4WD Adventure Central Australia

4WD Holiday in Central Australia in February?

Kay and Doug share their wet season Alice Springs 4WD Camper trip

Visiting Central Australia in February is not generally recommended but it was the only time we had available and we were not disappointed, in fact we’d highly recommend it if you like to see your wilderness without the crowds.  Just make sure you are up early for walks in the morning and drive during the hottest part of the day in air-conditioned comfort.

We collected our 4WD camper in Alice Springs and after a brief demonstration on how to set up the equipment etc, a quick trip to the shops for supplies and we were on our way.  Most of Central Australia’s most well known sights are easily accessible to normal cars but we chose to hire a 4WD camper for its flexibility to get off the beaten track.

We travelled the 630km Red Centre Way from Alice Springs to Uluru via Kings Canyon on the Mereenie Loop Rd and back 445km to “The Alice” via Lassiter & Stuart highways with a couple of extra detours.

From the Alice, we headed west through the ancient purple West Macdonnell Ranges to Glen Helen Gorge over nighting first at Simpsons Gap and then Ormiston Gorge.  Handy hint #1 hang the excellent provided camplight a short distance away from the unzipped tent.  You could drive this route in two days but it was worth taking your time to explore all the gorges along Namajira Drive, the ancient meteor crater of Gosse Bluff on the Meerenie and not forgetting the spectacular Kings Canyon for your "Priscilla" moment.

The bitumen stops at Glen Helen and the red dirt starts; four-wheel-drive is recommended on the Meerenie, this dirt road will take you to Kings Canyon, where you can hook up with the bitumen road to Uluru.  You’ll need a permit for travelling through aboriginal land but this is easily obtained from Glen Helen Resort (don’t forget to fuel up). Handy hint #2 you can get tyres repaired over-night at Kings Canyon Resort.

After another early morning walk we arrived at Uluru “Ayres Rock” in time for sunset viewing but as with several of our afternoons local thunderstorms had developed.  So instead of the iconic sunset we experienced the spectacular of lightening striking Uluru and rain cascading off the rock; a rare sight that even most locals have not witnessed.

The next day it was all clear again and after another early morning to watch the sunrise we headed off for an early walk around Kata Tjuta “The Olgas”.  We over-nighted again at Yulara and were disappointed to miss out on the Sounds of Silence dinner experience due to the rain the night before (book early any time of year) but that didn’t matter because the gourmet meal we had at the Kuniya Restaurant in the 5 star Sails in the Desert Hotel was sensational.

We headed back towards Alice Springs stopping to view Mt Connor and the Henbury Meteorite Reserve.  About 80km before the Alice we turned off down another four-wheel-drive track to the spectacular Rainbow Valley.  Next day instead of heading straight into Alice we headed into the less well known East Macdonnald Ranges to the Aritunga Historic Reserve the site of an old mining town where gold was found in 1887.  Our last night was spent at Trephina Gorge.  Another fabulous camp ground with toilets, hot showers & gas barbeques provided as we found at most of the National Park campgrounds.  During the night we thrilled to the thunder echoing off the gorge walls and the next day safely traversed the river that had appeared overnight on our return the Alice Springs.

We can fully recommend a 4WD camper holiday in this region and even the wet season can produce a very memorable experience.