Outback Adventure 2019

Day 15

Alice Springs - East Macdonnell Ranges - Alice Springs

Today we ventured to the East Macdonnell Ranges - a place that we haven’t been to previously. It was an easy drive from the park to the Ross Highway which takes you out east to the other side of the Range.

It is fair to say that the East Macdonnells are the poor cousin of the West Macdonnells. There really is chalk and cheese between the two.

We drove out the 88kms to the Ross River homestead which was a lovely quite spot to stay with some quaint cabins and surprisingly lots of grassy spots.

From there we drove back towards Alice stopping at Trephina Gorge which for mine was the highlight of the East Macdonnells. Towering rock faces that look like a giant jenga game line the sides of what would be a magnificent river when it flows. We marveled at how good it would be on a blow up lilo riding down between the rock faces when the river ran. There was even some artwork on the rock walls.

Our next stop was Corroboree Rock which was (and is) a significant place for the local tribes for storing ceremonial artifacts.

Our last stops were Emily and Jessie Gorges which were very close to the road but nothing of any significance. Nice to look at with a bit of artwork in one bit that’s all.

Returning to the park we watched the sunset from a plateau that overlooks the park on the hill behind our van sites which included a few drinks and nibbles of course.

Tomorrow we explore more of Alice.