Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
per child for a guided gallery tour, which departs every hour. The precinct is
closed from December 24 to January 2 or 3, and on Good Friday.
FINKE GORGE NATIONAL PARK
Just west of Hermannsburg is the
turnoff to the 46,000-hectare (113,620-acre)
Finke Gorge National Park,
16km (10 miles) to the south on an unpaved road. The park is most famous for
Palm Valley,
where groves of rare
Livistona mariae
cabbage palms have survived
since central Australia was a jungle millions of years ago. You will need a four-
wheel-drive to explore this park. Four walking trails between 1.5km (1 mile) and
5km (3 miles) take you among the palms or up to a lookout over cliffs; one is a
signposted trail exploring Aboriginal culture. There is a campsite about 4km
(2
1
⁄
2
miles) from the palms; it has showers, toilets, and free barbecues. Collect
your firewood outside the park. Camping is A$6.60 (US$4.30) for adults,
A$3.30 (US$2.10) for kids 5 to 15. For information, call the CATIA Visitor
Information Centre in Alice Springs before you leave, because there is no visitor
center in the park. The ranger station (
&
08/8956 7401
) is for emergencies
only.
THE EAST MACDONNELL RANGES
Not as many tourists tread the path on the Ross Highway into the East Macs,
but if you do, you'll be rewarded with lush walking trails, fewer crowds, and
traces of Aboriginal history. I even spotted wild camels on my visit. At the end
of the drive, 86km (53 miles) from Alice, is the
dinky-di
(that's Australian for
“authentic”—as is “fair dinkum”)
Ross River Resort
(see “Where to Stay,”
below), where day-trippers are welcome. The homestead stages a boomerang-
throwing and whip-cracking experience over billy tea and damper from 10am to
noon daily for A$5.50 (US$3.60) per person, so consider heading there first,
then dropping in on the attractions below as you return.
The first points of interest are
Emily Gap,
10km (6 miles) from Alice, and
Jessie Gap, an additional 7km (4
1
⁄
2
miles), a pretty picnic spot. You can cool off
in the Emily Gap swimming hole if there is any water. Don't miss the “Cater-
pillar Dreaming” Aboriginal art on the wall, on your right as you walk through.
At
Corroboree Rock,
37km (23 miles) farther, you can make a short climb up
this outcrop that was important to local Aborigines. The polished rock “seat” at
the hole high up in it means Aboriginal people must have used this rock for eons.
Twenty-two kilometers (13
3
⁄
4
miles) farther is the turnoff to
Trephina Gorge
Nature Park,
an 18-sq.-km (7-sq.-mile) beauty spot with peaceful walking trails
ranging from 45 minutes to 4
1
⁄
2
hours. The last 5km (3 miles) of the 9km (5
1
⁄
2
-
mile) road into the park are unpaved, but you can make it in a two-wheel-drive
car.
N'Dhala Gorge Nature Park,
10km (6 miles) past Trephina Gorge Nature
Park, just before you reach Ross River Resort, houses an “open-air art gallery” of
rock carvings, or petroglyphs, left by the Eastern Arrernte Aboriginal people. An
interesting 1.5km (1-mile) signposted trail explains the Dreamtime meanings of
a few of the 6,000 rock carvings, hundreds or thousands of years old, that are
thought to be in this eerily quiet gorge. A four-wheel-drive vehicle is a must to
traverse the 11km (7-mile) access road.
The Ross Highway is paved all the way to Ross River Resort.
WHERE TO STAY
Ross River Resort
This fair dinkum, 100-year-old station offers both day
visitors and overnight guests a condensed taste of Outback life. Overnight
