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Owen Springs Reserve
Difficulty:
Suitable for:
An easy short trek out of Alice Springs with good bush camping and a historic value of early European explorers to Central Australia.
Start
Stuart Highway & Owen Springs Access Tk
Finish
Larapinta Drive & Owen Springs Rd
Distance
55.48 km
Minimum Days
1
Average Speed
28.41 km/hr
Driving Time
1 hr 57 min
Article By: Member - Willem Kempen Updated: 5 Dec 2007
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Description
Environment
Interactive Route Map
History
Permits
Driving Directions
Things to See & Do
Trek Feedback
Preparation
Related Pages
Camp Sites & Accomodation
Recommended Reading
In this Trek Note
Description
Travelling around 66kms south west on the Stuart Highway from
Alice Springs
takes you to the starting point of the trek. It can be done in a minimum of half a day, although a full day is recommended to take in all the sights. The track runs a total of 55 and a half kilometres along a single-dirt track, which is mostly an easy run on a hard surface except on a couple of
places
of patches of very soft sand where it drops into the Hugh Riverbed. Camper Trailers and Off-Road caravans could be towed along this track. The
Owen Springs
track ends at the junction of the Larapinta Drive, which is bitumen all the way for the final 50km return to
Alice Springs
.
There are 2 great areas for bush
camping
(no facilities), namely at
Redbank Waterhole
on the Hugh River (a 2km side track), and also within
Lawrence Gorge
.
Redbank Waterhole
offers a peaceful rest area amongst the River Red Gums although they only offer limited shade. There is often enough water in the hole during the peak travel season to cool off in and the hole shows signs of having more water after good rains. Further along the track interesting stops are at Haunted Tree Bore and Old
Owen Springs
Homestead ruins. You could expect to see Red kangaroos and numerous birds including
Port Lincoln
Parrots and Honeyeaters and flowering corkwood trees.
North of Larapinta Drive there are more
camping
opportunities at
Birthday Gap Waterhole
and Reedy Waterhole, which are accessed from the Namatjira Drive. The turnoff however is a hundred metres or so before the Hugh River causeway and is unmarked. Both these
places
are accessible without fees or
permits
. For more information on this area in general, see our
West MacDonnell Ranges
Trek Note.
Interactive Route Map
Stuart Highway & Owen Springs Access Tk
Junction
Features:
Position: 133.5130ºE 24.1543ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
Distance:
4.02km
Average Speed:
35.45km/h
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
Track junction
Features:
Position: 133.4802ºE 24.1339ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Redbank Waterhole
Distance:
3.63km
Average Speed:
41.85km/h
Redbank Waterhole
Redbank Waterhole offers a peaceful rest area amongst the River Red Gums although they only offer limited shade. There is often enough water in the hole during the peak travel season to cool off in and the hole shows signs of having more water after good rains.
Features:
Position: 133.4556ºE 24.1545ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
Distance:
3.63km
Average Speed:
41.85km/h
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
Track junction
Features:
Position: 133.4802ºE 24.1339ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs Access Tk & James Range Bore Access
Distance:
2.47km
Average Speed:
29.35km/h
Owen Springs Access Tk & James Range Bore Access
Track junction
Features:
Position: 133.4679ºE 24.1241ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Victory Waterhole
Distance:
13.96km
Average Speed:
24.87km/h
Victory Waterhole
Waterhole
Features:
Position: 133.4031ºE 24.0477ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Haunted Tree Bore
Distance:
4.76km
Average Speed:
17.63km/h
Haunted Tree Bore
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Features:
Position: 133.4100ºE 24.0087ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Lawrence Gorge
Distance:
3.59km
Average Speed:
24.17km/h
Lawrence Gorge
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Features:
Position: 133.4370ºE 23.9933ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Old Owen Springs (Ruins)
Distance:
1.71km
Average Speed:
17.72km/h
Old Owen Springs (Ruins)
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Features:
Position: 133.4417ºE 23.9805ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs Access Tk & 5 Mile Bore Access
Distance:
0.57km
Average Speed:
22.04km/h
Owen Springs Access Tk & 5 Mile Bore Access
Track junction
Features:
Position: 133.4391ºE 23.9760ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs Access Tk & Whitepoint Bore Access
Distance:
0.44km
Average Speed:
22.92km/h
Owen Springs Access Tk & Whitepoint Bore Access
Track junction
Features:
Position: 133.4386ºE 23.9718ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Ranger Station - Emergency Use Only
Distance:
12.16km
Average Speed:
34.55km/h
Ranger Station - Emergency Use Only
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Features:
Position: 133.4717ºE 23.8781ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Owen Springs
Distance:
0.72km
Average Speed:
22.28km/h
Owen Springs
Owen Springs Track offers secluded camping at both ends of the gorge, an interesting historical reserve and ruins, a good selection of wildlife including red tailed black cockatoos. Very worthwhile. No facilities.
Features:
Position: 133.4717ºE 23.8733ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Hugh River, Owen Springs Rd
Distance:
0.25km
Average Speed:
22.67km/h
Hugh River, Owen Springs Rd
River crossing
Features:
Position: 133.4677ºE 23.8722ºS (GDA 94)
Next Place:
Larapinta Drive & Owen Springs Rd
Distance:
3.57km
Average Speed:
40.38km/h
Larapinta Drive & Owen Springs Rd
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Features:
Position: 133.4551ºE 23.8457ºS (GDA 94)
Route Control
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Permits
None required
Things to See & Do
Redbank Waterhole
Redbank Waterhole offers a peaceful rest area amongst the River Red Gums although they only offer limited shade. There is often enough water in the hole during the peak travel season to cool off in and the hole shows signs of having more water after good rains.
Lawrence Gorge
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Old Owen Springs (Ruins)
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Victory Waterhole
Waterhole
Haunted Tree Bore
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Redbank Waterhole
Old Owen Springs (Ruins)
Haunted Tree Bore
Lawrence Gorge
Victory Waterhole
Preparation
A full tank of fuel is required plus at least 40 litres of water if
camping
more than one day. There are no facilities at either of the
camping
areas. Please bury all human waste more than 50 metres from any river bed and burn all paper used. The normal safety and comfort rules apply in this harsh climate and please remember to take your rubbish away with you, keep to designated tracks, all cultural items and wildlife are protected. Open fires are allowed in the designated
camping
areas but please extinguish them before you leave your camp site so as to minimise the risk of bushfires.
You will only find these tracks detailed on 250K mapsheets, and not on smaller scale map sheets. It is also not currently shown on the Hema GDT NC map, or any other paper maps we hold in stock. We used the SG5301 Henbury map from the Natmap 250K Raster Mapsheets on CD.
Fuel Supplies & Usage
Diesel
4cyl 8 litres
ULP
4cyl 9 litres
LPG
4cyl 11 litres
6cyl 9 litres
6cyl 10 litres
6cyl 10 litres
8cyl 9 litres
8cyl 9 litres
Usage is averaged from
TrekFuel
(* specific to trek) submissions and calculated based on trek distance.
Fuel is available at
Alice Springs
although this town is not represented in this trek note.
Best Time To Visit
Closest Climatic Station
Alice Springs Airport
Distance from Trek Mid Point 49.6km NE
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
Supplies are available at
Alice Springs
although this town is not represented in this trek note.
Camp Sites & Accomodation
Redbank Waterhole
Redbank Waterhole offers a peaceful rest area amongst the River Red Gums although they only offer limited shade. There is often enough water in the hole during the peak travel season to cool off in and the hole shows signs of having more water after good rains.
Lawrence Gorge
No description entered.
Enter description or photos
.
Environment
This trek takes you over plains and through a gorge. The main flora feature is mulga scrub, which is interspersed with corkwood and ironwood trees. Along the river fringes elegant River Red Gums provide shady retreats for wildlife, which include a variety of birds and kangaroos.
History
The first white men to travel through this country were the explorers, John McDouall Stuart, William Kekwick and Benjamin Head. On 11 April 1860, whilst travelling north along the Hugh River they discovered a large water hole. Stuart named this waterhole
Owen Springs
. One of the results of this discovery led to the Overland Telegraph Line following the Hugh River through
Lawrence Gorge
in the Waterhouse Range in 1872. In the same year William Gilbert established a cattle run on
Owen Springs
and built the first station homestead in the
Northern Territory
. After the death of the last lessee of the Pastoral Lease, the
Northern Territory
Government acquired the property in the year 2000 and opened it in a limited capacity for free public recreation in 2003.
Driving Directions
Time
Direction
Distance
Stuart Highway & Owen Springs Access Tk to Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
4.02 km
NW
304°
6 min
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access to Redbank Waterhole
3.63 km
SW
228°
5 min
Redbank Waterhole to Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access
3.63 km
NE
48°
5 min
Owen Springs Access Tk & Redbank Waterhole Access to Owen Springs Access Tk & James Range Bore Access
2.47 km
NW
311°
5 min
Owen Springs Access Tk & James Range Bore Access to Victory Waterhole
13.96 km
NW
322°
33 min
Victory Waterhole to Haunted Tree Bore
4.76 km
N
9°
16 min
Haunted Tree Bore to Lawrence Gorge
3.59 km
NE
58°
8 min
Lawrence Gorge to Old Owen Springs (Ruins)
1.71 km
N
19°
5 min
Old Owen Springs (Ruins) to Owen Springs Access Tk & 5 Mile Bore Access
0.57 km
NW
332°
1 min
Owen Springs Access Tk & 5 Mile Bore Access to Owen Springs Access Tk & Whitepoint Bore Access
0.44 km
N
353°
1 min
Owen Springs Access Tk & Whitepoint Bore Access to Ranger Station - Emergency Use Only
12.16 km
N
18°
21 min
Ranger Station - Emergency Use Only to Owen Springs
0.72 km
N
359°
1 min
Owen Springs to Hugh River, Owen Springs Rd
0.25 km
W
287°
Hugh River, Owen Springs Rd to Larapinta Drive & Owen Springs Rd
3.57 km
NW
336°
5 min
Stuart Highway & Owen Springs Access Tk to Larapinta Drive & Owen Springs Rd
55.48 km
1 hr 57 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.
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