Road trip through Central Australia
Don’t miss experiencing these hidden gems and more when road-tripping along the Red Centre Way, between Alice Springs and Uluru.
Iconic landmarks? Check. Indigenous culture? Tick. Native flora and fauna? You betcha.
The Red Centre is one of Australia’s most scenically and culturally enriched regions – a ‘living desert’ with mostly dry, sunny days and starry night skies.
So, what’s the best way to see it? Two words: road trip.
The Red Centre Way loops between Alice Springs and the big-ticket attractions of Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Watarrka.
In between are refreshing waterholes, towering gorges, gaping canyons, and dramatic peaks that collectively add up to one of the most beguiling desert landscapes in the world.
Measuring 1,135km, some travellers will complete the Red Centre Way in just three days. It is far better to allow at least five – or longer, if you can afford the time. Regardless of how long you spend in the Red Centre, you leave feeling slightly different.
A town called Alice
Start and finish your journey in Alice Springs, the gateway to Central Australia.
More town than city, it has a character all its own, borne of resilience that comes from being located in the heart of the world’s driest continent.
They make their own fun out here, with an event calendar that includes “boat” races on a dry riverbed and a camel race meeting that’s the Red Centre equivalent of the Melbourne Cup.
Early explorers came here searching for a mythical inland sea, only to find that they were several million years too late.
Today, collectors from across the globe arrive in numbers to browse through galleries filled with Indigenous art.
But Alice Springs is also the gateway to adventure.
From long-distance hiking tracks like the Larapinta Trail to mountain bike parks and hot air balloon rides, challenging four-wheel drive tracks every which way and the promise of nights spent camping beneath the starriest skies imaginable.
West through the ranges
Head west from Alice Springs through the West MacDonnell Ranges.
Stop first at Simpsons Gap – home to shy black-footed rock wallabies best spotted around dawn and dusk.
Alternatively, cycle here along a sealed, 17km bike track from Flynn’s Grave, 7km west of Alice Springs.
Continue to Standley Chasm and join a local Arrernte guide for cultural insights into this fascinating slot canyon.
Enjoying the view at Glen Helen Gorge.
Come in the middle of the day when the sun penetrates the canyon floor and you’ll feel like you’re walking between 20-storey skyscrapers.
There are plenty of other things to see and do in these mountain ranges.
Try braving the chilly waters at Ellery Creek Big Hole or Glen Helen Gorge.
Hike through Ormiston Pound, a bowlshaped depression surrounded by jagged peaks, or gaze across the impact crater of Gosse Bluff (Tnorala) that was formed when a comet crashed into the Earth’s surface 150 million years ago.
Royal flush
You’ll need a Mereenie Loop Permit and a four-wheel drive for the unsealed section of road to Kings Canyon, or Watarrka – a sheer, three-sided hole that looks like it’s been ripped apart by an earthquake.
Enjoy sunset canapes looking towards the Carmichael Ranges at Kings Canyon Resort before setting off on foot to explore the canyon the following day.
Follow the course of Kings Creek through the canyon floor or climb the steep stairway to the George Gill Ranges sandstone plateau on the 6km Rim Walk.
Highlights of the route include stunning viewpoints, the weathered domes of the Lost City and the Garden of Eden – a permanent oasis nurturing prehistoric cycads and tree ferns.
Onto the rock
After joining the Lasseter Highway south of Kings Canyon, don’t be surprised if you mistake the tabletop mountain to the south as Uluru.
Rest assured, you won’t be the first, leading to Mount Conner’s nickname of “Fooluru”.
You can join an eight-hour 4WD tour to Mount Conner with SEIT Outback Australia.
No natural feature is more identifiably Australian than Uluru.
Formerly known as Ayers Rock, the world-famous sandstone monolith rises above the surrounding desert plains like a high-tin bread loaf.
The stunning colours at Rainbow Valley.
Walk or ride around the rock base, stopping at the Mutitjulu Waterhole and Kantju Gorge. Alternatively, avoid the crowds on a scenic flight, or see the rock on a camel tour or from the back of a Harley-Davidson motorbike with Uluru Motorcycle Tours.
While you’re in the neighbourhood, watch the desert burst to life at the Field of Light. Or perhaps you’d like to enjoy a million-star dinner among the dunes at the Sounds of Silence or Tali Wiru.
Higher than Uluru and spread across a larger area, Kata Tjuta means “many heads”. The 36 domes can be seen from a distance or from within, thanks to two walking tracks.
Break up the journey back to Alice Springs with a detour to Rainbow Valley, just off the Stuart Highway.
The colours of sunset dance across the claypan at the foot of this freestanding sandstone bluff before being swallowed by shadows from the surrounding James Ranges.
Story Mark Daffey
Photos Tourism Central Australia
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