Four Stops in Australia's Northern Territory

Getting to the Northern territory was not a very easy feat. Our little campervan decided to break down somewhere between Townsville and Cloncurry which left us stranded on the side of the road for a few hours. However, I was determined to keep going.

We somehow managed to get on a bus the next day to Mount Isa and get our bearings in order. From there, we got on another bus to Alice Springs instead of giving up and heading back home. Once in Alice Springs, we were able to collect a new and improved campervan. But anyway, you didn’t come here to read about that. You want to know what there is to do once you hit Australia’s red center. Well, here are 4 stops you definitely must make while exploring the center between Alice Springs and Uluru.

Kangaroo Sanctuary in Alice Springs

Definitely one of the best experiences I’ve ever had was heading to the beautiful Kangaroo Sanctuary. While it’s fairly easy to see kangaroos in Australia (they are everywhere!), you should still add the Kangaroo Sanctuary to your list of places to visit when you’re in the Northern Territory.

The Sanctuary was opened by Brolga, a local who started rescuing orphaned baby kangaroos and nursing them back to health and releasing them back into their habitat. However, some of them were not able to be released so they’d stay with him in his home.

The Kangaroo Sanctuary offers sunset tours where people can go, learn about becoming involved with wildlife care, meet the kangaroos and feed them. It’s an absolute magical experience getting to learn about and play with the kangaroos as the sun sets behind you. It almost felt surreal and definitely worth doing. To learn more about visiting the sanctuary, head here.

Uluru

A trip to Australia will never be complete without visiting Uluru (aka Ayers Rock). This big red rock will continue to surprise you in so many ways. No matter what day of year you visit, definitely go see it around sunrise and again at sunset. You’ll be amazed at the ever changing colours of the rock as the sun changes its settings. Although, it’s just as impressive to visit during the day, it can get really hot out there.

The beauty about visiting the rock at sunrise or sunset is there are designated areas for you to park your car and take in the beauty of the rock. However, the downside is that it can get crowded as everyone is eager to get a good spot.

There is also the choice to do the Dune Walk Lookout, which is a short 500 meter hike to the viewing area for sunrise and sunset views of both Uluru and Kata Tjuta.

Uluru Base Walk

Another highlight was the 10.6km walk around the base of Uluru. I’d recommend doing this if you have time. However, if you’re visiting during the hotter months, definitely start your hike right after sunrise. The hike will be closed off from 9am as the temperatures can reach record highs and become very dangerous for you to walk around.

Luckily for us, we did the hike in December, but the weather was very mild on that day.
During the walk, you’ll get to explore small caves where the aboriginals lived, look at watering holes and admire all the crevices and marks around the rock.

The full 10.6 km loop will take anywhere from 2 to 5 hours. Make sure you bring plenty of water and plan to be done with the hike by 11am if you do it during the summer months. If you’re looking for some shade, you won’t find any here.

Climbing Uluru

While it is allowed, I wouldn’t recommend climbing Uluru out of respect to the Aboriginal people. It is very sacred to the Aboriginal people as the climbing route is a sacred path used by the Aboriginal men on special occasions. The aboriginal people urge tourists not to climb Uluru. More so, it’s a strenuous climb in which over 35 people have died while climbing.

Kata Tjuta

While I found Uluru to be quite fascinating, I enjoyed Kata Tjuta even more. It’s located about 50kms away from Uluru. It’s another red rock formation, but definitely more like the older more colourful (characteristic) sister. If that makes sense. However, Uluru is still the more popular of the two.

Kata Tjuta offers several hiking trails. You can pick between the 2.2 km hike to Karu Lookout, the 5.4km hike to the Karingana Lookout or the entire 7.5km loop which is rated as difficult.

We felt a bit lazy that day so we opted for the shortest of the hikes which was quite beautiful and calm. Afterwards we headed to the Kata Tjuta Sunset Viewing area to watch the stunning colour changes of Kata Tjuta at sunset. It was amazing to see the many shades of red and orange as the sun went down.

For more information about the hikes and difficulty for both Uluru and Kata Tjuta, check out here.

Kings Canyon

We dedicated a whole day to exploring King’s Canyon, which is located about 300kms from Uluru or about 4 hrs by car. Again, we got really lucky with the weather this time of month so we were able to do the King’s Canyon Rim walk without any issues and extreme heat.

Located in Watarrka National Park, Kings Canyon is one of the area’s best spots for hiking. And if you’re a hiking junkie like I am, it’s definitely worth checking out if you’re in this neck of the woods. You can choose from two hikes, either the 2km hike through the canyon valley or the 6km rim walk along the upper rim of the Canyon.

Honestly, the hike on the rim was epic. It felt a bit like being on a completely different planet, maybe what I imagine it would feel like hiking on Mars. The hike begins with a 500 step climb, which is probably the most strenuous part. Once you’re at the top, you’re golden and get to enjoy the scenic views and the stunning canyon scenery.

Everything about the landscape was amazing, from the red and orange rock formations to the highlights of the green leaves on the trees all against the stunning blue sky. The walk is definitely worth it if you have some time in your schedule. The whole rim walk shouldn’t take you more than 3 hours to complete.

If you do decide to stop off at King’s Canyon, I’d suggest allocating one day to it and spending the night nearby at the King’s Canyon Resort. We camped there and the facilities were pretty nice.