Kalarranga Lookout NT - August 2015

Walking up the trail to the top

View from the top

Di - enjoying the view

We had a good stop off on our day tour from Alice Springs and that was the Kalarranga Lookout.

It was a easy climb to the top of the lookout where we had a good overview of the surrounding countryside.  

From the road the countryside is very flat and arid looking.  The rock formations create the beauty and colour.

The loop walk was 40 minutes so we opted to climb to the top of the biggest rock to get the best of the view. It was worth the climb and took about 20 minutes or so there and back.

Cycad Gorge NT - August 2015

A visit to Cycad Gorge was part of our day tour from Alice Springs.  Given we had travelled for half a day out from Alice Springs to find this special area where the Cycad Palms grow naturally - it was amazing to see hundreds of Cycads living and multiplying in this arid area.  

The cycads seemed to be growing on one side of the gorge that must give them the right degree of light and shade to survive.

This area is uniquely beautiful highlighted by the red tones of the gorge with its natural formations.

Mpulungkinya Palm Valley - Finke Gorge National Park NT- August 2015

Palm Valley - the survival of red cabbage palms

The surviving red cabbage palms 

Walking paths made more secure with interlocking rubber panels

Details of the survival path of the plants in arid country

Walks around Palm Valley

Finke Gorge - walks can be done along the rim

Palm Valley

Walks around Palm Valley

Walking path map at Palm Valley

Walks around Palm Valley

Walks around Palm Valley

On the way back to Alice Springs - three hour trip ahead of us!

On the way back from Alice Springs

On the way back to Alice Springs

Turnoff to Hemansburg

125 kms to go to Alice Springs

On the way to Alice Springs

On the way to Alice Springs

On the way to Alice Springs

On the way back to Alice Springs

On the way back to Alice Springs

On the way back to Alice Springs

Back to Alice Springs at 6.30 pm 

The final stop of our day tour from Alice Sprngs was Palm Valley.  This area has the surviving red-cabbage palms of which there is only one small grove of trees. 

It is difficult for many plants to survive in this very arid country so to see Palm trees seemingly living happily in this one area is amazing. 

There were a lot of walking tracks where we could go and explore the area but apart from the small grove of palms there is not much here.

The surrounding country is very flat and dry.

Our trip back to Alice Springs was uneventful with not a lot to look at as the land is so flat.

It was a huge day - leaving early in the morning and getting home at about 6.30pm.

You need to be a bush and nature lover to enjoy this long day tour but the area is very unique. We were well looked after by the tour guide who was a son of one of the famous early explorers of Alice Springs and Uluru so he was very knowledgeable about the local area.