From Wikitravel

Red Centre

The Red Centre is the colloquial name given to the southern desert region of the Northern Territory in Australia.

[edit] Understand

The Red Centre is the place where you will find the most famous monolith of Australia, Uluru and it is where the heart of the outback beats. The only town of sizable population is Alice Springs, the remainder of the population being scattered in smaller communities. The oxidized iron in the soil gives the whole area its distinctive and immediately recognizable reddish glow.

[edit] Get in

Most visitors arrive to the Red Centre via Alice Springs (see Alice Springs#Get in) by car, train or plane. There is another airport near Uluru with connections to other major Australian cities.

[edit] Get around

The best way to get around is with a car, although there are also buses from Alice Springs to tourist destinations.

The sealed Stuart Highway running from Alice Springs to Adelaide crosses the area and is the major artery for local traffic (meaning you can actually cross several vehicles per hour). The Lasseter Highway is also sealed, and links the Stuart Highway with Uluru.

You might want to consider renting a 4WD to explore areas beyond the Stuart Highway and Uluru. Several destinations can simply not be accessed by conventionnal vehicles. These simply should not be used. Likewise a vehicle in poor condition, or without enough fuel. If you run out of fuel here, you can be in big trouble, which is why it is advisable to travel with other vehicles, the more the better.

[edit][add listing] See

• Alice Springs, an oasis in the middle of nowhere, and the link to the outer world for locals, and the natural choice to start your exploration of the region.

[edit] West from Alice Springs

The MacDonnells Range, with plenty of waterholes for a refreshing swim in the inferno of the hotter months:

• Honeymoon Gap
• Simpson's Gap
• Stanley Chasm
• Wallace Rockhole
• Ormiston Gorge
• The Ochre Pits
• Serpentine Gorge
• Ellery Creek Big Hole
• Glen Helen Gorge - end of the sealed road, literally. All after this is 4WD. Glen Helen Resort is located there and has a Cafe, restaurant, camping, accommodation.
• Redbank Gorge [1]
• Roma Gorge [2] - Aboriginal rock art
• Tnorala, the remnants of a gigantic comet impact.
• Hermannsburg is a small aboriginal art community, famous for their pottery and painting, for being the home of Albert Namatjira. A community of 500, founded by Lutheran missionaries, with several historical buildings.

[edit] Southwest of Alice Springs

• The Finke River Track is the site of the annual Finke Desert Races, and is a really lovely 4WD track - but should definitely only be used by experienced four-wheel drivers, as there's every hazard you can imagine for a four wheel drive vehicle. The track is NOT MARKED!
• Palm Valley, a somewhat more tropical greener place, Southwest of Alice
• Tyler's Pass
• Palm Valley
• Boggy Hole [3]

[edit] East of Alice Springs

• John Hayes Rock hole
• Emily Gap [4]
• Jesse Gap [5]
• Corroboree Rock [6]
• Trephina Gorge [7]
• Ross Rives Homestead - Also home to Ross River Resort
• N'Dhala Gorge [8]
• Ruby Gap Nature Park [9]
• Arltunga [10] Gold Mining ghost town, 4WD track only, hotel, a camp area and a tourist center, hands on display about the area and gold mining. You can visit the old township and surrounds.
• Fossicking [11] - A few hours out of Alice are gem fields with Garnet, Zircon, Tourmaline, Apatite and various kinds of Quartz. Contact the Gem Tree for details. Garnet is the easiest to go for on your first try, as the garnet chips are easy to find on the surface and require no digging or special equipment.

[edit] Southeast of Alice Springs

• Ewaninga [12] - petroglyphs

• Rainbow Valley and Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve both daytrips from Alice Springs require a 4WD.

[edit] South of Alice Springs

• Mount Conner - a plateau frequently mistaken for Ayre's Rock by travelers...
• Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, where you will see Uluru, formerly called Ayers Rock, and Kata Tjuta, formerly known as The Olgas. These two are the two most prominent features of Central Australia. You can take camping trips from Alice Springs out to Uluru, sleeping in swags (waterproof sleeping bags) under the stars and cooking on a barbie. The buses are airconditioned (very necessary) and have all the equipment, and a guide/driver. This is a really good way to see Uluru and maybe Kata Tjuta with enough time and no worries! Uluru at sunrise and sunset is absolutely amazing.
• The Henbury Meteorites craters.
• Kings Canyon in Watarrka National Park. This is a lovely canyon walk; it's also available as a scenic helicopter flight. It is close to Uluru, and is included on may of the tours. It's not technically speaking a town, as you might intrepret it - it is a hotel at a canyon with a little swimming pool and a gas station. The food at the hotel is very good.
• Tnorala aka Gosse Bluff aka Gosses Bluff Crater is registered sacred ground, a premit is required (available at King's Canyon) and overnighting is NOT permitted. It is actually the remnant of a gigantic comet impact. It is not on the direct road from Alice to Uluru, but on the unsealed Merenee loop road. There are 4WD tracks, picnic tables, and walking tracks. The dreamtime story told is worth a read; it's an amazing place.
• Ormiston Gorge, a permanent water hole, has a serviced camping area and a permanant ranger station.
• Coober Pedy - The home of opal mining in Australia. Underground hotels, etc.

[edit] North of Alice

• Tennant Creek - small town, home base for seeing the Devil's Marbles
• Katherine - small town, the entrance to the tropical North

[edit] Itineraries

The following itinerary will lead you through the best of the Red in a few days, however you will need a 4WD, so make a reservation beforehand. Make sure there is a little fridge with your vehicle to keep your supplies fresh.

• Day one

Make your way into Alice Springs. There are no international flights landing the Alice, so you will have to change planes at any of the big Australian cities (Sydney, Melbourne, Cairns, Adelaide, Perth or Darwin). Alice Springs being roughly in the middle of Australia, it takes more or less two hours from any of the aforementionned cities.

In Alice Springs, walk to the top of the Anzac Hill to get a good view of the town, and pay a visit to the Royal Flying Doctor Service or the School of the Air, both will give you an idea of the vastitude of the surrounding areas and how the locals cope with it.

In the evening, take a bite at a restaurant on the Todd Mall.

• Day two

In the morning, pick up your 4WD (you will of course have made your reservation beforehand on the internet at Thrifty[13], Britz[14] or any of the companies offering 4WD rental). Buy your supplies for the coming days (including a lot of fluids).

Head West on the Larapinta Drive, and make your first stop only a few km outside Alice at the very interesting Alice Springs Desert Park, where you will learn a lot about the flora and fauna of the Australian Desert. Allow at least two hours for the visit.

Continue West, enter the West McDonnell National Park. The moutain range is dotted with gaps, waterholes and gorges, (Simpsons Gap, Ormiston Gorge, Stanley Chasm...), making for refreshing short walks. If you have your bathsuit, you can even swim in some of the waterholes (for instance the permanent Ellery Creek Big hole), but be aware that the water can be very cold compared to the outside air. Make a stop at the Ochre Pits, used by aboriginals to get ceremonial ochre.

Make a stop for the night at Glen Helen Resort, a very casual but clean little place in magnificient surroundings, and actually the only option for a roofed accommodation around.

• Day Three.

The real outback driving begins here. Wake early, walk to the Glen Helen Gorge, and take back your 4WD to continue on the Larapinta Drive, which becomes unsealed. Make a stop at the Redbank Gorge, and walk the 1-hour return trail (without forgetting to take water with you). Continue on the Mereenie Loop Road, an unsealed dirt road crossing Aboriginal lands, with nice desert scenery around you. Try to take your lunch at the viewpoint of Tyler's Pass, from where there is a truly breathtaking view over the area. You should also be able to see the eroded crater of Tnorala, a truly gigantic comet impact dating from the Cretacean period. Descend from Tyler's pass, and take a short walk inside Tnorala. The sheer size of what remains after million years of erosion puts the imagination at test about the energy of the original impact.

You should be able to reach Watarrka National Park before sunset, and even have enough take to take the short walk at the bottom of King's Canyon and admire the sunset on the Canyon. Take a good night of sleep at the King's Canyon Resort

• Day four

Leave just before sunrise (at least during the hotter months), and head for the Canyon, walk the Rim Walk while it is still not too hot, with plenty of water with you. Admire and absorb the magic of the scenery around you.

After the walk, head for Uluru. Slowly, you will notice that the soil gets sandier and sandier, and soon the (fortunately sealed) road will lead you through dunes. A hundred kilometers before Uluru, you will see Mount Conner in the distance, an anvil shaped mount with a flat top. From the dune on the other side of the viewpoint for Mount Conner, you will also see vast salt lakes spotting the plains.

After some more driving, you will see both Uluru and Kata Tjuta rising in the distance. No matter how many times you have seen the Rock in photographs or videos, the first time you see it rising from the plains truly leaves a strong impression. Get in the park (there is a fee), visit the tourist center, eventually take one of the short walks around the rock, but be at the designated parking spot for the sunset. At the last moment before the sun goes down, it reflects in the rock. The rock then "shines" for a few seconds, producing a truly mesmerizing effect. Head back to one of the accommodation at neighbouring Yulara.

• Day five

Drive to Kata Tjuta (45 km from the entrance of the park), make a brief stop at the view point and walk the Valley of the Winds, a 7 km loop between the red domes of Kata Tjuta. The trail is not too difficult, but it is sometimes closed in the summer days to the excessive heat (whether the walk in closed or open is indicated at the entrance of the park, so you do not have to drive the 90km return just to check). If it is too hot or you do not feel like walking 7km, there is a shorter treck (2 km return).

After Kata Tjuta, head back to Uluru and Yulara. You can make a brief stop at the bottom of the climb to the top of the rock, but no need to try : it is heavily frowned upon by the aboriginals, and it is just plain dangerous.

Anyway, return at Yulara, and take the Sounds of Silence dinner experience. It is quite popular and you will probably have to make a reservation in the morning.

• Day six

Wake early, try to be at the sunrise viewing point at Uluru for a reverse effect of the sunset glow. Return to Uluru, and Walk around the base of Uluru. It will take two to three hours, there are many stops with explanations about the aboriginal mythology linked with the rock, as well as rock paintings. Some features are sacred, respect the place and do not take pictures.

Take your vehicle, time to hit back the road. Head back towards the Stuart Highway on the Lesseter highway, take the turn on the Luritja road, but take the unsealed and rough Ernest Giles Road. The track will take you into some barren scenery. Just before reaching the Stuart Highway, turn left to enter the tiny Henbury Meteorites Conservation Reserve. The short loop trail into the reserve will bring you close to very visible craters left by pieces of a meteorites that disintegrated over the desert. One of the craters was deep enough to create some shadow and a temporary waterhole, so the bottom is a bit greenish compared to the incredibly flat and barren surroundings.

Drive back to the Stuart Highway, head back towards Alice Springs, but turn right to get to the Rainbow Valley before sunset (it is a 4WD drive with sandy spots from the Stuart highway to the reserve). The colors of the sandstone and rock formations are simply splendid. If you are lucky enough to get there just after the rain, you might get the chance to view the reflection of the rocks over the water.

For the night, head back to Alice, or stay at 'Jim's place, 90 km south of Alice, a rustic roadhouse with a local attraction, Dinky the Dingo, a dog able to play the piano.

• Day seven

From Alice Springs, take the dirt road towards Finke (the entrance of the road is close to the Airport) and head towards Chambers pillar. Make your first stop at the Ewaninga Conservation Reserve, a small reserve only 30 km from Alice Springs (the entrance of the park is easy to miss). You will see some aboriginal carvings dating from the prehistoric times, that are presently still sacred.

Hit the track back. You can make a brief stop at the Maryvale Station, an outback fuel station with some refreshment available. Depending on how confident you feel with your driving skills over sand, you might want to tell them you are heading to Chamber's pillar. The drive from Maryvale to Chamber's pillar starts gently, but slowly becomes a hell of a 4WD track over rougher and rougher terrain. You will then have to drive over a rocky hill, which is really steep. No conventionnal vehicle can cope with this climb, and even with the 4WD you will have to be in very low gear. On top of the hill, you can have a view of the pillar rising above the desert. After descending the other side of the hill (which is as steep as the climb, by the way), you will drive the last few kilometers over sand dunes. Take care at the top of each dune, as frontal accidents may happen.

The pillar was used as a landmark for pionneers, and bears some century old graffitis. There are furthermore fantastic views of the desert.

Head back to Alice for the evening, and eat your belly out at the Todd Mall.

• Day eight

Last day in Alice. Take your time to pay a visit to the Old telegraph station and buy the necessary souvenirs for the family, but most of all look back at your week and wonder how early explorers did what you did without a 4WD (do not forget to wash it, and return it). Take a shuttle bus to the airport to take your flight.

[edit] Stay safe

This is a desertic area, so always bring a lot of water with you if you go out hiking, and in any case bring a lot of water with you while you are driving. It can get dramatically hot in the summer, and even during other seasons, when it is only very hot during the day you should be wary of dehydratation. Always wear a hat, and put on strong sunscreen.

Some unsealed roads are fairly remote, so take extra care, as mechanical problem can mean big trouble if you are not prepared. The distance between fuel supplies is not to be underestimated. Check the autonomy of your vehicle, and refuel accordingly.

For more information, read carefully Driving in Australia#Outback driving.

They are not directly life-threatening, but flies can become annoying when they buzz around you by the dozens. You may want to buy a fly-net for your head.

[edit] Get out

The Stuart Highway is the only sealed option. Drive North, you will reach the tropical Northern end and Darwin. To the South, you will enter South Australia, with Adelaide at the end of the road.

If you have a 4WD, you can cut Northwest directly to the Kimberley on the Tanami Track, a relatively well graded dirt road crossing the Tanami Desert. It is a 800+km drive to Hall's Creek in Western Australia, with very little supplies along the way, and only a single fuel station at the remote Rabbit Flat Roadhouse (which is not open all the time, on top of that), roughly midway between Alice Springs and Hall's Creek.

To the West, you can take the unsealed Gunbarrel Highway starting at Kata Tjuta, and with a lot of patience and a good 4WD you could drive all the way to Perth (something like 2500 km away).

To the East, the WAA line or the French line are 4WD tracks crossing the Simpson Desert to Birdsville in Queensland, some 500 km East. Be extremely well prepared if you wish to tackle those routes.

This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow!