When people think of camels, they don’t tend to think of Australia first. But in fact, Australia has the largest population of camels in the world — many of them feral and regarded as pests. No-one’s quite sure exactly how many there are, but some estimates top a million. Camels are perfectly suited to the dry environment of the vast Australian outback, and since their introduction in 1840, have multiplied rapidly.

This means that if you’re keen to ride a camel, the Aussie outback will provide you with myriad opportunities. We visited Pichi Richi camel tours during our six-day tour from Adelaide to Alice Springs with Adventure Tours Australia.

Pichi Richi Camel Farm is located in Quorn, in the Flinders Ranges of South Australia, and there are a wide range of tours on offer — from a half-hour ride around the farm to four-day safaris. We chose the shortest option, sadly not having four days to spare, and mounted our camels with the help of owner Graham.

Riding a camel is an experience and a half — they move their bodies in surprising ways that takes a little getting used to. It would have been nice to have had more time, but our short walk around the farm was a good introduction to camel-riding.

For more on Australia, check out our Australia page.

---

This article was written by Linda Martin

Linda Martin is a self-confessed word geek, Spanish addict and world traveller. She and Craig have been travelling full-time for six years, taking in parts of Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. She's currently in A Coruña, Spain.