Matt Down Under

Last week I had the chance to join a British and a German girl with their campervan and spend a few days in the West MacDonnell Ranges not far from Alice Springs. A popular route is to drive down Larapinta Drive and then along Namatjira Drive until about Glen Helen Gorge. On the way there are several waterholes, gorges or other interesting attractions where you can often go on short marked walks for a few hours. This route also meets the Larapinta Trail in several places so I got a really good feeling on what it’s like to walk it.

Day 1 — Alice Springs to Ellery Creek Big Hole

I checked out at the YHA in the morning and moved all my stuff into the campervan. It was a nice Toyota HiAce campervan from Britz, not your typical smelly backpacker van — this one came with lots of great functionality and unlike the Jucy campervan my former travel companion had, the Britz actually allowed leaving on the fridge even when you’re not driving, without ending up a flat car battery in the morning (hint hint).

Our first stop was at Simpsons Gap. We first did the short walk to the waterhole where I saw some White-necked Herons that weren’t very shy. We then looked at the map and decided to walk the Cassia Hill short walk, but we couldn’t quite locate the start of the track, so we walked on the Larapinta Trail for a while until it became clear that the junction that was marked on the map wasn’t there. Very strange track marking.

We walked back to the car park and then drove back to an earlier car park from where there was another possibility to start the walk. It was a nice short walk with some information on plants and trees and great views from the top of the hill.

Next stop was Standley Chasm. It’s on Aboriginal land and you’re asked to pay around $8 entry fee. Since we were there anyway I wanted to see it and paid the fee. It was a half hour return walk to the chasm and I personally enjoyed it. It’s a really impressive place. The small track to the chasm also crossed the Larapinta Trail.

Back from the short walk I went to walk one of the other tracks offered there but only went as far as to a lookout point from where there were really great views over the valley.

Our next and final stop for the day was at Ellery Creek Big Hole. It’s a popular waterhole for swimming in summer and also another trail head for the Larapinta Trail. We arrived there late afternoon and only walked around the dry river bed and the waterhole for about an hour before returning to the van because it started to get dark. At the waterhole we watched a pair of Whistling Kites slowly circling right above the quiet water and catching fish — very fascinating to watch.

We also saw plenty of dead fish around, but later we found out that it’s normal apparently. From what I remember, in winter the water temperature drops rapidly, which leads to a shortage of oxygen and the death of a lot of fish. But it’s only natural and there was certainly no shortage of fish in the water hole.

The night was freezing cold — I was very glad I could use a second sleeping bag that was provided with the van. We also had mice inside the van, there were heaps of mice everywhere on the campsite — something I noticed many times in the outback so far.

Day 2 — Ellery Creek Big Hole to Glen Helen Resort

We left Ellery Creek and drove to the Ochre Pits. There are no long walking tracks, it’s mostly about Aboriginal culture and history and a short walk to the very beautiful and colourful rocks. Very worth stopping there.

Our main stop for the day was soon after at Ormiston Gorge. We prepared for a long walk with sunscreen and water, but then we saw warning signs that apparently the main tracks were impassable due to flooding, and it now required swimming through cold water or alternatively walking back. I decided to walk the long 3h Pound Walk anyway — after all it was a hot day and it only said ‘swimming through water’, could be worse. The girls decided to try a shorter walk around the waterhole instead.

The Pound Walk turned out to be one of the greatest short walks I have ever done in Australia. First it followed the Larapinta Trail again, then traversing the dry river bed, some open fields and small hills before climbing up to a lookout on a ridge from where the views were stunning. Vegetation on the track was beautiful too with many interesting plants and flowers.

After the lookout the track left the ridge on a saddle and led down to open plains again until it joined the dry river that led into the gorge from the other end. It was a very sunny day and most of the time I was the only person around, I really enjoyed it.

It was particularly impressive to walk into this massive gorge, following the dry river bed. Some very fascinating rock formations there. Walking in the shade of the gorge it suddenly got pretty chilly.

After about 2.5h, about 10min before the real end of the track, it suddenly ended at a waterhole, which was obviously the point where the swimming part began. I had secretly hoped the flood warnings were outdated, but there was really no way to walk on without crossing the water or doing spectacular rock climbing along the gorge walls.

I spent more than half an hour assessing the situation and figuring out the best spot to cross the — shockingly cold — water. In the end I had no choice but to take off my clothes, hold my backpack above my head and wade through the water. It was a bit more than waist-deep.

The rocks were very slippery but I got through without big issues, apart from not feeling my feet anymore after the cold water. In the end I thought it was quite funny to walk the track and I’m very glad I did it. It was really one of the greatest short walks ever, such varying track conditions but always amazing scenery. Highly recommended.

The girls were already waiting and we did two more stops at Tyler Pass Lookout and Mt Sonder Lookout to watch the sunset, before spending the night at Glen Helen Resort campground.

The following morning we simply drove all the way back to Alice Springs.

Larapinta Trail

I got a lot of great impressions of the Larapinta Trail. I saw several campsites and trail heads on the two days in the West MacDonnell Ranges and I even bought the Chapman guide (yes there really is a Chapman book for everything, and their clothes never change).

When I first came here two weeks ago I actually planned to walk a few sections, either from Standley Chasm or Ellery Creek back to Alice Springs which would have been 5-10 days and includes some of the greatest parts of the track. It only then got freezing cold at nights within a few days so it didn’t make sense since my sleeping bag is too light.

I think the best time to walk the Larapinta Trail (for me) is April/May. Right at the end of the wet season, when it is still hot during daytime — I just love the hot weather — and mild during nights. I’m pretty excited to walk the whole trail some day, it’s very interesting landscape combined with great campsites and plenty of desert wildlife.