Description
This trek starts at
Alice Springs and travels south on the Old South Road taking in some ruins along the way to the small town of Maryvale. It then heads south east to
Chambers Pillar which is an amazing rock formation in the
Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve. This part of the trek is extremely scenic and is a good introduction to the type of scenery you would see in
the Simpson Desert although the route runs between dunes and is relatively easy.
The track to
Chambers Pillar is officially not recommended for trailers but other than a bit of sand, a rocky low range 2nd steep descent and patches of corrugations, it is straightforward and many people do bring them. There are red dunes on either side of the track, bits and pieces of historic ruins, and not a car in sight. The track is mostly sand and has good drainage when wet.
You can climb up to the base of the vertical section of
Chambers pillar to view the inscribed names of the famous explorers who passed here before the Telegraph and Ghan was built and there's a nice walk around the base of
Castle Rock. Late afternoon is the best time to view the
rainbow colours of the ridge that glow vibrantly when struck by the golden rays of the setting sun.
Interactive Route Map
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Alice Springs
The name of this city comes from it's humble beginnings when a small settlement was built along a waterhole called Alice Springs in 1872. Today, Alice Springs is the largest town in Central Australia with a population of around 24,000.
Position: 133.8836ºE 23.6975ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Ewaninga Ruin
Distance: 32.08km
Average Speed: 71.5km/h
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Ewaninga Ruin
Ewaninga Rail Siding. The Fettlers Cottage was constructed in 1929 & housed the fettlers who maintained the narrow gauge section of the Old Ghan Rail line. The last Ghan train passed through here at approx 9.40pm on 26th November, 1980 on its way to Adelaide.
Features:
Position: 133.9326ºE 23.9780ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Ooraminna Ruin
Distance: 34.17km
Average Speed: 73.2km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0335ºE 24.2601ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Old South Rd & Phillipson Stock Route
Distance: 6.66km
Average Speed: 84.45km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0571ºE 24.3158ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Old South Rd & Hugh River Stock Route
Distance: 11.2km
Average Speed: 74.55km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0223ºE 24.3977ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Bokhara Ruin
Distance: 10.3km
Average Speed: 79.58km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0431ºE 24.4854ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Mount Madigan
Distance: 12.75km
Average Speed: 78.57km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0811ºE 24.5901ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Maryvale
Distance: 9.78km
Average Speed: 65.86km/h
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Position: 134.0721ºE 24.6741ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Hugh River, Chambers Pillar Rd
Distance: 4.73km
Average Speed: 51.2km/h
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Features:
Position: 134.0361ºE 24.6853ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve
Distance: 37.16km
Average Speed: 43.97km/h
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Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve
Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve lies 160km south of Alice Springs, along the Old South Road on a turnoff to the west of Maryvale Station. The road is unsealed and may be closed after rain.
Features:
Position: 133.8197ºE 24.8656ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Castle Rock
Distance: 1.21km
Average Speed: 39.95km/h
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Features:
Position: 133.8312ºE 24.8710ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place: Chambers Pillar
Distance: 0.88km
Average Speed: 20.58km/h
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Chambers Pillar
The best photos of Chambers Pillar are taken at either sunset or sunrise. Experiment with angles and remember that photos with the pink and blue sky are taken by facing east rather than west into the setting sun.
Features:
Position: 133.8251ºE 24.8761ºS (GDA 94)
Permits
Chambers Pillar lies in an Historical Reserve and you do not need permission to enter it. Also, you do not need an Aboriginal Land Permit because you won't be passing through any restricted land.
Things to See & Do
Preparation
Fuel Supplies & Usage
 | Alice Springs, Maryvale |
Diesel | 4cyl 21 litres * |
ULP | 4cyl 26 litres |
LPG | 4cyl 32 litres |
|---|
| 6cyl 25 litres | 6cyl 32 litres * | 6cyl 28 litres |
| 8cyl 26 litres | 8cyl 27 litres | |
Usage is averaged from
TrekFuel (* specific to trek) submissions and calculated based on trek distance.
Best Time To Visit
Closest Climatic Station
Alice Springs Airport
Distance from Trek Mid Point 55.53km N
| | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| Mean Max. °C |
36.3 | 35.1 | 32.7 | 28.2 |
23.0 | 19.9 | 19.6 | 22.6 |
27.1 | 30.9 | 33.7 | 35.4 |
| Mean Min. °C |
21.4 | 20.8 | 17.5 | 12.6 |
8.3 | 5.1 | 4.0 | 6.0 |
10.2 | 14.8 | 17.9 | 20.2 |
| Mean Rain mm |
38.0 | 42.3 | 31.9 | 16.8 |
19.4 | 14.4 | 14.7 | 9.5 |
8.3 | 21.9 | 26.7 | 37.5 |
Best time to travel Ok time to travel Travel NOT recommended
Camp Sites & Accomodation
The camp sites are excellent - great views of both
Castle Rock and
Chambers Pillar, free gas BBQs, hotplates, fire pits and large picnic tables. The camp sites are not ideal for campertrailers or caravans with bollards making sites better suited to tent campers. Although you can camp in the shade your vehicle certainly won't be. This is a consideration in hotter
weather as there is no power to keep fridges or batteries charged.
Driving Directions
Time
Direction
Distance
| Alice Springs to Ewaninga Ruin |
32.08 km |
S |
171° |
26 min |
| Ewaninga Ruin to Ooraminna Ruin |
34.17 km |
S |
162° |
28 min |
| Ooraminna Ruin to Old South Rd & Phillipson Stock Route |
6.66 km |
S |
159° |
4 min |
| Old South Rd & Phillipson Stock Route to Old South Rd & Hugh River Stock Route |
11.2 km |
S |
201° |
9 min |
| Old South Rd & Hugh River Stock Route to Bokhara Ruin |
10.3 km |
S |
168° |
7 min |
| Bokhara Ruin to Mount Madigan |
12.75 km |
S |
162° |
9 min |
| Mount Madigan to Maryvale |
9.78 km |
S |
186° |
8 min |
| Maryvale to Hugh River, Chambers Pillar Rd |
4.73 km |
W |
251° |
5 min |
| Hugh River, Chambers Pillar Rd to Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve |
37.16 km |
SW |
227° |
50 min |
| Chambers Pillar Historical Reserve to Castle Rock |
1.21 km |
SE |
117° |
1 min |
| Castle Rock to Chambers Pillar |
0.88 km |
SW |
227° |
2 min |
| Alice Springs to Chambers Pillar |
160.93 km |
|
|
2 hr 35 min |
Distance is GPS recorded driving distance (not straight line), Direction is straight line from start to end, Time is calculated from actual GPS driving data.
Outback Way
Linking Laverton in WA to Winton in QLD, the Outback Way was coined to promote the development of a 'third strategic link' across Australia, and is fast becoming one of the most iconic outback tourism and adventure drives in the country.
[Feature Story]
Trek Search
ExplorOz Trek Notes are detailed, factual reviews of destinations in Australia to which you can plan a self-drive camping trip. This page will enable you to access over 100 of these trek notes, using various search methods and at a glance you can see what treks we have in each area across Australia.
Plenty Highway
Part of the "Outback Way", the Plenty Highway is the most direct route from central Queensland across to Alice Springs in central Australia. It is a wide stretch of very red sandy soil that when wet can be impassible - 4WD only.
Owen Springs Reserve
An easy short trek out of Alice Springs with good bush camping and a historic value of early European explorers to Central Australia.
Old Andado Track
The Old Andado Track traverses fascinating terrain that includes mountain ranges, rocky gibber plains, desert sand dunes and floodplains in the Red Centre just south of Alice Springs.
Hay River
Suitable only to 4WDers with a strong sense of adventure and experience in remote desert travel. This track is largely unmarked and good map-reading skills are essential.
Finke to Uluru via Old Gunbarrel
An alternative route to access the wonderful Uluru - Kata Tjuta National Park, this trip from Finke east of the Stuart Highway takes in the Lambert Centre - the planimetric gravitational centre of Australia, and a short section of the Old Gunbarrel Highway before intersecting the main route of the Lasseter Highway near Curtain Springs.
The Tanami Track
The Tanami Track is essentially a great short-cut linking the Red Centre to the Kimberley. Although once a notorious 4WD track, it is now a graded dirt highway.
Boggy Hole
Finke Gorge is located within the Finke Gorge NP south of the West MacDonnell Ranges in the Alice Springs region. The most popular attraction is Boggy Hole, a permanent billabong of the Finke River. This is a good 4WD route to Uluru and/or Kings Canyon.
West MacDonnell Ranges
The West MacDonnell Ranges in the heart of Australia's red centre stretch for 400km from east-west as a series of parallel ranges. Within the ranges are magnificent gaps and gorges, dramatic scenery, great bush camping and walks.
Simpson Desert via Geosurveys Hill
From the stone workings of our ancient aboriginal past to the routes undertaken for the old oil exploration surveys, this very remote one-way trek starting at Mount Dare to Birdsville is for experienced desert travellers ONLY.
