©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd Uluru & Outback Northern Territory Includes ¨ Why Go? KATHERINE. 181 The remote and largely untamed chunk of the Northern BARKLY TABLELAND Territory from Katherine to Uluru is where dreams end and & GULF COUNTRY ... 191 adventure begins. If you enjoy off-road driving, meeting real CENTRAL NT .......194 characters of the Australian outback, and contortions of an Tennant Creek. .195 ancient land sliced into escarpments, canyons, gorges and pockets of verdant bush, then you’ve come to the right place. Tanami Track ........198 The Stuart Hwy from Katherine to Alice Springs is still re- ALICE SPRINGS .....198 ferred to as ‘the Track’ – it has been since WWII, when it was MACDONNELL literally a dirt track connecting the NT’s two main towns. It’s RANGES ...........208 dead straight most of the way. The Red Centre is Australia’s NT’S FAR SOUTH ....214 heartland, boasting the iconic attractions of Uluru (Ayers KINGS CANYON .....216 Rock) and Kata Tjuta (The Olgas), plus an enigmatic Cen- tral Desert culture that continues to produce extraordinary ULURU-KATA TJUTA NATIONAL PARK ....217 abstract art. And delighting travellers with its eccentric of- ferings, pioneering spirit and weathered mountain setting, Alice Springs is the city at the centre of a continent. Best Places to Eat ¨ Marksies Camp Tucker When to Go (p183) Alice Springs ¨ Sounds of Silence (p218) °C/°F Te mp Rainfall inches/mm ¨ Black Russian Caravan Bar 40/104 8/200 (p183) 30/86 6/150 ¨ Montes (p204) 20/68 4/100 Best Places 10/50 2/50 0/32 0 to Sleep J FDM A M J J A S O N ¨ Desert Gardens Hotel (p219) Apr–Aug Peak Jun & Jul Festival Sep–Mar It’s hot, season with cooler season: Beanie hot, hot around ¨ Lorella Springs Wilderness temperatures in Festival and Alice Springs; Park (p195) the Red Centre. Camel Cup in Alice storms bring relief ¨ Seven Emu Station (p197) Springs. in Katherine. #\ :#\ #\ : : : 6: 66 : : : : 180 : #Y Nitmiluk 44: #3 # 0 200 km Joseph e Katherine #\ National Park 0 100 miles Bonaparte : : #\ Beswick Roper Riv Gulf Giwining/ ÷# #÷ # #\ er : : : : : Elsey Ngukurr Gulf of Flora River Cutta Cutta #\÷#National Roper : 4: :4: : Nature Park Caves Park Bar : : : Carpentaria : : : :Keep: : National :÷# Lim:men: 66River 6ctoria 6Park 6Mataranka 6National Park Vi R : : : Nat:ional : iver #÷ : : Timber #\ #\ Sir Edward Park #\ Larrimah : : : #–: : : Judbarra/ Alawa : : : : Pellew Group #\ Creek Victoria Gregory : : 4÷#4 )¯1 Aboriginal : : : #\ 1 River National UL )¯ Land Borroloola #\ : : Crossing Park Daly : : : : Kununurra ÷# #\ #\ U 80 Waters :#5 : )¯ 1 R Judbarra/ )¯ #\ #\ P:unga:lina :- : 44U Gregory Dunmarra #\ Top & O & National Cape Seven Emu 6666Springs 6)¯87 6 : : : Park Crawford Wildlife Sanct:uary : : Ba U Newcastle rk #\ ly : T T TBACK N #\ a 44 Waters #\ b a 4 Kalkarinji Elliott le : )¯96 l b an Lake d l #\ s e Waanyi/ Woods l Renner a n Garawa #\ Springs d s Aboriginal 44S 44 44 #\ Tarrabool Lajamanu H O t Land u 666 66Lake w 66 Karlantijpa North a RTHER d r y R t Aboriginal Land H R u a W n w n k a y E 44444 e n S m a R T j N Three E a Tanami Desert o L R a T Ways Karlantijpa #\ Tennant d N ERRIT Camooweal South Creek A 4 4444444 #\ 66U Central Desert Aboriginal )¯87 66)¯66 6 S Aboriginal Land Land Wakaya T R Aboriginal O A : : #\ #æ Devil's Land RY RY 4L 444444Wauchope 44 I T Marbles : : : #\ A a # Anurrete n Wycliffe Well Roadhouse Alpurrurulam a U Aboriginal #\ m & Holiday Park luru i #\ Barrow Land R NORTHERN 44444d TERRITORY 4Creek 4 44 #\ #\ Ampilatw6atja Uran6dangi #\ #\ & O & y Lake Mackay w r H Aboriginal Land #\Ti Tree e Red Centre # ov 44utback 4 #\ 4d 4 44 Yuendumu n Farm Sa #\ Aileron 87 )¯ D Plenty Hw y N 444 444West MacDonnell A L N Mt Zeil National Park Harts Range Atnetye S #\ (1531m) onnell Ran orthern R acD ge N #7 st M Aboriginal Kintore MacDo Ea E Haasts Bluff nnell Ran Alice E ges #]6 Land 444 Aborigina4l Land 44 # Ewaninga Rock Carvings 444U Springs Hermannsburg #\ Conservation Reserve Q #\ Watarrka ÷# ÷# Santa #÷ ÷# Teresa National Park #4 Finke T a Pmere Nyente Gorge i 444Peter4mann 44 l Rainbow Valley 4444 a erritory Kings National Aboriginal Land Lake r Conservation Aboriginal t y 66 666Park 6 Canyon s Amadeus a Reserve Land u w Erldunda A l –# i Yulara 4 #\ l a Finke #\ )¯ a r Kata Tjuta ##æ2 R 4444444t 4 44444 #÷ )¯87 (Aputula) Pmer Ulperre #æ RMt Conner n #1 #\ Uluru Uluru- (350m) e Ingwemirne Simpson Kata Tjuta C Desert H Kulgera #\ Aboriginal Land National Park ighlights 64644644664464 Uluru & Outback Northern Territory Highlights444 1 Uluru (p222) Watching waters and hiking through 6 Alice Springs (p198) the sunrise and sunset alter splendid gorge country. Shopping for Indigenous art the earth’s colour palette on 4 Kings Canyon (p216) in one of Australia’s most this strangely spiritual rock. Admiring6 one of the outback’s6 remote cities.66 2 Kata Tjuta (p224) Hiking icons, looking for wildlife. 7 West MacDonnell through the hidden valleys 5 Pungalina – Seven Emu Ranges (p209) Exploring and deep-red monoliths of Wildlife Sanctuary (p197) the dramatic escarpment the Olgas. Journeying to remote Gulf country, with its wildlife and 3 Nitmiluk National Park Country in search of wildlife. waterholes west of Alice. (p181) Swimming in croc-free .