West MacDonnell Ranges

Difficulty: Difficulty 1/5 Suitable for: 4WD AWD 2WD Caravan Camper Motorhome Bike 
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.
StartClick to Reverse the Dynamic Map and Driving NotesPalm Valley (Mpulungkinya)
FinishAlice Springs
Distance297.86 kmMinimum Days2
Average Speed48.2 km/hrDriving Time6 hrs 10 mins
Article By: ExplorOz Team | Page Updated: 28 Sep 2011

In this TrekNote

Description
Preparation
Related Travel Journals
Interactive Route Map
Camp Sites & Accommodation
Related Pages
Permits
Driving Directions
Related Shop Items
Things to See & Do
Trek Feedback

Go to top Description

There is so much to see in the Alice Springs region that you really need to plan your route carefully. With a 4WD you get the opportunity to avoid backtracking and can reach all the major and lesser known sites over a comfortable 1 week period. If you are a particularly keen walker, photographer or artist you would certainly want to allow 2 weeks or more. Most sites have various tracks to explore ranging from easy walks of just a few hundred metres to overnight hikes. There are countless opportunities for soaking up the surroundings on foot but if you are in a rush, excellent bitumen roads links all the major attractions to within a day's drive of Alice Springs.

This route we describe here is 2WD accessible as it follows the bitumen Larapinta Drive out of Alice Springs passing John Flynns Grave, Simpsons Gap and Standley Chasm, then swings east on the Namatjira Drive to Ellery Creek Bighole, Serpentine Gorge, Ochre Pits, Ormiston Gorge, Glen Helen Gorge. A good dirt road continues the trek to Redbank Gorge, Gosse Bluff and Hermannsburg with a 4WD only diversion to Palm Valley.

2WD Accessible Sights (Walking tracks at all, camping at most)

The walking in the West McDonnells is excellent with quite a few choices depending on your level of fitness or temperature of the day. Walking close to some of the rocks can get incredibly hot in middle of the day, yet there are some gorges better visited at midday when the sunlight shines directly on the rocks and lights up the sheer walls with intense red colours (such as Standley Chasm).

Go to top Interactive Route Map

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West MacDonnell Ranges Help

From: Palm Valley (Mpulungkinya)
To: Alice Springs

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Go to top Permits

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Go to top Things to See & Do

Go to top Preparation

Fuel Supplies & Usage

Fuel SymbolHermannsburg, Glen Helen, Alice Springs Diesel4cyl 42 litres ULP4cyl 48 litres LPG4cyl 60 litres
6cyl 46 litres6cyl 54 litres6cyl 52 litres
8cyl 46 litres8cyl 49 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 59.1km E
 JanFebMarAprMayJun JulAugSepOctNovDec
Mean Max. °C 36.335.132.728.2 23.019.819.722.6 27.230.933.635.4
Mean Min. °C 21.420.817.512.6 8.35.14.16.0 10.314.817.820.2
Mean Rain mm 38.643.431.016.6 19.014.015.39.4 8.621.828.737.1
    Best time to travel      Ok time to travel      Travel NOT recommended

Services & Supplies

The following locations have various services and supplies: Hermannsburg, Glen Helen, Alice Springs

Go to top Camp Sites & Accommodation


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Go to top Driving Directions

Time
Direction
Distance
Palm Valley (Mpulungkinya) to Lower Mount Hermannsburg 13.03 km N 33 min
Lower Mount Hermannsburg to Larapinta Drive & Boggy Hole Access 5.67 km NE 44° 10 min
Larapinta Drive & Boggy Hole Access to Hermannsburg 0.54 km NW 303°
Hermannsburg to Albert Namatjira's House 5.23 km W 273° 10 min
Albert Namatjira's House to Gosses Bluff Meteorite Impact Crater 56.18 km W 287° 1 hr 19 min
Gosses Bluff Meteorite Impact Crater to Gosses Bluff 0.3 km W 271° 1 min
Gosses Bluff to Tylers Pass 21.54 km N 17° 31 min
Tylers Pass to Namatjira Dve, West MacDonnell NP Boundary 24.14 km NE 64° 24 min
Namatjira Dve, West MacDonnell NP Boundary to Glen Helen Gorge 20.51 km SE 117° 24 min
Glen Helen Gorge to Glen Helen 0.92 km N 343° 3 min
Glen Helen to Finke River, Namatjira Dve 0.88 km N 344°
Finke River, Namatjira Dve to Ormiston Gorge and Pound 9.48 km NE 44° 9 min
Ormiston Gorge and Pound to Neil Hargrave Lookout 30.48 km SE 128° 33 min
Neil Hargrave Lookout to Ellery Creek Big Hole 18.37 km E 101° 17 min
Ellery Creek Big Hole to Point Howard Lookout 11.98 km E 104° 19 min
Point Howard Lookout to Hugh River, Namatjira Dve 21.63 km E 92° 16 min
Hugh River, Namatjira Dve to Namatjira Dve & Larapinta Dve 9.42 km E 97° 6 min
Namatjira Dve & Larapinta Dve to Iwupataka (Jay Creek) 5.9 km NE 41° 4 min
Iwupataka (Jay Creek) to Alice Springs 41.65 km E 75° 45 min
Palm Valley (Mpulungkinya) to Alice Springs 297.86 km     6 hr 10 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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