vasse Virgin shower gel, shampoo and conditioner are made in Western Australia using Australian extra virgin olive oil, essential oils and plant extracts. The beautiful ceramic dispensers are custom-designed to evoke the rivers, stones and grasses of Bullo.
Food & drink: All food and drink is included and special dietary requirements are catered for. Much of the fruit, vegetables, eggs and meat are sourced from the station’s own garden, free-range hens and livestock. The guest wing has a communal kitchenette where fresh baking is a temptation, along with capsule coffee, teas and a fridge full of beer, wine and soft drinks.
Meals are generally simple affairs, served on the verandah, or while on excursion. Breakfast will be freshly baked bread for toast, with condiments, bacon and eggs. On an early-morning river cruise, we devoured delicious cheese-and-ham toasties, and granola and yoghurt with stewed rhubarb.
One dinner was served at sunset under a giant boab tree a short distance from the homestead. It was thoughtfully prepared, but simple, “stockmen’s food” cooked over an open wood fire - braised beef stew, mashed potatoes, damper and green beans, followed by apple and rhubarb crumble with custard. We ate another evening meal of lamb rack, roasted potatoes and rocket salad, with chocolate mousse and homemade icecream, followed by a nightcap, and marshmallows toasted over the firepit.
Dinner under Jenson's boab tree at Bullo River Station. Photo / Neil Porten
Facilities: The pool, fringed by palm trees, is a wonderful oasis, with loungers and cabana-style seating. The homestead building, with its wide verandah and stone floors, has numerous spaces to relax in, day or night. There is good strong Wi-Fi in the guest wing, but not elsewhere, although I found it still worked on the verandah of the homestead. Make use of the laundry service - just leave your clothes outside your door in the “dusty clothes” bag.
Family-friendly: There are plenty of wide open spaces for everyone to roam. Older children would revel in the activities on offer, and there is a pair of swings hanging from the pergola on the terrace. However, the pool is not fenced and each room only sleeps two guests.
Sustainability: On the guest side of things, tanks capture 3.4 million litres of rainwater in the wet season for use by staff and guests; food that isn’t grown on the station is sourced from local producers in nearby Kununurra; composting is used in the garden and food scraps feed the hens; reusable water bottles are provided and meals on the go are served in stainless-steel lunch boxes.
Farm-wide, solar provides 80% of the station’s electricity and solar-powered bores water the cattle; cleaning supplies are bought in bulk in refillable containers; old oil is stored and later taken for refining and reuse; the proceeds from recycled materials are used to fund the staff Christmas party.
Bullo River is in partnership with the Australian Wildlife Conservancy to develop biodiversity monitoring and land management programmes. Wetland and riparian protection is a particular focus, as is sustainable management of pastures using weed control, soil-health improvements and responsible water usage.
Accessibility: Bullo asks that you contact them before booking. There are no steps to access the guest wing or the homestead building, and no steps into the rooms, bathrooms or showers.
