Kata Tjuta

Kata Tjuta

Valley Of the Winds

Tall Mulla Mulla

 

 

 

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park

The massives of Uluru and Kata Tjuta are 50km apart and both offer a wonderful natural experience. The park enjoys world heritage status for both its natural and cultural values.
The traditional owners are the Anangu people and the park is jointly managed by them and National Parks.

Transcript from welcome video National Parks.

Narrator:
Anangu are the traditional owners of Uluru-Kata Tjuta and the land around....
they've been at this place for tens of thousands of years. They have always known that this is a very special place.

Anangu traditional owner:
Welcome to Aboriginal land. We have very significant law here on our land and we look after it properly. There is women's law and the men's law here on our land. And we look after our place properly, looking after it together. Properly holding on to our law for our children and those that come after us. When we grow old and finish up the children that will follow will continue to have it.

Narrator:
Anangu law... Tjukurpa... is the foundation of all Anangu life and society.
It's the basis of relationships between people, plants, animals and the land.

Anangu traditional owner:
We have very significant Tjukurpa here for you to see and understand. These paintings were made in the past when children didn't have any schools. They were made when everyone lived in rock shelters. We have many stories from Tjukurpa for visitors to discuss and learn about.

Narrator:
For Anangu this isn't just a rock, it's a living place. Tjukurpa and the marks of the creation beings are everywhere.
The traditional owners welcome visitors to their land, and they work with Parks Australia so that you can enjoy the park your way, whilst helping them to protect their law.
Anangu want you to learn about their land and their culture and have a safe and happy visit.

Base walk

 

 





Kings Canyon Watarrka National Park

Only 3 hours from Uluru, Kings Canyon is a majestic destination featuring 100 m-high sandstone walls, palm-filled crevices and views that stretch across the desert.
Kings Canyon features ancient sandstone walls, sculptured by the elements, rising up 100m to a plateau of rocky domes.
Lace up your walking boots and explore the 6km Rim Walk  - a must for those seeking magnificent views of the Canyon rim, the weathered domes of 'The Lost City' and the 'Garden of Eden'. There are options to suit all fitness levels.

The top of the sheer 100m climb. Time for a break. 

 ·  The Canyon Walk (6 km loop Approx. 3-4 hrs duration) This walk begins with a steep climb to the top of the Canyon, then follows the Canyon rim around before descending to the carpark. Approximately half way along the walk is the 'Garden of Eden', a delightful area of cool waterholes and riverine vegetation communities. This walk requires a medium to high level of fitness with some strenuous sections.

·  The Kings Creek Walk (2.6 km return Approx. 1 hour duration) This walk meanders along Kings Creek ending at a lookout point, then returns by the same route. It can be rough underfoot, so sturdy footwear is essential. Information signs on the Aboriginal cultural uses of the area are located at several points along the route.

Ghost gums canyon plateau

Lost City

Ancient lake bed canyon plateau

Well constructed steps to other side of canyon

Canyon floor

Garden of Eden. Great spot for a rest

Canyon walls

Friendly locals

The descent

High praise to the Northern Territory Parks Department. An exceptionally well maintained natural environment with the minimum of fussy regulations but with sufficient safety/emergency locations.

West MacDonnell Ranges.

Alice Springs is the best jumping off point to explore the West Macs ( West MacDonnell Ranges )The surrounds of Alice Springs offer a variety of options to explore and immerse yourself in the natural world of Central Australia.

The Ellery Creek Big Hole is a great place to cool off and picnic after a day's exploring the region.
Standley Chasm Angkerle Atwatye has been gouged through tough sandstone by the floods that over millions of years have surged down a narrow tributary of the Finke river system creating a deep cleft in the West MacDonnel ranges crowded out each side by craggy slopes rising 80 metres above the river bed.
The Chasm provides a dramatic colourful show any time of the day when the sheer quartzite walls glow from reflected sunlight. Artists including Albert Namatjira a well known local personality have forever been captivated by the colours and textures here.
The 1,2 km trail is a delight with spring fed pools, wildlife, wildflowers and cycads. The ghost gums provide a stark contrast to the ochre granite faces as they grow out of the crevices.

Resting place on the Standley Chasm trail

A number of scenic gaps pierce the West MacDonnell Ranges. One of these is Simpsons Gap, site of one of the most prominent waterholes in the region. The area is an important spiritual site to the Arrarnta Aboriginal people, where several dreaming trails and stories cross.  At dawn or dusk Simpsons gap it is renowned as a place to see Black-footed Rock-wallabies along the gap's short walking track. Good examples of many of the vegetation communities of the MacDonnell Ranges are found in the Simpsons Gap area, including large stands of Mulga, and the area around the gap is a major stronghold for some of the rare and relict plants of the region.

Ghost Gums

Standley Chasm

Ghost Gum

Cycads

Ellery's Creek Big Hole

Tiwi Island Aboriginal art

Tiwi Island craftsman

Tiwi Island collection by local islanders painting with traditional dyes as used through many hundred's of years.

Tiwi Island wood carvings painted using traditional methods.

Kakadu

"Earth.......like your father or brother or mother, because you are born from Earth, you got to come back to Earth. When you dead....That's your bone, your blood. It's the Earth.

My people....not many. We are getting too old.

Young people....I don't know if they can hang on to this story.

You responsible now. You got to go with us to Earth. Might be you can hang on to this story to this Earth."
.......Bill Neidjie.

Bill Neidjie and other traditional owners of Kakadu have leased their lands to the Commonwealth government of Australia to be managed as a national park for everybody to
care for and enjoy.

The name 'Kakadu' comes from an Aboriginal floodplain language called Gagudju. Although this language is no longer spoken descendants of this group still live in Kakadu. Aboriginal languages spoken in Kakadu include Kunwinjku, Gun-djeihmi and Jawoyn
Covering 20,000 square km World Heritage listed Kakadu is a timeless place with a landscape varying from floodplains that are abundant with wildlife to rocky escarpments.
At Ubirr on the Arnhem land border in the Northern sector you can view ancient Aboriginal rock art dating back thousands of years. Climb to the top of the escarpment to take in the stunning views of the surrounding wetlands.
Nourlangie Rock is another sacred site and the rock art here, in what must be one of the world’s oldest open air art galleries, looks as new as when it was painted thousands of years ago. Take your time at these two sites and allow the ancient spirit of these special places and the meaning of the art guide you through a journey into the past.

GALLERY



Mimi spirits were the first of the Creation Ancestors to paint on rock. They taught some Bininji how to paint. At the end of their journeys some Creation Ancestors put themselves on rock walls as paintings and became djang (dreaming places). Some of these paintings are andjamun (sacred and dangerous) and can only be seen by senior men and women, other paintings can be seen by all people.



Kakadu's rock art (gunbim) represents one of the longest historical records of any group of people anywhere in the world.
Bininji/Mungguy artists continue to paint on bark, paper, canvas and fabric.
More than 5,000 art sites tell of the Creation Ancestors and the changes in the landscape over thousands of years.

Kakadu is a unique place and the lush beauty of the wetlands are astounding. Hidden in the wooded landscape is an array of rivers and billabongs and when you come across them you are captivated by the beauty and life that they support. Tall tropical palms, mangroves, pandanus trees, ferns and giant lotus lilies
Crocodiles inhabit these waters and swimming in the crystal clear streams and pools is strictly forbidden but boat cruises can be taken the most famous of these being cruises on the Yellow Water billabong where you will be rewarded with sightings of crocodiles and a large array of natural wildlife along the shores like the jabirus, sea eagles, egrets and jacanas to name a few.
YELLOW WATERS