Twenty-somethings Ben Mitchell (Nathan Phillips) and his two British girlfriends Kristy Earl (Kestie Morassi) and Liz Hunter (Cassandra Magrath) travel through the outback of Western Australia with little money. They first stop to hike near a meteor crater in isolated Wolf Creek National Park. On returning to their car, a junker purchased soley for the journey, it does not start and with no civilization in sight, they decide to spend the night in the car. Later, local hillbilly Mick Taylor (John Jarrat) stops his truck and offers to help the trio, finding that the jalopy is easily repairable and proposes to tow them to his camp, where he could fix the car. On accepting the man's proposal, the idyllic Australian vacation turns into a horrific nightmare.