Saturday, September 21, 2013
Up early to hike Kings Canyon. First stop however was the gas station to get a permit to “enter and transit through Haasts Bluff Pass Aborginal Land Trust along the Mereenie Loop Road between Katapata Pass and Watarrka National Park”. Or put another way, to take the back roads and short cut from Kings Canyon to Alice Springs saving several hundred kilometers of road. With permit in hand we headed off to start our hike.
Kings Canyon hike is a 6 km track (or 4 mile) unto and around the rim of the canyon. The estimated duration for the walk is a massive 3.5 hours. Which seems incredible, only 1 mile an hour. But the scenery is beautiful so it is good to be enjoyed. And although we were on the trail at 7:45am, the temperatures were already rising rapidly. We were in for a hot morning walk.
As advertised the scenery was quite magnificent. Spoilt only by the hordes of other tourists. Temperatures probably peaked at 36C.
In the afternoon we hit the dirt roads again for the trip to Alice Springs via the West McDonald Ranges or Watarrka National Park. The highlight of the park for us was Ellery Creek Hole. Imagine a waterhole in the middle of a vast and arid desert, hidden away among the rocks where people are sunbathing and swimming. The water was very cold. But a little Oasis in an otherwise pretty harsh land.
Alice Springs greeted us with air conditioned supermarkets and shops. Time to get some fresh meat, fruit and vegetables, which had run out about 5 days ago. Tonight we eat well.
