The Best 4WD beaches in Perth

Perth, North Of The River:

Yanchep:

These days, the beach around Yanchep is all closed off to 4wd access, but I know that there is a lot of confusion around as to whether it is still open or not. Yanchep used to be one of Perth’s best and closest 4wd beaches, but unfortunately you’ll have to skip this area and head a little further north to Two Rocks.

Two Rocks:

Housing development has cut of much of what was accessible beach around Two Rocks, just as it did with Yanchep. Wanna know how to get to Two Rocks? Well, beach access is still possible at the end of Damepattie Dr if you head to the north of the town after taking Breakwater Dr from the Indian Ocean Dr (Hope that made sense to you!). This area is the Dewars Beach access track. A sign upon entry explains the rules, including no vehicular access to the beach. You’ll have to park up off the beach and walk down for this one.

Wilbinga:

The next beach up from Two Rocks is Wilbinga. The beach from here on is pretty well untouched by development meaning you can drive all the way from Two Rocks to Guilderton. If it were’nt for the Moore River mouth at Guilderton, you would be able to drive all the way from Wilbinga to Ledge Point if you wanted to. However, even if the Moore River mouth was driveable, crossing the river mouth is still prohibited. If you come up this far, you have to go back the way you came.

Seabird:

You can reach seabird by driving a combination of beach and dune tracks from the north of Guilderton. There is also beach access north of Seabird but I highly recommend leaving that one be, the beach is EXTREMELY soft and challenging. If you wish to know more about any of the beach and tracks from Guilderton to Seabird, including GPS waypoints and Google Earth image files; read our writeup HERE.

Perth, South Of The River:

Horse Beach, Naval Base Kwinana

Yep, it’s closed to 4wd access as of about August 2014. I had to put this one in though because so many people ask about it! It was one of the best spots to just take a quick drive down to the coast and park up your 4wd in the sand. Unfortunately it became a little too popular and many an idiot cut sick in the dune area and littered the beach with smashed bottles and illegal campfires. It’s still open to access for horses though!

Tim’s Thicket

4wding at Tim’s Thicket is one of my fondest memories as a kid and I’m glad it’s kept open and well managed! Fishing at Tim’s Thicket is awesome, but get there early before the surf picks up! Once that happens, throw the fishing rod away, get out the boards and enjoy a day on the beach with family and friends. How do you get there? Simple! Take old coast road out of Mandurah and hang a right at Tim’s Thicket Rd. Read our article HERE for more info!

Whitehills:

The neighbouring beach to Tim’s thicket. You can drive along the beach from Tim’s Thicket to Whitehills or you can take Old Coast Rd further south and hang a Right once again onto White Hill Rd. Plenty of beach to go around so find a spot and park up for a day, or enjoy the drive south all the way from Whitehills to Preston Beach. This beach is also covered in our Whitehills & Preston Beach video and blog post.

Preston Beach:

As mentioned above, you can drive from Whitehills to Preston Beach, or even Tim’s Thickett to Preston Beach via the sand. If you just want to get straight to the point you can also follow Old Coast Rd south to turn off at Preston Beach Rd. There’s a nice picnic area with gas BBQ’s, a toilet block and cold showers to have a rinse off when you come off the beach after a top day in the surf and sand.

If you were struggling to find a place to hit the beach for a bit of 4wding or fishing for a day out of Perth, you’ve got plenty of options now! Now get out there and have a good time, be sure to let us all know about it by sharing your story and some pictures with everybody on Intents Offroad Facebook, or tag #intentsoffroad on Instagram.

See you out there!

Alex