The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

The Road to Alice

The road trip my brother and I made from Eden, New South Wales to Alice Springs in the Northern Territories covered more than 3,600 km (2,200 miles) and took seven days.  With this much time to drive into and appreciate the Outback, we were able to stop and enjoy some of the most interesting sights on the way, including kayaking the Kings Billabong along the Murray River in northern Victoria, going on a sunrise hike to Wilpena Pound in Flinders National Park in South Australia, seeing Uluru (Ayers Rock) and the Kata Tjuta rock formations in the rain, and hiking the iconic Kings Canyon National Park rim walk (also in the rain!) in the Northern Territories.  The photos below highlight some of these adventures.

Clifford and a rotted tree creating an interesting sculpture at the Kings Billabong, off of the Murray River in northern Victoria
Pelicans on the Kings Billabong. Billabongs are isolated ponds left behind after a river changes course.  This one was engineered into a reservoir in the late 1800’s to irrigate the fields in the nearby arid lands.
Wilpena Pound in the early morning light, Flinders Ranges National Park, South Australia. Pounds, a term I had not previously heard, are relatively flat areas surrounded by mountains.
The Vagabond Hiker at Arkaroo Rock, Flinders National Park.  Still recovering from a several day bout of gout.
A Mallee Ringneck Parrot at Pound Gap in Flinders
An atmospheric Kata Tjuta overlook panorama, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.  Kata Tjuta means ‘many heads’ in the local Aboriginal language.
Late season seed pods at Kata Tjuta
A misty landscape at Kata Tjuta’s Valley of the Winds
A rare cascade at Kata Tjuta. Unlike the sandstone of Uluru, the rock formations at Kata Tjuta are conglomerate.
Uluru (fka Ayers Rock), the 2nd largest monolith in the world
The Kitchen Cave, Uluru. The site is sacred to the local Aboriginals who do not want visitors to climb The Rock.  Due to rains, it was officially closed anyway the day we were there.
Rarely seen Uluru cascades.  The rainiest weather I have experienced in two months in Australia was in the desert in the Northern Territories.
The Uluru base track at the point we turned back. Although it was flooded out, the trail had not yet been closed.
Uluru Aboriginal rock art
A gushing Uluru waterfall
A geologist enjoying the rock strata at Kings Canyon National Park
A Ring Tailed Dragon showing his camouflage along the path at Kings Canyon creek
Kings Canyon from the trail up to the rim
Kings Canyon rock textures and vista from along the Watarrka Rim Walk
Perhaps a Mains Frog at Kings Canyon brought out by the rain
The Garden of Eden, Kings Canyon, featuring relict cycads.  Note the rain drops on the pool.
A temporary pool on Kings Canyon South rim.  It rained almost continuously for more than two hours while we were hiking along the rim.
Not quail, these are Spinifex Pigeons at Kings Canyon
Panorama of Kings Canyon South Wall vista
A gorgeous Kings Canyon Holly Grevillea

Next week my travels will take me to Vancouver Island in Canada.  I will do one more short post from my latest hiking photos of the Alice Springs area, possibly later this week during a 2,700 km road trip odyssey back to Sydney.  Meanwhile,

Happy trails,

The Vagabond Hiker

Comments

  1. The pictures are great! Although, not so different than southern UT. 😉

    • Yes, the Red Centre (note the British spelling) definitely has reminded me of Southern Utah. My next post will continue in the same vein…

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